The Billionaire's Christmas Cinderella Read online

  She’s as pure as winter snow...

  Can her innocence redeem him?

  Charismatic Manhattan tycoon Abe Devereux is famed for his cold heart. So meeting compassionate nanny Naomi, who’s determined to see the good in him, is a novelty—as is the potency of their undeniable connection! Abe is notoriously merciless, and he wants this shy Cinderella between his sheets by Christmas. But will seducing gentle Naomi be Abe’s biggest risk, or his greatest chance of redemption?

  Lose yourself in this captivating Cinderella romance!

  Naomi had never been kissed until Abe.

  And she had never danced with another until tonight.

  As he led her onto the dance floor, she didn’t care if it was a duty dance, if for one song in her life she was held by him.

  But when he held her, when he pulled her into his arms and his hand took hers while the other held her waist, Naomi knew she lied. As she rested her head on his chest, her eyes drifted to the band, and silently pleaded that this dance would never end.

  A dangerous mistake.

  One only ever read about Abe’s scandals.

  For all the trysts he’d been caught up in there had never been so much as one single public display of affection.

  That ended tonight.

  His mouth found hers so easily and both imbibed.

  And the band must have sensed her earlier plea for they played on, as the whispers chased the tables around the room.

  Abe Devereux and that woman.

  Who no one knew by name.

  One thing was certain, though, and both tongues and cameras were clicking tonight.

  This kiss might have started on the dance floor, but it would end in bed.

  Tonight.

  Carol Marinelli recently filled in a form asking for her job title. Thrilled to be able to put down her answer, she put “writer.” Then it asked what Carol did for relaxation and she put down the truth—“writing.” The third question asked for her hobbies. Well, not wanting to look obsessed, she crossed her fingers and answered “swimming”—but, given that the chlorine in the pool does terrible things to her highlights, I’m sure you can guess the real answer!

  Books by Carol Marinelli

  Harlequin Presents

  One Night With Consequences

  The Sheikh’s Baby Scandal

  The Innocent’s Shock Pregnancy

  Secret Heirs of Billionaires

  Claiming His Hidden Heir

  Billionaires & One-Night Heirs

  The Innocent’s Secret Baby

  Bound by the Sultan’s Baby

  Sicilian’s Baby of Shame

  Ruthless Royal Sheikhs

  Captive for the Sheikh’s Pleasure

  The Billionaire’s Legacy

  Di Sione’s Innocent Conquest

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  Carol Marinelli

  The Billionaire’s Christmas Cinderella

  Dear Sam,

  With love, always xxxx

  Contents

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  EXCERPT FROM PREGNANT BY THE DESERT KING BY SUSAN STEPHENS

  PROLOGUE

  ‘I KNOW THAT this is a very difficult time for the Devereux family. However—’

  ‘That may be the case but it has no bearing on this discussion.’

  Abe Devereux interrupted the Sheikh when few people would. It was an online meeting, with Abe in his stunning high-rise New York City office and Sheikh Prince Khalid in Al-Kazan, but Abe would have responded in the same terse manner had they met face to face.

  The Devereux family was extending its empire into the Middle East. The first hotel was under construction in Dubai and the site for the next had recently been sourced in Al-Kazan.

  Except the landowners, Khalid had just informed Abe, had added several million to their previous asking price. To refuse jeopardised not only the Al-Kazan project—the knock-on effect would be huge. If the Devereuxes didn’t agree to the new asking price, then construction in Dubai might cease.

  Abe refused to be bullied.

  Khalid was very possibly relying on the fact that he was a personal friend of Abe’s younger brother, Ethan. Or perhaps he had hoped for a rare moment of weakness or distraction, given that Jobe Devereux, the head of the Devereux empire, was gravely ill.

  But there would be no weakness or distraction from Abe.

  Khalid would soon come to understand that he was dealing with the most ruthless of the Devereuxes.

  Abe would never be swayed by emotion.

  This was business, and nothing ever got in the way of that.

  ‘Whose side are you on, Khalid?’ Abe asked the question few would dare. ‘We are supposed to be in this venture together.’

  ‘I am on the side of progress,’ Khalid answered smoothly. ‘And for the sake of a relatively small sum we risk thwarting the inroads that have been made.’

  ‘If Al-Kazan is not ready for such progress then we shall look for another site.’

  ‘Have you discussed this with Ethan?’ Khalid checked.

  Ethan was supposed to be here but he hadn’t made it in, which was perhaps just as well, given that he was friends with the Sheikh.

  Abe wasn’t particularly friendly with anyone but, even had he been, it wouldn’t have swayed him.

  ‘Ethan and I are both in full agreement,’ Abe lied smoothly, for he had not had a chance to speak with his brother. ‘The price remains as originally decided or we look elsewhere.’

