Troy’s brows sunk towards his eyes. “Who’s to say that isn’t me too? You don’t really know what I act like when people know I have money. My bank account and holdings far exceed his. Maybe I do the same—”
Hailey shook her head. “You don’t. I know you don’t.”
“I guess I’m going to miss you being blissfully ignorant of how much I make,” he said.
“Why? My respect for you has gone up in some ways, not down.”
“Only some ways?” he asked.
How could she explain the thoughts and feelings that were encircling her, wrapping her up like a present. “The jury’s still out,” she said coyly.
He chuckled and touched her arm, his fingers sliding down her coat, until they reached her hands. “So my money isn’t a problem for you?”
“No,” she said. “Honesty then between us?”
“No more hidden secrets, so I have something to confess,” he said, a glint in his eyes.
She raised an eyebrow.
He took a step closer to her. “I have to be honest, the swan tree is coming home with me.”
He looked into her eyes, then his gaze dropped to her lips. She savored the kiss, wrapping her arms around his waist. The kiss felt like an explanation that let her worries melt away. Paul had brought Troy’s billionaire status up, likely in hopes of severing the bond that they’d created. What Paul hadn’t known was that that piece of information, talked through, had actually brought them closer together, not farther apart. Troy’s cologne mixed with the cold winter air, and when he finally pulled away from their kiss, she brought him back for another kiss.
They could both see the puffs of their breathing in the air, and for the first time Hailey felt the cold from outside. She rubbed her hands together. They either needed to return into the warmth of the building or continue kissing if they stayed outside.
“I need you to trust me,” he said, blinking hard like he was trying to choose his words carefully. “I’ll get more donations if we need so we can have more trees available, but my $10,000 is all I can do right now. I want to do more, believe me, I do, but I just … can’t.”
She smiled. “I trust you.” They walked back inside arm in arm.
Chapter 19
Troy went to get another ornament box he’d stored in one of the storage rooms for the tree that he and Hailey were decorating. He was glad they’d been able to talk about his money outside. Somehow that cleared the air between them, allowing them to focus on the final preparations for the Forest Festival. It was going to be a long night to get everything ready, but so far things were moving relatively on schedule.
Cara had arrived last night, but with all of the Forest Festival responsibilities, he hadn’t had time to touch base with her. He spotted her and went down the aisle where she meticulously worked on one of the seven trees she’d been entrusted with. They weren’t the largest trees in the group, but each tree had a different theme. They’d all come from different business donations in New York City in addition to the tree that Cara had personally donated. She was working on her third tree. He wouldn’t have to count them as part of his personal donation with Kyle and Kandice, and the Children’s Hospital would get a benefit from it.
“These look great,” Troy said to Cara, admiring her handiwork.
“Thanks,” she said. “This Festival is really coming together this year.”
Troy nodded. “It really has. For a little while, I was concerned that we wouldn’t be able to pull it off.”
“That’s because you’re used to solving everything with money.”
“You probably think that it’s silly that it’s hard,” Troy said.
“You had something riding on this besides just the money,” Cara said. “It’s not like you to back down from a challenge.”
“Soon the bet will be over, and I’ll be able to leave all the stress of it behind.” He much preferred to solve problems with money. This had been a stretch for him.
“I bet you’ll be glad to get back to the City,” she said.
He nodded. “I miss it.” Though he didn’t miss it as much as he was going to miss Hailey, but he didn’t need to mention that to his assistant. He didn’t want to think about leaving right now.
“That’s the spirit,” Cara said, adding more ornaments to the tree. “The realtor got back to you. The email is in your inbox.” She showed him her phone with a message on it. “Do you think you’ll win the bet?” Cara asked.
Troy nodded. “Without the Forest Festival in the position it was, I probably wouldn’t have stood a chance, but yeah, I’m in a good position to win. And I’m going to buy the house.”
“What about the bet?”
“What about it?”
“You can’t donate more than what you’ve already done or you’ll break the rules.”
“I already have that covered, but Hailey doesn’t know about it. She can’t know about it.” He already had an offer into the realtor. Hailey had planned to use the money to donate to the Children’s Hospital through giving a fund that would cover the Forest Festival every year. It would be brilliant if she could get the money that way. His offer had been more than the asking price for the Victorian mansion, but she was worth it.
“You know this isn’t going to help you win the bet,” Cara said, pointing to the email on her phone. “In fact, it might look like you’re trying to win the bet with more money.”
And this was why he ran his own company. And why he didn’t give control away. He didn’t like not being able to make the decisions he wanted to, to help the way he wanted to, all to win a bet. He didn’t need the bet for money, it had more to do with winning than any monetary value. But not being able to make his own decisions didn’t feel like winning.
“Maybe I don’t care about the bet anymore.”
“You’re not going to forfeit the three million dollars, are you? Not when you’re this close.”
