by J.M. Cagle
In Love With A Billionaire, Book One: Falling for the Billionaire
By J.M. Cagle
Copyright 2015 J.M. Cagle
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Other Books in the In Love with the Billionaire Series
Book Two: Taking a Risk
Book Three: Making It Work
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
About J.M. Cagle
Other Books by This Author
Connect with J.M. Cagle
Chapter One
“Wow, this looks great.”
“Your sarcasm is the last thing we both need right now.” Tiffany said to her best friend, Jackie, as they tugged their luggage into their new apartment.
“I know, I know.” Her friend replied, giving her a small shrug.
Tiffany couldn’t help but sigh. She dropped her bag down by her feet and looked around the cramped apartment. Just their luck. Of course both of them had had to get fired from their waitressing and bartending jobs in the same week. It was as if the whole universe wanted to play a cruel joke on her.
“Well, at least we have a roof over our heads.” Jackie said, trying to sound chipper.
Tiffany made a grunting noise. She watched as Jackie took only about four steps to get across the small living room and head towards the window that was shuttered closed. With a yank, she pulled open the blinds, as if they were going to see a view that would astound them. Instead, it was just of the apartment complex next door.
“Great brick view.” Jackie joked, but Tiffany could see the defeat in her friend’s hunched over shoulders.
“Come on; help me move the rest of this junk.”
Together, the two of them managed to get their luggage into the house. Downstairs, their boyfriends pulled up with the moving truck. Tiffany crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. She avoided Jackie’s gaze. She knew what she was thinking. How is it that we both have boyfriends, and yet neither one of them wanted to move in together with their girl after we lost our last place? It wasn’t something she felt like thinking about right at that moment.
Brad slid out of the truck. His hair was messy and his shirt was untucked over his baggy jeans. On the other side, Jackie’s boyfriend, Wayne, got out. He was holding a giant soda which he took a gulp of. Normally, Tiffany would have felt her heart flutter at the sight of Brad, but today there was no fluttering – just minor irritation when she saw Brad reach back into the truck and grab a bag of chips.
“Where did you guys get the food?” She asked by way of greeting.
“Stopped at the gas station.” Wayne replied as Brad pulled out a hot dog from the bag.
“Gross.” Jackie mumbled, being a vegan.
“You didn’t offer to get us anything.” Tiffany pointed out as Brad shoved almost the entire hot dog in his mouth in one go.
“What was she supposed to eat?” Brad replied with a mouthful of hot dog, pointing to Jackie.
Jackie glanced at Tiffany, as if sensing her shifting mood. “Forget it. Come on, guys, the truck is supposed to be returned today.”
They began to move the furniture they had packed. As Brad and Wayne moved the heavy things, Tiffany began to organize the rest of their belongings. She found herself avoiding the rest of the group. Jackie could seemingly know her every mood, which was what she normally wanted in a best friend. But today, having someone read her mind was the last thing she wanted.
Tiffany opened the door to her new bedroom. She stepped inside of it, feeling the weight of the situation crush her. Together, she and her best friend had moved to the big city. They had both been looking to make it here by the city that had a glittering beach like a jewel along the outskirts of town. They had both had dreams of making it as models here.
Yet, it hadn’t taken long for the dream to crumble around them. And now here they were, in an apartment that was smaller than the dollhouse she’d used to have as a child. Both of them had gotten fired after calling off from work one too many times for a modeling shoot. To make matters worse, the shoot had ended up being nothing but a scam. They had been unable to pay the rent at their nice place by the beach.
“This sucks.” She mumbled to herself.
“Hey, babe, do you want the couch against the wall or what?”
Tiffany jumped slightly, jolted back into the present. Brad was looking at her with a bored expression. Not for the first time since everything had gone to hell, Tiffany felt irritated just looking at her boyfriend. He hadn’t exactly been helpful through this whole mess.
“Against the wall is fine, thanks.”
Brad nodded and wandered off. Her stomach growled loudly. I would have eaten a cheap hot dog at this rate, Tiffany thought as she settled down to start unpacking her things.
***
“Shame we don’t get to see the sun set over the ocean anymore.” Jackie said with a sigh as she looked out her bedroom window.
“I know. We got lucky with that view.”
Jackie turned on a light on the dresser that Wayne had finished moving into her bedroom and squeezed past Tiffany, who was trying to help her unpack all her clothes. Jackie had a sweet tooth for designer clothes and refused to sell any to try to make money, citing that she never knew when she would have money to get them again.
“This shirt looks identical to the last shirt I just saw.” Tiffany said, holding one up.
“Two different designers. Really, Tiff, you want to get into modeling, but you don’t know the major designers?”
“I know, I know, I’m terrible.” Tiffany said with an eye roll.
There was a thumping noise and then the sound of one of the guys opening a beer. Tiffany closed her eyes briefly. Jackie plopped down next to her.
“Maybe it is good that we didn’t part to move in with our boyfriends.” Jackie said lightly.
Tiffany narrowed her eyes. “Why do you say that?”
