The Runaway Heiress: Falling Into The Billionaire's Bed

"Happy birthday, Sinclair Princess."

Nova had heard that line so many times tonight it was starting to wear her out.

As the only child of Dominic and Victoria Sinclair, the nickname felt glued to her whether she liked it or not. She offered the same practiced, closed-lip smile in return, letting the words brush past her without taking it to heart. Her cheeks were already starting to hurt from faking it for so long.

"See?" she muttered to Chloe, who stood a respectful half-step behind her right shoulder. "I told you it was a shareholder meeting. I'm just the mascot."

"You're the guest of honor, Miss Nova," Chloe corrected gently, her voice a quiet anchor. "And you look beautiful. Everyone can see that."

"They see the dress, Chloe. Not me." Nova adjusted the heavy strap of her diamond-encrusted gown. She caught the eye of a woman she vaguely recognized as a duchess from some small European country and gave a slight, regal nod. The duchess smiled and nodded back. The performance was flawless.

The hall was filled with many glamorous dresses and suit jackets, but she didn't mind the crowd tonight.

For twenty-two years, her birthdays had passed without her father. It was either a last-minute merger in Singapore, an unavoidable board meeting in Dubai or a critical contract signing in Berlin. The excuses were always business. She used to pretend it didn't bother her, but it did. Every year.

This year was different because he had shown up. And for a small moment, she'd let herself hope it meant something.

"The Sinclair Princess in the flesh! My dear, you are a true asset to your father." A man with a too-firm handshake and breath that smelled of expensive scotch leaned in.

Nova's smile tightened. An asset. Like she was a new machine he'd bought.

"Thank you," she said, her voice cool.

As he moved away, she leaned back toward Chloe. "An asset. He might as well have patted me on the head and checked my teeth."

"He meant well," Chloe smiled.

"They all mean well," Nova sighed. "It doesn't make it less exhausting. And also, I can't feel my feet in these shoes. This party is torture."

Chloe whispered back with a smile. "Just a little longer, Miss Nova. The party will be over soon."

Nova kept scanning the crowd, hoping to catch a glimpse of her father, wishing he would walk over and wish her a happy birthday.

Her mother found her instead. "Nova, darling, stop slouching. And smile with your eyes, for heaven's sake. You look like you're at a funeral." Victoria's gaze swept over her daughter. "Adelaide Carnegie is here. Be particularly pleasant."

"Why? I haven't seen the Carnegies in a decade. Since when are we 'particularly pleasant' to them?"

"Since your father and Jeffrey have become very important business partners," Victoria said, her tone leaving no room for debate. "Now, come. Let's not keep her waiting."

Adelaide stood rigidly, inspecting the room like she owned it. She looked Nova up and down like she was inspecting livestock.

"Nova, darling, happy birthday," Adelaide said, giving her a quick, cold hug. "My, you've grown up."

"Thank you, Mrs. Carnegie," Nova said, her polite mask firmly back in place. "Thank you for coming."

"We wouldn't have missed it for the world," Adelaide said, still studying her. "We're all so thrilled about the new arrangement."

Nova felt a prickle of unease. "Arrangement? What are you talking about, Mrs Carnegie?"

"For you and my son, of course!" Adelaide let out a light, artificial laugh. "Don't play coy. A smart girl like you must have seen this coming."

Nova blinked. "Seen what coming? I don't understand."

"My son, Henry. Your fiancé. He's autistic, you know. But very high-functioning, of course. A genius with numbers, just like his father. The Napa estate will be perfect for the two of you. Much more fitting than that secret beach house you bought in California."

Nova froze.

How did this woman know about that house?

The only people that knew about the house was Chloe and maybe her dad, because he seemed to know everything.

Before she could form a word, the sound of a fork hitting a glass cut through the noise.

Ding, ding, ding.

Everyone quieted down. Nova looked up and saw her father standing on the stage with a microphone, wearing his biggest smile.

