Melody Anne's Billionaire Universe: Refuse to Settle (Kindle Worlds Novella)

by Stephanie Haefner

  After Charlene puked in the ladies’ bathroom, Jilly took her home and she spent another night sobbing in Jilly’s arms.

  Men were pigs. No, worse. They were the dirty assholes of pigs.

  And speaking of pig assholes, Jilly’s asshole had yet to call her back and arrange delivery for his cookie order. Which meant one of two things. A: he was going to stiff her on two hundred bucks he owed her for the cookies she’d already made. Or B: he was going to show up at the café to pick them up. She wasn’t sure which option was worse.

  Jilly looked at the clock. It was almost noon. The café was only open until one on Sundays. If he wasn’t there by one on the dot, she was locking up. Too bad for him.

  A few more customers came in and distracted her while time slowly ticked away. As the minute hand hit the eleven, she was pretty sure she was in the clear. And yeah, she was a little disappointed, but not really sure why.

  It sucked to be out the cash, but the cookies were a hit and she was sure she could get rid of them next week, even if she had to do a special. So that wasn’t it. Did she miss Colin? No. That couldn’t be it. He aggravated her. They’d spent more time arguing than getting along. Her life would be much simpler if he just disappeared from it.

  But simple wasn’t going to happen. With two minutes to spare, the door chime rang and in strode Colin. Jilly tried to tell herself the erratic beat of her heart wasn’t because he looked really sexy in ratty jeans and a dirty gray tee. Nope. And it wasn’t the fact that he smelled of citrus and grease and masculinity, either. Had to be some other reason.

  Wait. Why was he filthy and smelling like that?

  Colin avoided her gaze as he pulled two hundreds and a fifty from his wallet. He set them on the counter, took the bakery box, and mumbled “Thanks” before turning toward the door.

  “That’s it?”

  He looked at her over his shoulder. “Should there be more?”

  “Why are you dressed like that?”

  “I came from work and I’m heading back there. I do have a job, you know.”

  “I know.” She did…sort of. “I’ve never seen you dressed like that. I don’t even know what you do.”

  “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” He then continued toward the door and out onto the street.

  Seriously? Flutters gone, she stomped through the café and out the door. “You don’t need to be so rude.”

  “I’m the one who’s rude? You know nothing about me but think it’s perfectly fine to judge me and make assumptions. So go back to your shop and I’ll go back to mine, and we’ll forget all about this cookie thing. You’ll never have to see me again.”

  He walked away and her heart sunk. Because he was right. She didn’t know anything about him. People judged her all the time and she hated it. Her hair, her clothes, her lifestyle. She’d judged him based on pictures she saw online. She’d judged him based on her past experiences with wealthy men. Neither were fair.

  Jilly ran after Colin, reaching him just as he opened the passenger door of a really shiny but really old red truck. “I’m sorry,” she blurted.

  He didn’t even face her. Just shook his head as he said, “And I’m too tired to care.” He set his box of cookies on the seat and closed the door. Head down, he made his way around to the driver’s side and got in. Not even one glance at her as he drove away.

  So maybe her original judgment was correct. Asshole.

  * * *

  Colin hadn’t expected the encounter with Jilly to be so tough. She’d disappointed him and he shouldn’t care, but damn it, he still wanted her. But the feelings would go away. He’d stay away from the café and dump this box of cookies in the trash. Done.

  But when the got back to the shop, he couldn’t do it. Instead he brought them inside and plopped them on the break room table.

  “Cookie time!” one of the guys yelled and Colin thought a stampede of elephants was rushing toward him. Within minutes, the box was half empty. He grabbed one of the cookies and against his better judgment, bit into it. He’d never again taste lemon and not think of the lavender-hued beauty who’d created these cookies.

  “Cookies as employee motivation. I’ll have to look into that.”

  Colin turned toward his father’s voice as he swallowed, even though his throat had gone completely dry. “Dad.” He coughed and tossed the half-eaten cookie in the trash. “What are you doing here?”

