The Missing Billionaire Read online

  The Missing Billionaire

  Billionaires Find Love

  Christine Kersey

  Contents

  Note to Readers

  Book Description

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Epilogue

  Books by Christine Kersey

  About the Author

  Note to Readers

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  Book Description

  Missing and presumed dead, when billionaire Nathan Hewitt is rescued from a deserted island a year after his yacht disappeared, everyone is thrilled.

  Except Chloe James.

  Chloe has been best friends with Nathan for years—and has crushed on him just as long—but her sister died on that cruise and she holds him responsible. Wanting nothing to do with him, when she is forced to work with him she will have to come to grips with the emotions roiling within her.

  Nathan is desperate to earn back Chloe’s friendship and her forgiveness, but when she rebuffs him at every turn he has to do something drastic. Will she find it in her heart to forgive him or will their relationship be destroyed for good?

  Chapter One

  On the hunt for the perfect couch for her design client, Chloe leaned closer to the screen of her laptop, resting her forearms on her desk as she scrolled through the website of a furniture store. Completely focused on her search, when her cell phone rang, she startled. The caller ID said it was Hannah, her best friend. Ready for a break, Chloe smiled as she picked up her phone and swiped to answer. “Hey there.”

  “Are you watching the news?”

  Tilting her head as if Hannah could see her, she said, “Of course not. I’m working.”

  “Turn on the news.”

  The request was strange—Hannah knew Chloe didn’t have time to watch TV at work. Still, there must be a reason. Holding back a sigh, Chloe asked, “Which channel?”

  “All of them. Any of them.” Hannah almost seemed out of breath.

  What in the world could be so important that all the news channels would be covering it? And what would have Hannah so agitated? “Okay. Hang on.”

  Curious to find out what was going on, Chloe pulled up the website of her favorite news channel where they were broadcasting live. Her eyes widened and her mouth fell open, then she turned up the volume.

  “…calling it a miracle,” the news anchor was saying. “The heir to Hewitt Consolidated, billionaire Nathan Hewitt, who has been missing and presumed dead for over a year, has been found.”

  Chloe’s ears began to buzz and her vision went to pinpoints.

  “Chloe?” Hannah said. “Are you there?”

  Her phone slipped out of her hand and landed softly on the carpeted floor.

  Finding it hard to catch her breath, Chloe squeezed her eyes closed and focused on the air going in and out of her lungs.

  Breathe, Chloe. Breathe. In and out. In and out.

  When she had gathered herself, she opened her eyes, her gaze skittering back to the news broadcast.

  The words the news anchor was saying about Nathan—marooned on a deserted island after his yacht had sunk, rescued by men on a fishing boat—barely slid into Chloe’s brain. All the while she stared at the screen as it showed Nathan. Not the stock photo the news stations had shown when he and his yacht had gone missing one year earlier. No. This was a live shot of the man who was responsible for the death of Chloe’s sister. And he looked fine. Okay, maybe he was a little thinner. But still, he was alive. Unlike Lisa.

  Fury, powerful and swift, slammed through Chloe, replacing the shock she’d felt moments before. At the same time, she was stunned that Nathan had been found. And if she was honest with herself, she was a tiny bit relieved as well.

  Growing up, she and her younger sister Lisa had been best friends with Nathan, hanging out all the time. But one year earlier, when Chloe and Nathan were twenty-three and Lisa was twenty-two, Nathan had decided to take an extended trip on his family’s yacht. A cruise to celebrate his college graduation. And he’d asked Lisa to go with him. Only Lisa. Chloe had crushed on Nathan for years, so when he’d chosen her sister—a girl who was all about having a good time rather than having any kind of relationship—Chloe had been jealous. And hurt. Why hadn’t he invited her? Then again, it made sense. Nathan and Lisa were two peas in a pod. So alike that it only made sense that he’d chosen her.

  But then the yacht had vanished. Several weeks later, after an extensive search, the yacht—and Lisa’s body—had been found. The body of the yacht’s captain had been found as well. Both deaths were due to drowning, and when Nathan’s body hadn’t been found, everyone had assumed he’d drowned as well.

  Now though, seeing Nathan walking off of a plane, perfectly intact while her sister’s remains were buried in the cold ground, Chloe wanted to storm over to the Hewitt mansion and confront Nathan. But the thought of facing him also sent her heart into a painful gallop and she knew she wasn’t ready to see the man whose face she had never been able to get out of her mind.

  This was nothing like Nathan had imagined. He’d thought he would be ecstatic to come home, but as he walked inside his parents’ house accompanied by his hovering mother and stoic father, all he felt was guilt. And when he saw their staff—chef, housekeeper, driver, gardener—all lined up to greet him, he just felt awkward.

