Single Daddy Billionaire: Billionaire Bachelors, #6

By Lexi Banks

Most people would think that as a billionaire I don't have real problems. Money makes the world go around, right? I'm not exactly a guy weighed down with most people's concerns.
There's just one small problem. I've given up on love and family. Women have come and gone through my life, but I've never found a connection that felt like it'd last more than a few weeks. So, no wife, no kids. After all, I want someone who isn't just a gold-digger looking for her sugar daddy.
I wasn't looking for anything with my gorgeous new assistant Morgan. Hell, I'd hired her thinking she was married. Turns out she's been separated from her husband for years and about to be divorced. It also turns out that she's into me, which was more than willing to demonstrate by kissing me in a bar.
A little love being in the air's always nice, but the next thing I know I'm saddled with my sister's infant daughter. I might be a successful businessman, but I don't know anything about babies. Not a lot of them on my board of directors.
Morgan might be into me, but she's got her own issues for the past, a deep pain related to a child she lost, and I don't know if she can take being around my niece.
So, yeah, sometimes being a billionaire doesn't help. I have a duty to raise my niece, but that may cost me Morgan and a chance at true love. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: DM
• Release date: May 19, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393086277

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Chapter One

Daniel

I LOOKED ACROSS MY desk at the smartly dressed woman sitting across from me. Her dark hair rested in a chignon, and she had some of the bluest eyes I’d ever seen. She looked like she was in her late twenties, though I knew she was thirty-one, a good ten years younger than me. Only a blind man wouldn’t call her beautiful, and my vision was damn near perfect.

But none of that mattered. I cared much more about the wedding ring she sported on her left hand. Of course she was married—it only made sense—she was both beautiful and intelligent. Perfect. I’d found exactly what I needed.

I’m glad you were so prompt, Mrs. Lannister, I said. May I call you Morgan?

Please do, she said as she folded her slender hands in front of her. And I want to thank you for the opportunity to interview.

I waved a hand dismissively. This is more a formality at this point.

Morgan arched an eyebrow, Really?

Your resume has already gone through a number of internal hoops before it ever got to me. Let’s be honest; as CEO, it’s not like I want to spend time vetting applicants, even when it comes to my personal assistant. I leave that work to HR.

Oh, I see.

I watched her for a moment, and her face suggested she wasn’t insulted.

According to your resume, you’ve been an assistant to a regional bank manager for two years, I said, glancing over at my computer screen.

Yes, Morgan said, with a smile.

You’ll be glad to know that your boss there had nothing but good things to say about you.

Her cheeks reddened. That’s good to hear. You always assume you know what people think about you, but it’s hard to be certain.

So you started originally at that bank as a teller, is that right?

Yes, I did. I worked there for about eight years, originally as a teller, then in the fraud department for a while, and various other positions.

It takes a lot to work your way up. I have a lot of respect for that.

Thank you.

I leaned forward, resting my chin in my hand. I’m going to ask you a question that most people that are looking for work hate, but I think it’s important and can reveal a lot.

Morgan nodded, and her facial expression didn’t change at all, which I could appreciate. I wasn’t trying to make her nervous, but I didn’t want to sugarcoat anything either. The last thing I wanted was an assistant I couldn’t trust.

What is that? she asked. My greatest flaw?

I snorted. Useless.

Oh. What did you want to know then?

From what I can tell, you seemed to be doing well at your old job, and your boss speaks highly of you. So why did you leave, then? Why not stay in such a great position?

Morgan shrugged. It was just time to move on. Things are a bit stagnant there, and I think if you want to keep growing, you need to seek out new opportunities.

Opportunities like working for me?

Exactly. Your scope of duties is greater than that of a bank manager, so as your assistant, I would expect mine would be as well.

I sat back up. That’s good to hear. Do you have questions about the benefits, pay, and that sort of thing? I’m presuming HR went into all of that with you, but I always want to make sure that people know what they are walking into. To be clear, I’m not asking as a starting point for any negotiation. I think what I’m offering is more than fair.

