Billionaire's Game Read online

  “Five siblings?” I was surprised. “Did you grow up on a farm or something?”

  She shrugged. “Or something. My parents have a lot of property, but it’s mostly nurseries and alternative energy stuff. And some alternative farming techniques. My parents are wannabe hippies and apparently just couldn’t keep their hands off each other and just kept procreating and procreating. It sucked having to share my cereal with five other kids. And worst, they named us all after some sort of tree, or flower, or herb found in nature.”

  “No way.”

  “Yes,” she said making a face, “So there’s Rose, Sage, Cypress, Poppy, and Aster.”

  “I like all those names.”

  “Really?”

  I nodded. “And it’s kind of cool that you all have something that connects you—”

  “You mean besides our DNA?” She laughed. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Lesli. Maybe we can hang out when you get to Miami? Are you going to college down there or something?”

  “I’ve actually graduated already. A few weeks ago...” I said, trying to skirt the issue. I didn’t want her to know that I was some sort of freak who had already earned a PhD by the ripe age of twenty-three.

  “Me too! Class of 2017! Woohooo!” she said, putting her hand up to high-five me. I awkwardly let her.

  “What was your major? I was a botany major, believe it or not. I just majored in it because it was easy. As you know, my parents love plants.”

  I stalled, “I… umm… was a history major.” I didn’t mention that history had been my undergraduate degree.

  “Cool. American history?”

  “World history.”

  “Yeah, I took some history classes. They were ok.” She adjusted her seat belt and said, “So have you found a job yet?”

  I nodded. “Well, sort of. I’m going to be working for a nonprofit organization called Ophelia’s Angels. They assist the elderly with getting food, clothing, shelter, rides to their appointments, etc. They’ve recently gone international, so they’re hiring individuals to coordinate it all.”

  “Wow,” Violet said. “I would love to do something like that. Are they still hiring?”

  I shrugged. “I can ask.”

  “That would be great. I’m unemployed and my parents are a little bitter about it. But I’m the twenty-three-year-old that has to move back in with my parents, so I should be the bitter one.”

  “You don’t sound bitter.”

  “It’s my naturally sunny disposition. It gets in the way.”

  I laughed, and it was at that moment that I realized we had been in the air for a while.

  Violet smiled widely at me. “Distracted you, didn’t I?”

  “Yeah, thanks... Wow...”

  “No problem. Now I’m going to take a nap. I need to conserve my energy for when I deal with my parents. God be with me,” she said, making the sign of the cross. I laughed again and she smiled at me, settled into her seat and closed her eyes.

  Feeling not nearly as intimidated by the flight as I did before, I did the same. Strangely I felt already as if my life were beginning to change.

  Chapter Two

  “Wake up, Sleeping Beauty. Wakey, wakey,” I heard a voice calling to me as I slowly opened my eyes. My shoulders felt tight and my legs were stiff. I slowly sat up on the couch that had served as my makeshift bed and looked around. I was in my cousin Lacey’s living room and she was moving about the living room of the loft, attempting to clear off the coffee table that was covered in baby paraphernalia. I spotted a weird looking contraption that had what appeared to be suction cups attached to it. I rubbed my eyes and sleepily looked at it.

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “My breast pump.”

  “Ohhhh.... now the suction cups make sense,” I said, giving her a smile as she handed me a cup of coffee and set a plate of toast and eggs on the coffee table for me.

  “I woke up early with the baby, so I went ahead and made you breakfast.”

  “That was sweet of you, but you didn’t have to go to the trouble.”

  “Are you kidding me? It’s no big deal. It’s not every day that I have my little cousin living with me. It’s so good to see you,” she said, impulsively hugging me again. “I missed you.”

  “I missed you too,” I said, hugging her back and meaning it. I considered Lacey my big sister. Lacey had lost her father at a young age and her mother had abandoned her as a baby, so my mom and I were Lacey’s only family. We’d always gotten along and were more like friends, or even sisters, than we were cousins.

