Billionaire Behind the Mask Read online

  Is he the man she thinks he is?

  Their first encounter was unforgettable,

  Now it’s time for round two.

  Lauren Roberts might have mistaken Sutton Wingate for his twin brother once, but now the masquerade is over—and there’s no mistaking their chemistry. Yet their reignited passion also sparks Sutton’s suspicion. Proving she’s not a spy plotting to bring down his family’s business empire won’t be easy. Can she convince the embattled CFO to finally let her see the man behind the mask?

  His hand shot up and caught hers.

  All Lauren was aware of was the feel of his skin. Familiar. Addictive. Her heart started racing in her chest as though her body suddenly remembered his touch. Flashes of their nights together rushed to her mind all at once.

  And just like that, their chemistry was back in full force. Like a lightning bolt had struck them. She wasn’t sure what had changed, but things were definitely different today.

  He noticed it, too. His green eyes narrowed. There was a knowing heat in his gaze. It was enough to make her cheeks flame with embarrassment, and this time she had no mask to hide it.

  “You’re not very good at hiding what you’re thinking. Your face is very expressive. I like being able to see your whole face. I feel like with your mask on I was missing out on so many facets of your emotions.”

  * * *

  Billionaire Behind the Mask

  by Andrea Laurence is part of the

  Texas Cattleman’s Club: Rags to Riches series.

  Dear Reader,

  I don’t do many Texas Cattleman’s Club books. In fact, this is only my second one out of over thirty Harlequin Desire titles. Alpha cowboys are amazing, but my heroes always lean toward clean-cut playboys with smart mouths—better suited for the boardroom than the open range. But every now and then, a hero pops up in the TCC universe that’s made for me. This is one of those stories. A fish out of water, a masquerade ball and a pair of rich, sexy twins...yes, please!

  Lauren’s story is truly a Cinderella tale, complete with a fairy godmother/stylist to provide her a dress and a ride to the ball. Her world is her kitchen and her food, so stepping out that night in a red gown and falling into the arms of Sutton’s big, bad wolf is unexpected...and exhilarating. And proof that the right dress and shoes (however uncomfortable they might be) can change your life. It was a fun ride to write and, hopefully, it will be just as much fun to read.

  If you enjoyed Sutton and Lauren’s story, tell me by visiting my website at www.andrealaurence.com, like my fan page on Facebook (authorandrealaurence), or follow me on Twitter (andrea_laurence), Instagram (aclaurence) and BookBub (andrea-laurence). I’d love to hear from you!

  Enjoy,

  Andrea

  Andrea Laurence

  Billionaire Behind the Mask

  Andrea Laurence is an award-winning contemporary author who has been a lover of books and writing stories since she learned to read. A dedicated West Coast girl transplanted into the Deep South, she’s constantly trying to develop a taste for sweet tea and grits while caring for her boyfriend and can contact Andrea at her website: www.andrealaurence.com.

  Books by Andrea Laurence

  Harlequin Desire

  Millionaires of Manhattan

  What Lies Beneath

  More Than He Expected

  His Lover’s Little Secret

  The CEO’s Unexpected Child

  Little Secrets: Secretly Pregnant

  Rags to Riches Baby

  One Unforgettable Weekend

  The Boyfriend Arrangement

  Switched!

  From Mistake to Millions

  From Riches to Redemption

  From Seduction to Secrets

  Texas Cattleman’s Club: Rags to Riches

  Billionaire Behind the Mask

  Visit her Author Profile page at Harlequin.com, or andrealaurence.com, for more titles.

  You can also find Andrea Laurence on Facebook, along with other Harlequin Desire authors, at www.Facebook.com/harlequindesireauthors!

  To Senior Editor Extraordinaire Stacy Boyd

  & My Fellow TCC Authors:

  It’s been a pleasure, as always,

  to create with you.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from Untamed Passion by Cat Schield

  Excerpt from Scandalous Secrets by Synithia Williams

  One

  This was a bad idea, but no one seemed to realize it but Lauren.

  Everyone else in her life was thrilled that she’d won the local radio contest that awarded her a glamorous makeover, limo transportation and tickets for two to the charity masquerade ball at the Texas Cattleman’s Club. She was less excited by the news because, in all honesty, Lauren Roberts was not the kind of person to enter a contest like that. It was even called the Cinderella Sweepstakes. How over the top was that? Like she was going to meet her Prince Charming out on the dance floor or something. The last time she’d stepped foot in this building, it had been a nightmare, not a dream come true.

  No, she had no interest in going to that party or hanging out with those people at the club. Unfortunately, she’d been entered by her well-meaning friend and employee Amy without her knowledge. The next thing she knew, she was spending a normally lucrative Saturday at a day spa. She should’ve been with one of her food trucks downtown. She was always at one of her food trucks, but she supposed that was the point Amy was trying to make by entering her in the contest.

