My Game Alpha Bill Publishing

MY GAME
ALPHA BILL PUBLISHING
CONTENTS
Kickass Billionaire
Fight For Love
Fight to Win
Wild Fight
2 Choices
BONUS
Shifter Romance
Billionaire Romance
Vampire Romance
Exclusive Book Club
Copyright © Lovy Books Ltd, 2016
This book is a work of fiction. Names and characters are
the product of the author’s imagination and any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely
coincidental.
In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any
part of this document in either electronic means or in
printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly
prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed
unless with written permission from the publisher. All
rights reserved.
Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the
publisher.
Lovy Books Ltd
20-22 Wenlock Road
London N1 7GU
PART ONE
KICKASS
BILLIONAIRE
ROMANTIC COMEDY
I
ONE
grabbed Lincoln by the back of his shirt collar,
as he narrowly missed colliding with the young
couple and child exiting the studio.
“Lincoln, calm down! What’s the rush?” I
asked, exasperated, speaking to the air. The blur of
movement that was my son escaped from my grasp
and dashed through the door. I didn’t know if he
had outright failed to acknowledge my question, or
simply hadn’t heard me. Either way, I didn’t bother
attempting to keep up with him. It was a battle I
never won and I realised that it was a futile effort
on my part. Besides, he was in a closed room with
lots of other kids; he wouldn’t get that far.
I studied the room as Lincoln came to a halt
about ten feet in front of me and stopped to turn
around. He smiled mischievously in my direction
as I did my best to look serious, although I couldn’t
stop the hint of a smile pulling at the edges of my
lips. Lincoln was a handful, but he was a sweet kid
through and through.
As I neared him, I took note of the gleaming
wood floors and the mirrors that lined the entire
right side of half the studio. The room was pretty
large: one half boasted gleaming wooden flooring,
the other was covered in mats of various sizes.
Children ranging from ages four to twelve were
bustling about wearing white karate uniforms. I had
heard them referred to as karategi and couldn’t
wait to see Lincoln in one.
As I predicted, Lincoln didn’t get too far; an
attractive woman dressed in a karategi stepped
away from a class and extended her hand, blocking
Lincoln from going any further.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa where are you going so
fast?” she asked, looking around for a parent. I
guiltily waved in her direction and the woman
gave me a dismissive look. She was clearly
unimpressed with my parenting skills (or lack
thereof, as the case might be).
“Is this your son?” she asked me when I came
within earshot. I nodded and reached for Lincoln’s
hand. He gave me a questioning look, with big
brown eyes, sensing the woman’s distaste for him,
me, the situation or all of the above.
“Yes, I’m sorry. He’s quite energetic so he got
away from me. He’s normally well-behaved but
he’s been so excited to learn karate. It’s all he’s
talked about for weeks.”
The woman didn’t return my smile and
continued as if I hadn’t said a word. “We teach
discipline and restraint here. Are you sure your son
will adjust to this environment? He seems to be
lacking---.”
The woman stopped abruptly as I looked at her
sharply, a scathing retort was on the tip of my
tongue when a warm voice said behind me, “That’s
enough, Ronan. I’m sure you’re needed
elsewhere.”
I didn’t turn around to see who was talking to
us, given that I was giving Ronan my version of a
death stare. As I glared, Ronan gave the person
behind me a weak smile and then quickly began to
explain herself, “I just want to make sure the child
is a good fit---”
“The child has a name,” I growled, “And that
name is Lincoln.”
Ronan’s expression moved from feigned
concern to irritation as she opened her mouth to
speak. I placed my hand on my hip and turned my
body completely in her direction, waiting for
Ronan’s response, when the person behind me
stepped into view, shot Ronan a warning look and
knelt down next to Lincoln.
Although I was angry, I wasn’t angry enough to
not notice that this new arrival was gorgeous. Even
as he squatted next to my son, I realized that he
was a large man. All sinewy muscle, with wide
shoulders and an expansive chest, he gave me an
apologetic smile as he looked up at me, our eyes
locking. His light blue eyes held mine for a
moment before he reluctantly broke eye contact
with me and turned to address Lincoln.
“So are you ready to learn karate?”
“Yes, sir” Lincoln said saluting the man as if he
were an officer. The man laughed and said, “My
name’s Jonathan. Is this beautiful woman next to
me your mom?”
I blushed as Lincoln nodded solemnly, “Yes,
her name’s Mia, but I just call her Mom.”
“Well, I think that next time your mom asks you
to do something, you should. It’s a sign of respect
and respect is very important, Lincoln.”
Lincoln nodded his head, taking in every word.