“Well, you have looked pretty irritated with Brad lately.” Her tone was casual, as if she was talking about the weather, but the wary look in Jackie’s eyes let Tiffany know she knew the topic was an uneasy one.
“Do we have to talk about that right now?” Tiffany replied, leaning back against the dresser.
Before Jackie could reply, Wayne stuck his head in to look at the two girls. Jackie smiled at him and Tiffany watched her friend’s face. Was her friend as bothered as she was that her boyfriend hadn’t asked if Jackie wanted to move in with her? Tiffany couldn’t tell. Jackie was good at hiding her real thoughts and emotions.
“Yo, we’re finishing up in here and then we’re going to head out.”
“What?” Tiffany exclaimed, “I thought Brad was going to stay the night.”
“Sorry, man, ask him.” Wayne shrugged and headed back into the living room.
Tiffany looked at Jackie, who just shrugged. Tiffany couldn’t help but feel bummed that Brad was leaving. Even though she had been feeling mixed emotions lately, she had been looking forward to sharing her bed with him tonight. She always felt weird sleeping in a new place.
She padded into t
he living room. Jackie was kissing Wayne good-bye. Brad saw her and walked over. Tiffany squeezed his hand.
“Hey, what happened to staying here tonight?”
“I didn’t realize your new place was so far away from school. I have class in the morning,” Brad replied, avoiding her eyes, “But I’ll come by tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay.” Tiffany replied, and Brad kissed her.
The kiss felt hollow. When Brad pulled away, she smiled wanly at him. Was the school really that far away that he couldn’t stay tonight? Tiffany couldn’t help but make a mental note to look it up later. Not to mention that Brad barely went to his classes because he usually has hangover. Not like he cared. It was a community college and he only went to please his parents because they didn’t like his garage band he swore was going to make him rich and famous one day.
Tiffany watched him go. As the door closed, she thought to herself about whether she’d wanted Brad over tonight for his company, or just because she didn’t want to be alone.
Chapter Two
“Do I have lipstick on my teeth?” Tiffany asked, and smiled at Jackie.
Jackie leaned over from the passenger seat and looked closely before shaking her head, “Nope. All clear.”
“Good. I don’t want anyone to know how exhausted I am. This is a big deal.”
“I was so worried I had lost the tickets in the move. Good thing I found them.”
That was an understatement. Three weeks ago, Jackie had managed to score tickets to an important industry luncheon at the golf club near the beach. The luncheon was in honor of someone neither Jackie nor Tiffany had heard of. Yet, Jackie had charmed the last casting director who had come close to hiring her for a shoot. He had given her the tickets as a way to make up for the fact that he wasn’t going to hire her after all, saying that Jackie didn’t have a good look to try to sell over in Asia.
“He probably wanted to sleep with you.” Tiffany had said when Jackie had shown her the tickets.
She’d merely shrugged, “Well, he did a bad job of trying it, cause I got the tickets and he didn’t get me.”
Now they were outside of the event, peering at the country club. Tiffany wanted to impress someone here. She wanted to treat the entire event as if she was on an interview. Even though they had hit hardships, Tiffany still wanted to break into the modeling industry somehow. Jackie had the same steely look of determination on her face as they got out of the car.
Jackie was all hips and strange angles, yet oddly beautiful – a size two with her long dark hair and big pouty lips. Jackie, who had been Tiffany’s best friend since they had been young. Jackie looked young and fresh-faced, eager to break into the industry.
Tiffany’s face burned when she thought of her own face and her own secret. Best not to think about that right now, she told herself sternly as they showed their invitations at the front door of the party.
Light classical music played from one side of the lobby. People were mingling, talking about the industry. It was a strange blend of people who worked in the fashion industry and business people from various companies. Jackie rattled off names under her breath to fill Tiffany in on who was who here. Not for the first time, she thought to herself that she should have known these things before coming here.
They crossed the foyer and stepped out to the pool. It overlooked the golf course, and in the distance was the beach. From here, Tiffany could smell the salt from the waves. It was beautiful. The palm trees framed the pool and the tinkling noise of glasses being gently clinked together filled her eardrums. It almost made Tiffany forget about the fact that neither one of them had jobs and that they were living off their savings in a cheap apartment to try to get by.
Jackie handed her a flute of champagne and they walked around the pool together. When they stopped by the buffet table, a man took interest in Jackie. He introduced himself as a photographer and the two began to talk.
Tiffany felt unmoored. It was at these industry events that she became acutely aware that the face she presented to everyone was a lie. She looked young and beautiful, but how long would that last?
Without Jackie next to her, Tiffany found herself floating over to the railing so that she could pretend the golf course was fascinating. She took a sip of her champagne, feeling out of her element.
Jackie was twenty, and more than ready to get into the modeling industry. No one would blink twice at her. But Tiffany was twenty-five. In the industry, that was ancient. Almost everyone would write her off as being too old. So she had lied about her age and had a fake ID to go with it. She looked young, and the lie had been working so far. The only people who knew her real age were Jackie and Brad.
