The Billionaire's Assistant: The Romero Brothers (Billionaire Romance), #6

By Shadonna Richards

 When it rains, it pours.  Swoon-worthy billionaire bad boy Dion Romero knows this all too well. It's bad enough to get thrown into a crisis that threatens the survival of Rom International, one of his lucrative business interests, but now a frivolous lawsuit by an ex-girlfriend who worked with him has surfaced. He needs to focus on getting his business in order and keep as far away as possible from women. The trouble is, he's falling hard for his wonderful new assistant, Jenna. She's a sweet and innocent, yet deadly distraction to his heart. But he's finding she's too irresistible to avoid.

 

Jenna-Lynn Macchiasso knows what it means to have a crushed heart and suffer betrayal from those close to her so she no longer has men on her agenda. But her new oh, so sexy boss Dion Romero is giving her a run for her money. The secrets of her past make her life too complicated for her to get close to another man. What should she do? Forfeit her mission to her work, or forfeit her heart's desire?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shadonna Richards
• Release date: Jul 21, 2014
• ISBN: 9781501439490

Shadonna Richards

USA Today bestselling author Shadonna Richards enjoys reading and writing about the magic of romance and the power of love. She has sold over 500,000 copies of her bestselling romance novels. Born in London, England, she has a B.A. Degree in Psychology. Winner of Harlequin's So You Think You Can Write 2010 Day Two Challenge, she is also a member of Romance Writers of America. She's a proud mommy and wife and lives with her husband and son. Books by Shadonna Richards BILLIONAIRES OF BELMONT (The Belmont Family) The Billionaire's Bride for a Day #1 (Dane & Olivia) The Billionaire's Promise #2 (Brandon & Faith) The Billionaire's Housekeeper #3 (Chase & Abbi)  The Billionaire's Lost & Found Love #4 (Cole & Hope)  The Billionaire's Redemption #5 (Leo & Honesty)  THE ROMERO BROTHERS The Billionaire’s Second-Chance Bride, #1 (Antonio III & Lucy) A Bride for the Billionaire Bad Boy, #2 (Lucas & Maxine) The Playboy Billionaire, #3 (Zack & Blue) The Billionaire’s Island Romance, #3.5 (Christian & Arianna) The Billionaire’s Proposition, #4 (Carl & Venus) The Billionaire’s Baby, #5 (Jules & Amber) The Billionaire’s Assistant, #6 (Dion & Jenna-Lynn) Snowbound with the Billionaire, #7 (Troy & Pamela) The Billionaire’s Marriage Proposal, #8 (Alonso & Britney)   THE BRIDE SERIES An Unexpected Bride The Jilted Bride  The Matchmaker Bride His Island Bride (Free) An Unexpected Baby (The sequel to An Unexpected Bride)   WHIRLWIND ROMANCE SERIES Accidentally Flirting with the CEO (Books 1 -3)  

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

Damage control? Dion Romero asked Pamela, his press secretary, incredulously.

Yes. We must do damage control as soon as possible, Pamela warned him. Pre-emptive. This could get ugly fast, Dion, Pamela finished. She was a petite, very young and feisty press secretary with beautiful shiny jet-black hair. Pam had been with the Romero family for a few years and helped them through many scandals by spinning her wonderful words for their public image campaigns. She herself was practically family at this point. Trusted and always on the mark.

Dion glanced out the French glass doors of the study to the patio and garden and the backdrop of the hills. It sure didn’t feel like Monday morning. The dark clouds were gray and the rain pelted the paved patio outside. Thunder rolled in the sky. How appropriate for the way he was feeling inside. Like a raging storm in his very soul.

She’s right, grandson, Toni Romero, Dion’s grandfather and the patriarch of the powerful Romero dynasty, agreed. Along with his grandfather and brother, Troy, and the family’s press secretary, Pamela, Dion sat in the study at the Romero Manor to address the latest allegation in the media against a member of his family. Unfortunately, this one involved him. Having a disgruntled ex-employee sue you for sexual harassment is not good, Toni continued.

Miranda and I dated long before I even got her the job at the Rom, Granddad. She embezzled funds from the company. Plain and simple. I had to fire her. That’s the reason she’s getting back at me with this...this f—phony suit. Dion had to bite his lip to avoid swearing in front of his grandfather. She won’t have a leg to stand on. Dion could feel his core body temperature climb. He was annoyed as sin. Miranda was doing this on purpose—to generate this reaction from him. Dion was known to keep his cool, but she knew his limits. Women. And this one really knew how to get him worked up.

You see, Grandson, none of this would have happened if you’d follow my advice as your brothers, Lucas, Zack, Carl and Jules, had done.

Oh, no. Not that again, Gramps. Not now.

I have to tell it like it is, grandson. If you were married, you wouldn’t be in this situation.

Dion rolled his eyes.

You know how much the press is all over you boys since you’ve made names for yourselves in the business world. You get all these opportunists at your door. Now, if you were happily married...

Granddad, marrying is not the answer to everything. Besides, not everyone’s cut out to be chained to one human being.

A marriage does not equate to life in a jail cell, grandson.

Yeah, well, it’s an institution and you know how I feel about those.

His grandfather frowned, shook his head then hunched his shoulders as if giving up on persisting with the topic. But Dion knew it was coming again, sometime in the future. His grandfather would not give up until all his grandsons were married off.

Back to matters at hand. Unfortunately, being popular in the business world brought out haters from all corners of the corporate world. The Romeros had been there before with espionage and kidnap and extortion attempts and now this.

It wasn’t long ago when they had convened regarding his younger brother Lucas who had to face accusations of being a womanizer, and Zack’s infamous ex threatening to release a sex tape they’d made in Vegas to ruin his chances of being honored with a prestigious industry award.

