Mr. Mitchell Billionaires' Club Book 2 - Raylin Marks Page 0,12

hotel, and speed-walked through the streets of London, not knowing where I was headed or when I’d stop. I needed to fucking run through a field of daisies or some happy shit like that. Instead, these historic buildings that once captivated all of my attention were starting to close in on me. Fuck. I was going to burst into tears if I didn’t get these feelings shaken off.

A river, a beautiful flowing river. I walked toward it and stared into nature, pulling the water in different directions. The crowd surrounding me was becoming too much, so I pulled my hair into a ponytail. I was losing my shit, and there was no stopping it. Tears started streaming down my face as I twisted and turned to get out of there. I should have gotten up earlier. I should have started my morning off with a grueling workout. Instead, I didn’t.

Once I was down the road away from the crowd, my heart rate finally slowed into a regular rhythm, and that’s only because I was coming off of the adrenaline high my body spiked into for no reason. Well, there was a reason, but I usually dealt with it much better. This time, I let my nerves bring me to a level of a panic attack, and now I was sitting on a bench, staring out at the walkway, trying to reset my tired brain.

“Avery?” I heard a deep voice ask. “Hey,” he said again.

I felt him sit next to me, but strangely, like last night, I knew this had to be a dream. This guy was stupid sexy, and stupid period if he was real and trailing me for no good reason. Talking to my ex on the phone should have scared him off, on top of the fact that I was a single mom. I couldn’t get dates, and even if I did, the pricks usually only wanted sex. No guy in their right might would gladly take on a case like me. Not that I ever divulged my entire dark past to them. I learned from that and moved on.

Maybe that’s why I had this slight breakdown, bringing up the ghosts of the person I no longer was. Those days were so far behind me. They were stories about another girl, in my opinion—not me. Today I let them get into my mind and mess with me. No more. I promised myself that.

“You’re not here. You’re seriously not here,” I said, half delusional and half hysterical.

“Well, that’s news to me,” he said, and I jumped when I felt his hand on my back. “You okay?”

“Bad morning,” I answered as I looked at him.

How do his shades make him look even hotter after covering up those emerald eyes?

“I’m guessing you didn’t get the fill-up of breakfast you desired so greatly last evening?” he smirked.

I couldn’t take my eyes off him. His lips were framed by his perfect face stubble that, after seeing him in his gray suit, I would have assumed he’d have shaved this morning. His jawline was perfectly defined—hell, the guy as a whole was perfectly defined.

“Why are you here?” I questioned the man sporting yet another bespoke suit. “I don’t get why you give a damn about me. After my—”

He smiled and leaned his elbows on his knees, then looked back at me. “You intrigue me,” he simply stated.

I laughed, loosening up at that answer. “You must be one massively burnt-out businessman. Either that or you live a boring life.”

“Some say both.”

“Some?” I leaned back, more relaxed by the presence of this man, who seemed to exude power and confidence. “What do you say? You know, about being so obviously bored with life that you’ve taken some bizarre interest in me?”

“I say it’s about time I opened my eyes to the world around me and do what I do best.”

“What is it you do best, Jim?”

“She remembers my name.” He chuckled and leaned back, stretching his arm on the bench behind my back. My eyes widened at the sight of his black leather shoes when he crossed one leg over the other.

“You made an impression on me last night. I won’t lie. The way to my heart is through my stomach.”

“Good to know,” he answered. “And to answer your question, what I do best is going after something I want and securing it no matter how difficult that may be.”

“Spoken like a true businessman.”

“I’m more than that.” He smiled.

“Doubt that,” I teased.

“Well, if you’ve decided to