The Billionaire's Contracted Mistress

Chapter Four- Persuasion and Guilt

No matter how hard she tried, Holly could not bring herself to think of anyone but Parker. No matter the fantasy in her mind or thought that she tried to distract herself with, they always somehow came back to him. Maybe it was the “what if” of the situation now behind her or the fact she had never seen someone as attractive as him-but she truly felt as though she had made some kind of mistake. It nearly drove her insane as she made her way to her father’s hospital room. Having been so used to going to room 345 which had been his room for the past five years, she moved in that direction without thought-lingering in the doorway and now seeing another patient occupy the space that he once claimed as his own. She then quickly turned in the hall and remembered where her father was located before passing several individuals who had some of the features similar to Parker. She wanted to scream out loud for the universe and her mind to get on the same page as she didn’t want his guilty hand-out. The fact he offered that amount of money for her was insane as it was, but for it to have been from someone of his inquiry, she couldn’t stomach being a s*x slave. Which without pretty little words to cover it, that is what it had made her feel like.

This thought remained in the front of her mind as she entered the room her father was in and found him as lively as he had ever looked. He was even sitting up in a nearby chair-still hooked up to his machines, but sitting up in something other than a bed. A doctor, someone who wasn’t Doctor Darrow, had been in the middle of taking his vitals when she walked in. He was an older gentleman who was in a deep conversation with her father as they seemed to be speaking of something from her father’s days in the military.

“Here is my beautiful daughter,” He began, introducing her this way to absolutely anyone he could. “Holly, this is Doctor Jeremiah.”

“Please, Hugh, it’s James.” He then extended his hand to Holly as she shook it gratefully as tears were on the verge of being released. She had not seen her father mobile in nearly half a decade, with his illness having made walking difficult as well as speaking and even smiling-but he now seemed better than ever. Even before this illness had taken his body.

“Whatever guardian angel did this for us, I owe them my life, Holly…” Her father spoke as she felt as if a million daggers made their way towards her heart. Perhaps it was a mix of guilt for knowing her father was gaining his health back and the fact she wanted Parker, but it was a feeling that twisted her heart into the point of actual chest pain. A tear managed to escape down her cheek as she quickly wiped it away before her father had a chance to see her getting upset over him again. “Look at this!” He spoke in an ecstatic tone as he bent down and touched his toes-rather shakily, but having succeeded in doing so nonetheless. With his frail frame, it was incredible to even see a bit of muscle now upon his body as he was nearly skeletal before. It was amazing the color that had filled his cheeks and the muscle now forming on his body as she hadn’t seen him like this in so very long. It was almost too much for her as she excused herself into the nearby bathroom and hung over the sink as she could no longer repress her tears.

While they flowed down her cheeks, she managed to lift her gaze up just enough to see her disastrous appearance. She had dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, an untamed set of locks, makeup that had been secondhand from the day before, and finally a slight pale hue to her skin that would usually be present with a light spring blush. Everything had now been stripped of her as she was so stressed between Parker and her father that she had no time to manage herself. Feeling incapable of leaving while looking like this, she quickly rushed her hair from its horribly placed ponytail and used a bit of water to style it to appear a bit more elegant. She then used the water from the faucet once more as she wiped away the remnants of her makeup and took one final look to appear a bit more rested-if anything. She then removed a clear lip gloss from her purse and placed it over her chapped mouth before looking back once more, feeling a bit more at ease with her appearance now. However, as she lingered within the bathroom, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Taking it out, she saw it was simply a piece of junk email from signing up for free magazines to bring to her father, but upon doing so, had accidentally caused his business card to fall onto the floor. Picking it up to view, she hesitated in thought before pulling her phone’s dial pad up and typing in the numbers. When the entire number read out in full in front of her, she let out a sigh as the sight of her father being happy was forced back into her mind. She thought of the small sacrifice she would have to make when it came to Parker, one that wasn’t exactly something that would be placed on her without its perks. Parker was handsome, successful, caring, giving, and available to her-but she feared that maybe she had already burned that bridge.

To test it, she called up his place of employment, recognizing the woman’s voice on the other end to be the girl she spoke to before.

“Hammond Enterprises, how may I direct your call?”

“This is Holly Blaire-”

“Miss Blaire! I wanted to apologize first hand for my treatment of you earlier. I was completely in the wrong and hope you can accept my sincere apologies.”

