Blog Tour: Secrets of a Billionaire by Eva Winners

Winston Ashford, not exactly Prince Charming.

Arrogant.

Bastard.

Gorgeous.

Secrets of a Billionaire, an all-new angsty, forced marriage, second chance romance from bestselling author Eva Winners is now available!

I’d mistaken him for a ten when he turned out to be a minus five. He was so beautiful but damaged beyond repair. There was no amount of understanding or loving that could save a man who didn’t want to be saved. So after one night together, I gladly washed my hands of him.

Until everything went south.

My father was dead. My sister needed help, and it was time I behaved like a responsible older sister, one with a plan.

Unfortunately, my plan was slightly…lacking.

When I was caught red-handed stealing from my less than wonderful one-night stand, Winston Ashford became intent on bending me to his will.

It turned out that he was as ruthless as he was gorgeous and cruel as he was tender.

Forced into an unwanted arrangement with the arrogant bastard, the kind that required rings, my last name became his. I became his reluctant, yet thankfully, secret wife. Unfortunately, he became the man who unknowingly held all the cards. At least we went our separate ways even if legally we were still bound together.

Six lonely years later, our paths crossed again.

There was still a darkness inside of him that scared me down to my very core.

He claimed he wanted a real marriage. That he was a changed man. But deep down, he was still the same. Damaged. Battling invisible scars and habits that were hard to break.

He saved me once upon a time. It was time for me to save him.

But what happens when I’m not enough?

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Fighting tears, I hung my head, trying not to look at my mama again. She hated going back home just as much as I did. She hated being around Father as much as the rest of us, but she was desperately trying to be strong.

I’d rather we left him and lived on our own, even in a little shack, but Mama said he would come after us. Then it’d be worse—at least for her—and I didn’t want that. Not for her. She was all we had.

Father did nothing but hurt us, humiliate us.

He promised Mama he’d stop, but he always ended up breaking his promises. Every. Single. One. Of. Them.

“Let me try your dad again.” Mama reached for her cell phone as we made our way down the busy downtown sidewalk, our bodyguard behind us. D.C. bustled with activity on a weekday, people going to work and visitors rushing to their next destination. “I’m sure when I explain…”

She attempted a smile and pressed the dial button, each ring making it dim a bit more. A light breeze swept through, her coconut-scented lotion drifting through the air. She always wore it—rain or shine, summer or winter—claiming it protected her skin. It was her signature scent, and I could never think of the beach without thinking about her.

Behind her, the sun shone on her dark hair, and I noticed, not for the first time, the shades of chestnut trying to fight their way out. I gave her an encouraging nod, and she rewarded me with a wink. I loved when she was like this with me, like nothing else existed, even though I knew she was trying to be brave.

She always made an effort to spend quality time with me, despite Father monopolizing every second of her day. She said it made her happy to spend time with her children, so she often pulled us out of school to play hooky with her. Today was my turn. Her warm eyes filled all the holes in my chest with love, and with the sun’s rays, tiny specs of gold in them made her look like the most beautiful woman in the world. Nothing like mine. Where Royce, Kingston, and Aurora had her dark eyes, Byron and I inherited our father’s eyes.

“He’ll answer,” she muttered under her breath, although I wasn’t sure who she was trying to convince—me or herself. It was always the same, so we both knew her call would go unanswered. The part that hurt the most was seeing her pain, her disappointment. Nothing we ever did was right by Father.

Nothing pleased him. Except for his whores that made Mama feel bad. I wanted to fix it, to make her feel better, but I didn’t know how.

Suddenly she turned my way with an odd, bright expression on her face and said, “We’ll go to the game store.”

Confusion washed over me and I blinked several times, trying to understand.

Father said it’s okay?”

She didn’t answer but looked over at our bodyguard. “I’m taking my son to his favorite store.”

“It’s not wise, ma’am. Your husband⁠—”

She cut him off. “He can wait a little bit longer.”

But we all knew he hated waiting on anyone, especially his family. It was usually what spurred their arguments. She wanted to spend more time with us, which he hated. She wanted to spend more time on her designs, but he hated that too.

“We haven’t cleared the route,” he tried to reason.

There were a few more words spoken, but they didn’t register. I was too excited to stop and question any of it.

