Fascination: (Billionaire Venture Capitalist #9): A Friends to Lovers Romance Read online

  Ainsley St Claire

  VENTURE CAPITALIST

  Book 9

  Fascination

  A Novel

  Copyright 2019 Ainsley St Claire

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are a production of the author’s imagination. Locations and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions or locations is completely coincidental.

  Venture Capitalist: Fascination—1st edition

  Table of Contents

  Enchanted

  Chapter one

  Chapter two

  Chapter three

  Chapter four

  Chapter five

  Chapter six

  Chapter seven

  Chapter eight

  Chapter nine

  Chapter ten

  Chapter eleven

  Chapter twelve

  Chapter thirteen

  Chapter fourteen

  Chapter fifteen

  Chapter sixteen

  Chapter seventeen

  Chapter eighteen

  Chapter nineteen

  Chapter twenty

  Chapter twenty-one

  Chapter twenty-two

  Chapter twenty-three

  Chapter twenty-four

  Chapter twenty-five

  Chapter twenty-six

  Chapter twenty-seven

  Chapter twenty-eight

  Chapter twenty-nine

  Chapter thirty

  Chapter thirty-one

  Gifted

  Chapter one

  Chapter two

  Thank you!

  How to find Ainsley

  Also by Ainsley St Claire

  Coming Soon

  About Ainsley

  Chapter one

  CeCe

  Sinking into a bath full of bubbles that smells of lavender, feels so good, and I’m able to relax for just a moment. Today has flat-out sucked. Why do so many people feel the need to forward me the links and clips of the gossip rags?

  I’m so mad at Frederic right now. If he wanted to break up with me, he should have grown a fucking pair and told me. He didn’t have to take an eighteen-year-old porn star out to a heavily press-covered event and then get caught with her under the table on her knees going down on him.

  His messages afterward were stunning.

  “Please, baby. Savannah and I are only friends.”

  Yeah, right.

  I guess I could own some of it. I haven’t been feeling it with him for a while, and we were both just hanging on. Damn, it still smarts to be dumped on television.

  Asshole!

  With cucumber slices over my eyes, the stress begins to evaporate. My phone rings, and normally I wouldn’t answer while I’m de-stressing in the bath, but my best friend, Emerson, is due any moment with her first child. This just may be it. Besides, Frederic’s been blocked, so I’m pretty sure I don’t have to worry about dealing with him.

  “Hello?”

  “Caroline, it’s Evelyn.”

  Crap. Work call. I spent most of the day with Evelyn. I’m kicking myself for not checking the caller ID first. “Hi, what’s up?”

  “I’m here at San Francisco General Hospital with my boyfriend. We think he broke his arm. Umm… I just saw them wheel your friend Mason Sullivan in from an ambulance.”

  I sit up straight, splashing water all over the floor, but I don’t care. “Are you sure?”

  “I’m fairly positive.”

  “Thanks, Evelyn.” We hang up, and I immediately call his cell phone. “Please pick up. Mason. Please pick up,” I whisper to myself.

  “Hello?” a male voice answers, but it isn’t Mason.

  “May I speak with Mason, please?”

  “I’m sorry, who is this?”

  “It’s Caroline.”

  “This is Detective Lenning. Are you related to Mason?”

  My mind is racing. “No. May I please speak with him?”

  “Do you know how I can get in touch with someone who’s related to him?”

  “His mother lives in Ohio. I’m one of his best friends. Where is Mason?” I dread his answer, wondering, praying, hoping he’s not at the hospital.

  “Caroline, Mason is currently unable to speak. He’s at San Francisco General Hospital. We need to reach a family member. Do you know his mother’s name?”

  “I can’t remember right now. I’m on my way. Where is his girlfriend, Annabelle Ryan?”

  “We can’t be sure.”

  I don’t have time to think about Annabelle right now, so I let it go. “I’m on my way,” I repeat before ending the call.

  I quickly throw some clothes on and call for a rideshare. While in the car, I call Dillon.

  “Hello. Boy, do you have good timing.”

  “Dillon, Mason’s at San Francisco General. All I know is that they wheeled him in on a gurney. No one knows where Annabelle is.”

  “We’re on our way there now. Emerson’s water just broke.”

  “Oh my God! I’ll check on Mason and be right there.”

  I hear a loud groan in the background. Obviously, Emerson is having some serious contractions.

  “I have to go,” Dillon says in a rush.

  “No worries. I get it.”

  “CeCe, let me know the minute you know anything about Mason.”

  Fighting back the tears, I tell him, “I will.”

  I disconnect the call and reach out to Mason’s other best friend, Cameron.

  He answers with “Did Emerson have her baby?”

  “She’s going in now, but the reason I’m calling is because Mason’s at the hospital.”

  “What? Why?”

  “I don’t know, but a detective answered his phone when I called, and Annabelle can’t be found. I’m on my way.”

  “Hadlee and I will be right there, too.” I hear him tell Hadlee what’s going on, and she jumps on the phone.

  “What do you know?”