  “Thought I’d check up on you. I haven’t heard from you all week. No one has.”

  “I’ve been busy. Here. Working with my team.”

  “I can tell.” The man eyed his son’s grungy attire. “I will never understand why you’re drawn to this.”

  “And you don’t need to.” Colin brushed past him and into the garage.

  “That’s fine. Get it out of your system now. In a few years, when I’m ready to retire, you’ll take over for me at Rutherford Enterprises and leave this behind.”

  Over the last week, Colin had spent every waking moment at the shop with his guys, learning from them, helping them. He was exhausted, but it felt good to build something from nothing. To be a part of the team, not just the guy whose name was on the paychecks. And he wasn’t sure anymore if he wanted to be the one in charge at Rutherford, spending his days in board meetings and wooing investors.

  He turned toward his father. “I’m needed here.”

  “You’re doing well. I’ve seen the financial reports. You can afford to hire someone to manage the place.”

  “I don’t want to hire someone. I enjoy being here.”

  His father shook his head. “You’ve always been like this. But you’re not a kid anymore. You need to get your head out of the clouds and prepare for your future. The future I worked hard for. And your grandfather and great-grandfather before me. This is your legacy. This silly car shop was a fun distraction, but you need to get serious.”

  Colin didn’t bother arguing any further. He wouldn’t win.

  “The Rutherford Gala is Saturday. You’re bringing a date, correct?”

  “Probably not.”

  “You need to. It looks bad to investors if you don’t.”

  “I don’t care about investors. I’m not dating anyone right now and I’m not going to just grab any woman off the street.”

  “You don’t need to do that. I’m sure there’s a plethora of available women your mother can set you up with.”

  Been there. Done that. He wasn’t interested in high-society debutantes who only wanted him for his money and social status. “No thanks.” Colin stepped to the counter, picked up a rag, and began wiping grease off of a crankshaft.

  “Oh! I have the perfect girl for you. Richard Hinskin, one of the Board of Directors, has a daughter. Sophia, I believe?”

  He knew who she was. He’d seen her at several Rutherford events over the last couple years. “Dad, she’s what, twenty-two at the most? I’m thirty-four.”

  He shrugged. “So. I’m ten years older than your mother.” He checked his watch. “I need to go. But think about it.”

  Colin Rutherford III didn’t give him a chance to protest further. Typical. Which was fine with him. His father was gone and he could get back to what actually made him happy.

  * * *

  “So did the asshole ever show today?” Charlene asked as she and Jilly lounged on their couch with bad reality TV and frozen treats: regular ice cream for Charlene, the non-dairy stuff for Jilly.

  “Yeah. Two minutes before I was locking the door.”

  “And?”

  “He was his normal asshole self.”

  “You seem surprised.”

  Jilly took another scoop of chocolate and caramel brownie goodness. “A little, I guess. I felt bad because I thought I misjudged him. And maybe I did, to some degree, but he’s still an asshole. I apologized and everything and he didn’t even care.”

  “Poor little rich boy got a bruise on his ego so now he needs to pout.”

  “Exactly.”

&nb
sp; The girls continued to dig into their ice cream, but Jilly couldn’t get the look on Colin’s face out of her head. He said he was tired and he looked it. Tired in general, or tired of her? Was there more to it?

  “You like him,” Charlene declared.

  Jilly met her stare. “What? No. I mean, yeah…he’s hot, but no.”

  Charlene rolled her eyes. “Okay. Whatever.”

  “No whatever. Maybe for a millisecond I thought he was cute and charming, but we know what cute and charming does to girls. It lures us in and makes us stupid. You, of all people, should know that.”

  “I do. But do you really think all guys are jerks who will screw us over? Are we doomed to spend our lives alone? Do we have to choose between being a spinster old maid and settling for an asshole husband who will walk all over us and do whatever the hell he wants?”