  “Welcome home, Nathan,” his mother said as tears filled her eyes. “I never thought I’d have the opportunity to say those words again.”

  Focusing on his parents, Nathan pushed a smile onto his lips. “I never thought I’d hear those words.” He drew his mother into a warm embrace. “It’s good to be home.” The lie tasted bitter on his tongue.

  “We left your room just as it was,” his mother said after he released her.

  Nodding, he kept the smile plastered on his face.

  “I just couldn’t…” his mother began, then she pressed her lips together and shook her head. “Well, it doesn’t matter now. All that matters is that you’re home. Safe and sound.”

  Which was more than could be said of Lisa. But that wasn’t something he could think about just then.

  Nathan glanced toward the staircase that led up to his wing of the mansion before facing his parents. “I’m going to head up, if that’s all right.”

  “Whatever you’d like,” his mother said.

  With a final nod toward his parents—parents he’d missed very much—he began walking toward the staircase.

  “Dinner will be served at seven,” his mother called after him.

  The thought of someone cooking for him, waiting on him… It was something he’d gone without for the last year and it was something he didn’t think he deserved. “Right.”

  When he entered his bedroom, it was as if time had stopped. He’d been living away from home while going to college, so this room reflected his high school years. The room was spacious—too spacious. Without c
onsciously making the decision, he walked over to his closet and stepped inside.

  This is better.

  The closet was bigger than the cave he’d been living in on the island, but the cave hadn’t had rows and rows of clothes on hangers. Still, his closet felt familiar.

  With a heavy sigh, he sank to the floor and stretched out his legs, then he closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall.

  An image of Lisa James filled his mind. Guilt swiftly followed. Guilt for surviving when she hadn’t. Guilt that he’d taken her from her family. Guilt that he could never make it up to them.

  He desperately wished Lisa hadn’t come on that cruise.

  And now he would have to face Chloe.

  Chapter Two

  It had been just over a week since Chloe had heard about Nathan’s return, and ever since seeing him on television, she’d struggled to get him out of her head. Hard as she tried, she kept seeing his face—when she fell asleep, when she woke up, when she was working. She needed to talk to him, needed to get her feelings off of her chest. Needed to stop wasting so much mental energy on Nathan Hewitt.

  An hour later, Chloe found herself turning her car onto the street that ran in front of the Hewitt’s Los Angeles residence. Catching a glimpse of the mansion through the trees that surrounded the grounds, Chloe felt her heart going into overdrive. The last time she’d been there she had been looking for Lisa. And that was when she’d found out that Lisa had gone with Nathan on the cruise.

  Chloe hadn’t been back since.

  A gaggle of paparazzi stood smack dab in front of the imposing gate. Unsure now if she wanted to traverse the group, she slowed. All eyes turned to her and a split second later she knew they’d recognized her—the sister of the girl who had died on the Hewitt’s yacht.

  The horde of photographers turned their cameras on her and Chloe panicked, stomping on the gas pedal as she zoomed past the Hewitt’s mansion.

  Frustrated that she hadn’t been able to complete her mission, Chloe frowned, then drove back to her condo.

  Monday morning, Nathan woke early—he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep since the day he’d washed up on that deserted island. And after working out in his family’s extensive home gym, he showered before going into the kitchen where the Hewitt’s chef, Bernie, made him an omelet and toast.

  After the herculean effort he’d had to make each and every day on the island to find food, it was beyond surreal to be able to ask for a delicious meal and have it appear in front of him as if by magic. Shoving down the sense of unreality that swept over him, Nathan took his breakfast out onto the wide back patio that had a wonderful view of green mountains, settling into one of the lounge chairs. Growing up in this house in the hills above Los Angeles, he’d always found the solitude of the backyard soothing. But not anymore. Not after being completely alone for an entire year.

  Gritting his teeth, he stared at the tranquil view in an attempt to force himself to come to grips with being home, being back in society, being back to a normal life. But his life would never be normal. Not just because he was the only heir to a billion-dollar corporation that his father had started—he’d accepted that as normal when he was a small child. No. It was the notoriety he’d earned by being presumed dead before being found by a wayward fishing vessel. Nathan would be forever grateful to those men who had noticed his frantic attempts to get their attention and had taken the time to investigate the huge bonfire on a small island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

  That ocean had tried to kill him, but he’d survived. He had to remember that.

  “Do you think you’re ready to come in to the office?” Nathan’s father asked as he joined him on the veranda, sitting in an adjacent chair.

  Pushing aside his memories, Nathan turned to his father with a small smile. He’d been stewing in his memories, stewing in his guilt, since he’d gotten home. But it was time to man-up, time to work for a living. Even if that living was beyond ridiculous. He’d always enjoyed the perks of being the son of a billionaire, but having every single thing taken away from him, being forced to survive by his very wits, had changed him. Made him appreciate all that he had. There was no way he’d sit around all day, mooching off of his parents. He’d finished college, had earned an MBA, and now he would put it to use.