Yet, any time Tiffany was in a room with other models or anyone else in the industry, there was still that nagging concern that they would find out her secret. If they looked at her long enough, they would suddenly realize she was too old to try to be breaking into this industry. Tiffany tried to ignore the feeling she got during these times, but she had been so stressed out from losing her job, the apartment, and the little money she have, that she found herself unable to enjoy the party.
Tiffany scanned the golf club, wondering what it would be like to have so much money that she could golf here. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Jackie still talking to that man. He turned to grab a glass of water from a waitress, and Jackie looked at her and mouthed the word, Mingle!
Tiffany turned around, ready to try to throw herself into the party. Yet, something made her pause. She saw a familiar face heading into the building. She couldn’t pinpoint who it was exactly, but the blurred face bothered the end of her brain, as if she was missing something important, as if this was a face from her past... from home.
It didn’t matter. If she recognized someone from home, that was bad. She shouldn’t be recognizing anyone here at all that wasn’t involved in the industry. Her paranoia over her secret got the better of her and she turned back around, trying to come up with a way to leave the party early. Fake an illness and go sit in the car till Jackie was done. Tell Jackie she had a headache.
In the end, she just told Jackie the truth. The man left to talk to someone else and, before anyone could swoop in and talk to her, Tiffany was there, clutching her arm.
“What’s up with you? You look like you saw a ghost or something.”
“I saw someone. Someone I know from home.”
“What? Who? We’re three states from home, Tiffany.”
Tiffany glanced over her shoulder, “I don’t know. His face seemed familiar. Like I’ve seen him before. Somewhere.”
Jackie looked closely at Tiffany. “How much sleep did you get last night? You sound like a crazy person. No offense. You think you saw someone you know, but you aren’t sure? You know how that sounds, right?”
“Yes,” Tiffany said hurriedly, “I know it how it sounds. But I swear, I’m not making it up.”
Jackie lowered her voice to a whisper, “Are you just paranoid because of…you know…” Tiffany knew she meant her age.
“I’m always paranoid about that,” Tiffany admitted, “But I’m going to go wait in the car, okay?”
She pulled herself away from Jackie, who was protesting her leaving already. Tiffany kept her head low and stepped back into the building. She turned sharply to get to the front door and slammed into someone. With a gasp, she hit the wall next to her and looked up in surprise.
“I’m sorry! That’s my fault. I should have been watching where I was going.”
At the same time as she spoke, the man was saying, “Sorry, I was looking at my phone.”
The rest of Tiffany’s words died in her throat. She had run smack dab into the man she had been trying so hard to avoid. Now that she was in front of him, his features snapped back into clarity. It seemed impossible, but it wasn’t. Tiffany had gone to high school with the man in front of her.
By the look on his face, he recognized her, as well. Tiffany felt panicked. If they had gone to school t
ogether, then he knew she wasn’t twenty years old. She wasn’t sure what the reason was for him to be at this party, but it meant that he could tell anyone her real age and blow her chances at landing a job.
“Hey, aren’t you-”
“Sorry, I really don’t feel well, so I really have to go,” Tiffany said in a rush, “Sorry again for bumping into you.”
She breezed past him. She could hear him say something to her back, but she didn’t turn around. Quickly, she walked outside, making a beeline for the car. Once she got in the car and got the A/C going to cool off, she slid down in the chair, staring at the sky.
Tiffany couldn’t believe her luck. Out of everyone to run into at the party, she ran into a guy from high school. The face was finally bringing memories up to the surface. What was his name? Liam, Tiffany thought, from biology one year, and then English the next. Out of all the people to run into, why did it have to be him? Tiffany couldn’t believe her luck. She hadn’t exactly been kind to Liam in high school.
She closed her eyes, mentally rattling off everything that had gone wrong in her life recently. Getting fired for what she’d thought was going to be a break-out job, only to get scammed. Unable to afford their nice apartment, now she lived in a small little place and had a boyfriend whom she felt distant from. Finally, she got to go to an industry party and, of course, someone who knew her was there.
Bad breaks, one after another. If she hadn’t burned every bridge to get here, Tiffany would have packed up and headed home.
There was a tapping noise at the window. Tiffany opened her eyes, ready to see Jackie and tell her not to leave the party already because of her.
But instead, it was Liam.
Chapter Three
Tiffany sat up quickly in the car. She could feel her face flushing. She’d run out of the party and was now sitting in a car. She probably looked insane. Quickly, Tiffany opened the car door so she could talk to Liam.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m sorry to follow you out here, but I had to get another look at you. I know you, don’t I?”
“No, I don’t think so.”
Liam scrunched up his nose. Tiffany vividly remembered him doing that back in school. He didn’t look like the nerdy kid she had shared classes with back in high school. He had filled out, as if he hit the gym every morning. Gone were the glasses, probably replaced by contacts. His brown hair was slightly messy from the wind, but his suit was perfectly tailored to him, giving him the appearance of someone who took things seriously. If it weren’t for the brown eyes and the distinct jawline Liam had, Tiffany might have missed him completely.