  ‘If we could perhaps discuss it with Ethan present?’ Supremely polite, still Khalid pushed his agenda. ‘He was here recently and understands the sensitivities.’

  ‘There’s nothing more to discuss.’

  ‘But if we can’t come to a satisfactory resolution, even a temporary one, construction in Dubai may well cease.’

  ‘In that case...’ Abe shrugged ‘...no one gets paid. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I really do have to go.’

  ‘Of course.’ Khalid nodded graciously, though it was clear he was displeased. ‘Would you pass on my best wishes to your father?’

  It was only when Abe was satisfied that they had been disconnected and Khalid’s face had disappeared from the screen that he let out a curse that indicated the gravity of the situation. If the Dubai construction ceased, for even a few days, the knock-on effect would be dire.

  Abe was quite sure that Khalid was relying on that fact.

  For a couple of million, Abe could resolve this. It was small change in the scheme of things and he was certain that Ethan would be willing to pay up rather than jeopardise the project at this tender stage.

  But Abe refused to be bullied.

  And threats, however silkily delivered, would not change his stance.

  Abe got up from his desk and, from his impressive vantage point, looked out over a cold and snowy Manhattan and beyond. It was a stunning
view towards the East River and he drank it in for a moment, barely turning his head when his brother’s PA knocked and explained the reason for his absence from this morning’s meeting.

  ‘Ethan’s been at the hospital with Merida since last night. Apparently, she’s in labour.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  Abe didn’t ask for details.

  He already knew more than enough.

  Ethan had married Merida a few months ago, though only because she was pregnant. Abe had, along with his father, signed off on the contract that would ensure that the new Mrs Devereux and her infant would be well provided for when they eventually divorced.

  But as clinical as a contract sounded, it had its merits—Abe hoped to God it ensured that the baby would be treated better than he and Ethan had been.

  He could not think of that now.

  Abe closed his eyes on the glorious December view.

  It wasn’t even nine a.m. and it was already proving to be a long day.

  He had Sheikh Khalid testing his limits and the Middle East contract on the brink of collapse.

  As well as that, in the hospital a few streets away from this very building he had his brother’s wife giving birth in one wing...

  And his father dying in the other.

  No.

  He corrected himself—his father was fighting for his life in the other.

  His mother, Elizabeth Devereux, had died when Abe was nine. She hadn’t been in the least bit maternal and Jobe had been far from a hands-on father. In fact, a fleet of nannies had raised the Devereux boys—but Abe greatly admired his father and was not ready to let him go.

  Not that he showed it, of course.

  For a second so brief it was barely there Abe considered discussing the Middle East issue with him. Jobe Devereux was the founder and the cleverest man Abe knew. Yet Abe quickly decided he could not stress his father while he was fighting just to survive.

  Only that wasn’t the real reason that Abe didn’t head to the hospital now—Jobe had never shied from giving his view after all.

  It was more that Abe had never asked for help in his life.

  And he wasn’t about to start now.

  But before he could tackle the work waiting, his private phone rang and Abe saw that it was his brother.

  ‘A little girl,’ Ethan said, sounding both tired and elated at the same time.

  ‘Congratulations.’

  ‘Merida was amazing!’

  Abe made no comment to that. The fact that Merida had just had a baby did not suddenly make him a fan of hers. ‘Have you told Dad?’

  ‘I’m heading over to tell him now,’ Ethan said.

  Usually they called their father Jobe, as it helped with the business side of things, but this, Abe was fast realising, wasn’t business.

  Oh, there might be a watertight contract in place and the marriage might all be a charade, but a little girl had been born this morning. And that moved him. He thought of his father, about to hear the news that he was a grandfather.

  ‘Will you be coming in to meet your niece?’ Ethan asked.

  ‘Of course.’ Abe glanced at the time. ‘Though not until later in the afternoon.’

  ‘Merida’s friend, Naomi, is getting in at midday. We were supposed to be there to meet her.’

  ‘Do you want me to organise a driver to pick her up?’

  There was a brief stretch of silence before Ethan responded. Neither of the brothers liked asking for help, even from the other. ‘Abe, is there any chance of you going? She’s Merida’s best friend.’

  ‘I thought she was the nanny?’ Abe frowned. He only knew that because a full-time live-in nanny had been a part of the terms agreed to.

  ‘Naomi’s both.’

  ‘Give me her details,’ Abe sighed, and pulled out a pen.

  ‘Naomi Hamilton.’ Ethan gave her flight details. ‘If she can come to the hospital before being taken to the house, that would be good.’

  ‘All sorted,’ Abe said, and glanced again at the time. ‘I really do have to go. Congratulations.’

  ‘Thanks.’

  Luckily Ethan was too muddled to ask how this morning’s meeting with Khalid had gone and certainly Abe did not volunteer the information.

  Cool heads were needed for dealing with this situation and currently the only Devereux who had one was Abe.