"Friends! Thank you for coming!" his voice boomed through the speakers. "Tonight, we celebrate my daughter's special day!"

Nova felt her fingers tighten around her gown.

"Not only is it the 23rd birthday of my precious daughter, Nova..." He paused for the applause. It was thunderous. Nova held her breath.

"...but tonight, we celebrate the future! The future of our family, and the future of Sinclair Enterprises!" He paused, and then continued. "Which is why I am delighted to announce Nova's engagement to Henry Carnegie!"

The room erupted in applause. People were clapping and smiling at Nova. She just stood there, frozen.

She saw her mother clapping. Chloe's shocked face. Adelaide smiling like she had won a prize.

They all knew. They'd planned this whole thing without telling her.

A hot anger started to push through the shock.

For the first time, she believed that her dad was here to celebrate her birthday and make up for all the times that he was absent, but of course he wasn't. It was always business as usual, and he proved that yet again.

"W-what's going on?" The words came out quiet at first.

Her father kept talking, not hearing her.

"HEY!" she yelled.

The clapping stopped. Every head turned to stare at her.

"Dad, what are you doing? Did you just... sell me?" Her voice shook. "You're marrying me off to some guy I've never even met?"

Her father's smile vanished. "Nova, not now."

"Not NOW? When were you going to tell me, Dad? On my wedding day?" I can't believe this..." Her voice broke.

Her mother grabbed her arm. "Nova, stop it!"

She shook her off. "You knew! You knew Dad was going to do this. You even knew the guy he was selling me off to is autistic, and you were just going to make me marry him for his money? Who said that's what I want? Is that what I am to you? A business deal?"

Tears of anger streamed down her face now. "If you wanted me gone that badly, you could've just let me go to California! But no, you had to sell me off first!"

She spotted a waiter holding a tray of champagne. She grabbed a glass and threw it as hard as she could at the giant ice sculpture of her father's company logo.

The glass shattered. The sculpture cracked right down the middle and crashed to the floor.

The room erupted in a series of gasps.

Nova looked at her parents' shocked faces.

"I'd rather die than stand for this."

"Oh my Princess," her father continued. "I am aware that you like surprises and that is why I didn't tell you," he knew that his daughter was hurt but he faked a smile anyway. "Do you remember how you always tell me that you would like to marry a wealthy son of a billionaire? A handsome boy that screams wealth, poise and connections. Daddy has the best gifts for you," he faked a laugh, trying to portray that his daughter's breakdown was fake.

Nova could no longer feel her legs. It felt as though a bucket filled with ice water had been poured over her.

Here she was before now excited that her father was able to make it to her birthday party for the first time because he wanted to make it up to her not knowing that he was only present because he was going to sign her off to be married to the Carnegies.

Was that why Adelaide talked about having a future with her family?

Was this what today was about? Not her birthday but her engagement to Henry.

Speaking of Henry, Dominic welcomed Henry to the stage and the crowd turned their gaze towards him as he made his way up. "Here comes my future son in-law."

Two bodyguards assisted Henry to the Podium where Dominic stood with that annoying smile still playing out on his face.

Nova could not believe her eyes.

The Henry she was engaged to... he wasn't exactly 'normal.' He had autism!

"Dad!"

"Don't worry, my daughter. You don't have to judge a book by its cover. Henry here will take care of you. At least with the aid of his parents who are very good..."

Before Dominic could finish his statement, Nova ran away from the hall crying. Her mother, Victoria followed right away and caught her crying by the hallway.

"Oh child, you don't have to cry. Today is your special day," Victoria tried to console but Nova prevented her from touching her.

"How could you?" She sobbed. "How could you of all people do this to me? You are my mother for goodness sake. Why didn't you tell me? Why did you pretend as though everything that was going to happen today was all about me?"

"It is all about you," Victoria stepped forward, her outstretched arms ready to hold Nova who didn't hesitate to retreat.