He looked up at me “Sorry, Mom for running off
like that,” he whispered as I ruffled his hair and
smiled thankfully at Jonathan. Ronan watched the
entire exchange with displeasure etched across her
face and then muttered a barely audible, “Excuse
me,” before she disappeared back into the crowd.
Jonathan stood up as she left and said, “You’ll
have to forgive Ronan. She’s one of our best
instructors, but her people skills are definitely
lacking.”
I noted that as Jonathan spoke, he subtly
checked me out. I shifted from foot to foot, holding
on to Lincoln’s hand, suddenly uncomfortable
under Jonathan’s gaze. He was well over my own
5’10” stature and I immediately noticed he had
beautiful hands. Hands that I imagined a musician
would have, instead of someone who made his
living showing other people how to defend
themselves. I also noted that he didn’t wear a ring
and blushed, trying to get my thoughts back on
track.
“I guess I should formally introduce myself,
I’m Jonathan Warren. I’m the owner.”
I extended my hand and Jonathan’s warm hand
slid into my own. He had a striking, white smile as
well and I found myself immediately attracted to
him.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Mia Sanders and
you already met my son, Lincoln.”
He smiled at Lincoln and Lincoln smiled back
at him, giving him a wide toothy grin.
Self-consciously, I brushed at my wrinkled
work clothes, now extremely aware of my
dishevelled appearance. I sighed to myself as I
tried to smooth down the wrinkles of my skirt and
pretended the stain on my white blouse was non-
existent. I knew that I had left the house perfectly
clean and presentable this morning, but as soon as I
picked up Lincoln from school and grabbed a
quick dinner for the two of us, it had all changed.
There was nothing I could do about it now, I
thought resignedly. Instead I just hoped my light
brown curly hair that stuck up in a million
directions on a daily basis was still controlled by
the pony-tail I had pulled it into earlier. I attempted
to subtly look in the mirror across from where we
stood and wanted to scream in frustration when I
caught a glimpse of myself. Strands of my hair had
escaped from the hair clip which seemed to be
hanging haphazardly to one side.
I reached up and patted at my hair, trying to be
discrete as I removed the hair clip and released the
few curls it had been holding in place. I focused
my own large brown eyes on him and he smiled
with unconcealed amusement.
“Let me take you to my secretary. She can
handle everything for you.”
“Great,” I said forcing my voice to sound
chipper.
He led me down the hall and through another
door which I realised led to another side of the
building. We walked a couple of feet with Lincoln
singing along the way and Jonathan gave me a
significant parting glance before leaving me at his
secretary’s desk.
“See you in class, Lincoln” he said to my son
and disappeared down the hall.
I didn’t realize that I had been staring in his
direction until the secretary cleared her throat and
gave me a wry smile and a knowing look.
I blushed and looked away.
“S
TWO
o then he says to me, ‘How about a nightcap?’
and I’m like, seriously, dude? You bought me
a hot dog for dinner, tried to grope me under the
table and then forgot my name and called me
Melissa half the night,” Luzianne stopped to take a
breath and looked at me strangely, “Hello? Earth to
Mia. Are you even listening?”
I looked up at her, batting my eyelashes a
couple of times. I hadn’t been listening. I wasn’t
even aware that she still had been talking.
“What’s on your mind lately?” She asked, now
sounding pouty. Luzianne was probably one of my
best friends and we had a weird relationship. She
had been my mother’s best friend before my mother
had passed away when I was eighteen. Somehow
we both had needed each other to fill that gap my
mother’s death had left in our lives, albeit in
different ways. So we had developed a
relationship that most people would assume was
more of a mother and daughter relationship, but no.
Luzianne was in her mid-fifties, wore gaudy
jewellery, tight clothing, could swear like a sailor
and there was nothing motherly about her at all.
I, on the other hand, could be probably
nominated for sainthood as far as Luzianne was
concerned. I was too much of a goody-two shoes
for her taste and so she treated it as her personal
mission to convince me to take risks and do things
that were outside of my comfort zone. Normally
that meant trying a new restaurant or buying shoes
with higher heels. She was also my personal
cheerleader but was pretty harsh on me when it
came to my dating life. Or rather: non-existent
dating life.
“I’m sorry, Luz, I’ve just had a lot on my mind
lately.”
“All related to boring stuff, I’m sure.”
“Hey, my life isn’t boring!”
“Oh really, when’s the last time you had any
real adventure? Passion?”
I laughed and ran a hand through my hair, “I
don’t really do passion or adventure, you know
that.”
“Yeah, that’s a pity.”