Troy didn’t know what to say. He saw his assistant’s point of view, but Hailey meant more to him than the three million. So he’d lose a million to one of his friends. So what? He wanted to say those very words aloud, but then stopped himself. He couldn’t wish that he’d never been involved with the competition. It was the only way he would have ever met Hailey. And in that sense, it had done its job. He didn’t need to win. He’d already won. But Cara didn’t need to know all of the details. “You’re right. I’m here to win.” At least that was true on one account. Now he was going to forget about winning against his friends, and focus on winning Hailey over.
“You get the girl, the house and win the bet in one fell swoop. It sounds like a very Merry Christmas,” Cara said. “The only thing left to decide is what you’ll do with the three million.”
Troy nodded. “Hailey can’t know anything about it.”
She nodded. “Understood.”
Chapter 20
Hailey sucked in a breath at the admission Troy made. This whole time everything had been a charade. Troy had been pretending that the Forest Festival mattered, that she mattered. All for some stupid bet involving millions of dollars. It was likely more than they’d raise for their entire event. She closed her eyes tightly. She didn’t want to see the truth. What she thought was real … hadn’t been real. Her insides twisted, pulling and turning, like a messy ribbon discarded from the present, no longer useful, just a tangled ball ready to be disposed of.
She moved quietly, back the way she’d come through the rows of trees, not wanting to be detected by Troy and the woman he’d been talking to. Her thoughts replayed Troy’s words over and over. The confidence he’d exuded in winning the bet—getting the girl, the house, and the money. She swallowed hard. This was not happening. She knew she couldn’t hear anymore. It was too much. It was all too much.
She flew through the doors, finding herself in the hallway. She grabbed the first thing she saw, a long-handled push broom that had seen better days, and began sweeping the hallway clear of the Christmas debris.
Volunteers and those donating trees were still bringing in their trees to setup. No doubt the hallway would be full again before the end of the night, but right now, with the amount of adrenaline coursing through her veins, she needed to clean something.
The stiff blue bristles of the broom made a whooshing sound against the concrete floors as she moved pine needles and silver and gold glitter into a large pile before getting the dustpan and finishing the job. One hallway done. Still more to go. She’d planned to spend this time with Troy, but she couldn’t. She’d been part of a bet. Good for him that he was going to win, whatever that meant. But she’d lose. She swept with more vigor, completing the next long hallway in half the time.
“There you are,” Troy said. “I’ve been looking all over for you.” He looked at his watch, tapping the screen playfully. “You want to catch dinner with me, before we’re up until who knows how long to get this whole place ready for tomorrow afternoon?” He cupped one hand next to his mouth, like he was about to whisper a very important secret. “Santa is coming tomorrow.”
Anger flared through her. She still hadn’t seen his costume, and she’d looked forward to seeing him as Santa since she’d given him the position, but not anymore. He didn’t care about her. He only cared about his bet.
“You go without me. I have work to finish.” She didn’t look at him, just continued pushing the broom down the hallway.
It took him a few seconds to catch up with her. “Wait a minute.” He stepped in front of the broom. She tried to go around him, but he held his hands up. “What’s going on?”
She shrugged. “I actually thought I knew. But I don’t. Maybe you can fill me in.”
He lifted her chin until she made eye contact with him. “Hailey, what’s wrong?”
It was that look in his eyes. The look of complete bafflement. And she wouldn’t be fooled by it. She used to think that look was endearing. But not now. She crossed her arms, the broom handle awkwardly stuck between her arms and her chest, almost hitting her in the nose. She narrowed her eyes. “You tell me. You said no more secrets. And then you hide more from me.” She shook her head. The chemistry between them was so strong, it had felt like a life-time of time spent together instead of only a couple of months.
Understanding flashed in his eyes, and then something else—pain, maybe? His forehead creased with a line of worry. “I can explain,” he said, his tone much slower and softer than he’d just used with her. The former excitement in his voice when he’d mentioned going out to dinner just moments ago had left.
“Then explain,” she said. For a brief second her heart melted—like snow brought in from a winter’s day. Maybe he had a reason. A solid reason for keeping it from her. She mentally prayed for that. She could let go of the anger if he could explain it. She leaned forward, hungry for the words he’d say.
“I wanted it to be a surprise,” he started, running his hand through his hair in his characteristic way he always did, that Hailey recognized happened when he seemed to be thinking through a problem he needed to solve.
“A surprise?” He’d had a bet to be a surprise? She didn’t understand it, but she kept that to herself. She watched him, seeing the internal struggle as it moved across his face.
“My realtor is still working with your realtor. Nothing is finalized until after the Forest Festival. I wanted it to be a surprise.”
Now he wasn’t making sense at all. “You’re buying my aunt’s house?”
“I couldn’t let your aunt’s dream die.”
He took a step closer to her, lightly tugging on the broom handle that she’d folded against herself. The effect brought her closer to him and made her arms unfold. The idea that he’d put an offer on her aunt’s house swelled inside of her. Thoughtful. Sensitive. Attentive. A billionaire who cared about preserving history, or at least her history. The whole thing felt beautiful. “My aunt’s dream?”