  “Where’s the baby?” I asked, scanning the room.

  The loft was located in a large warehouse and it seemed that Lacey and her husband, Jude, occupied the entire floor. It was large, spacious, and strangely inviting. When I’d first seen it from the outside, I’d thought it was going to be cold, industrial and stark on the inside. I couldn’t have been more wrong. It was very much a home, from the colorful room dividers to the baby toys scattered across the living room floor. It was homey... if not a little deprived of privacy.

  Baby in question was actually a toddler now and walking like a little champ. I watched as he appeared from behind the couch, giggling.

  Lacey scooped him up and he struggled to get down. He was chunky and always smiling. I liked him; he was little but had a very big personality. He was a little ball of sunshine, but a very exhausting ball of sunshine I thought as he started chewing on Lacey’s hair.

  “Where are you going, little one? You have plans that don’t involve Mommy?”

  Of course, Lacey only received a giggle in reply. So far, baby Sebastian only had two facial expressions: happy or excited.

  He gabbed as Lacey held him. I stared at the two of them, struggling to see a family resemblance. But to me, honestly, all babies looked alike.

  “So, are you excited about your first day?”

  I nodded and reached for my glasses lying under a host of baby stuff on the coffee table. “I sure am. Thanks for this, by the way. I know I don’t have a background in nonprofit—”

  She held up a hand, stopping my words. “Don’t be silly. We should be thanking you. It’s not every day that we get a genius on our team, especially one that’s willing to work outside of her area of expertise.”

  I laughed. “Well, there aren’t too many jobs for someone who studied world hfristory.”

  “Apparently, we both have a knack for picking the worst major.”

  “The difference is that I dedicated eight years of my life to it. You were smart enough to only dedicate four.”

  She nodded. “True.”

  “Thanks, Lacey. That’s made me feel way better,” I said sarcastically, but my tone was joking.

  “Well, eat up. Jude’s already there. Today’s a big day, I guess. Jude’s been excited and taking secret phone calls all week.”

  “Why? What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know, Jude won’t tell me. But he has a big announcement and he wants everyone around to hear it.”

  “Oh, sounds juicy.”

  Lacey laughed, “I bet it isn’t. It’s probably just another budget report, but Jude loves drama.” She picked up Sebastian who had somehow wiggled out of her arms seconds earlier. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to give this sticky little boy a bath.”

  She walked away with the baby hugging her neck. They clearly loved each other, and I couldn’t be happier that Lacey had found her happily ever after. Part of me wondered if I ever would too. I pushed the thought out of my head and reached for my bag. I wasn’t looking for happily ever after, I was just looking for what was next.

  An hour later, I found myself entering the warehouse that housed Ophelia’s Angels. It occupied about three-quarters of a mile of warehouse space. As expected, it was pretty dark on the inside and a little bit too warm for my taste. I knew it was going to take some time to get used to South Florida’s weather. My hair definitely didn’t like the humidity and had instantly puffed up in
to a giant ball of fizz when I’d walked out the loft with Lacey earlier. I had promptly tied it into a ponytail. Apparently, even the weather was against me changing my hair.

  The warehouse was alive with activity. It was full of people busily packing and unloading trucks and boxes. No one paid any attention as we walked in and I attributed this to the fact that everyone was super busy and conscientious.

  “Do they always work this hard?” I asked Lacey.

  She nodded. “They love it here.”

  We turned the corner and Lacey led me to a hallway where several office spaces were located. She opened one of them and I realized it was a conference room. “I’ll be back. I need to find Jude because I’m not sure who you’re training with today. Go ahead and take a seat. I’ll be right back.”

  She disappeared around a corner and I sat down and waited for her. As I did, someone entered the conference room and I looked up with a smile, ready to greet them.

