“Whoa, margaritas. What’s the occasion?” Sam asked.
I laughed. “Just a big thank you for everything you two did for me.”
“Stop it, Abbie. You’re our friend. We’d do anything for you,” Jenny said.
“Okay, enough about paying people back. Let’s drink,” Sam said, raising her glass.
“Cheers,” we all said, chinking glasses.
“So, what’s his house like?” Sam asked.
“Oh my God, it’s so big I get lost in it. And there’s a whole cinema where the curtains open and close and everything.”
“Nice,” Jenny said.
“I’m surprised you made it out of the bedroom,” Sam said laughing.
“So am I,” I said.
“Okay, spill. What’s he like in bed?” Sam asked.
“What do you need to ask that for? The answer is all over the internet!” Jenny said.
I laughed. “All I’m saying is it’s better in real life.”
While we were sitting there, I realized I never did send Jay the crotch shot I’d taken on Monday and accidentally sent to Jenny. While Jenny and Sam were busy chatting, I took out my phone.
Looking forward to tonight
The second I hit send I started laughing. Giddy with the thought of what his face must look like right now. My phone beeped.
I can almost taste it. J
I could not believe he responded like that. It was good, and I wasn’t complaining, I thought he’d be too, um, professional.
“What’s on your phone? Is he texting you?” Jenny asked.
“Tell him to leave you alone. You’re out with your friends,” Sam said.
I turned red. I must have been grinning like a crazy lady at my screen at the thought of him staring at his screen and wanting me right now.
Sam burst out laughing. “What nudie shot did you send him now?”
Busted. “The one from Monday morning. I realized I hadn’t sent it.”
“What, the one you sent me? I thought that was just between the two of us. I don’t feel so special anymore,” Jenny said.
“I’m getting more drinks.” I stood and made my way to the bar.
I plunked three more margaritas on the table and sat down.
“Thanks honey,” Jenny said.
“It’s the least I can do,” I said.
“Stop being so hung up on keeping score. You don’t have to pay us back for what we did. We didn’t even do anything! Just gave you a shoulder to cry on,” Jenny said.
“I can’t help it. I hate owing people stuff,” I said.
“We’re your friends, you don’t owe us anything. Would we owe you if you let us cry on your shoulder?” Sam said, her head moving so much it caused her long curls to bounce around her.
“No, but that’s different,” I protested.
“How? You are being silly,” Jenny said.
“I can’t help it. I hate the feeling of being indebted to people. You should hear what happened at Dish.”
Sam rolled her eyes, but she leaned in to catch every detail. “Here we go, what silly thing did you do at Dish?”
I told them the story of how it cost me four hundred bucks because I demanded to pay the tip.
“You’re a fool,” Sam said.
“Don’t be so stupid, that money is nothing to him. He doesn’t care. The only person who cares is you,” Jenny said.
Maybe they were right. But I couldn’t help it. After my parents were killed in the car accident when I was seventeen, it had been so important for me to not feel indebted to anyone. Afterwards people treated me like a charity case, and I hated it. They wanted to do this and that for me, and I all wanted to do was put my head down and work hard to get on in life. Nothing more. I needed to achieve things for myself. I didn’t want handouts from anyone.
“Just because my boyfriend is rich doesn’t mean I’m not going to pay my fair share in the relationship. I’m not going to take advantage of him for his money.”
“There’s no way he cares!” Sam said, frustrated with me.
“If he cared about money, he wouldn’t be ordering eight-hundred-dollar bottles of wine. It’s a no brainer,” Jenny said.
“That doesn’t matter! I will not be a gold digger!”
“Abbie, you need not to be so hung up on paying for things. People want to do things for you. You don’t owe them anything,” Jenny said, stroking my forearm.
I downed my drink, which was quite a feat given the amount of liquid still in my glass. “I’m getting more drinks.” I stood and left the table.
First, I had to pee. I made my way to the restroom and sat on the toilet. I buried my face in my hands. I never asked to date a rich guy. I never sought him out. Would being with him always make me feel inadequate?
I suspected I knew the answer. I would never be able to contribute to our relationship. My fingers went to the diamond around my neck. The diamonds he gave me on a whim because they were pocket change for him. How did I fit into that? Give him a box of Turtles for Christmas? And that would be somehow comparable?
* * *
We switched to wine, the margaritas were going straight to my head, and I needed to be able to walk in a straight line to get home.
* * *
The three of us danced, but all I could think of was Jay. I smiled at them, hoping they couldn’t sense my desire not to be with them right now. It was a cliché, getting a new boyfriend and ditching your friends, and I didn’t want to be a cliché. Instead I danced, dreaming that Jay was watching.
I stifled a yawn. We’d been in the bar almost five hours and I hadn’t exactly had much sleep that week. Not that I was complaining.
When the song ended, I pulled the two of them off the dance floor and back to our table.
“I’m so tired,” I said.
“Are you ditching us?” Jenny asked.
“Look at her, she’s been up all week screwing her new boyfriend. Poor thing needs her beauty sleep,” Sam said, laughing.
