THE BILLIONAIRE ALPHA

Chapter 1

The elevator dinged as the doors opened, spilling out a stressed looking woman with blonde hair, a slight frown on her face as she hurried past the secretary desk, going on to knock on the gold rimmed mahogany doors as relaxed as she could. “Mr. Jayson, sir!”

James Jayson looked up from between the lady’s bosom, sighing as he recognized the voice of his secretary. “Sorry, Clara, but I don’t think I’d be able to do anything for you today,” he said to the lady as he got off of her and walked in the direction of his door, straightening his shirt. “It’s Juliet, asshole,” she muttered, getting off the couch and buttoning up her blouse as he opened the door.

“What is it this time, Jessica ?” he asked, looking down at his secretary with a blank expression. She blushed slightly and replied, “Um, your mother… she, she’s on her way up”. His eyes widened significantly as he cursed. “Thanks,” he muttered, closing the door on her shocked face. “Hey, what are you still doing here; you have to get out now.” He rushed to her sitting position on the couch, and hurried her to her feet.

Just as she stepped into the elevator, the other one opened, and his mother stepped out. Making sure his clothes were all in the right place, he put a huge smile on his face and exclaimed, “Oh my, mother! What brings you here this time of day?”

Mrs. Clementa Jayson scoffed and shouldered her way past him into his office. Clearing his throat, he winked at his secretary, earning another blush, and walked into his office, closing the door after him. His mum had made herself comfortable on the couch, crossing her legs elegantly. “I know what you’ve been up to, James. You have never been able to fool me,” she said, her voice melodious and soft. He chuckled and walked to his desk. “As always, mother. Anyway, before we talk about what brought you here, what would you like to drink?” he asked, his finger hovering over the intercom connected to his secretary.

“Can’t a mother just want to see how her son’s doing, even though he hardly checks on her anymore? Oh, and a caramel macchiato will be nice,” she replied, a small smile on her face. He pressed the intercom button and relayed the message to Jessica before walking over to where his mother was, sitting next to her as he took one of her hands in his. “Mum, you know I would do that every day. It’s just my work that has me busy almost all the time,” he said, his voice soft as he caressed his mother’s hand lightly. “I spend more time in other countries on business trips these days. I’m sorry, though. I’ll try to make time for you as soon as I can, I promise. We can go on a vacation, just me and you. How’s that sound?”

“I’d like that, moró mou.” Her smile made him happy.

“Okay, so what was the real reason you came by, mother?” His mother chuckled, knowing her son wouldn’t believe she came all the way from Malibu just to see him. Just then, a knock on the huge doors signalled Jessica ’s arrival. James smiled and got up from the couch, his long strides taking him to the doors quickly.

“Thank you, Jessica ,” he said to her, grabbing the tray holding their drinks from her and closing the door. “Mum, your macchiato,” he handed her one of the steaming mugs, taking the other before placing the tray on his desk. Clementa murmured a “thanks” before taking a careful sip of the beverage, sighing in content as it made its way down her throat.

“Okay, you caught me. I actually came over because I have something to discuss with you,” she said, putting her mug on the side table next to the couch. James turned to her, letting her know he was listening and that she could go on. “I have a question for you. Have you been having strange or unusual dreams lately?” James paused mid-sip. He kept his face neutral, but his mind was racing a mile a minute as he recalled the confusing dream he had last night. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't make sense of it. ‘How could she possibly know that?’

“James? Did you hear my question?” Her voice brought him out of his reverie. He took a large gulp of his plain coffee, ignoring the burn it caused his throat, and set the cup down. “Yeah, I did, I was just thinking,” he replied, running his hands through his dark locks. “So?”

“I-I did have one, last night. It was so strange. I couldn't make sense out of it. No matter how hard I tried, it just didn't make sense.”

clementa sighed. “Can you tell me what it was, the dream?” She asked, her gaze soft on his face. James stared into his mother’s silver eyes, those eyes very much like his own.

It was strange how soft he was with his mother, how sweet, gentle and caring he becomes whenever his mum comes around to visit. His rude, cold and strict demeanour changes so quickly and completely, even his workers; well, those fortunate enough to encounter him whenever she’s around; aren’t exempt from the soft treatment. It’s almost like she calms him; or something; as he goes right back to being cold, rude and strict when she leaves. It was a mystery no one could solve.

“No, I'd rather not do that. I don't want to relive, or remember, the bizarre dream.” He shook his head, looking down at his hands. Clementa sighed and held his large hands in her much smaller ones, and, with a small smile, replied, “It's okay, moró mou.”

“Yeah. How did you know, though?” His mother smiled, turning slightly to pick up her mug. “Baby, there’s so much I have to tell you; so much you need to know…” a knock on the door stopped her mid-sentence, and James cursed low under his breath as he stood up, apologising to his mother when he saw her disapproving look. “I’ve told you, no cursing in front of your mitéra. Go answer the door,” she said, her voice soft even while scolding him. He walked briskly to the doors, yanking them open with more force than was necessary.

Chapter two

“What is it this time, Jessica ?” Jessica could hear the unimpressed tone in his voice and gulped. “I’m so sorry for interrupting you and your mother again, but the investors from SooJi Enterprises are here for their meeting. I have escorted them to Conference Room 15,” she replied. James cursed again. He totally forgot about the meeting. “Alright, go and let them know I’ll be with them in a few minutes.” Without waiting for a reply, he slammed the door in her face.

“I’m so sorry, mum. I totally forgot I had a meeting scheduled for today. Can we continue this some other time? I’ll try and create time, I promise,” he explained, picking up a thin file and his phone from his desk and walking up to his mother. “It’s okay, baby, I understand. Go for the meeting, we can just talk about it another time. I’ll see myself out, okay?” she replied.

“Okay, I’ll get going first, I love you mum.” He kissed her forehead as she mumbled, “Love you too, baby” and walked