A Night With My Billionaire

Vivian Archwood was a beautiful woman.

Long, light brown hair, large, expressive brown eyes, striking, angular features, and an air of regality that seemed to emanate from her, even through her photos.

Growing up, Sabrina had desperately wanted to be like her mother. She vividly remembered stealing her mother's makeup often and practicing the way she walked in heels as a teenager. As an adult, she even decided to study the same course her mother did-medicine-even though she didn't need it as she would be inheriting her mother's company.

Her mother wasn't like other mothers in their social circle, wealthy women who left their children in the care of nannies while they partied, went shopping, and attended extravagant events.

No, Vivian was determined to raise her daughter herself, and she did raise Sabrina, mostly on her own since her husband and Sabrina's father had never wanted anything to do with either of them. Vivian and Harrison weren't a love match, but like a lot of marriages in the elite, they were a marriage of convenience.

Most women were miserable all the time because of that. They hated their husbands, their marital homes, and even their children. But not Vivian, never Vivian... at least not up until the weeks before her death.

Vivian became withdrawn, solemn, sad. She didn't even attend Sabrina's college graduation. And then she passed away in a deadly car crash. People speculated that maybe she crashed the car on purpose because of whatever was bothering her.

But they didn't even have time to gossip about her death because barely two months after her casket was lowered into the ground, Harrison Archwood remarried.

To Sabrina's absolute horror, he married the mother of the woman who had bullied her all throughout high school.

Her already tense home became a hellscape with Mira Rosefield-her father's new wife-and Reliana Rosefield-her stepsister-determined to make her life a living hell. And Sabrina stopped spending so much time there; she instead spent time with her fiancé of five months, with her childhood best friend, or at her mother's grave.

It was those long visits to her mother's grave that prompted her to go through her mother's things one Tuesday afternoon. During her search, she came across her mother's diary, a small, dusty book tucked away amongst the other things her father had eagerly stuffed away.

It felt like an invasion of privacy, but the lavender scent that came off the leather cover made her desperate to be near anything that had once been her mother's. So she opened it, read it, and that action set her down the path she was on at that moment.

When Sabrina was done sorting through the documents the PI had given her, she nodded slowly and slipped the documents into an envelope.

"And you're sure that all of this is true?" Sabrina asked the man sitting across from her.

The coffee shop they were meeting in was small and sparsely populated. The fewer people saw them together, the better.

"Do you doubt my work, Miss Archwood?" But the PI looked at Sabrina with pity; it wasn't every day you found out that your father was responsible for your mother's death. "It seems that your mother was aware of his infidelity for a while, but she didn't feel like her life was in danger until a few weeks before her death. Hence her diary entries."

Sabrina nodded again. She looked cool and calm and not at all like the broken mess that she was inside. She had known her father wasn't faithful, given how quickly he had remarried, but this had been going on for much longer than she'd expected.

Reliana was a year younger than her, and since Reliana was actually her father's biological daughter as well, it meant that Mira had been her father's mistress since her parents had first gotten married.

Her father got rid of her mother just so he could bring his mistress and the woman who was apparently her half-sister into the home.

She clamped a hand over her mouth to keep the bile from flooding out. They had a family dinner tonight. How was she going to deal with seeing their faces after this? And even if she wanted to do something, what could she do?

Tears sprung up in her eyes as she thought of her mother. She thought of the mangled car emergency services had pried from the scene, she thought of her mother's body, and she felt her throat tighten when she realized that all that was her father's fault.

"Listen, girl, I recommend holding onto this for now, take it to the authorities when you have the backing necessary to stand against your father," the PI reached forward to pat her hand, watching her struggle to fight back her tears. "I can drive you home or somewhere. You're not in any state to be alone right now."

"Don't worry," she said with a tight smile. This PI was showing more care for her than her father ever had. "I have somewhere to go."

The PI nodded and left not long after. Sabrina gave herself one more moment to breathe and re-center herself. Her mother had always taught her to be level-headed regardless of what she faced. As much as she wanted to cry and scream and grieve the way she had been the past few months, now wasn't the time.

She pulled out her phone and typed out a message to her fiancé to let him know that she was on her way to see him before shoving her phone into her bag. She and Kyler had known each other since they were in diapers. He loved her mum as much as she did, and he would understand how horrifying this was for her.

Through her anguish, she was grateful that she had people she knew would stand by her no matter what.