I laughed. “Ain’t that the truth.”
“Okay, missy, go home to your man,” Jenny said.
I hugged both of them. “Thank you both so much for everything. I love you both so much.”
“Whatever drunk lady, go home,” Sam said then smacked my behind.
I left the bar and headed home. After a block I realized Jay said he’d come pick me up at the bar. Oh well, I walked home from it every Friday night for years, I wasn’t worried.
Chapter 6
I turned the corner and came face to face with Calvin. My heart pounded in my chest. What was he doing here? On this street on a Friday night? I picked up my walking pace.
In an instant he was in front of me, blocking my way. I was sure he still blamed me for getting him fired from Force McAllister. But I thought he’d worked his aggression out when he’d emailed the photo of Jay and me having sex to the entire office.
My pulse pounded in my ears as I tried to sidestep him.
“Well, if it isn’t the boss’s fuck toy,” he said, snarling.
“Leave me alone, Calvin.” I tried to sound forceful.
“Even after all his lies, you’re still fucking him.”
“What lies?” Why did I engage him? I need to get away from him.
“You mean you don’t know?”
“Know what?” He burst out into maniacal laughter and I willed Jay to appear.
“The man has secrets.”
“How would you know?” I spat the words at him.
“Let’s just say a friend told me.” This was crazy. Calvin was crazy. I tried walking around him again, but he blocked me.
“What do you want from me?”
“It’s not you I want something from.”
Enough of the riddles. I pulled out my phone.
“Calling your boyfriend, are you? James McAllister, the lying liar,” he laughed.
“Yes, he’s only around the corner. He’ll be here in a second.”
“Suit yourself, but I�
��m only trying to help you. You’re trusting the wrong person. Be careful. Watch out for his lies.”
Calvin smirked then disappeared into the shadows. I put my phone away and speed-walked home.
I tried to make sense of Calvin’s words, which was difficult in my drunken state. Why was he there, on that street? He’d made me feel threatened, but then he said those things about Jay. Was Jay hiding more stuff? Telling more lies? I didn’t believe it. Didn’t want to believe it. Calvin was crazy. But how did he know so much about Jay?
I walked into my condo. Jay jumped up from his position at the little dining table to greet me.
“Beautiful, why didn’t you call?”
“Sorry, I left kind of fast and forgot.”
“You have to phone me, I need to make sure you’re safe.”
“Safe from what?”
“Everything.”
“Don’t worry, I’m home safe and sound.”
Except for the run-in with Calvin, but I decided not to tell Jay about it.
“Good, I couldn’t bear anything happening to you,” he said as he slid his hands around my waist and kissed me.
I melted into his arms, forgetting all about Calvin. Now the only thing that mattered to me was Jay.
Chapter 7
“Let’s go, I want to get out on the water early.”
I followed Jay out of the condo and down to the street. He parked in the pay parking lot just down the street. I was glad he’d gotten the hint from having his car keyed and didn’t park in the no-parking zone in front of my building now.
We approached a deep blue Bentley.
“Where’s the other car?”
“Being painted.”
I laughed. “How many cars do you have?”
“Several.”
“I’m surprised you don’t have a chauffeur.”
He gave me that look again. The one he gave me every time I say something normal and naïve that betrays my ignorance about having money.
“I have a driver but I only use him when I need to get work done while I’m moving. Otherwise I drive myself because I enjoy it.”
I laughed. Of course he did. I had to stop being so surprised at these things.
As soon as we were out of the parking garage, he floored it. The car rumbled and my body pushed back into my seat. I gripped the door handle as Jay wove his way in and out of cars, never stopping for a yellow no matter how far back we were.
We arrived at the marina, and I plodded along behind him, slack jawed at the sight of all the boats. Yachts and cabin cruisers of all sorts. Jay led me to the biggest cabin cruiser in the marina, which didn’t surprise me. He plunked the picnic basket down on the boat.
It was a huge boat with a deck at the rear and sundeck on top. The name Bourbon Chaser was written across the back. Jay started untying it.
“Why’s it called Bourbon Chaser?” I asked.
“My parents used to own racehorses, and Bourbon Chaser was the best. He won every race he entered.”
“Wow,” I said. Racehorses? He must have come from money. I knew less than nothing about horses. Other than that Matt would sometimes talk about them. I’d always tuned him out.
“I thought you said you made your fortune on your own, without any help from anyone.” From his kneeling position on the dock, he looked at me.
“I did. My mother lost all her money. Now she only has what I give her.”
Jay usually clammed up when I asked him about his family or his past. That he now feels comfortable enough with me to share warmed my heart.
“What about your father?”
His eyes shifted to the ground. “He died when I was a baby.”
My insides welled in grief for him. “That’s terrible,” I said, going over to him and rubbing his back.
“Bourbon Chaser was his favorite, so I named my boat after him. Anyway, it’s all long ago. Hop aboard.”
* * *
It was warm for October, and I even took off my jacket. Jay fired up the engines. I stood beside him as he piloted the boat out of the marina and onto the openness of Lake Michigan.
