Page 25 of Billionaire Daddies Next Door

She shrugged. “Depends on how annoying you’re being that day, I guess.”

“Keep talking and I’ll send them your address.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her along. “What exactly was your life like before Lilyfield if you’re this suspicious of my story?”

“You mean you don’t know?” She sounded disgusted. “Socialite parents? Socialite drunk myself? I have a hard time believing Chase didn’t tell you.”

“He didn’t mention anything sordid. Hearing how jaded you sound about my past career and men in general, I’ll branch out and say that I’m missing something.” I squeezed her hand when she tried to pull it away. “I don’t mean jaded in a bad way, Joanie. It was just an observation, not a judgment.”

She stepped over a log and sighed. “I did sound jaded. And bitter. I just… I hate that life. Money and fame, or infamy, in my case, it’s all I knew growing up. There were parties every weekend with photographers and models, actors and directors. It’s hard to think of you being one of those men at those parties.”

“Infamy?” I helped her up a small incline riddled with loose rocks. “Don’t think of me as one of those men, Joanie. It’s been over a decade since I thought pulling out my camera was enough to get me whatever I wanted. Even at the worst of my ego trip, Chase and Bear never let me go nuts.”

“You really don’t know?”

“Know what?” I stopped and looked at the distaste coloring her expression. “Whatever you think I should know doesn’t seem to be something you actually want me to know. Keep it to yourself if you want to, Joanie.”

CHAPTER 19

Joanie

I made a face. Hearing how bitter I’d come off, accusing Smith of using his career as a line, made me feel gross. It wasn’t like I’d done any work on myself through therapy since leaving my past life, but I’d stupidly assumed I wasn’t holding onto all that anger still. I should’ve known better with how I’d reacted to Chase walking into Lilyfield.

“Joanie, I’m serious. I’m not trying to push you into telling me anything you don’t want to talk about.” Smith stepped closer to me and brushed an escaped strand of hair out of my face. “You should see the faces you’re making right now.”

I smiled at that and groaned. “I’m sorry. I was a jerk. You were telling me about your work and I all but called you a creep.”

“You’ve called me worse, I’m sure.” He laughed. “I’m positive, actually.”

“And you still wanted to take me out on a date? You’re nuts.” I looked up the trail and watched Mack chase a butterfly. “Can we walk and talk?”

He was quiet as we continued to climb the trail, letting me decide when I wanted to talk. His silence was comforting so it was easy to talk once I started.

“My parents both came from wealthy families. They married as part of a business deal, I’m pretty sure. Neither of them ever worked, as far as I know. They were just always rich, and around. I grew up the same way. At some point in my life, I thought getting published on page six was a big deal.” I shuddered. “I was just as vapid as everyone around me and it was normal for me to be photographed so drunk I could barely stand up. When the gossip mags stopped talking about how I was the rich daughter of two rich people and instead started talking about how I was a drunk, I didn’t react well.”

Smith stopped walking. “Can’t say I would’ve reacted well to that, either.”

“I didn’t like the mirror being held up to my face and instead of looking at myself, I just partied harder. My last claim to fame was getting so drunk, I climbed on top of a bar and took my top off. The guy I was seeing at the time went on a press tour to talk about how much I’d hurt him by being a drunken whore. Never mind the fact I walked in on him screwing two women that night.” I frowned. “It’s amazing how fast people vanish when you’ve become a public embarrassment.”

“Sounds like you were surrounded by a ton of assholes.” Shaking his head, Smith studied my face. “Fuck them.”

“I was an asshole, too. I vanished on other so-called friends when their spotlight dimmed. Having it happen to me was the best thing that ever happened to me, though. My parents and grandparents sent me away to one of those posh rehabs because I was embarrassing the family. I realized while there that I didn’t have a drinking problem, but I did have a personality problem. I hated myself and by the time I checked out, I decided to do everything I could to remove myself from the life that encouraged me to be that way.”

“What’d you do?”

I smirked. “I used all the money my family hadn’t taken back yet to start over. I found Lilyfield and decided it would be home. There’s no gossip magazine coverage here. I had to take on an investor to buy the diner, but when the offer came in, it was too good to ask questions. Imagine my surprise when Chase showed up last year and I realized my silent investor was someone from the life I’d run from.”

“Chase did his own version of fleeing.” Seeing I was about to argue, Smith held up his hands. “That’s a conversation for Chase to have with you. What do your parents think about you now?”

“That was another reason I freaked out so much when Chase showed up. I never told my parents where I went or what I did. They just know I’m not embarrassing the family anymore. I don’t want that life touching what I have here in Lilyfield.” I gritted my teeth as a rush of anger struck me. “I had to learn how to be a normal person when I got here. I didn’t know anything about being a waitress, let alone a business owner. I worked my ass off to become someone that I’m proud of. Then Chase comes in here with his big ideas, talking like what I’ve done isn’t enough. What I’ve built here is more than enough. It’s something to be proud of. I want it left alone and I don’t want people here to know who I was before.”

“Joanie, baby, no one here would ever think less of you because of your past. You’ve ingrained yourself into this community and people love you. What you’ve made here is amazing and that’s the reason Chase is so interested in replicating it.” He shrugged. “That aside, I don’t understand your parents not knowing what you’re doing here. They never ask about where you are?”

“No. I don’t spend their money anymore and I’m not being photographed with my tits out. That’s good enough for them. We talk every few months, but they don’t ask about where I am. I prefer it that way. If they did ask, I’d just have to lie to them. I’m serious about that life not coming near this place.” I grunted as Mack bumped into my legs. “Lilyfield is magical. I want it to stay that way.”

“Do you get lonely?”

Smith’s question triggered my defenses and I marched ahead of him on the trail while I thought about how to answer him. When my foot slipped on a patch of loose gravel and he caught me, I let out a big sigh. “Maybe at first. I had to learn how to be a friend and how to have friends. Now I have good friends. Best friends. I’m not lonely. I’m just…alone most of the time. I like my privacy. After having half the country see the size and color of my nipples, I just prefer it this way. I did stand on a table and flash my ass a few days ago, though, so maybe I still have some growing to do.”

Smith held me to his chest and glared at me with the most serious look I’d ever seen on his face. “You’re absolutely fucking fine. You didn’t flash your ass to anyone but the three of us at that table and we’ve practically been begging for it. I get wanting to improve if there are things you don’t like about yourself, Joanie, but at some point, you have to forgive yourself and accept the person you are, even if you do stand on a table every so often.”

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