She picked up her files, shoved them in her tote bag, and then walked out of the cafe to her car.

Her thoughts were occupied throughout her drive from the cafe to Kyler's place. She wondered if Reliana was aware of who her father was. Was that why she had hated Sabrina throughout high school? Why did her father wait until that year to get rid of her mother?

So many questions and only one person had the answer.

She cursed inwardly and pulled up into the parking lot of Kyler's penthouse. She pulled out her phone to go through the messages and saw that he hadn't answered yet. She shrugged it off; it wasn't unheard of for Kyler to leave his phone someplace while being busy.

She messaged her best friend and personal assistant-Charlotte-to let her know she wanted to meet tomorrow, before her family dinner at least.

Sabrina got out of the car and made her way upstairs and to the very top of the penthouse where Kyler lived. She glanced at her reflection in the elevator mirror and sighed. The past two months of grief showed starkly on her face. Eye bags, frown lines, she'd even lost weight.

But Kyler had never cared. He encouraged her to grieve and let it all out, even when she didn't look her absolute best. He assured her that he'd always find her absolutely beautiful, and unlike most men, he was completely understanding of the fact that she wanted to wait till marriage.

She smiled at the thought of seeing him. It would light up her day.

Or so she thought.

As she walked into the apartment, she noticed multiple things. The first was the clothes that were strewn everywhere-not just men's clothes, but women's clothing and underwear. The second was the sound of moans coming from somewhere towards the bedroom, and the third was the sound of a bed creaking rhythmically.

The first thought Sabrina had was that this was just a bad dream, maybe the entire day was a dream, she refused to believe that Kyler would ever do this. Maybe he was watching a movie? But the moaning got louder, her eyes lingered on the bra on the table and she heard a female voice yelling about how she was getting 'closer.'

Unsteady on her feet, she followed the sounds. She slammed open the door to her fiancé's room and with wide eyes took in the sight of her fiancé pounding into her best friend.

2 At Least You Know Now

Sabrina wasn't sure exactly when a scream ripped out of her mouth, but soon, it was all she could hear. The sound of her own high-pitched scream followed by a ringing in her ears, followed by a curse.

She watched her best friend and fiancé pry themselves off each other and stare at her with wide-eyed shock plastered on their faces. Charlotte was gripping a blanket over her chest while Kyler was swearing and yanking a blanket over his lap.

They were both sweaty. A brief glance at Kyler's back when he turned around revealed scratch marks, there were hickeys on Charlotte's neck, and the room smelled distinctly of sex.

There was no denying what happened in here no matter how much one part of Sabrina's brain wanted to convince her that this was all just a mistake. Sabrina just stood there, stunned, horrified, and reeling from the icy feeling of betrayal that slammed into her.

"What... Kyler..." she was at a loss for words. Sabrina pressed her lips together in an attempt to keep cool, or she would burst into tears. "Kyler, what is this? The two of you?"

Kyler was her fiancé, her childhood friend. They'd been together for years now and their wedding was only weeks away. How could he?

How could Charlotte do this to her as well? Her childhood best friend, the woman she trusted to handle her affairs in the business world when she had needed someone to. She was in bed with her fiancé...

At first, the two of them didn't say anything. They glanced at each other then looked down at the rumpled bed sheets, avoiding Sabrina's eyes. Then, Charlotte sighed and rolled her eyes, flipping her thick red hair over one shoulder.

"I'm just glad we don't have to hide this any longer," she muttered, then got up from the bed and walked up to Sabrina, buck-naked and glaring at her supposed best friend. "Look, Kyler and I are in love. I didn't think you'd have to find out this way, but you know what they say, no time like the present."

Sabrina's jaw dropped as she stared at the unfamiliar version of her friend, cocky, arrogant, and staring at her with undisguised contempt.

What the fuck was happening? Sabrina thought.

Kyler sighed as well and stood, but he kept the blanket over his nether regions. "I told you to be more gentle with her."

Charlotte shrugged and turned to Kyler with a sly expression. "Where's the fun in that? Look at her, she's absolutely horrified!"

The two shared a laugh and it was too much for her to take-this bizarre sight, the reality of what her day was. The realization that her mother was with an unfaithful man and now she was in that same situation herself.

"Stop!" Sabrina screeched. The tears spilled out of her eyes without any attempt at stopping it. "How long has this been going on? Was our whole relationship a lie? How could the two of you betray me like this?!"

