Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 78850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
I sat in a café near the coast, watching all the yachts and sailboats in the beautiful blue sea. When I looked up Cauldron online, I saw lots of pictures of him, and most of them were of him standing on a yacht, shirtless, with tanned girls in bikinis around him. As if the guy didn’t already have everything, he was sexy as sin. Tall, dark, and handsome. His unbuttoned shirt revealed a hard body defined by a religious dedication to his workouts.
I literally rolled my eyes as I swiped through his pictures, seeing a man on top of the world.
I knew I was just jealous…but still.
The odds of him helping me just got slimmer.
As I looked through the pictures, I realized he was always on the same yacht, meaning he didn’t rent it.
He owned it.
“I bet that’s where he is…” I paid for my coffee and headed straight for the docks.
Day after day, I waited for his yacht to dock with all the other yachts.
They were basically luxury hotels that floated on water. Some of them had helicopters parked on top. Actual helicopters. It was common to see a car full of pretty girls pull up to the yacht first and break out the champagne, the billionaire showing up a couple hours later, ready to party on the open ocean.
It was a life I would never know.
Finally, I recognized his yacht. It approached the dock, pure white and beautiful, looking like a cruise ship more than a personal boat. It was midday when it arrived, and it took a bit of time for the captain to position the boat so the men below could secure it in place.
They dropped the ramp from the yacht to the dock, so the girls could walk off, pulling their luggage behind them, their wraps covering bikinis underneath. In their sun hats and sunglasses, they looked as if they weren’t quite ready for the vacation to end.
Couldn’t blame them.
I took the opportunity to walk up the ramp and step foot on the yacht. There were several sitting areas, the furniture pristine white like no one had spilled a drink during the voyage or no one had ever sat there. The thing had to be three full floors, at least.
Cauldron finally emerged, only the top button of his shirt undone, his sunglasses hanging in the opening. He was in dark trousers and boots, like the vacation had ended the second the yacht pulled into the harbor. He didn’t notice me right away, probably dismissing me as a member of the staff because I wasn’t wearing a thong bikini and top that barely contained my boobage.
“Cauldron.”
He turned at the sound of his name, and once his eyes were on me, everything changed.
I couldn’t feel the sea air against my skin, couldn’t feel the heat pressed up against me, didn’t notice the gentle waves smacking against the hull over the edge. His stare was so powerful that it stole my entire focus.
He halted as those dark eyes stared into mine, brimming with both intelligence and annoyance. It took less than a few seconds for him to figure out exactly who I was, to deduce that I was the same woman who wouldn’t stop trespassing on his property. He drew closer, taking his time, utterly calm despite the provocation.
“I’m sorry to show up like this—”
His movements were so fast that I couldn’t anticipate them. His hand grabbed me by the throat and squeezed me so hard I choked. Cold metal from a barrel suddenly pressed through my hair and into my scalp, digging into the flesh. Then I heard the cock of the gun. “Was my butler unclear?”
I gripped his wrist and struggled to breathe, my feet almost off the floor because he’d lifted me with that powerful arm.
“You think I won’t shoot you because you’re a woman?” His nose was close to mine, his handsome face stern with ferocity. “I will blow your fucking brains out and toss your body overboard, you understand me?” He squeezed harder, officially choking me. “My staff will spray the bits of your brain off my deck, and your former idiocy will be chum in the water.” He finally released my throat so I could take a breath, but the barrel was moved to my cheek, digging deep into the flesh. “Understand?”
I heaved for air, my lungs screaming from the lack of oxygen.
“Answer me.” He kept his hold on my neck but allowed me to breathe.
It was a stupid thing to say, but I said it anyway. “You aren’t going to shoot me in public.”
“You don’t think so?” Out of nowhere, he backhanded me. Hit me so hard I stumbled backward across the deck.
I got to my feet quickly, ignoring the sting in my cheek. When I rounded on him, I was the one who was furious. “Asshole, I just want to talk to you—”