Oh, I’ve no problems with your offer. To be honest, the pay is much greater than I’ve been making.

I shrugged a single shoulder. I believe you can’t attract and keep the best if you don’t pay the best.

Morgan’s brow furrowed, a faint look of confusion on her face. There is one thing I was curious about.

Go ahead. Ask away.

Unlimited coffee. Actually unlimited? Is that correct?

I barked out a laugh, and Morgan’s face reddened. It was kind of cute.

I waved a hand. Sorry, I’m not trying to make fun of you. I love coffee, and I have a special agreement with an artisan coffee shop on the first floor of this building to supply coffee up here. If you stop down there in person, you’ll have to still pay full price.

I love coffee, too, Morgan said, quietly.

Well, you’ll find this is a great place to work, then. Do you have any other questions?

So what’s next in the process? When will I hear back about the job one way or another?

I nodded once. Ah. I do things a bit differently when it comes to hiring my assistants.

I don’t understand.

I mostly just wanted to meet you face-to-face. I have HR handle all the filtering, and they do a good job at that sort of thing. Something I’ve learned in the last twenty years is when to delegate. HR made sure that only the best candidate got to me, and one that I was already ninety-five percent certain to hire. I offered her my hand. So, unless you have any objections, I am more than happy to welcome you to the team as my personal assistant.

Morgan blinked, surprise spreading across her face. I resisted a smirk, but still felt more than a little pride at impressing the beautiful woman, even if she was strictly off-limits.

She beamed a smile at me and shook my hand. Well, thank you, Mr. Brown.

I waved a hand. Just call me Daniel. I rose, gesturing for her to come along. Let me show you to your desk.

Morgan stood, and I led her into a small alcove just outside my office. A desk sat there, with a computer already prepared. Multiple folders sat on the desk along with a key to the desk drawers.

There’s a bunch of HR garbage you’ll need to go through. Try to get the majority of it done today so you can get all your passwords and keycards. Then we can hit the ground running tomorrow, and you can read through the HR manual and some other documents as you have downtime. I think you’ll find I’m not an ass as a boss, but I am going to keep you busy.

Morgan nodded eagerly. I like keeping busy, Mr. Brow—Daniel. She slipped into her chair at the desk and began to look at the materials in the folders there. Something about it fit her perfectly, as if the chair and desk had been made just for her.

I rubbed my chin, satisfied. I had a good feeling about Morgan. Of course, I’d had a good feeling about the last two assistants, and they’d been good, right up until they’d left after getting married, but an already married woman wasn’t going anywhere, and the fact she’d been working steadily also proved she was interested in a career. This was a win-win for everybody involved.

Good, we’ll get along great, I said. My gaze lingered for a moment, and I gave her a final nod before stepping away.

There was no point in sitting there making idle chit-chat. She had things to do, and I needed to clear my head with a nice cup of coffee.

A TRIP DOWN THE ELEVATOR brought me to the first floor. One advantage of being a billionaire who owned a building was that I could rent out space to my best friend since high school for his coffee shop.

Though I always liked to tell people it was a savvy business deal, the truth was, my friend Hunter’s shop, in terms of profit, would disappear with a mild rounding error when it came to my wealth. Still, it provided a convenient enough excuse I could use to help my friend without looking like I was giving him a handout.

I strolled into Hunter’s Best Roast, smiling at the sign. BEST COFFEE IN SEATTLE. In a city where coffee was almost religion, that was a pretty bold claim, but damned if Hunter didn’t prove it every single day.

In this case, I was uniquely qualified to know. I’d had coffee at all the high-end places all over town. None of them touched the quality my friend somehow managed to provide. I didn’t know how he worked his magic, but it had something to do with a combination of equipment, technique, and sourcing that no one else could match.