I ignored her and she said, “So what did you
think of that karate studio I sent you to? Isn’t the
owner hot?”
“Wow, is that why you suggested it? Not
because of the five-star reviews or its proximity to
our house, work and Lincoln’s school?” I frowned,
already knowing the answer to the question.
“Oh please! I didn’t consider any of those
things. I just happened to be walking by one day
and ran into that hunk of a man and noticed that he
wasn’t wearing a ring.”
“I knew I should have been suspicious as soon
as you mentioned the place.”
“What? You said Lincoln was interested in
martial arts and I helped guide you to the world’s
sexiest ninja. You should be thanking me.”
I shook my head. Luz was incorrigible and it
was one of the things I loved about her. It was what
made her non-profit organization, Sydney’s Angels,
which I worked for too, successful. Sydney was
my mother’s name and Luz had started the
organization while I was still in college. My
mother had been a passionate educator and spent
her weekends tutoring underprivileged children in
the surrounding communities. In her memory, Luz
had started an organization that provided that same
service, plus more. It had grown into one of the
most successful non-profits in the area. Luz
handled all the fun stuff like public relations,
marketing and fundraising. I handled all the
mundane stuff like grant writing, operations and
accounting. We made a dynamic team.
“Hey, I meant to remind you before you leave
today: We have the annual city non-profit
conference coming up. There’s a sponsor paying
for everything, so if you want to go and do a little
networking it wouldn’t hurt, plus it’s free.”
“Hmm....I don’t know, Lincoln’s at an age
where----”
“…He can spend a couple of nights away from
his mother. He’s old enough.”
I thought it over, “Well I guess... if it’s not too
much of a hassle for you to take Lincoln that
weekend....”
“A hassle? To take care of my godson? Hush
your mouth! You know Lincoln and I are as thick as
thieves.”
I shook my head, “Yeah, that’s sort of part of
the problem.”
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that and
just contact the coordinator to be sure your name is
added to the guest list.”
“Sounds good,” I said walking away and
heading to my office. I was busy and didn’t notice
that the clock finally hit four. Lincoln tumbled
through the door accompanied by our next door
neighbour Mrs. Leonard who brought Lincoln to
the office every day after school.
“Hey Mom!” Lincoln yelled and promptly
headed to Luz’s room for snacks. “Thanks for
dropping him off Mrs. Leonard.” I said waving in
her direction.
“No problem,” she said heading quickly back
out to her car, where I knew her kids sat waiting
patiently for her. She was a stay at home mom who
had twins in the same class as Lincoln. We traded
carpooling every other week.
“So are you ready to get your karate on?” I
heard Luz asking Lincoln, who responded with
“Heeyaw! Hiyaw!” and I heard the tell-tale sign of
a coffee cup dropping and hitting the floor.
Apparently he was ready for karate, but I wasn’t
sure the office was.
That evening, I watched from the sidelines, as I
admired Lincoln with pride as he finished up the
last of the moves his teacher was guiding his class
through. He looked so focused and serious. I had to
wrap my head around the fact that my little boy
was all grown up.
“He’s looking good,” a voice said behind me
and my pulse immediately quickened. I shyly
turned around and made eye contact with Jonathan
who stood there in his karate uniform looking
unbelievably handsome. The loose fitting nature of
the uniform did nothing to hide the fact that his
body was nothing but solid, lean muscle.
I tried to keep my eyes from misbehaving, but it
was as if my brain had a mind of its own and
wouldn’t stop devouring every detail of Jonathan’s
delectable body.
“He’s really enjoying this. It makes him happy.
Probably the happiest I’ve seen him since, I don’t
know...Christmas?”
Jonathan laughed, “Most kids really enjoy the
experience. You know some of the parents get
together to go to competitions with the kids. You
and your husband should consider attending one,”
he said giving me a sly look.
“Oh, I’m not married. Happily divorced
actually. Lincoln’s father lives on a completely
different continent.”
“Oh well, I’m not going to pretend that I’m not
happy to hear that,”
I did a double take, not expecting that response.
“What?” he said innocently.
“I just think...umm...that we should keep our
relationship professional since you’re the owner of
the dojo and all,” I said knowing that I sounded
prudish, but completely caught off guard by
Jonathan’s reaction to me not being married. Being
out of practice when it came to talking to men, I
had instantly gone into retreat mode.
Jonathan stared at me and then shrugged, his
normally open expression now suddenly guarded,
“If that’s what you would like to do, then sure.
Forgive me if you thought I was being crass.” He
finished formally and I wanted to kick myself for
being such a prude.