  Jilly took another bite as she contemplated her friend’s questions. “First of all, we should never settle for anything less than we deserve. And I have yet to witness it myself, but I have to believe there are good men. There might be a happily ever after out there for us.”

  “Aww. Is my Jilly turning into a romantic?”

  She snorted. “Nope. I’m far too skeptical for that. I never said it would be easy, and I definitely don’t want any kind of white knight situation, but I think it can happen.”

  “So I shouldn’t give up hope?”

  “Definitely not.”

  “Then you shouldn’t give up either. Actually, have you ever even tried? I’ve known you for eight years and you’ve never had a boyfriend.”

  “I’ve had boyfriends!”

  “Not really. You’ve kinda sorta dated a few guys on a semi-regular basis. Dinner with someone every other week doesn’t make him your boyfriend. And did you even have sex with any of the recent guys?”

  “Sex makes it an official relationship?”

  “No, but it’s fun.” Charlene’s mischievous grin blossomed across her lips. “Eddie was a piece of shit, but man, he knew how to go down on a girl.”

  Unfortunately, Jilly knew just how great Eddie was in bed. Not from experience, of course. She’d heard Charlene’s euphoric screams through their thin bedroom walls on far too many occasions. “We’re done with this conversation.”

  “Why? Cause you don’t have anything to contribute?”

  “I do, I’m just not in the mood.” Total lie. She had stories, but none worth reliving. She’d had sex a few times with some of the recent guys, but nothing that was core shattering.

  “Party pooper.” Charlene scraped the bottom of her bowl for one last bite of meltiness. “I think we should go out this weekend. We both need to get laid.”

  “I will consider the possibility of going out, but the getting laid part? You’re on your own.”

  “Come on! When was the last time a guy really screwed your brains out? Where you were so satisfied and exhausted you couldn’t even move afterward?”

  Uh... Most of Jilly’s sexual encounters were simple: do the deed, then get back to normal life.

  “You took too long to answer, so I’m guessing that’s never happened. We so need to get you laid.” Charlene stood and headed for the kitchen. “I have the perfect slutty outfit you can wear.”

  “Not happening.”

  “It is, so you better make sure you shave.”

  “Nope.”

  Charlene was halfway down the hall when she yelled,” I’ll bust into your shower and do it myself if I have to.”

  The scary part was that she knew Charlene well enough to know that she actually would.

  Chapter 5

  Colin drifted in that place between sleep and awake, where dreams felt real. Jilly was there, lying with him, tucked into the crook of his arm. Bathed in warm sunshine, he caressed her skin as silky strands of purple hair blew across his bare chest, the soundtrack of ocean waves in the background. She sat up, adoration across her face, and she smiled at him as she ran her fingers through his hair.

  “Boss!”

  The word came from her lips, but it wasn’t her voice. Jilly vanished and he opened his eyes. Sunlight streamed in through the window and he was on the dusty couch in his office, not on the beach with Jilly. Joe stood over him, smart-ass grin on his face.

  “You musta been having a real nice dream.” He cocked his head to the side, motioning toward Colin’s lower section.

  Fuck. Morning wood. This was why one should never fall asleep at work.

  “Were you here all night?”

  Colin sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Yeah. I guess so. I only meant to close my eyes for like ten minutes.”

  “You should go home. You’ve been here non-stop.”

  “I can’t. The owner of the ’51 Coupe de Ville is picking it up today. I want to be here when he does.”

  “I don’t blame you. She came out beautiful. But you look like shit.”

  “Thanks.” He stood and stretched. “I’ll go home after he leaves. In the meantime, we’ve got work to do.”

  It had been three days but his father’s words still played in his head. Get it out of your system. He’d never understand. This wasn’t something he wanted to walk away from. He couldn’t walk away. He’d built this company from nothing. He took pride in that. Yeah, he’d had the funds to do it, but that didn’t mean it was easy. It took hard work to build a good reputation.