  “Nothing, really. Just that Evelyn from my office called and said she saw Mason brought into the hospital by ambulance. And when I called Dillon, he said Emerson is in labor and they’re on their way to the hospital.”

  “Okay. Cameron wants me to tell you he’s calling Cynthia, Christopher, and William. I’ll call Greer as soon as we hang up, and you call Trey. I’ll call and use my hospital credentials to find out where he is, and I’ll text everyone.” Hadlee is a pediatrician and well known in the medical community for her work.

  I can breathe a tiny bit easier. “Thank you.”

  I disconnect the call and phone my twin brother.

  “Hey,” he answers.

  “Hi. Please let Sara know that Mason’s in the hospital.”

  “Is he okay?”

  “We don’t know.” I hear him call for Sara and tell her.

  “We’re on our way,” he says, and I can’t hold back my tears. “Ces, he’s going to be okay. I saw the rags, and I know today has been terrible, but I promise a big hug when I see you.” Trey is truly my best friend in the whole world. We’ve been through so much together, and he knows what I
think often before I do.

  “Can you call Mom and Dad? They’ll want to know.”

  “Yep, I got that. See you in a few.”

  “Hadlee will send a group text out as soon as she knows something.” The rideshare pulls up to the emergency room entrance. “I love you, big brother.”

  “I love you, too.”

  We’re hardly at a stop when I open the door and race up to the information desk, pushing myself to the front of the line. “Hello, Mason Sullivan was just brought in?”

  “You’ll need to get in line. I can only help one person at a time,” the tired-looking receptionist says.

  As I step in line and take a few deep breaths trying to calm myself, my cell phone pings with a text.

  Hadlee: Mason’s in the surgical unit on the fourth floor. His doctor is Jordan Severs. She’s an amazing heart surgeon. Everyone, let’s meet at the fourth-floor surgical waiting room.

  This hospital is huge. Where the hell is the fourth-floor surgical waiting room?

  I see a janitor and figure he probably knows the hospital better than any lady at the information desk.

  “Excuse me. I need to get to the fourth-floor surgical waiting room. Can you tell me how to get there, please?”

  He smiles at me. “Yes. You take the green line on the floor to the elevators and head up to the fourth floor. Once you get out there, you need to watch the signs. It’s about as far away from the elevators as you can get, but you’ll find it. If you get lost, there are plenty of people who can help you.”

  “Thank you so much. I appreciate your help.”

  I race off, following the green line to the elevators, and he’s right, the walk to the waiting room is as long as it can be once I reach the fourth floor. Once I arrive, I let the nurses know I’m here for Mason Sullivan.

  A man approaches me. “You’re here for Mason Sullivan?”

  I turn and size him up quickly. As I begin to answer, Cynthia arrives with her fiancé, Todd, two steps behind her. “CeCe? Is Mason okay?” She turns, and her eyes widen. “Detective Lenning? What are you doing here?”

  “Miss Hathaway? I wish we were seeing each other again under better circumstances.”

  “Did the Russian mob do this?” Cynthia was involved with the Russian mob a little over a year ago. I guess she knows him from her mess when they got involved with her former employer and she was a whistle blower.

  He holds up his hand. “You must be the woman who called Mason not long ago.”

  “That was me. My name is Caroline Arnault.” I extend my hand, and he takes it cautiously.

  “What made you call Mason at that particular time?”

  “I received a call from someone who works for me. She was here with her boyfriend in the emergency room and saw Mason come in.”

  “I see.” Turning to Cynthia, he asks, “And who alerted you?”

  We hear them before we see them. Up rush my brother, Trey, and his wife, Sara; Cameron and his fiancée, Hadlee; Greer with her husband, Andy; William and his fiancée, Quinn; and bringing up the rear are Christopher and his wife, Bella. They swarm us, all asking questions about Mason at once.

  I focus on Detective Lenning. “I called Cameron, and between the two of us, we alerted everyone else,” I answer.

  “Did you tell anyone who isn’t here?”

  I look around at the group. “No… wait. Yes, I alerted Dillon and Emerson Healy first, but they were on their way here because Emerson’s water broke.”

  The girls go crazy.

  Detective Lenning is becoming visibly agitated. “Miss Arnault, when we spoke, you asked about his girlfriend—” He searches through his notes. “—a Miss Annabelle Ryan?”

  “Yes.” I don’t know where he’s going with this, but I’m not going to help him.

  “Did you call her?”

  I shake my head.

  “Why not?”

  I shrug. “I guess I figured she already knew.”

  “Why would she know?”

  “Because they live together.”

  I begin to feel bad for not calling her. While she may not be our favorite person, she cares about Mason, I’m sure of it, and she should be told.

  Me: Annabelle, Mason is at San Francisco General. We don’t know much, but we’re here. Come as soon as you can.

  William speaks up. “Detective Lenning, why are you here asking questions? Is there something we need to be aware of?”

  “No, nothing,” he shares. Turning back to me, he asks, “Did you recall the name of his mother?”

  “His mother’s name is Janice Sullivan Harris of Canton, Ohio,” I tell him, able to remember now that some of the panic has worn off.