“I didn’t think you were being crass. I’m sorry,
I’m just...” and my voice trailed off as I tried to
find the right words.
“Not used to the attention of a devastatingly
handsome man such as myself?” Jonathan said with
a straight-face.
“Well, I wouldn’t use those exact words,” I
said smiling despite herself.
“No? Maybe devilishly handsome?”
I shook my head enjoying his sense of humour
that completely made the awkwardness I felt
earlier fade away.
“More like sort of on the cute side.”
“Nonsense, cute is for kittens. I’m insanely
good-looking,” he said with mock outrage and
made a rude sound with his mouth.
Caught off guard by his silly sense of humour, I
couldn’t help but laugh and he laughed with me. He
was about to say something else when we were
interrupted by Ronan who had a very irritated look
on her face.
“Tina’s looking for you,” she said to Jonathan,
whilst giving me an evil look. I ignored her and
Jonathan said, “Tell her that I’ll be right there.”
He turned away from Ronan dismissively and
she stalked off.
“I think someone likes you and is probably not
too happy with you showing another woman any
attention.”
Jonathan frowned, the playful expression now
gone from his face. “She was always the
possessive type. That’s the reason we broke up.”
“You dated her? You work with someone you
dated?”
“We dated three days in middle school. She
saw me talking to Monica Felipe and freaked out.
Tossed her yoghurt on me.” Jonathan said shaking
his head.
“And she’s carried a torch since then?”
“What can I say? I’m apparently
unforgettable.”
“Or she’s certifiable...”
“You might actually be right,” he said with a
harsh laugh. “We grew up together, went to the
same schools, trained in the same dojos. So she
can get a little mother hen with me sometimes.”
“No kidding...”
“Anyway, enough about Ronan. Can I see you
sometime, Mia? Outside of the dojo?” he asked
catching me off-guard.
I stuttered, “Yes, that would be great.”
“Sometime this week maybe?”
“I’m going out of town this weekend. I have so
much to do before I leave, making sure Lincoln’s
settled.”
“I understand,” he said. “I have an engagement
this weekend as well. I guess I should prepare for
it instead of just showing up and winging it.”
Before I could ask about his engagement, he raised
an eyebrow and said, “Does it sound desperate if I
ask if next weekend would be more suitable?”
“Doesn’t sound desperate at all. Next weekend
sounds great.”
“Good, so I’ll call you later to make plans.”
“Sounds good,” I said feeling my heart race in
anticipation and Jonathan smiled at me before
walking away. I watched him, giving his long legs,
slim waist and broad shoulders an appreciative
once-over.
And then remembering that we hadn’t
exchanged numbers, I yelled, “Hey, Jonathan!”
He turned around and came back over to me,
smiling.
“Already missed me?”
I shook my head at his corny joke and said,
“You don’t have my number.”
“Yes, I do. I was just going to find it in
Lincoln’s file. Does that sound creepy?”
“Umm... just a little bit,” I said flippantly and
he laughed saying,
“I’m looking forward to next weekend already,
Mia. That’s for sure...” And he allowed his eyes to
travel down my body and I resisted the urge to
look away when his eyes came back to mine. I
gave a little smile, feeling daring and he returned it
with a smile of his own, before turning around and
walking confidently away.
“G
THREE
ood evening, ladies and gentleman. It is with
great pleasure that I thank you all for being
here today. It’s been amazing being in a crowd of
like-minded individuals working hard to give back
to their communities, so please view this
conference not only as a way to network and learn
from each other, but also as an opportunity to share
your successes, your triumphs. As your keynote
speaker, I’m not here to bore you with details or
meaningless rhetoric. I’m here to celebrate and to
thank you on behalf of the entire city for being
dreamers and doers,” said the keynote speaker and
we all applauded.
I heard the words, but I still just stared at the
person who delivered them, unable to believe what
the director who had introduced the keynote
speaker earlier had said. I sat in the lavish
ballroom next to the other conference attendees,
not taking my eyes off the stage. To say this was the
last thing I had expected, would be a gross
understatement.
When I had arrived at the hotel where the
conference was being held, I pulled up in the
driveway and had been in the process of stepping
out of my car when a familiar voice called out my
name.
I turned around, not believing my ears and just
stared at him for a second, then said with
incredulity in my voice, “What are you doing
here?”
Jonathan stood there smiling at me as the valets
quickly came over to fetch our cars.
“You need some help?” Jonathan said coming
around and grabbing my luggage from the backseat
of my car without answering my question. A hotel
attendant quickly offered to assist us and Jonathan
loaded my suitcases onto the cart, before turning
around and getting ...