“I like to come out here to get away from everything,” he said, looking straight ahead.
“It’s amazing how quickly life sinks away,” I said, looking back at the Chicago skyline.
“Exactly.”
I gripped his arm and squeezed, his bicep taut under my touch. We traveled straight out, until the skyline was a faint outline against the sky. Jay cut the engine, and we drifted.
“Now…” he said, grabbing my waist. He didn’t finish his sentence because he planted his lips on mine. A slow, deep kiss that could have gone on forever.
My insides fluttered, willing his hands to rip off my clothes. Instead the kiss went on, and my hunger for him grew.
“Is there a bed on this boat?” I broke the kiss to ask.
“Several,” he said, kissing me again. My lips, my neck.
“Guess we have our work cut out for us.”
“I hope you have some sexy lingerie on under these clothes.” He toyed with the bottom of my sweater.
“Sort of.”
He nuzzled at my neck. “What do you mean ‘sort of’?”
“I learned my lesson about wearing g-strings out.”
“Oh? So what are you wearing?” He slid his hand between my skin and jeans. I sucked my tummy in, giving him easier access.
His hand moved all the way down to my mound, and he groaned in approval when he found I wasn’t wearing any panties.
I tugged at the bottom of the black shirt that clung to his body, wanting access to his chest. I ran my hands underneath the shirt, over his perfect body underneath. A body I could never get tired of touching.
He broke away and said, “Come with me.”
Jay took my hand and led me through the glass siding door at the back of the boat. A narrow set of stairs led up from it, and he herded me up them, then a second set.
We emerged onto the fly deck, a large, open area at the top of the boat. A metal chain hung around the outside, and there was a large chest in the middle that looked like a part of the boat with built-in seating wrapping around it. The deck was otherwise empty.
Jay unlocked the chest and opened the lid. He flicked on a speaker, took out his phone and soon after Ed Sheeran sang out across the water.
He pulled out cushions and chucked them on the floor in front of the built-in seating they were intended for. Only then did I clue into his plan. Still bent into the chest, he came up holding a bottle of Champagne and flutes.
“Sit,” he said, passing me a glass.
I smiled and took the glass in my hand before making myself comfortable on the cushion.
Jay sat beside me, and said, “To the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. My beautiful woman.”
I blushed as we clinked glasses. I leaned against his body and we sat, drinking our Champagne and looking out across the water. The water that seemed to go on forever in all directions.
“You know how you said we should just keep driving?”
“What, all that time ago?”
“Yeah, you said we should take off and leave everything behind.”
“That was before I knew who you were.” I cringed, embarrassed at the memory.
“We should do that.”
“Huh?”
“We could take this boat and go.”
I laughed. “Before I said we should go until we run out of money.”
“Except we’d never run out of money. Ever.”
“And what about our responsibilities? If I remember correctly I accused you of not having any.”
He laughed and took a sip of Champagne. “I can hire people to run my companies. Easy.”
“Okay, where would we go? What would we do?”
“We could boat through the lakes, out to the Atlantic and down the coast. We could winter in the Caribbean, and summer there as well. If we got bored we could fly over to Europe.”
I looked at
him, studying his face. “You sound like you have this all planned out.”
He looked away. “I’ve been thinking about it. About what I want out of life.” He paused and looked back to me, held my eyes captive in his intense gaze. “I concluded the only thing I want out of life is you.”
I swallowed and took several breaths while he held my eyes in his. Was he serious?
He leaned into me, placed his hand on my cheek, and kissed me. A deeper, more loving kiss even than the one we’d shared below deck. Every iota of my body came alive, and I wondered what else I needed in life aside from this. This man, right here, right now. I couldn’t think of anything else I needed.
Chapter 8
He broke away and pulled off his shirt. The sight of his body caused my breath to catch. Even though I saw it every day, I always thought afterwards that my memory was embellishing how perfect it was. Each time I saw it and realized my memory was right, my heart paused.
“These clothes need to come off, beautiful.” He pulled my sweater over my head. Underneath, I was wearing a sheer black bra he had given me.
Jay leaned back, surveying me. He always did this. Stared at me. Raked me with his eyes. It made my heart pound every single time. As if one of these times he would look at me and come to his senses. Someone like me should not be with someone like him. He was out of my league.
The breeze swirled around me, causing my nipples to turn to stone and poke into the thin fabric of the bra.
“It’s a bit chilly up here,” I said.
He laughed. “That’s the idea.”
Jay cupped the sides of my breasts and rubbed his thumbs over my hard nipples. He leaned over, clamping his mouth onto mine. The coolness of the air was blown away by the heat he sent coursing through my body.
This is exactly where I wanted to be forever, in his arms. I reached up and circled my arms around his powerful shoulders.
He reached behind me and unhooked my bra. A shiver ran through me as the last bit of fabric between my breasts and the air was removed. He put his hand behind my head and laid me down on the cushion.
Billionaire's Secret: The Complete Series Page 20
