Billionaire Unbroken ~ Asher (Montana Billionaires #5 | The Billionaire’s Obsession #24)

Prologue

Sierra

A Few Months Earlier…

“I suppose you’re here about the housekeeping job,” the man that opened the door growled in a voice that should have scared the hell out of me.

My eyes widened as I caught my first glimpse of Asher Remington.

Okay, I’d expected him to be intimidating.

Most rich men seemed to be full of themselves.

But this man took scary and cold to a whole new level.

The frigid look in his frosty gray eyes was almost feral, and the hostility in his voice was positively frightening.

I let out a sigh, ignoring his rude demeanor.

Fortunately, I didn’t scare easily.

Apparently, he was under the impression that I was here for some kind of domestic job.

I wasn’t, and I was about to inform him of my reason for stopping by his beautiful ranch in Crystal Fork, Montana, when he stepped back and impatiently waved me into his home.

Although it felt a little like I was entering a lion’s den, I stepped inside and closed the door behind me since Asher was already striding toward his kitchen.

I followed him since it seemed like it was my only real choice at the moment.

“I don’t like people in my home,” he said gruffly when he finally stopped in front of the kitchen island. “I’ll most likely fire you within a day.”

I bit back a smile before I asked, “Then why are you trying to hire a housekeeper?”

The man was definitely trying to warn me.

Or maybe he was trying to intimidate me.

It wasn’t working.

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to myself that the beast vibes that seemed to radiate from his being weren’t a little disconcerting for me, but real fear wasn’t something I allowed myself to show very often.

I might feel it, but I’d become a master at hiding it.

If Asher was hoping for a female that he could bully, he’d picked the wrong woman.

It wasn’t that his behavior wouldn’t scare the crap out of a lot of people, but I was almost numb to men like him.

“I work most of the time,” he explained tersely. “I like my home clean and organized, but I don’t have the time or the patience to do it myself.”

Now that I could believe.

It was pretty clear that Asher Remington had a severe deficiency when it came to tolerating anything that he didn’t want to do.

He certainly didn’t seem to be keen on suffering his way through this job interview.

He also struck me as the kind of guy who got exactly what he wanted, with very little effort.

One displeased glare would probably send people scrambling to do his bidding.

I nearly swallowed my tongue as he continued to tell me about the proposed position and the pay he was willing to offer for the housekeeping job.

“You can start tomorrow,” he finished in a surly tone. “We’ll see if you make it through the day.”

Just like that? The man was going to give me the job without any further questions about me, my experience, or my background?

Yeah, it was essentially a cleaning and cooking job, but I would have access to his home, and Asher Remington was a billionaire.

I simply stared at him in amazement.

I hadn’t come here for a job, but the pay he was offering was huge for a domestic position, and I could really use the money right now.

I’d been desperately looking for employment in Billings, but I hadn’t gotten a job offer yet.

I’d been in Billings for over two weeks. I’d put in applications every single day at every place that had job openings that I could handle.

Nobody was calling.

I could easily do this job, and nothing I’d applied for in Billings would pay this much money.

I’d grown up with a mother who was an excellent housekeeper, and she’d taught me everything she knew about cooking and cleaning.

“You don’t want to interview anyone else?” I asked nervously.

Not that he had actually done any interviewing with me, but still…

“You’re the only one who showed up,” he admitted in what sounded like a reluctant voice. “I’m not exactly social here in Crystal Fork, and my reputation isn’t good. I think most people are afraid of me.”

Well, big guy, that’s kind of understandable.

“I don’t live here,” I told him. “I have an apartment in Billings.”

He shot me an assessing glance. “You’re willing to do the drive from Billings?”

I nodded. For the money he was offering, I would probably do a much longer drive than the thirty minutes it took to get from Billings to Crystal Fork.

My vehicle was getting old, but I didn’t think it was going to die on me anytime soon.