  So, she had no social life. It didn’t bother her. She had two successful food trucks and a booming career as a chef. That was more important to her. Spending a day getting steam facials, manicures and highlights in her hair was a waste of time and money to Lauren. In her day-to-day life, none of that mattered. Her dark brown hair was always back in a bun, where no one would see the caramel highlights that were added. She got plenty of steam facials from the hot water trays in the trucks that kept food warm. And no one would see pretty nails when she was wearing food service gloves.

  The whole thing was preposterous, but in the end she’d agreed to go. Because, like it or not, if she wanted to get a permanent location in Royal, Texas, and build a high-end clientele, she needed to spend more time with the kind of people that frequented the club. With that in mind, she’d put on the bright red dress that was chosen for her by the personal shopper for the contest, tied on her mask and hoped for the best.

  Everyone had told her to enjoy herself. Have fun. Make the most of her night off without worrying about whether one of the trucks ran out of supplies or if Javier, the line cook, made the nightly deposit. Amy had things under control, but letting go was hard to do. It would require some alcohol. But she could do it. And deep down, Lauren knew she needed to do it.

  This wasn’t high school anymore. She could go to this party and have a good time. With the ornate mask she was wearing, she could even pretend to be someone else tonight. No one would expect mousy, workaholic chef Lauren Roberts to be at the club anyway. She didn’t belong here. But the mysterious woman in red—she could fit in...and have an amazing time this evening.

  She just had to get out of the damn limo.

  The driv
er had been standing patiently with the door open for quite a while now, waiting for Lauren to step out. At this point, she was probably causing a traffic jam.

  “Ma’am?” he asked at last, with concern lining his face.

  “Yes, sorry.” Lauren snatched up her black, beaded clutch and forced herself out of the limousine. She took a step up the stairs to the grand entrance and stopped again. It looked very different from what she remembered, but it had been eleven years since she’d been to the club. While appearances had changed both for her and the building itself, the feelings it roused in her were the same: excitement followed quickly by anxiety and a touch of dread.

  She turned to see if her getaway car was still available, but the driver and the limo were down the road already. Another car had pulled up and was unloading a crowd of people that would swallow her up if she didn’t move. Nowhere to go but forward to face her fears.

  Lauren lifted the hem of her slinky red gown and climbed the steps to the entrance. At the door, a table was set up to collect tickets for the event.

  “Tickets, ma’am?” the man sitting at the table asked. He was wearing a tuxedo with a Guy Fawkes mask.

  “My name should be on the list,” she replied. “Lauren Roberts?”

  He checked a paper he had beside him. “It’s showing it’s for a party of two. Are you expecting a guest?”

  “No, it’s just me tonight.” Although she’d won two tickets, her personal life was so nonexistent she couldn’t scrape together a date in time for the party. She should’ve just brought Amy, but she knew she would have clung to her best friend all night. Lauren sighed. If she was going to make the most of tonight, she needed to get out of her comfort zone and talk to strangers.

  “All the better for the single gentlemen here tonight,” the man said.

  Lauren couldn’t see his expression behind his mask to see if he was joking. He sounded completely serious. The makeover must’ve worked wonders. Normally, she was completely under the radar of most men in this town. Invisible. Could highlights and a glamorous dress make that big of a difference?

  “I’ll see you in there later, Miss Roberts.”

  She wished her mask covered her whole face so he couldn’t see the awkward blush that was no doubt creeping up beneath her foundation. “Thank you,” she stammered and rushed past him into the club when no other valid response came to mind.

  As she stepped through the doorway, the sound of music, laughter and voices called to her. She went down the hall, passing the office and the daycare center she didn’t remember being there before, and then stopped short as it opened up into the main room.

  It was a lot like the last time she’d come. Dark lighting, loud music, a sea of bodies on the dance floor and loitering around the edges of the room. The difference was that these weren’t teenagers at a dance. They were adults. Rich ones. The kind that could invest in her restaurant, or at the very least become patrons someday. They weren’t going to play cruel pranks or laugh at her. They were just having a good time and raising money for charity. She needed to just blend in and have a good time, too.

  The last thought propelled her forward.

  “May I take your coat?” a younger girl asked as she manned the coat check.

  Lauren slipped out of her leather jacket and handed it over. It didn’t exactly go with the red, beaded gown anyway, but October had brought an unexpected chill to the air. It was early for Texas, but she’d take it. Fall was her favorite time of year. She got to experiment with new seasonal flavors on the truck menus, find a pumpkin patch to explore, hand out candy to trick-or-treaters...and she wasn’t dying from the heat in the trucks each day.

  She wanted a permanent storefront for her restaurant, even if just for the air-conditioning. When she was parked at a location, a generator would run some things, but not air. In the summer, that meant hot food, steamy trays and no respite from the heat, short of sticking her head in the refrigerator.

  She took the coat check ticket from the girl and slipped it into her clutch. Scanning the room, she noticed the large, centralized bar and decided that should be her first stop. A drink would give her something to do with her hand, and if it loosened her up, all the better.

