Page 70 of The Billionaire Experience

While he didn’t look thrilled, he refused to back down. “Go ahead.”

“I was raised by my grandparents, so I was sort of old-fashioned. It took a few years for me to find my footing. Plus, my mom was, and probably still is, an addicted gambler. She was a bad girl, so I made it my business to be the goodest girl there was. I held on to my V-card for a while. Longer than I should have.” She slanted a glance to Brody whose eyes visibly widened. “A lot longer.”

“No,” Chloe breathed.

“No way,” Jaylyn sort of repeated.

“Then I met Brody and I decided it was time to finally lose my virginity.”

He paled.

“I couldn’t tell myself no, and I simply couldn’t resist…” She took a deep breath and finished with, “Letting him and his entire family believe that he was my first.”

Everyone laughed except for Brody, who let out a ragged exhale. With his hand on his chest, he said, “Jesus, Reagan.”

“Gotcha.” She giggled.

“You’re going to pay for that.”

“That was crafty. What’s the truth?” Chloe asked.

“Similar to your story. High school boyfriend, but not prom. Just a random Saturday night at his house when his parents were on vacation.” She wrinkled her nose. “Nothing half as exciting as your combined histories.”

“Small-town girls unite,” Chloe said, holding her glass up.

Reagan raised her glass and offered a distant cheers.

“Are your grandparents still living?” Chloe asked after she took a drink of her champagne.

“My grandfather is alive, yes. He sold the house to Brody.”

“The house you grew up in,” Chloe said. “You didn’t want to keep it for yourself?”

“I was living with a guy at the time and thought we’d end up married. I mean, we didn’t have a date set or anything, but I assumed. My grandfather sold it with my blessing. In a strange twist of fate, Brody hired me to help him with repairs, and now here I am.”

“What about your mom?” Jaylyn asked. “Where’s she?”

“Guys,” Brody said. “Don’t grill her.”

“It’s okay.” Reagan placed her hand on his leg. She was grateful for the protection, but she didn’t need it. “I haven’t heard from her in six or seven years now. She was in recovery but fell off the wagon again. Once my grandparents adopted me as a teen, she had fewer and fewer reasons to come around. She used to leave me with them a lot when I was a kid. Ike—my grandfather—said if she could leave her daughter behind, then she was no daughter of his. I think they made some headway over the years. But he doesn’t talk about her much. I have accepted that I had a very unique upbringing.”

“In a house this asshole stole from beneath you,” Dante said.

“Hey. Fuck you,” Brody shot back.

Reagan went on alert, but then both men laughed, followed shortly after by the rest of the group.

“It’s our way,” Dante explained to her.

“A brother thing,” Brody confirmed.

“Sorry about your mom.” Jaylyn’s sympathy hinted that she was close with her own mother.

“It’s not as sad as it sounds. I don’t know what I missed, you know?” Reagan had seen and heard it all: the curiosity, the apologies, the questions about whether or not she was going to make amends with her mother. The truth was, she had no interest in amending anything with Ronnie Palmer. Her mother had left her behind. Being raised by two loving grandparents, and then Ike alone after Betty had passed, had been a gift for Reagan. She’d considered herself a lucky little girl to have been loved and adored by them.

“Enough roasting my date. I dragged her to this party, forced her into wearing a designer dress, and brought her out here to freeze her fantastic ass off.”

“He didn’t drag me.” Reagan amended, “Not exactly. But I admit, I am wishing for my PJs right about now.”

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