He nodded abruptly. “Fine. I’ll see you at nine o’clock. Don’t be late.”

I swallowed hard. He really was going to hire me without any references or questions.

I was grateful, but I couldn’t help but be curious about why a man like Asher Remington would simply offer a woman a job without a real interview or a background check of some kind.

Didn’t rich guys like him have assistants to handle those things?

He obviously doesn’t think I’ll last long. I have a feeling I’m not worth his time or effort.

I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m not in the habit of running late,” I answered firmly. “Do you have all the cleaning supplies I’ll need?”

“Appliances…yes,” he replied grumpily. “The house has a central vacuum system. Cleaning supplies…no. I’ll need you to pick up what you need.”

I watched as he took his wallet out of his pocket, pulled out some bills, and moved closer to me.

My breath caught as he stopped directly in front of me.

God, he smelled like hot sex and sin.

Asher might be surly, but the man was gorgeous. Over six feet of hard muscle and rugged attractiveness.

His dark-brown hair was just long enough to have a slight curl, and his gray eyes were stunning.

The chiseled features of his face were perfection…except for a very faded scar high on his cheek that I could see now that he was close to me.

My heart tripped.

Strangely, that scar did nothing to detract from his handsomeness.

That quarter sized mark simply made him more intriguing.

Dammit!

It had been a long time since I’d even noticed what a man looked like and even longer since I’d felt any kind of physical attraction.

I squirmed a little as I took the cash he offered for cleaning supplies.

There was something about Asher that unnerved me, and it had nothing to do with fear or intimidation.

Stop it, Sierra! Stop it right now. You are not attracted to this man, and you definitely don’t find him intriguing.

What in the world had happened to this man to make him so hostile and disagreeable?

Okay, maybe I was wondering what made Asher Remington tick, but that was something I really didn’t need to know.

He was going to be my boss.

I was going to be working for him, making some money that I desperately needed.

Those were the only facts about him that really mattered.

Oh, and he was wrong about me.

I’d be here next week.

I’d be here next month.

I had experience tolerating assholes, and I wasn’t going anywhere as long as he continued to pay me for doing a good job.

Maybe I hadn’t come here today for work, but I was desperate enough that I wasn’t going to scoff at the opportunity to make my life a little easier.

My life had been too tough lately not to long for some kind of relief.

“I’ll be here tomorrow,” I said as I put the money he’d given me in the pocket of my jeans. “My name is Sierra. What do you want me to call you?”

I knew who he was, but he didn’t know that, and it wasn’t something I wanted to mention right now because I really wanted this position.

I really hated any kind of deception, even if I wasn’t exactly lying to him.

He needed a housekeeper.

I could do the job, and I desperately needed the employment.

Did it really matter that I hadn’t originally stopped here to inquire about a position?

He didn’t seem to care what warm body filled his housekeeping job.

“Asher Remington,” he informed me succinctly. “Mr. Remington will do.”

Sheesh! The man really was uptight.

I shrugged and turned to leave.

Asher followed me, and as I reached for the door handle, he reminded me, “I’ll probably fire you tomorrow.”

He said those words as a warning, but they didn’t faze me.

It would be hard to fire a woman who did nothing wrong, and I planned on being a model employee.

“I’ll take my chances,” I said in a nonchalant voice that didn’t quite match my real emotions. “Have a good day, Mr. Remington.”

I had to force myself not to run to my vehicle.

My heart was racing as I made myself walk to my car instead of sprinting like my life depended on it.

I could feel Asher’s eyes following my progress, and the sensation was unsettling.

I’d gotten good at bravado and hiding my real feelings.

Asher didn’t frighten me for some reason, but being in his company was intense.

I’ll get used to his cantankerous attitude. The situation won’t be this tense forever.

I’d get over my unusual physical attraction to him, too.

I took a deep breath as I opened the door of my vehicle and slipped inside, wondering what I’d just done and if I could really handle a man like Asher Remington.