  Nervously adjusting her Mardi Gras–style mask, Lauren took a deep breath and headed to the bar. She ordered a dirty martini with extra olives and scoped out a dark corner where she could stand and do a little people-watching until she felt more comfortable.

  She’d never been to one of these charity galas at the club before. These kinds of parties were for rich ranching families to mingle and make nice tax deductions. A food truck chef normally didn’t have the time, energy or cash for something like this. As it was, she was already wincing at the cost of her drink. She supposed an open bar would cut too much into the charity’s bottom line.

  Most of the people there didn’t seem to care. She’d overheard the man next to her at the bar tell the server to put it on his membership tab. A lot of others seemed to be doing that, too. The room was nearly filled to capacity with men in tuxedos and black Stetsons, women in sparkling gowns with ornately decorated masks. All of them had a cocktail in hand and a smile on their faces. At least, smiles on what you could see of their faces.

  Masks were required for the event. At least, that was what the invitation said. Some wore smaller ones, Lone Ranger–style, which met the requirement, but you could still know who you were speaking to. She recognized a few people from around town even with them on. Others, like the man at the door, were wearing full-face masks. Lauren had opted for something in the middle, a black metal mask with ornate swirls cut out of it, that ended halfway down her face. It offered a little anonymity, but she didn’t have to remove it to drink or eat.

  And, as her meddling friend Amy had suggested, she wouldn’t have to remove it to kiss, either.

  Amy—ever the optimist when it came to Lauren’s nonexistent love life. As though a new dress and a mask were enough for Lauren to fall into the strong arms of a dark, anonymous stranger.

  Speaking of which, movement out of the corner of her gaze caught Lauren’s attention. When she turned to look, she spied a tall drink of water heading toward her empty corner. He was wearing a beautifully tailored black tuxedo with a distinctive pewter wolf mask that brought out the platinum highlights in his cropped blond hair. All she could make out of his face was the hard square of his stubble-covered jaw and the flat line of displeasure that would otherwise be his mouth. The wolf wasn’t having a good time tonight.

  He wasn’t looking at her. He had a cell phone pressed to one ear and his hand covering the other. If he was seeking privacy and quiet, he was out of luck. He glanced up at her for a moment, immediately dismissing her as he focused on his call and settled in the chair nearby.

  Lauren wasn’t about to give up her space to the big, bad wolf. She’d found it first. Perhaps she would venture out into the crowd in a moment, but she was only three sips into her twelve-dollar martini and she wasn’t feeling bold enough quite yet.

  But soon. She could feel the warmth of the alcohol spreading through her veins like the social lubricant that it was. Soon.

  * * *

  Sutton Wingate tried to check his troubles at the door tonight and have a good time, but they had still managed to follow him inside. Considering how things had gone the last few weeks, he wasn’t sure why he was surprised.

  When the accusations against his family had cropped up, he had been the optimistic one. As the CFO of Wingate Enterprises, he would know if there was embezzling and drug smuggling happening behind the scenes. There wasn’t. It was just rumors fueled by jealousy and spite, and he was confident that eventually it would all blow over. He’d believed it right until the moment the Feds froze their assets, seized the ranch and put the whole family out on their asses.

  Now he wasn’t feeling so optimistic.

  So far, everyone had la
nded on their feet. He and his twin, Sebastian, had decided to rent a house together. Luke and Ezekiel found places to stay. And his mother, Ava, was staying with Keith Cooper, a fact that no doubt pleased “Uncle” Keith. It wasn’t an ideal situation, but they would persevere until they found out who was responsible for setting them up and their lives were returned to normal.

  He thought losing the money and the family home would be the hardest thing to go through. At least until he walked through the door tonight.

  His wolf mask did enough to hide his identity. If anyone suspected he might be a Wingate, they probably weren’t sure if he was Sutton or Sebastian. But judging by the way people were gossiping about his family’s scandal with him so nearby, no one knew who he was. He supposed that they didn’t think the Wingates were bold enough to show up after everything that had happened. However, if they thought that, they clearly didn’t know the Wingate family.

  They were innocent and they would continue to act that way despite what others thought. Close friends seemed to be on Sutton’s side, but he was stunned by how many “friends” had turned on them. He’d lost his job, his board position, his home... He’d even had to sell his collection of sports cars to have money to live on while the legal debacle carried on. He needed those friends now, more than ever. And they were drying up like a desert creek bed.

  Sutton had been hoping for some good news when his phone rang not long after arriving at the party. It was his attorney. Unfortunately, all his lawyer had to say was that he’d been unable to find a buyer for one of his cars and they might have to go to auction. He would lose money doing that, so he had to decide if he would live on what he had or if he had to cut his losses to make it through the financial tight spot they were in.

  He wouldn’t consider himself poor—he didn’t expect anyone to cry for him because he only had one luxury sports car—but they certainly had stripped away a lot of the extravagances they were used to. He had plenty of investments tucked away, they all did, but cash was another matter. The team of lawyers they had working for them was funneling away everyone’s money as quickly as they could come up with it.