"Calm down, will you?" Kyler snapped. He would not tolerate anyone attempting to berate him, least of all a woman he could barely tolerate. "Our relationship wasn't a lie, I did like you at some point. But you're such a prude, Rina! What kind of man do you think would be willing to wait for sex?"

His words felt like a slap on her face. "But you-you said..."

"Said that I could wait? Yeah, I thought I could," he ran his hands through his hair. "But I have needs, Sabrina, and since you don't want to fulfill them, I found someone who could. Charlotte is much hotter than you anyway, I couldn't help myself."

He said all that with a casual shrug as though she wasn't sobbing in front of him, as if he wasn't sliding hundreds of knives into her.

"You could have told me!" She screamed out. "You could have told me that you couldn't wait, we could have come to a compromise, I could have-"

"It's too late for that now," Charlotte laughed, then nudged Kyler with her elbow. "You didn't tell her the good news, babe."

Sabrina watched with horror as Charlotte affectionately patted her stomach and grinned. She clamped her hand over her mouth as the feeling of nausea rose up once again.

"Look, I was going to tell you a month ago but you were grieving and I thought it'd be shitty of me to just break it off with you immediately after, so I waited," he shrugged then scoffed. "You should have been grateful that I'm even this fucking thoughtful. Charlotte is going to have my baby, and other than your mum's company, which is the real reason I'm marrying you anyway, I have no reason to be with you."

"You were..." Sabrina smacked her lips and wiped the tears off her face. Her voice was high-pitched and she was wheezing, almost breathless. "You were using me for my mother's company?"

"I need to feed my family somehow," he shrugged again and Sabrina wanted to hurt his stupid shoulders. "I was going to divorce you eventually, then I'd take your mother's company as mine as part of our settlement and then we'd be done with each other forever."

Sabrina staggered back and turned to Charlotte. "And you knew about this and you supported it, you, my best friend?"

"Of course I did," Charlotte bit back, she took in the pathetic woman in front of her. It'd been a pain to pretend for all these years that she gave a fuck about her. "When you told me that you planned on waiting for marriage, I thought you were being a fucking moron. Kyler was always too good for you anyway."

"Charlotte," she let out a small, broken sob. "You were my best friend..."

Everything she knew had fallen apart in one day. Sabrina couldn't even hold herself up, so she pressed her back against the wall and kept her head down, tears fell from her eyes to the carpet.

Without giving either of them a chance to tear her apart with their words any longer, she turned and ran out of the apartment, tears pouring down her face.

Sabrina didn't even remember the drive back home.

Her vision was completely blurred by tears, and sobs wracked her as she struggled to maneuver the car. She almost couldn't believe it. She was tempted to turn back around, just to get another look at them, just to convince herself that it had all actually happened.

Maybe she could even ask them if it was a joke-a sick little prank they'd pulled just to mess with her. Charlotte had always enjoyed pulling such odd practical jokes on her, even as children.

But as she drove home, all she could see were their scornful faces gazing at her. The look of disgust. The look of malice. The hickeys on her friend's neck, the scratches on her fiancé's back.

Sabrina choked on another sob, then swerved out of the way before she could crash into an oncoming car.

Her mother had died in a "car crash" because her unfaithful husband wanted her gone, and now she-her daughter-almost crashed her car because she was sad after catching her unfaithful fiancé.

She could almost laugh at the absurdity of it all. But there was no humor left in her. Instead, she ignored the angry driver and drove to her home, anger, sadness, and confusion swirling within her.

When she got out of the car, she ran down the driveway and into the home she had come to hate. But she preferred this place now. At least it didn't smell of sex, and it didn't have the sound of her best friend laughing at her.

When Sabrina finally got to her room, she threw her purse and the documents aside. Her chest heaved as her body shook with emotion. She reached for her engagement ring and forcefully ripped it off her finger, tossing it aside.

For a moment, she felt steady again-calm, almost. But then the bile rose up her throat, and she darted for the bathroom. She flung open the door, opened the toilet bowl, and violently threw up everything she'd eaten in the past day.

Her body shook from the heaving, and her mouth tasted horrible. But then she felt a cold palm on the back of her neck, gently holding her hair up and rubbing her back in a soothing gesture.