Sure, Hunter also priced his coffee a bit on the expensive side for most people, but it’s not like a billionaire was going to quibble over the price of a cup of coffee. Given that Hunter paid rent to a company I owned, in a sense, I was getting my coffee for free.

I sat on a stool at the counter, glad that no one else was in the shop at the moment. Good timing. The final interview face with Morgan had helped me miss the morning rush. I hated dealing with crowds.

You’re here earlier than I thought, Hunter said. Didn’t you have an interview for a new assistant this morning? What’s that, like, the third one in a year?

It wasn’t really an interview. I just wanted to see her face-to-face and check for a wedding ring.

Hunter snorted. Seriously? You looking for an assistant or someone to date?

It’s like you said. She’s the third one in a year, I frowned. My last two assistants quit after about six months because they got married, and when I told HR to only send me married women, they made it clear in no uncertain terms that such a request was a violation of federal labor law that was likely to get the company sued. I tried to get them to bend, and the head of HR threatened to quit.

Hunter laughed, then started pouring a cup of coffee for me. He knew my coffee blend preferences well enough, and I was a creature of habit.

That’s the problem with you, Daniel. Just because we went to college together doesn’t mean we’re the same. Hunter pointed up. You’re so high up in your castle now you forget what it means sometimes to run a business on the low day-to-day level. Yeah, you totally can’t ask someone’s marital status. I’d have a lawyer on my ass in two seconds if I tried that, even when hiring a barista. In some corporate job, you’re lucky a lecture from HR was all you got.

I waved a hand. Look, I’m not trying to be a bastard. I just want some continuity. I’ve got enough going on in my life and company that I can’t constantly get used to new assistants. I don’t think working for me for more than six months is too much to ask. I shook my head, I’d thought about making them sign contracts for a minimum timeframe, but the last thing I want is someone phoning it in for months or seething with resentment because I won’t let them quit.

So, what about the new hire? Did you kick her out with some excuse because she wasn’t married? I’m going to enjoy reading about the lawsuit. Hunter chuckled.

Nope. Married. Nice ring. I let out a sigh of relief. So, this will work out perfectly. I’d been expecting HR would send me a single woman on purpose, just to make a point.

Hunter nodded. Uh-huh. What if she gets divorced?

I don’t care as long as she does her job. I snorted. Besides, if she got divorced, the last thing she’d want to do is quit because she’d need the money, and divorced women don’t usually get remarried right away. Hopefully, I’ve finally got a stable assistant who will be with me for a while. This is perfect.

That’s cold man. Very cold.

I waved a hand. That’s business.

Hunter finished adding some flavoring into the coffee he was preparing before tilting his head and staring at me.

What? I said, with a frown.

Is she hot?

My new assistant? I shrugged. What does it matter? She’s married.

Hunter grinned. That’s not answering the question.

She’s rather conventionally attractive, yes.

My friend handed me my coffee with a smirk like that settled something. I always hated it when Hunter thought he was one up on me.

I took a sip of the bitter brew, considering Morgan’s appearance. I’d be the first to admit that she wasn’t just attractive, she was downright beautiful, but like I told my friend, it didn’t matter. She was married, and I wasn’t going to cause myself trouble by going after a married woman.

It didn’t matter anyway. I needed an assistant—not a date.

Hunter had been right when he accused me of losing touch. It was almost inevitable after achieving all that I had in the last twenty years since leaving college, but, at the same time, Hunter didn’t appreciate what it meant to keep and maintain that success.

My friend lacked ambition, which was fine. He was satisfied running a single artisan coffee shop, but I had to look at the big picture—with a vast fortune and a huge company, and that meant worrying not only about the morality of actions, but also their impact on my current business and my future potential partnerships. About the last thing a man like me needed to even think about was going after a married woman, even a beautiful one with such kissable lips.

I coughed as some coffee went down the wrong way. What the hell? Where did that come from? I shouldn’t be thinking about was how kissable some woman was, especially given that she was ten years younger than me and married. Not even close to appropriate.