  My smile froze as I stared at the man staring back at me. He was a tall, imposing figure. Everything about him was just… well… big. His shoulders were wide and his hands were huge. He was wearing jeans that fit him so well, it didn’t leave much to the imagination. And he wore a plain t-shirt that didn’t hide his gorgeous, expansive chest.

  His muscular arms were long, and I wondered if he were a famous basketball player and before I knew it, that’s exactly what I was asking.

  “Are you famous?”

  “Excuse me?”

  I blushed realizing how stupid I sounded. “I mean, are you an athlete?”

  He laughed. “Far from it.”

  I blushed again. “Oh, I’m sorry... I just thought, never mind. So, do you work here?”

  “Not quite,” he said again. “I’m sorry to be rude, but we’re having a private meeting in here in a minute. Would you mind coming back after we’re done?”

  I felt embarrassed as I didn’t have a reason to be there and stood up to leave.

  I glanced back at the attractive stranger as I made my way to the door. And I caught him staring at my legs. I blushed for the hundredth time and he said suddenly, stopping me, “What’s your name?”

  “Lesli Cabot.”

  “I’m Magnus Deacon. Maybe I’ll see you around, Ms. Cabot.”

  Gratefully, I didn’t have to respond because at that moment, the mysterious stranger’s cell phone rang.

  “This is Deacon,” he answered swiftly.

  I turned away from him and walked past the conference room windows. I dared to glance back and caught his eyes watching me as he chatted on the phone. His eyes gave nothing away, but from the way he watched me, I almost felt naked.

  I didn’t know how to react or what to do. I hadn’t ever been the subject of anyone’s gaze as far as I knew. I’d never been in a “real” boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. I’d never been hit on. I’d only lost my virginity because I’d felt it was a burden to keep it. I’d seduced some guy in college who’d started to look pretty good after a few beers. His performance, to say the least, hadn’t been inspiring, but at least I accomplished my goal. I’d figured I’d get lots of practice with someone who actually knew what he was doing later in life, but that hadn’t happened. I hadn’t attracted the attention of another man since... until now.

  “There’s my favorite cousin,” I heard Jude say before he ambushed me as I walked into the warehouse area. He picked me up in a giant bear hug. He squeezed me tight and then dropped me down.

  “Seriously, Jude. You almost gave me a heart attack.”

  “You’re young. You’ll recover.”

  I laughed, and he tossed an arm around my shoulder. Ever since we’d first met, Jude treated me like the little sister he always wished he’d had. It felt good to be so readily accepted.

  He looked a little embarrassed as he said, “So, I’m sorry about the couch situation, but we’re going to get you set up at my dad’s in no time. We’re just waiting for him to get back from vacation. I think he’s in Egypt or Turkey. I forgot which. Anyway, I’m really sorry for your current living arrangements. We turned the guest room into a nursery, obviously. Not that Sebastian even uses it anymore. He tries to climb into bed with us every other night.”

  “That’s adorable.”

  Jude shook his head, “Not at four in the morning when you’re exhausted, and some little kid sticks his finger in your nose or hits you in the head with a pacifier.”

  I smiled. “Still adorable. And no worries. I don’t want to impose,” I added quickly. “Whether I’m on the couch at your place or hanging out in your dad’s guesthouse, I’m flexible.”

  “What? Impose? Dad would love to have you.”

  I knew he was right. Oliver, his father, was an eccentric, quirky man and for those reasons, anyone who met him adored him. He was a clever guy with a knack for matchmaking and getting in trouble by butting into affairs that didn’t directly concern him. I adored Oliver too, but living with a billionaire wasn’t my idea of a good time, no matter how much I liked him. I would be too afraid of using the wrong china or being seen as a slob. Not that Oliver would ever judge me. He wasn’t that kind of person, but I definitely judged myself. Harshly.

  I decided not to argue with Jude about my living arrangements because he seemed to be super cheerful today. He was practically floating.

  “Does your great mood have something to do with today’s announcement?”