Sabrina threw up until she was just dry heaving. Then she pushed away from the toilet to see who had helped her and lurched back when she saw Reliana staring down at her with her brows wrinkled in concern.

"Are you okay, Sabrina?" the girl asked gently, taking a step forward to press the back of her palm against her forehead.

Sabrina slapped her hand away. "What are you doing here? Go away."

Reliana looked hurt. "I heard you run into the house like that, and I came to check up on you. I saw you throwing up. Is something wrong? Are you in trouble? Do you need...?"

"And even if I did, what the hell would you do, huh?" Sabrina yelled. For once, she wouldn't be passive. She had felt too much today and needed an outlet. "You've always treated me like absolute garbage, and now you want to comfort me? Why?"

Sabrina broke down again, biting down on her lower lip as sobs wracked her body.

Reliana's lips curled down, and she crouched to look her stepsister in the eye. "I know I've treated you horribly in the past. But seeing you right now like this-so broken and angry-makes me feel horrible, too. I didn't mean to hurt you that badly."

She sucked in a breath. As if this day didn't feel enough like a weird fever dream, there was Reliana, showing remorse for her horrible behavior.

"And I don't know what you're going through right now, but I want to be there for you," Reliana crept forward a little, looking for some sign that Sabrina would scuttle off or lash out. But she didn't. She just sat still and stared at her. "And the fact that you came home instead of going to your fiancé or friend's place says a lot. I really want to help you."

Sabrina nearly choked on air. "But why? Why do you want to? Why are you even saying all this? You hate me."

"I did," Reliana looked away, her lashes hanging heavy over her eyes. "But then our parents got married, and that makes us sisters, doesn't it? Growing up as an only child was so lonely, and I never really thought I could trust anyone. But with a sister... maybe we could learn to trust each other. We could mend our relationship and become a family."

Maybe if it were another day, Sabrina would have been more on guard. After all, Reliana had hurt her many times-physically, emotionally. She'd made her high school hell and had pretty much tried to ruin her home life, too. But right now, she was much too tired to keep her guard up.

"I saw Charlotte and Kyler together... in bed," she tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. "Apparently, they've been together for much longer. Charlotte is even... pregnant. I don't know what to do, Reliana."

Reliana's brows lowered in sympathy. She reached forward and hugged her tightly. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I can't imagine how that felt."

Sabrina laughed without a hint of actual amusement. "I don't even know how to feel. They seemed so different. They spoke to me like I meant nothing to them. It hurt."

Reliana patted her back, prompting Sabrina to dissolve into another fitful bout of tears. She wasn't sure how long she cried, but eventually, she calmed down and wiped the tears from her face. Reliana helped her settle and then picked her up from the ground, leading her back to the room to sit down.

She never thought she'd see the day when she'd take comfort in Reliana's presence. But it was happening.

"Come on, I know what will make you feel better. You know that restaurant you really like? They're open tonight, and they're having a small buffet this evening," Reliana's smile was soft, the way Charlotte's once was. "Wanna go with me?"

She hesitated at first. Going out wasn't really a part of her plan. But if there was something that could cheer her up quickly, it was good food, and that restaurant had loads of it.

So she got up and nodded. "I'll go brush my teeth."

Reliana nodded and began setting out clothes for her. When Sabrina was done, she picked up the clothes and went to make sure her face wasn't a blotchy mess in the mirror.

"We'll call a cab today. My driver is ill, so he won't be able to take us," Reliana explained, glancing at Sabrina to make sure she was alright.

Sabrina nodded in understanding, got dressed, and the two left the Archwood mansion. It didn't take long for them to hail a cab, and Reliana insisted on paying.

They slipped into the car, and Sabrina leaned against the door, letting her eyes drift shut as she contemplated the past three hours. She might have even drifted off for a while, but she was woken by a voice calling out to her.

"Hey, Sabrina..." she heard Reliana say.

She blinked awake and turned to look at her half-sister, but she didn't even get the chance. Reliana clamped a handkerchief over her nose and mouth, holding her down.

Sabrina's eyes widened as she struggled. She held her breath to avoid inhaling the sweet scent, but it was already too late. She kicked and flailed, trying to get the driver's attention. But by the way he carefully avoided looking back at her, she knew she had been set up.

Tears sprung in Sabrina's eyes as the drugs dragged her into unconsciousness, and just before she blacked out, she met Reliana's gaze and saw the cunning look on her face.