The Millionaire's Secret - jewel crotan (classic reads .TXT) 📗

along with those things as well, but not with him. Adam brought out a better side of her.

 Once he was gone, she hastily changed, and packed a bag. Turning over her shoulder to make sure the door was really closed, she opened her makeup drawer and shoved a pack of syringes and bottles into her bag. If Adam was going to be squeamish about her getting dressed, he certainly wouldn’t approve of a drug habit. And while his upscale parties were fun in their own way, she certainly didn’t call them a wild night to remember. The parties she went to involved drinking until you fell down, and strangers feeling your body, making you feel on top of the world. It was an aspect of herself she knew he was not impressed with, and yet he was drawn to her all the same. She enjoyed wearing a new ball gown just as much as a mini skirt. Playing characters was a part of Behati’s life, as much as breathing or sleeping. And when you were a performer, playing a character never stopped.

 Adam was waiting for her outside, saying hello to some of the ballerinas he used to know well. On his first trip to Latvia, he had been a patron of the company, and his name still appeared in the program now and again.

 “Ah, lovely,” he said, as she came out. “All packed? Or do we need to stop somewhere first?”

 “Let’s blow this joint,” she replied, happy to have some time off work, even if it was for annoying circumstances. Spending a month going through paper work with Adam was going to be an annoying legal battle and a boring time. Despite the fact that she had made it clear she didn’t want any of his money, or any of his things, they would still have to battle it in court, seeing as neither of them had signed a prenup. His retirement fund would be automatically split up, unless they submitted a specific court order to not do it. It was stupid, in her eyes, but that was part of divorcing without a prenuptial, apparently. And spending a month in a mansion of well to do Londoners who preferred whiskey to beer was not her idea of a good time either. She didn’t think she could ever live with Adam, even if their marriage was real. And he probably felt the same way, embarrassed even now as her sweat shirt was belly bearing and her skinny jeans were tight enough to be leggings. But still, he took her arm, heading for the front door, as her colleagues waved goodbye.

 “I have a car waiting,” he said. “Straight to the airport, unless you prefer to stop?”

 “No. I’ve got everything. You didn’t really come across the ocean to escort me home, you sneak,” she said, once they were in the back seat of the limo. “What were you doing in Latvia?”

 “Ah,” he smiled tightly, as the limo driver started. “Taking care of some of my mother’s affairs. She’s decided it’s time to see her sons again, and so she’ll be staying in America in the family home.”

 “Your mother?” she raised an eyebrow. The boys did not particularly get along with their mother. When their father died, Adam had taken over as head of the family, and CEO of the company. Although he respected his mother, he often saw her as an interference. “Well, that should be fun. And what am I to be?”

 “A friend,” he said, as the car drove onto the highway, the driver silent behind the screen. “For are you not that, always, if nothing else?”

 She smiled at him, brushing a lock of red hair out of her face. They were such different people, but they could always find common ground.

 “Yes, I am that,” she said, crossing her long legs. “That should be fun. Shall we share a room too?”

 He snorted at that.

 “We may be grown, my brothers and I, but my mother is quite the traditionalist. I trust the guest bed room will suit you quite well.”  “Sure,” she said, leaning against the window. “It’s not like we’re married.”

 He was silent on that, and she watched the snow fall in the night sky. In a few weeks, for the first time in her adult life, she wouldn’t be married. Would it make a difference at all?

 Adam watched his wife as they drove through the downtown core, on their way to the airport. She looked so young and innocent tonight, and so very tired. Her insistence to clear up this mess had made him hesitant, it was not the best time for him or his family. And she always thought him so good, so above her. Would she think the same when she found out what they did? chapter two

 Behati had never met Adam’s family before, although she had heard him speak often of them. There was Rick, his Irish twin brother, 11 months younger, who he was the closest to. Rick helped Adam the most with the company, up until recently. A history of depression had left Adam alone to do even the smallest tasks, and she could see it was weighing on him. Tall and thin, with hair in his eyes, Rick actually looked older than his brother, and regarded her silently when he was introduced.

 Liam, the middle child, seemed to look nothing like this, aside from the lanky hips. This, Adam explained, was because he was the child of a different man, an affair that had caused several fights between his parents, for obvious reasons. He was pale, with red hair, and a twinkle about his eyes. Liam was known for his temper, and Adam had warned her to stay out of his way. But Behati had her own way with people, and blurted out the first thing that came to her mind when she met him.

 “Holy crap, you’re stunning, aren’t you?”

 Liam grinned.