"No it isn't! You cannot tell me that. I am not a child anymore. Do you people even love me? What exactly is this about? Though I once said that I wanted to get married to a wealthy person, I never said that I wanted one that has autism. Autism, mom! Autism! How can you and dad do this to me?" The tears that she was trying so hard to hold in finally poured out, flowing like a river down her cheeks.

Footsteps approached and she didn't need a soothsayer to tell her that it was her dad.

"I know how you feel, my princess," Dominic said from behind. "I admit that my only mistake was not telling you that you would be getting engaged today. But you have to help your father. You have to help your father save his stock market."

"Stock market?" Nova asked, wiping her tears with the back of her palms. "Did you just say 'stock market'? Is that what this is about? It was never even about me? It was about the stock market?"

"You shouldn't exactly put it that way, Nova. After the industrial incident in Ireland, our company stocks plummeted badly. This is the only remedy. You already know of what daddy has been through to bring the company to what it is today. I cannot just allow it to go down the drain like that," he moved forward to hold her but halted as he saw that she pulled back.

"Stay right there," she held her left hand forward in defense while her other hand pulled a sharp pin from her hair and held it to her neck.

Victoria gasped and held her mouth in fear as she saw her daughter hold that pin to her neck.

Fear gripped Dominic as well. He could only stand in place as he didn't want to risk his daughter's life.

"None of you should come closer to me or else I am going to kill myself," Nova threatened, pushing the pin closer to her neck until it nicked a bit of her skin.

"Nova, put that down," Victoria pleaded, her eyes widened in fear as she saw the little blood trickling down her daughter's neck.

"Don't think I'm joking, mom. If you take one inch closer to me, I will end it right now."

"Nova, please we can talk about this. Listen to daddy," Dominic said gently with a pleading voice.

"I am done listening to all of you. I do not want to see any of you again and if you follow me, then consider yourselves childless."

With that, Nova ran past them holding her gown in her hand and running as far as she could.

When she ran past the guests in the hall confusion set everywhere. It was obvious that something had gone wrong but they needed clarification.

As Nova ran away from the house completely, she didn't know where to go next. She turned to look back and saw that the bodyguards were far back behind chasing after her and it wouldn't be long before she got caught.

She couldn't afford to spend one more second and so she needed to leave fast. If she doesn't escape, she never will. She would be forcefully married to the Carnegie family and that would be the end of it.

The guards were approaching and luckily for her, she sighted a formally dressed man coming out of the back of a tinted Mercedes Benz car.

This was her chance.

As the man closed the car door and left, she took her chance and ran towards the car, opened the back door and got in. There was no way that the guards saw her and she was right.

She watched them through the window looking for her. They divided themselves and ran towards different directions and she was relieved that she hadn't been caught.

"Oh thank God," she held her chest and caught her breath.

But as she turned to the other side, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw that there was someone sitting beside her.

Nova's hand flew to her chest as she scanned the stranger that was sitting beside her.

He was a young man dressed in a tailored charcoal gray suit, the jacket perfectly fitted to his broad shoulders. His jet-black hair was meticulously styled, framing a chiseled jawline and piercing blue eyes.

He smelled heavenly and despite his youthful appearance, there was an air of confidence and sophistication about him, befitting a millionaire. Or a billionaire.

Maybe he was one.

He looked like one.

And goddamn, he was so handsome.

"Who are you?" Nova asked.

"Who am I? You're in my car, young lady," he retorted.

Realizing that he made a valid point, she became calm a bit, adjusting her demeanor and her tone. "Oh... Sorry... I'm so sorry. I should be the one explaining who I am. I'm Nova. Nova Sinclair."

"What are you doing in my car?" He didn't seem to be interested in what she had just said. And he sounded harsh.

"Where do I even start from?" She scratched her head, returning her gaze to him. "I ran away from home. Today is my birthday and my father tried to get me engaged to someone without letting me know. I don't want that life. He's doing it for the company and that's why I ran away. The bodyguards were after me and after I saw a man come down from this car, I thought I should hide here for a while."