Currently, Dion was at the center of what could be a large scandal. Sexual Harassment. A false one at that.

I don’t need this right now, Dion complained, raking his fingers through his hair. He unbuttoned his dark tailored suit jacket and loosened his silk gray tie. We’ve got that crisis going on in Lendovia. This is insane. Miranda will just have to have her nervous breakdown some other time. Like, next year.

Troy, Dion’s younger brother, grinned.

I couldn’t agree with you more, bro. Talk about bad timing. But seriously, we need to nip this one in the bud fast, Troy added. It reminds me of that sex scandal with that president. Dude was trying to tell his country they have national security issues and they accused him of wagging the dog’s tail to avoid the scandal. Not good.

Yeah, well, your business interests are at stake so we can’t ignore that, either, Pamela commented, biting her lip. She sat holding her laptop in front of her ready to type a statement for the media. The energy in the room was palpable, everyone was riled up.

Forget the business interests right now. Money can be replaced. People cannot. I’m worried about getting my employees out of that country as fast as humanly possible. It’s like that nation’s going through some civil war or something.

Never mind his reputation. The safety of those who worked for Dion was paramount. It was everything to him. If any single person he employed had so much as a scratch on his or her skin or a strand of hair rustled from the uproar in Lendovia, he’d wage his own war against those responsible.

Dion’s employees were crucial to him, and not just in the workplace. They were friends, extended family. He trusted them and they trusted him. Period. He was responsible for providing a good, safe environment for every person he employed. It was the Romero way. The only way the Romeros knew to run a business or any of their enterprises.

In fact, Romero Corp, the umbrella company founded by his grandfather, Toni, was voted one of the top 100 employers to work for in North America by several prestigious publications. And they came up in the number one spot, every year, consistently. And now this...

You’re right, grandson, Toni said. Normally, I would criticize you for acting too hastily. But we have no choice at this time. Other countries are talking about closing their embassies and urging citizens to stay indoors until emergency flights become available. It’s a good thing you ordered some flights to go there on short notice, ready to pick up any of our people who are ready to leave.

Yeah, Dion sighed, almost under his breath. His thoughts were still distracted. He was worried about his business situation but he was also riled up thinking about the nerve of Miranda coming up with some lame fake claim against him. Yeah, it was true that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Well, he sure as hell felt like he was being torched right now. How could she do this to him? He shook the thought from his mind and turned his attention back to Pamela. So what’s the latest scoop out of Lendovia?

Well, as you know the country’s monarch, unlike, say, the British monarchy, has full power over the country’s economic and political affairs.

And?

Well, Pamela continued, scrolling down the screen on her laptop pulling up the latest information, the reigning king is a tyrant. We all know that. He treats his own family as horrifically as he does those who work for him, not to mention the people in Lendovia. I’m surprised he’s still in power, given the current social climate.

Yeah, yeah. Dion’s impatience waned. What’s new?

Pamela drew in a deep breath before continuing. Well, word has it that the king of Lendovia has overthrown his own government over labor disputes.

In other words, the king believes in slave labor and he doesn’t like anyone to tell him what he can and cannot do.

Pamela said nothing, her look of disdain at the ruling king of Lendovia’s antics said enough. She looked as disgusted as Dion felt at the moment. He darn well hated having his own crew caught up in the hostile political climate of that nation. It all seemed like a wonderful opportunity at the time to open up a campus of Rom International (formerly Beta Business College Worldwide) in Lendovia. The country had a fantastic track record in regards to superior math and science levels, just not enough support from the federal government to push the students to a higher level. As part of the Romero’s world plan to make a difference in as many countries as possible, not just their own country, Lendovia seemed like the best place. Unfortunately, the country had been long divided by staggering economic division. You were either obscenely rich or filthy poor there. A middle class failed to exist it seemed.

Dion cursed under his breath. Damn it! Why did we even bother opening up a school there?

Because you believe in everyone having the right to receive a higher education at the college level without paying ridiculous fees. You were hoping to make a difference, Pamela answered Dion’s rhetorical question.

What are we going to do? Troy added, leaning his elbow on the mantel of the elegant stone fireplace. Troy had invested as much into Rom International as his brother Dion. Most of the other brothers had ventured off into other businesses: Zack owned the winery and vineyard, Lucas had a successful software company, Carl was the youngest mayor elected to Mayberry Hill, their hometown, and Alonso was a medical doctor who opened up private health clinics in third world countries. The Romero brothers were a rags-to-riches story and they never forgot their humble past. Sure, they were considered hot by the elite scene and often attracted unwanted media attention and pretty women and they even partied hard, but they worked damn hard, too. They didn’t compromise their integrity and doing what was right.

It wasn’t all about living a good life. If you couldn’t give back and help make someone else’s life better, what was the point of having all that hard money—or heck, what was the point of existing?

The king of Lendovia could have taken a few pointers from many of the philanthropists Dion knew, including the ones in his own family.

Well, Pamela said, taking charge, as I said before, we’ve got two challenges to tackle. We need to get our people out of there fast and close our offices and the school.

Close the school? Toni repeated.

Yes, sir, Pamela said. I’m sorry but we have no other choice. There’s just too much instability in that country.

We do have a choice, Dion interjected, his tone sharper than he’d intended.  I don’t want us to appear as if we’re running scared. We want our people out of there but no way in hell I’m closing down the college. After this uprising thing is over and done, we’re opening up for business again and we’re gonna do what we set out to do.

But, grandson, Pamela does have a point. As long as King Lend’or reigns in that country, there is no hope the political or economic climate will ever change.

Dion pinched