Page 69 of Secret Billionaire

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“Hello?” Faye called out, as she knocked on the screen door. She could hear the ruckus of laughter and music coming from the back of the house but felt shy about just barging in on the party. She had battled with herself about whether or not to even come, but in the end, it sounded like way too much fun to pass up. Jesse had told her tales about past tournaments and it had caused that familiar yearning for a normal upbringing.

“Faye! You made it.” Ruby opened the screen and pulled her inside. She gave Faye a big hug and said, “Come on out here and have a drink with us before you jump into that wild group of savages. You can observe and see what you’ll be getting yourself into.”

Faye laughed. “Sounds good to me.”

“Hank, this is Faye! Faye this is Jesse’s dad, Big Hank.”

Faye held out her hand and it was promptly swallowed up in a hand as big as a dinner plate. A booming voice with a major southern drawl said, “They told me you were pretty, and they didn’t exaggerate.”

“Thank you, Mr. Carlisle.”

He scowled, “There’ll be none of that mister stuff in my house. It’s Hank.”

“Hank it is.”

“Have a seat, I’ll go fetch you a drink. What’ll it be? We have beer, wine, wine coolers, vodka, tea, water, you name it, we got it,” Hank said.

“I’d love a beer. Thank you.”

Patting the cushion next to her on the love seat, Ruby said, “Sit right here beside me. You’ll have an excellent view of the game.”

Faye’s eyes zeroed in on Jesse immediately as he leapt in the air, diving for the ball. He managed to volley it before hitting the soft sand beneath him. A voluptuous brunette laughingly held out her hand and helped him up. After he stood, she brushed the sand off his butt. Faye could see Jesse’s dazzling white smile all the way from where she was sitting. She gritted her teeth. Maybe this hadn’t been such a great idea after all.

Ruby drew Faye’s attention away from the scene, “So Faye, Jesse told me what happened; how are you holding up? And it’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it.”

“I’m hanging in there. There isn’t too much to tell. My brother hired a private investigator, which I hope uncovers something soon. I feel like my life isn’t my own anymore. Everything feels in limbo.”

“I’m sure.”

Like magnets her eyes strayed back to Jesse. She couldn’t help it. That same girl kept flirting with him, and she didn’t seem to be able to keep her hands to herself. Faye realized that her fists were clenched and tried to relax. When she looked back at Ruby, she could see warmth and kindness in her eyes. She could also tell that Ruby had caught her staring at her son. Faye felt the familiar warmth creeping across her cheeks.

“She’s just an old friend,” Ruby said kindly. “Not that she wouldn’t be interested if Jesse gave her the green light, but he’s known her his whole life and doesn’t see her in the same way.” She patted Faye’s hand.

“Um… I…”

“Honey you don’t need to explain anything to me. I know I’m his mother, so I’m a bit partial, but all my boys are lookers. Fortunately, they all have a portion of humble pie in their characters. It hasn’t gone to their heads…for the most part.” She laughed.

Hank returned with a beer and bowl of Chex mix, setting both on the table.

“I’m going down to where the action is. Do you want to join me little lady?”

Faye looked at Ruby and she nodded her head, “Yes, go. We’ll catch up later.”

Faye stood and followed Hank downstairs and to the sidelines. A couple of middle school girls were sitting under the deck painting each other’s nails.

“Grandpa, what do you think?” The girl with hair the same striking color as Jesse’s, held up her hands to show Hank.

“Looks good kiddo. Faye this is my granddaughter Matilda. My oldest son’s daughter. He and her mom are in the game.”

“Hi Matilda.”

“Hi. Are you Jesse’s girlfriend?”

Faye put her hand to her throat. “Um, we’re friends, yes. He is helping me fix up my business property.”

“Yeah I’ve heard all about it. Nice to meet you.” She quickly turned her attention back to her friend.

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