 “You’re not so bad yourself, darling,” he said, and Behati tossed her hair.

 “So they say.”

 The youngest of the bunch, a surprise baby, was Keith, a spunky 16 year old who seemed to be delighted by everything.

 “You’re famous, aren’t you? Do you know Brad Pitt?” he asked, and Behati laughed.

 “I don’t, because he’s not a dancer. I do know Natalie Portman, does that interest you?”

 “Greatly,” Keith wiggled his eyebrows. “Especially if you have her phone number.”

 “Such a warm reception, and the lady has yet to take off her coat,” Adam said, shoving through the door with bags.

 She had been in the mansion before, although at the time, she had been alone with Adam, and most of their clothes had ended up on the floor before she reached this point in the hallway. Her body tingled thinking about re-enacting that scene. She wouldn’t have minded an audience, either, but Adam seemed to have other plans.

 “Where is mother?” he asked, and Rick shrugged.

 “She left on Tuesday to deal with the Colorado sector. She said she’d be back ‘when she’s back.”

 “Always informative. Colorado has not said a word to me,” Adam grumbled. “So I suspect she’s not there at all. And how are you?” he asked his brother. “Alright?”

 “Surviving,” Rick grunted, as the boys moved aside to let Behati hang up her coat.

 “Are you a super whiz at DDR, then?” Keith asked her. “Since you’re a dancer?”

 “I’ve never played,” she replied, with a shrug. “I imagine I’ll probably suck at it though.”

 “Can we let Behati upstairs?” Adam asked. “We’ve just had a long plane ride. Too long, thanks to delays.”

 “Did you expect us to control the airports too, Adam?” Liam asked, leaning against the counter. Adam grinned.

 “Eventually. I’m sure that was a dream of Father’s as well.”

 “I wouldn’t mind a video game,” Behati said, to answer Keith, who was waiting like a puppy dog. “I just need a shower first.”

 “Coffee, love?” Adam asked, and she shook her head.

 “Nah, I’ll be fine. The water will wake me up,” she said, thumping up the stairs, remembering a grand shower just to the left of the staircase. Once upstairs, the interest in the new person disappeared, and Liam and Keith melted into other parts of the house. Only then, that they were alone, did Rick speak again to Adam.

 “10 years, hmm?”

 “10 years,” Adam said, watching Behati disappear up the stairs. “I can’t say it has been a nightmare. It certainly won’t be a traditional divorce.”

 “Well, it wasn’t a traditional marriage, either,” Rick replied, and Adam glanced up sharply.  “Please, don’t tell the others. If Behati and I have our way, we can dissolve this as quietly as it was made. She is no longer in need of my citizenship nor my name. And I would like her name cleared o the family before we venture into…other things,” he glanced at Rick knowingly. “For her own protection.”

 “Another man would think you love this girl, Adam,” Rick said and his brother glared at him.

 “Don’t be ridiculous. It was convenient, at the time,” he said. “Marrying Behati made her very grateful, if you know what I mean.”

 “I see,” Rick replied, glancing at the clock on the wall. “We’re do on a conference call in 5 minutes.”

 “Right,” Adam followed his brother to the office. He was tired and jet lagged, but for the Katz’s, business never stopped, especially as they took on a new venture.

 Once upstairs, in the privacy of the bathroom, Behati took out her overnight kit, and unzipped the pocket. She filled the syringe half way and smacked the vein in her arm a few times. The plane ride was long and she wasn’t sure she would make it into the house without twitching. And as much as Adam tolerated her life style, she was pretty sure that he wasn’t going to tolerate a drug addiction. It was even something she wasn’t proud of herself. But what was wrong with feeling good once in awhile?

 Her shower felt blissful after her fix, the water running over her body, relaxing her tight muscles.

 She stepped out when she felt like her skin would burn, and dressed in a thigh skimming cotton dress, that left little to the imagination. She left her hair down, in waves around her face, and he did her makeup. Even off stage, there was a mask to wear, a character to embody, someone she needed to be. Performing since she was a child, Behati didn’t know who she was without character.

 A month without performing would be the longest she had ever spent off a stage since she was 12 years old. It was going to be blissful, and yet, strange, that no one would be staring at her every moment, that no rehearsals would start at done, and the hair and makeup would all be her own.

 Downstairs, the voices of the Katz brothers were coming from different parts of the house. She could hear Rick and Adam on a call in the office, and Keith laughing at the video game in the living room. Liam was nowhere to be heard, and she wondered where the most beautiful of the brothers had gone off to.

 Her skin still tingling,