No. I nodded to myself, satisfied. The only thing I would have with Morgan Lannister was a professional relationship.

Chapter Two

Morgan

AS I SETTLED INTO MY new desk Tuesday morning, I couldn’t believe how smoothly everything had gone the day before. When I’d shown up for the interview, I thought I’d be lucky to even get that far in the hiring process, and thought I’d be asked some sort of questions that would end my chance of getting the job. Something. Anything. Whether it be some critical question about finance or some personal question about my past I wasn’t prepared to answer.

As it was, I’d barely kept it together during the interview. I mostly kept my hands in my lap so that Daniel wouldn’t notice them shaking.

It wasn’t that I didn’t think I could do the job, not at all, but it was still hard not to be intimidated when a billionaire was interviewing you personally, not to mention if he was a handsome man. I’d expected some sort of meeting with a stuffy hiring manager, not the CEO of the entire company.

On reflection, that was kind of silly, of course. After all, I was applying for a job was the man’s personal assistant. Of course he would have been the one to have the final say on whether or not I’d be hired.

I blew out a breath. Yesterday didn’t matter. I had the job now, and everything would be all right. Not that I had any illusions about his friendly demeanor at the interview. I knew that Daniel would have been on his best behavior.

He seemed nice enough, which was good, but that didn’t mean much. Some men were only jerks when they were annoyed, but I figured it was still better to get a job with a man who at least tried to be nice instead of intimidating at the interview. It spoke to his default management style that I could expect on a day-to-day basis.

The basic reality was that you couldn’t work for a high-powered executive without expecting to take some heat, but I could deal with that, as long as I had time to settle into my new job and learn the ropes.

As if summoned by my thoughts, my new boss appeared, a cup of coffee in hand. It’s black, but there is plenty of cream and sugar in the break room. If you have a special blend you want, let Iris know, and she’ll set something up with Hunter.

Tension spread through me, and my heart thumped. I resisted a sigh. I was freaking myself out for no good reason.

I glanced down at the empty Styrofoam cup in my trash can. I didn’t want to risk annoying Daniel by pointing out that I’d already been to the break room for coffee. Besides, I’d need a new cup sooner or later. It was hard for me to get through the day without drinking a lot of coffee.

Iris—yes, I met her yesterday, but who is Hunter? I searched my memory, and was generally very good with names, but I couldn’t place him. Something, though, sounded very familiar about the name, as if someone else had mentioned him to me recently.

Heat assaulted my cheeks. I didn’t want to seem like a person who lacked attention to detail on my first real day on the job.

Daniel chuckled. Hunter is the owner of the coffee shop on the first floor. That’s where we get all our coffee.

Oh, I said, my cheeks heating as I realized I’d even stopped at that coffee shop right before my interview the day before. I’m not that picky, and I prefer black. Just as long as it has caffeine. Thanks a lot. I looked over at my computer and clicked the mouse a few times. As far as I can tell, you won’t need me until 11:30? Is that right?

I didn’t know if he’d purposefully kept his schedule clear so I wouldn’t be overwhelmed, or if it had just worked out that way, but either way, I was grateful for the chance to catch my breath. There was still so much I needed to learn about the company and business model. The best assistants didn’t need to be told what to do. They anticipated what their bosses needed, and I was still far from being able to do that.

Yes. You’ll have some time to ease into everything yet, he said, confirming my guess. If you need anything for your desk, let Iris know, but you should be all set up. He nodded and stepped out of my little alcove to head into his office and sit behind his desk.

I took note of the fact that he didn’t close his door. It was the little things that were revealing about a boss. My old boss always wanted his door closed, for example, convinced he’d be distracted otherwise. Daniel already seemed a lot more laid back.

I turned back to my computer, letting out a sigh of relief. I didn’t know why I was so scared. It was like I’d expected him to tell me he’d made a mistake and I should head back to my old job.