  He smiled. “You bet, but until then I’m going to leave you with Maya. She’s our project coordinator and our off and on office manager, depending on her mood. She’ll show you how to use our project management system and our state of the art email accounts.”

  I nodded excitedly as Jude led me to a small office. There were two desks set up. One was practically empty and just had a keyboard and a computer. I guessed that desk was for me. The other desk was covered in photographs of a woman in various exotic places. And around her desk hung various hilarious memes I’d seen all over the internet. Something told me that this was Maya’s desk.

  “Hmmm…” Jude said as he looked around. “Why is that woman always gone when I need her? It’s like she has this uncanny, almost mutant ability to disappear when she actually has to do work.”

  “Oh, please. I get more done in eight hours than you will in a lifetime,” said a voice behind us.

  I quickly moved away from the doorframe to make way for the woman whose face graced all the photographs. She was what some people would describe as a big, beautiful, woman. She had generous hips which were showcased in a snug fitting dress. She had jet black wild curly hair and also wore glasses. While my glasses were simple and functional, Maya’s glasses were large and red. They were clearly a statement piece and not just eyewear. And as I looked at her, even behind her glasses you could tell that she was the mischievous type.

  She sat down, ignoring us and seriously focusing on whatever was on the screen in front of her.

  “Yo, Maya. We’re standing here. Got a minute?”

  She held up one finger. “Give me a sec.” A second passed and then she stopped what she was doing with a sigh. She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes, “Are you the reinforcements?” she asked me jokingly.

  I shrugged. “I’ll do my best.”

  “Maya, this is Lesli. And Lesli, this is Maya.”

  I walked over to her and shook her hand.

  “It’s great to have you here,” she said warmly. “I can use all the help we can get. Should we get started?”

  I nodded, and Jude excused himself. “Don’t overwork her, Maya. Remember that it’s her first day.”

  “Yeah, yeah. You’re not the boss of me.”

  “Actually, I am. Don’t scare my cousin-in-law off.”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  “Maya…”

  “Joking…” she said with an impish smile and then as he disappeared, she mumbled, “Maybe,” before looking back at me. “Ignore Jude. He likes to tease me because I’m so fantastic at my job and he can barely s
tand it. Anyway, I am so glad you’re here. We went international and barely know what we’re doing. I have so many foundations and charities trying to pair up with us, but I don’t know anything about them. So I need your help... mainly research for now. I hope that doesn’t bore you?”

  I shook my head. “Actually, research is kind of my thing...”

  “Then you’ll love this project.” She stood up and said, “Let me get you a more comfortable chair. I’ll explain where you can find the files and then I’ll let you get started.”

  She pulled a rolling chair alongside hers. She gestured for me to sit down. I did, and she busily looked around for a pen and a notepad. When she finally found one she came back and sat next to me and put the pen and paper in my hands.

  “Alright, it’s time for you to start taking some notes.”

  She gave me a quick tour of the system and I scribbled notes as fast as I could. I had plenty of experience taking notes, but man did Maya talk fast.

  “So that’s about it,” she said, taking off her glasses again. “Think you can handle it?”

  I nodded. “It’s exactly up my alley.”

  “Great,” she said, standing up. “I’m going to head to the snack room. You want to come?”

  “Why not?” I figured it would be a great way to meet some of the other employees.

  “So that fancy, state of the art email system Jude mentioned is just plain ol’ Gmail, I guess.”

  Maya laughed. “I swear sometimes Jude is stuck in the nineties. I swear he still has an AOL email account.” She gestured toward a door right off the main warehouse floor. “Right here.”

  I turned in and saw a little kitchenette and a few plastic tables. A few people sat around playing on their phones while eating lunch. Maya quickly introduced me to them and then led me to a vending machine.

  “I know I should be trying to eat healthier, but I love having more body than one man can handle,” she said, dead serious as she inserted her change and made a selection of a bag of cookies.