  He has Mason’s phone in his hands and scans through the contacts. “Excuse me.”

  “Mason’s going to be pissed if he calls her,” Cameron mutters.

  I know he’s right, but she is his mother and should probably be here.

  My parents arrive then. They’re pretty close to Mason. “Any news?” my dad asks.

  Trey tells them what little we know, and I try to collect myself.

  My dad pulls me aside. “Do we know why Detective Lenning is here?”

  I shake my head. “He isn’t telling us. And I’m getting nervous that I can’t find Annabelle.”

  “He’s a strong man. He’s going to be fine, and he has the best doctors in the country looking out for him.”

  “Thanks, Dad.” I lean in and he hugs me tight. It sure is comforting he and my mom are here.

  I’m a complete wreck as we wait. Sara and Greer take a seat on each side of me, holding my hands. All the things I’ve wanted to say to him circle in my mind, and if he dies, I’m going to be more than disappointed in him. I’m going to chase him down in hell and kill him again!

  Hadlee has disappeared, and Annabelle hasn’t responded to my text, so I decide to call her. I’m relieved when it goes right to voice mail—I don’t want to explain why I’m calling her and not the hospital staff. “Annabelle, this is CeCe. Mason has been admitted to San Francisco General. We don’t know anything. Please call when you get a chance or come down. We are in the fourth-floor surgical waiting room.”

  Cynthia puts her arm around me as I disconnect the call. “He’s strong. He’s going to be okay.”

  “Thanks. Annabelle’s phone rings right to her voice mail. I should try the house.”

  She nods, and I call the main line at Mason’s house. Fighting back the tears, I virtually repeat the same message on that answering machine. I hope she can get here soon.

  It seems to take forever for Hadlee to return; when she does, she’s in scrubs.

  “They’re unable to get Mason stabilized enough for surgery. He has an irregular heart rate and shortness of breath. His liver and kidneys seem to be shutting down. His EKG was bad, and they’re trying to stabilize him and determine if they need to do surgery. It looks like they’re going to induce a medical coma so they can run tests, and then they’ll move him to the ICU.” Hadlee looks at me. “Let’s go get some coffee. It’s going to be a long night.”

  My heart is beating triple time. A coma? That seems extreme. What happened? “I’m okay here. I can wait.”

  Cameron puts his arms around me. “Come on, CeCe, you look exhausted and in need of some food.”

  I paint a smile on my face. “I’ll be fine.”

  Looking around the room, I see that everyone is as stressed as I am. Hoping they will follow my lead, I clap my hands together and say, “All right, everyone, Mason would not be happy to know that we are out here worrying about him. Let’s head down to Labor and Delivery and see how Emerson is doing.”

  Everyone seems to perk up, and a few even smile as we walk to the other side of the hospital in search of our other friend and partner. Emerson is bringing the very first baby into our group.

  When we arrive, the nurses recognize Hadlee but won’t let the rest of us in. After a few minutes, Dillon walks out looking grim.

  “How ya doin�
��?” Cameron asks.

  “The baby is not moving into the birth canal. The docs are giving him a few minutes to figure it out on his own, or they’ll begin prepping her for a C-section.”

  “I see the baby’s stubborn just like his parents,” Sara sympathizes.

  “Maybe.” Dillon grins. “Any word on Mason?”

  “We don’t know much, but Detective Lenning is here and investigating.”

  “Was it a car accident?”

  I shrug. I’m following Cameron’s lead and not wanting to stress Dillon about Mason’s situation. I wish I knew why Detective Lenning was here and asking questions, but I’m not going to stress about this where we have something to celebrate. He needs to focus on Emerson and his new baby. “I’m hoping Hadlee can find out more from her side.”

  “You guys can wait here or, of course, with Mason. I can text you as soon as the baby arrives.”

  I give Dillon a big hug and whisper in his ear, “You tell Emerson we’re here and cheering for her. We can’t wait to see your little bundle.”

  We wander back to the ICU waiting area. The hours tick by even slower than normal. I stand, I sit, I read my social media. Everyone I care about is here with me, but I’m worried about Mason, and I’m mad at Annabelle for not being here. Where could she be?

  Everyone’s phone pings at the same time.

  Dillion: When you can, come meet Liam Michael Healy, born at 10:22 p.m. at 7lbs, 8 oz. Mom is a rock star and doing great!

  We jump up and cheer to celebrate the new addition to our team. I can’t wait to meet the little guy.

  “Hadlee, you go first to visit, and we can follow in less-overwhelming groups,” Greer says.

  “I think we can go in small groups of four,” Hadlee informs us.

  I stop listening to them. I’m sure Mason’s doctor is going to be out any minute.

  It’s just Cynthia and me waiting when a petite woman steps out. “Caroline?”

  I stand. “Yes, that’s me.”

  “Hello, I’m Jordan Severs, Mason’s doctor.”

  “How’s he doing?”

  “We can’t be sure why Mason had a heart attack, but he seems to be doing well. We’ve put him in a medically induced coma for a few days. He needs to recover. Once things settle down, everyone can visit him. It will be good for him to hear you all talking to him.”