  “Yeah,” he said with a nod. “I think I am.”

  His father smiled. “Good. Dimitri will drive you when you’re ready.”

  “I’m going to drive myself.”

  His father’s eyebrows shot up. “You may need to renew your license.”

  Nathan’s lips quirked up. “Because the DMV thinks I’m dead?”

  His father laughed. “Yes.”

  The earlier sense of unreality returned, but he forced a smile. “Right.”

  Standing, his father said, “I’m heading to the office now. I’ll see you when you get there.”

  With a nod, Nathan turned back to his breakfast.

  Chloe couldn’t help it. On her way to work in downtown Los Angeles Monday morning, she made a slight detour to drive past the headquarters of Hewitt Consolidated. As she drove by, her gaze slid to the people entering the tall building. Was she looking for Nathan? Maybe, although she had no idea what she would do if she actually saw him. Didn’t matter because there was no sign of him.

  With a gentle sigh, she drove to work.

  After a busy morning, Chloe was ready for a break. Wanting to get away from the office and needing to stretch her legs, when lunchtime rolled around, she walked to a nearby deli. Taking her time eating her chicken salad sandwich, she let her thoughts roam freely, but like they always did lately, they ended up on Nathan.

  Maybe she would try his house again after work. Even if paparazzi were outside. Or maybe she wouldn’t. Maybe she would come up with some sort of peaceful image to call up whenever Nathan’s face jumped into her head. Yeah, that could work.

  Closing her eyes, she visualized a sunny meadow overflowing with wildflowers, then she imagined walking through it, her hands outstretched as she ran her fingers along the soft blossoms, the heat of the sun warming her upturned face as the fragrant flowers filled her nose. Ah yes, that was better.

  Then a familiar voice filled her mind. Why was Nathan in her meadow? She focused on his words: Yes. A meatball sub with potato salad on the side.

  Chloe’s eyes shot open, then zoomed to the deli counter where she saw Nathan Hewitt ordering lunch. His back was to her, but there was no mistaking his identity. The perfectly tailored suit clung to him in all the right places, and then he turned sideways and she took in his profile—strong jaw with a closely trimmed beard, short brown hair, full lips that she remembered fantasizing about kissing…

  She shook her head. She couldn’t think about him in those terms. Not when she thought about Lisa, her baby sister. About how she would never see her again.

  Even so, Chloe couldn’t tear her gaze away from Nathan, and when he finished ordering, he turned and scanned the room.

  Their eyes met.

  Chapter Three

  Nathan sucked in a breath as his eyes widened. There sat the last person he’d expected to see on the first day that he’d ventured out of the sanctuary of his parents’ home. Chloe James. Who looked so much like her sister. The guilt that Nathan had been carrying for the last year crashed over him like a block of ice.

  “Sir,” the man behind the counter said to him. “Sir, your lunch.”

  His mind racing, Nathan turned back to the counter. He needed to talk to Chloe, needed to apologize, needed to explain. Needed to express his deepest regrets. But what if she spit in his face? They’d been best friends. Before. But now? Now, she must hate him, must blame him for her sister’s death. And she was right. It was his fault Lisa had been on the cruise with him. He should have kept her safe, but he hadn’t.

  Even so, he needed to talk to Chloe. He owed her that much.

  He paid for his meal, collected his tray, then gathered his nerve to face Chloe. He t
urned around, ready to approach her table and speak to her, but all he saw was an empty chair. His gaze shot to the door just in time to see her hustling out the exit.

  She didn’t want to talk to him. That much was crystal clear. But he needed to talk to her. He would track her down and reach out.

  "You are such a chicken.”

  The words slipped out of Chloe’s mouth in a whisper as she practically ran back to the design firm.

  Nathan had been right there and she’d fled the moment she’d seen him. What had happened to her determination to let him have a piece of her mind? To let him know how much hurt he’d caused and how much she hated him?

  I’m just not ready, okay?

  Her phone rang in her purse. Startled, she nearly gasped. What if it was Nathan?

  Hand shaking, she dug around in her purse until she came up with her phone. When she saw Hannah’s name on her screen she exhaled an audible sigh of relief.

  “Hey, girl,” Hannah said as if everything was normal.

  “Hey.” Chloe’s voice was tight. Even she could hear it.

  “What’s wrong? You sound upset.”

  She was almost back to the office but she didn’t want her co-workers to hear her business. Stopping where she was, she saw a bus stop with an empty bench nearby. Walking briskly toward it, she glanced around to make sure she was alone, then she sat on the bench. She crossed one leg over the other, then grimaced. “Guess who I nearly ran into?”