A shiver wracked my body at the thought. I was so glad to have landed this new job. It wasn’t that anyone at the bank mistreated me; if anything, I’d had the opposite problem. There was such a thing as people being too nice.

I let out a long, pain-ridden sigh. It had been two years since I’d lost my baby. At first, I appreciated all the sympathy, but it was hard to go into a job every day where everyone looked at me with pity, always acting like I’d break if they said the wrong thing. They were uncomfortable, which only made me more uncomfortable.

Yes, I’d experienced a horrible tragedy, but how was I supposed to move on when no one around me would let me?

I’d been on the fence about what I should do, but after talking with my therapist, she’d made it clear that if I wanted to fully recover, I’d need to change not just my mindset, but my life, and moving on from the job seemed like a good way to begin.

The need to move on was one of the main reasons why I’d picked a different industry entirely, even if that meant I wasn’t stepping into my new job with a complete understanding of the entire business from top to bottom like I’d had when I worked in banking.

A little spear of guilt stabbed me. I’d hadn’t been totally honest with Daniel about the reason for leaving my job, but it wasn’t a total lie either, and I didn’t really see why he needed to know anything about my personal life. The last thing I needed was for him to start pitying me, too.

Even without any of that weighing me down, I would have been crazy not to take this job, regardless of the nature of the business. The package I’d been offered had floored me. Daniel was offering me almost double my last salary, ridiculously good insurance, and an overly generous 401k contribution match, not to mention the unlimited coffee.

Guess I’d never get sleepy at this job—that much was for certain. I wondered if Daniel drank as much coffee as I did, and from what I’d already seen that morning, I was beginning to think the answer to that was yes. My old boss liked to tease me for drinking too much coffee. Oh, how things had changed.

Just as I was about to start reviewing my HR manual, I spotted a young, dark-haired woman heading toward Daniel’s office. She must have been in her early twenties at the most, and her distended belly made it clear she was pretty far along in her pregnancy, if not close to the end. She had nice enough clothes as well: a mommy-to-be in designer clothes.

Frowning, I checked Daniel’s calendar on my computer. He didn’t have any meetings scheduled until the 11:30 one he’d mentioned. He hadn’t explicitly stated so, but I assumed that part of my job as his personal assistant would be screening visitors. It’s not like Daniel had time to deal with every random woman strolling in who wanted to talk to him.

Standing, I waved the woman down. Excuse me, ma’am. Do you have an appointment?

The woman stopped, frowned, and stared at me like I was the stupidest woman on the planet. I fought down the snotty comments flooding my brain. I had no idea who she was, and the last thing I needed to do was make enemies, especially when I didn’t even know who I was dealing with.

I don’t need one, the woman stated.

I’m afraid Mr. Brown is very busy. You’ll need an appointment.

I’m Daisy, the woman stated, as if that cleared everything up. She rolled her eyes and then pointed toward Daniel’s open door. See?

I glanced over my shoulder, and Daniel was watching us, a faint frown on his face. I wasn’t sure if he was annoyed at me for stopping her, or this Daisy for showing up. He gestured for her to enter, and I cleared out of her way.

My stomach sank, and I wondered if he would yell at me later. It didn’t matter. If he had a guest coming, all he needed to do was let me know, and then we wouldn’t have this type of problem. No one could be expected to know everything right away.

Daisy offered me a smirk and a dismissive wave before continuing toward Daniel’s office. I sighed, and looked down, my cheeks burning. It was like the woman had purposefully wanted to humiliate me.

Even if I’d made a mistake about her being allowed to see Daniel, she had to realize it was my job to protect his time. Maybe she did and didn’t care. I suppose it didn’t matter. Now I understood that when the mysterious Daisy showed up, I needed to let her in.

She closed the office door behind her, and I took a seat to return my attention

Reviews for Single Daddy Billionaire

[Cheri Elliott · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

eh it was ok, I'm sure we could have been told a few more times he was a billionaire.