  He buzzed through to his own PA. ‘Jessica, could you organise a gift for me to take to the hospital this afternoon?’

  ‘For your father?’ she checked.

  ‘No, the baby’s here.’

  There was a little squeal that had Abe pulling the phone back from his ear; then came the inevitable questions. ‘What did Merida have?’

  ‘A girl.’

  ‘Does she have a name yet? Do you know how much she weighs?’

  ‘I don’t know any more than that,’ Abe responded. He really hadn’t thought to ask. ‘I also need you to sort out a driver to do an airport run from JFK to the hospital.’ He gave the flight details. ‘She gets in at midday. The name’s Naomi Hamilton.’

  Despite his brother’s request, Abe would not be playing chauffeur.

  As well as Khalid to contend with, he had the first-of-the-month board meeting to attend. Before that he was meeting with Maurice, the head of PR, to discuss the annual Devereux Christmas Eve Charity Ball.

  It was a highlight on the social calendar, but, for the first time since its inception, Jobe Devereux would not be attending.

  Tabled on this morning’s agenda was discussion of contingency plans should Jobe die close to, or on, that date.

  Not pleasant.

  But a necessary task, given that people travelled from far and wide and paid an awful lot of money to attend.

  Emotion had to be put aside and unpalatable scenarios played out and usually Abe was very good at that.

  Abe wasn’t just cool...he was considered cold.

  And not just in the boardroom. His reputation with women was devastating, though that had calmed in recent years. But his aloofness extended also to family.

  He had stopped trusting others by the age of four, looking out for his brother and doing his best to ensure that he came to no harm.

  Abe kept his emotions in check.

  Yet, unusually, this morning he was struggling to do that.

  His schedule was always daunting but he thrived on the pressure and handled it with ease. Yet the autopilot he usually ran on felt, this morning, as if it had disengaged.

  The news of the baby had punched a hole in the wall he carefully erected between himself and others.

  He put a finger and thumb to the bridge of his nose and squeezed hard, then took a long cleansing breath. Pushing all the drama out of his mind, he’d get on with holding down the Devereux fort.

  Someone had to.

  CHAPTER ONE

  ‘A NEW YORK CHRISTMAS...’

  Naomi smiled as her very chatty fellow passenger told her what a magical time she would soon be having.

  ‘There’s nothing better.’

  ‘I’m sure there isn’t,’ Naomi agreed.

  It was easier to.

  Privately she cared little for the festive season. Well, she made sure it all went smoothly for whatever family she was with but it was just another day for Naomi.

  Actually, no. It was a very lonely day for Naomi—it always had been and no doubt always would be.

  But she wasn’t going to bore the woman in the next seat with that.

  They had got on well.

  Naomi was a little on the large side and had tucked her elbows in and tried to make herself very small on take-off. But by the time they came into land, neither had slept and they were chatting away like old friends. Still, there were things even old friends didn’t need to know.

  Bor
n on Christmas Eve, from the little Naomi knew her first weeks of life had been spent on a maternity ward before the first of many foster-care placements.

  Now a maternity nanny, she looked after newborns and ensured better for her tiny charges. Her job was to look after the mother and infant during this very precious, tumultuous time before the permanent nanny took over.

  She wasn’t a part of the family, though.

  On a day such as Christmas, her role was to make it as seamless and as stress-free for the new mother as possible. And Naomi usually ate in her room alone.

  This year, though, would be different as it was her best friend whose baby she would be taking care of.

  Merida, an actress, had come to New York City with Broadway on her mind and, sure enough, had landed a part in a new production called Night Forest.

  She had never made it to opening night, though.

  Pregnant by Ethan Devereux, she had said goodbye to her acting career and entered into a marriage of convenience.

  Although, inconveniently for Merida, she was head over heels in love with her husband.

  Naomi had had reservations about accepting the job.

  Ethan and Merida had insisted that she be paid, and though they were probably just trying to be nice, it would have been easier on Naomi to have been asked to stay as a friend.

  But she was concerned for Merida and that was why she had agreed to take the post.

  As the cabin lights were dimmed for landing, Naomi looked out of the small, moisture-streaked window. There wasn’t much to see, just snow-laden clouds, but then her breath caught as jutting up in the distance she saw the iconic skyline rising out from gunmetal-grey water and it sent a frisson of excitement through Naomi. She was here—actually here. And for someone who had never been out of the United Kingdom it was an exciting moment indeed.

  The plane banked for its final approach but that first glimpse of the city left a smile on Naomi’s face.

  Naomi had freshened up as best she could after breakfast had been served but she took out her compact and checked her reflection. She was excited to see Merida but her reflection showed tiredness. Her dark chocolate curls were limp and beneath her deep blue eyes were dark smudges. Her very pale complexion had turned to pure white.