He pursed his lips. “To make it a place where families could stay while their children were in the hospital.”
Her eyes widened. “That’s why you’re buying the property?”
He nodded. “I think it’s worth it.” His eyes held tenderness.
“You don’t have to buy it,” she said, wondering where she was going with that thought. Would she actually turn the property over to him without selling it? So many conflicting emotions ran through her head.
“That’s why I wasn’t going to tell you about any of it,” he said.
She laughed, loving this moment, wishing she hadn’t spent so much of her last hour sweeping the floor trying to work out her stress and her anger at something that was so easily fixed up. Then a question popped into her mind. “You weren’t going to tell me about it, but I would have found out about it eventually. Is that what the bet was about?”
Troy’s smile faded instantly. “The bet?” he repeated, the words sounding strangled in his throat. His eyes searched hers. “What do you know about the bet?”
Confusion struck her. “Only what you’ve just said about the house and the realtor.”
He shook his head. “I’m sorry, Hailey. I can’t … tell you anything. Not right now.”
She nodded, her chin lifting higher as she pressed her lips together. “You have more secrets than just the realty deal?”
“That wasn’t really a secret, it was a surprise.”
“So what’s the bet?”
“I … can’t,” he stopped, closing his eyes tight. When he opened them, they were pleading with her. “I can explain—” he said slowly.
“Go ahead,” she said, waiting for the explanation.
“I just can’t explain right now.” He cringed as he said the words.
He’d just told her all about the realty deal that he was going to surprise her with. But he couldn’t tell her about a bet? There was something going on, but why wouldn’t he tell her? They weren’t any further in their relationship. She repeated her earlier line. “You said no more secrets. I said I need honesty.” The words felt dry and crackly as she said them.
“I need time and trust. I will explain, I just can’t right now.”
“If you want trust, you need to give it too. Trust me with it. Explain now.” She pushed away memories from long ago. She pushed away comparisons to her ex. She pushed all of it away from her brain.
“Hailey, I just can’t.”
“Trust comes after people are honest, not before.” Her mind raced through all of the possibilities. She could come up with nothing, no reason that he couldn’t tell her something. Unless … “The bet is about me?”
He glanced sideways, then lowered her voice. “I can give you a full explanation, I just need you to give me time. I can’t tell you yet.”
“Because I’m part of the bet. My knowing will mean you lose your bet?”
“It’s not what you think.” He rubbed his hands up and down her arms but she shook his touch away and stepped back.
He didn’t deny her guess. If she knew about it, he would lose his bet. The bet was more important to him than she was. She didn’t even care what the bet was. It didn’t matter. It didn’t hurt as much as the fact that someone she was falling for couldn’t trust her with something important.
“I don’t need you to explain,” she said. He could win. That was what he wanted. It was what always had mattered to him. In fact, if she looked back at their time together, she could see that. He was on fire about getting donations, about helping people see the need to make this work in their lives. Troy was the person who had to win. And it was probably what made him a successful businessman. A billionaire. A very single successful billionaire.
His features softened, as if she’d given him the perfect answer. He thought he’d won here. “Thank you, Hailey.” He looked at her thoughtfully for a moment. “Dinner?”
She shook her head. He’d misunderstood her. He might still win, but she’d definitely lost. In more ways than one. “You don’t need to explain, because we’re done. I can’t be with someone
who doesn’t trust me, and can’t confide in me. I can’t discover surprises or secrets and always wonder what is more important.”
“Hailey, wait. I want to explain—”
“But you can’t, or you won’t. Not yet. Not until it’s okay with your timing and winning your bet. Am I right?”
He opened his mouth to say something and then quickly shut it, shaking his head.
Hailey blinked rapidly. This was not how she’d envisioned starting the Forest Festival—the beginning of the Twelve Days of Christmas. “I need some space,” she said.
He nodded like he understood. “I’ll be here when—”
She shook her head furiously. “No. You won’t be here.”
He tilted his head, a question knit between his eyebrows. “I’m helping with Santa tomorrow and for the rest of the week. We can talk about this when the Forest Festival is over.”
He couldn’t be Santa. She couldn’t have him have ties to her life here. That meant the Forest Festival. And her aunt’s house. This was her last time in Red Oaks, and she wasn’t going to have her last few days spoiled by the memory of him. Cutting ties now was her option. The only way to get through this mess of wrapping paper and wadded up tape that her life was becoming under the current situation.
“I want you to take back your offer on my house,” she said, her back as straight as she could hold it. If she didn’t keep her composure she was going to crumble.
“What? I don’t understand,” he said slowly. “Hailey, I know we’re not seeing exactly eye to eye right now, but give me a few days, and it will all make sense.”
She shook her head. “I can’t, Troy. It’s not going to work. Please take down the offer.”
“And if I don’t?” The challenge was in his eyes.
The Billionaire’s Christmas Miracle: The Billionaires’ Christmas Gifts Romance Page 15