When we arrived, I rushed to the new releases section with a grin on my face. My mama’s soft chuckle followed closely behind, her scent wrapping me in a cloud of comfort. My brother Byron was the epitome of seriousness. I, on the other hand, was the opposite. Mama said I reminded her of Grandpa DiLustro, and whenever I asked her what she meant, she’d tell me the story of how he’d shut down the entire subway line so he could take a peaceful ride with his daughter. It wasn’t until much later that I understood how he made it possible. After all, he was in Kingpins of the Syndicate, a mafia organization that had fingers in every pot.

“So this is the game, huh?” she mused, her eyes shining with humor. “To think that something in such a small box has so much of my son’s attention.”

“It’s better than drugs and alcohol and cigarettes, Ma.” A lot of kids my age did that shit, but I stayed away. Playing video games was my way of releasing steam.

She let out a strangled breath, most likely thinking about a few of my friends in particular, but the little crinkles around her eyes told me she was relieved. “I sure hope so.”

I nodded seriously. “I could become a big-time player and support us all,” I said, once again dreaming of a life without my father. “You could design to your heart’s content. Byron can be an ass like usual, and⁠—”

“Winston.” Her soft reprimand instantly made me regret my words, and my shoulders slumped.

“Okay, he can just be his serious self. But the rest of us will have a great time. My sister and brothers can run around all day, roll in the mud if they want. We could do whatever we want.” I wasn’t even looking at the games anymore. All my focus was on this vision for a better future.

A soft smile curved around her lips. “That sounds lovely.”

Seeing that wistful expression on her face made me determined to make it happen. I took her hand in mine and squeezed tightly. “Just wait and see, Ma. I’ll take care of us all.”

Twenty minutes later, we were exiting the store, my new game stored securely in my backpack. People were still rushing about, the busy street filled with pedestrians and tourists visiting the capital.

I turned my head, opening my mouth to thank Ma, when a deafening bang filled the air and warm liquid splattered onto my face. The bustle from the street fell away, the cloudless sky becoming something more terrifying than I could have ever imagined as blood rained down on me. Mama’s body jerked, and before I could think to do anything, she was pushing me away. Bang.

I slumped to the ground, my knees scraping against the pavement as I tried to drag myself back to where she now lay, her gasps coming in sharper and sharper. That dark hair I knew so well was fanned out on the pavement, a puddle of crimson forming like a blood-soaked halo around her. I tried to blink, tried to catch my breath. Why couldn’t I make myself move? Could this really be happening?

Screams filled the air and people ran around us—from us?—in all different directions. Meanwhile, I could only watch helplessly as the scene played out. The smell of copper replaced the coconut scent. A red stain spread slowly across Mama’s shoulder and chest, over her diamond necklace. The one she loved most. The one that had belonged to her own mama.

I forced myself to crawl over, ignoring the chaos around me. Ignoring the pain in my chest and my body. Her warm whiskey eyes met mine, this time shining with pure terror and filled with tears.

“Ma,” I breathed, trying to stand, to get help, but with the last of her energy, she gripped my arm and pulled me back down. Her worry for my safety outweighed everything else. “Please… please… be okay.”

I rubbed at my face, yanked at my hair. Why wasn’t anyone helping her? I couldn’t bear a world without her. I needed her to stay. For my siblings. For me.

“It’s all my fault.” My lips repeated the words my brain chanted. Over and over again.

“N-not your f-fault.” She was fading. Her touch was getting colder by the second. “Be g-good.” I sniffled, terror taking over and making my head spin. “Don’t be your father.”

“I won’t,” I cried. “I promise.”

“Be better than him,” she whispered, and then she heaved as much of herself as she could off the bloodstained pavement to squeeze my arm again. I felt my heart bleeding out, right alongside my mother’s body. “And never settle. Promise me.”

What have I done? I shouldn’t have wanted to come to the game store. I shouldn’t have insisted. I shouldn’t have⁠—

“Promise me, Winston.”

“I promise, Ma.”

I never picked up another game. I did, however, pick up many a vice. From that day forward, my path of self-destruction was set.

That day, my father’s daggers sank so deep into my flesh that I didn’t know how to dig myself out.