“Of course. It was just a simple misunderstanding.” She then lowered her voice as the woman spoke again.

“You just saved my job, thank you.” She then paused for another brief moment before continuing with her said job. “Do you need me to send you to his phone-”

“Actually, I uh…” She paused, trying to find the best way to do this as she feared that if she had damaged things that he might turn her away, so she lied through her teeth, hoping her tone and words were believable enough. “I actually wanted to surprise him.”

“Of course. He said anything you need, I am responsible for making a reality. What time were you thinking of coming in?”

She looked to the clock on her phone before looking back in the direction of her father. “An hour?”

“Perfect! He will be finishing up in a meeting.”

“Oh, and please don’t tell him I’m coming, like I said, I would like to surprise him.”

“Of course! You will have a badge waiting for you in the lobby.”

“Thank you.”

“No, thank you.” An awkward silence fell over the phone as Holly finally hung up and returned to her father’s side. He noticed the difference in her expression as her heavy eyes had now perked up along with her frown. Although she wasn’t smiling like the Joker after learning he beat Batman, she had a look of true contentment. One caused by knowing that she got to see Parker again, speak to him about deal they were about to join in together. She remained with her father until he became tired and the time for visiting was coming to a close. She quickly returned home, knowing she would make it just on time if she were to hurry and find an outfit-however, this would be easier said than done as she had never dressed for a billionaire before. Let alone, one that had given her such an opportunity. She quickly rifled through her clothes, having hangers click together with her rapid movements, before finding a set of three different dresses. Each one was a different style. One was a short summer dress that her mother bought her for graduation before she left, another was a floor length gown more fit for a fundraiser, and the final one was a type of dress one would wear in an office.

Deciding on the final one, she quickly slid a pair of nude colored stockings over her legs and brought up her zipper to close the back as she looked into the mirror. With nothing more than her minimal lip gloss, she opted for something a bit more daring and gave herself a cateye that she perfected at fifteen after watching online tutorials for hours at a time. She then set her hair with loose curls and looked as though she was interviewing for a position at his place of work, not signing a s*x contract.

With a deep breath, she ventured into the Uber she called before hand with her purse at her side and a deep look of desperation and fear in her eyes. She spoke to herself on what she would say to him as the driver of the car had given her glances as if she was crazy. She didn’t care, however, as she was too focused on her words. She imagined speaking to him with aggressiveness, with leniency, and finally, with desperation.

When the car finally came to a stop, she noticed she was already twenty minutes late and quickly moved to the front counter, hoping to beat him into his office and get the upper hand. As she grabbed her visitor’s badge, having been present with a picture she knew she didn’t give them, she rushed to the elevator and began to hit the button a million times before the doors finally dinged open.

She hopped inside, climbing to the top floor and there to see another young lady at the desk. She noticed how she was rather plain looking with nothing more for makeup than chapstick and a bit of blush. She was dressed in a pristine gray and black office skirt and blouse and smiled while looking up to Holly.

“Miss Blaire, his office is just down the hall, the double doors at the end.” She spoke as she pointed Holly on the right corridor as they both looked identical. However, at the end of this one had been his office. She nervously ventured down the hallway, wondering of the conversations going on and which room he was currently in. When making it to his office doors, she pulled them open to find a large office that overlooked the ocean. Boats were sailing in the distance and the sight of those who stood at her feet were nearly microscopic as she began to feel dizzy in knowing she was this high. She fell back onto the couch in his office and decided to remain put until he would enter.

Once more, she ran through the scenarios in her mind. She imagined how he would react in seeing her. Would he grab her into him and thank her for coming back or would he turn her away with no interest in seeing her whatsoever. The ladder nearly broke her into pieces as he was her only hope to ease her father and give him the medical devices needed to try and heal him-if not, then at least to lessen the pain.

She reminded herself why she had been here as she stood up with her feet giving every indication that she wanted to leave. Her legs began to walk in the direction of the door as it suddenly came open.

“Matilda, I am sorry to keep-” He then looked up to Holly, not recognizing her for a minute before the door closed behind him and he gave her his undivided attention. Very carefully, he remained in place as she stood up to greet him-nervous to his thoughts as his expression didn’t give any indication of this. His eyes scanned her entire physique as he had been blown away by her presence-although she was still unsure what this meant for her, or more importantly-for her father.