"That is none of my business. You can get out now." he answered nonchalantly, adjusting his suit and himself properly.

Was he kidding her right now?

Didn't he hear what she just said?

"Excuse me? I just told you what my father tried to do to me and you are saying that it is none of your business. Do you even have a heart? What if this happened to your sister?"

"I have no sister."

"Then what about your daughter."

"I have none," his voice deepened as he answered her, his irritation clearly evident in his tone.

"But you would in the future and one day, she would grow up to be a woman like me. You don't even know if you will be alive by then and then someone decides to marry her off to someone to save the company. Maybe an autistic person to make matters worse."

"You have no right to speak to me like that, young lady. Get out of my car, now. I prefer not to converse with women, and I have no interest in your story, so leave," he declared sternly.

Nova sensed the gravity in his voice as she met his piercing blue eyes. She knew he had no obligation to help her, and she couldn't compel him to do so.

Why did everything seem to be going wrong on her birthday? All she wanted was to be with her family and find some happiness.

Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at the stranger who spoke so harshly to her. She quickly wiped them away, refusing to show weakness.

Turning to open the door and leave, she hesitated. Overwhelmed, she buried her face in her hands and cried out. She didn't want to marry a man she didn't love, forced upon her by her parents. Where could she possibly go from here?

With a last streak of hope, she pleaded. "Please..." she sobbed into her palms. "Just take me away from here, I beg you," she pleaded, wiping her tear-streaked face with the back of her hand. "I won't be a burden to you. I just need to escape this place and clear my head. I promise to repay you. I'll do anything you ask, I swear. If I step out of this car, my life is over. I'll remain a pawn in my father's hands. Please."

"Anything I ask, you say."

"Yes. Anything. But you just have to take me away from here."

The young man looked at her and met a pair of green eyes that welled up with tears. He wondered what would have happened in there and how inappropriate for her parents to treat her that way on her birthday. If her story was true of course.

It was not like he cared for her anyway. It has always been him against the world. Despite his good looks and wealth, he had been taken advantage of in the past by the women he bared himself to.

But the last experience was the one that broke that camel's back for him, and since then, he conceited a deep hatred for the opposite gender. All except his mother of course.

"Deal. But under one condition," he held up his index finger and Nova turned to look at him, a streak of hope evident in her eyes.

"What is it?"

"You are going to sign an agreement to back up your promise because I do not trust you. You have a lot going on in your life obviously and I do not want my reputation to be stained with scandals."

"Alright. Deal. Thank you so much Mr--"

"Bentley," he completed, turning his face away from her as quickly as possible.

The look on Nova's face changed to that of confusion. "Bentley? You are named after a car?"

He shot her a death stare in response to her silly talk.

Of course he didn't need anyone to remind him that he was named after a car. He remembered confronting his mother when he was younger about the choice of his name and he remembered his mom telling him that she chose it because she found it to be cute and lovely. Cute and lovely indeed. He would be teased for the rest of his life as long as that name was concerned. As a matter of fact, he decided that he would change his name as soon as he became an adult.

But none of that happened since the things he thought would happen never happened. Even his school mates while growing loved his name and they all claimed they would name their toys and future kids after him. Maybe it was because he was rich, but he was never bullied for having the name, Bentley. The ladies loved it as well.

But here came a woman who teased him for the first time concerning his name. A stranger for that matter.

"I didn't mean it that way. It's just that-- Never mind," Nova said. She didn't want to say anything that would ruin his mood and make him change his mind afterwards.

"Did I look angry?" He asked, and for the very first time since their conversation, with the calmest tone she had heard.

"Umm... I don't know. But it seemed for a second like bullets were gonna come out of those blue eyes of yours."

'Blue eyes. Hmm.' He thought.

"I mean, those dangerous looking eyes of yours," She corrected herself.

"You don't need to explain yourself. You've made your point and that's enough. Lucas, take us home."