  More of his employees arrived and they each got to work on their projects. Colin helped where he could and took calls from possible clients who had old clunkers and barn finds that needed restoring. He loved it when someone said, “Money is no object.” He’d never take advantage of that, but it really gave them a chance to create something wonderful.

  After a long conversation with a guy from Dallas, he was ready to ship his beloved ’69 Mustang for some much needed TLC, and Colin was excited to get his hands on it.

  Tommy poked his head inside the office. “Hey. The Coupe owner is here for pick up.”

  “Thanks.” Colin stood and followed him to the showroom. “Mr. Davidson. How are you?”

  “Pretty damn anxious.”

  “I bet. You ready to see her?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Colin escorted him to the adjoining garage, a much cleaner space than the one they worked on the cars in. The Caddy was hidden beneath a gray cover. He loved this part. Stepping to the back, Colin grabbed the cover and gave it a yank, never taking his eyes off Mr. Davidson. That moment when they saw the finished car for the first time…he couldn’t describe it.

  “Wow.” Mr. Davidson walked around the car, taking it all in. The bodywork was exact to the original design; it had a killer red paintjob and hand-drawn black and cream pinstriping. He peeked through the windows at the upholstery Joe had recreated from the few family photos he’d been given. The man looked up at Colin, tears in his eyes. “It looks just like it did when I was a kid.”

  “We did our best to make it exact.”

  “You sure as hell did that.” He held his hand out and Colin shook it. “Thank you so much.”

  “You’re very welcome.”

  This feeling right here. This was why Colin wasn’t giving up the business. And why he’d decided not only to focus on it, but devote as much time as possible to learning all he could. His father would have to get over it. Surely he’d have no problem finding a different Rutherford to take over for him at Rutherford Enterprises.

  Colin and his team helped load the car onto the flatbed Mr. Davidson had brought, and waved goodbye.

  “Another happy customer,” Joe said and slapped Colin on the back. “Now you can go home and relax.”

  Colin looked at his watch. “Nope. I’ve got somewhere to be.” He headed to his office, grabbed his phone and the bakery box off his desk, still half-full with cookies from the other day, and headed out the door.

  * * *

  Jilly hurried toward the back entrance of the women’s shelter near the café. She was running late, but wouldn’t skip her stop there. Ever
since she opened The Rhubarb, once a week she cleaned out her display case and donated the unsold treats to the shelter. These women and children might not have homes of their own, but it felt good to provide them with some comfort.

  “Hey, Jilly,” one of the volunteers said when she saw her. “What do you have for us today?”

  “Almond biscotti, cinnamon scones, flourless chocolate cake, and peanut butter cookies.”

  “Oooh! Sounds delicious. You know where they go.”

  Jilly headed into the kitchen area and found a box of cookies on the table. One of her boxes. Half-full of Lemon Dream cookies. She set her boxes down next to it then peeked her head into the office.

  “Nicole? Where did that box of cookies come from?”

  “One of the volunteers brought it.”

  It couldn’t be…could it? “Can I ask their name?”

  “Colin Ruther—something.”

  “Rutherford.”

  “Yep. That’s it. You know him?”

  “Unfortunately, yes.”

  Nicole’s brow furrowed. “Unfortunately? He’s such a sweetheart. He comes two or three days a week. The kids love him. Brings them all kinds of toy cars to play with. He sits on the floor with them for hours.”

  “You’re joking.” Jilly shook her head. “It can’t be the same person.”

  “Look for yourself. He’s out there now.”

  Jilly crept from the office, past the kitchen to the common area of the shelter. Shock surged through her body. It was him. The same Colin who did nothing but aggravate her. He was on the floor with toddlers and big kids, too, cars of all sizes everywhere. They’d built ramps for the cars and some kind of city out of blocks and other toys.

  One of the toddler girls leapt into his arms and he pulled her tight to him, rocking back and forth, a giant goofy grin across his face. And that turned into a dog pile with Colin on the bottom. Jilly’s heart swelled with adoration. This man she knew very little about but had judged so harshly was nothing like she expected.