Page 26 of Billionaire's Bookworm

“Look, he’s just...there,” I said, gesturing vaguely at nothing. “Existing. Being all... smooth and annoying. He’s probably off somewhere right now, plotting his next grand romantic move to get me to go out with him. Maybe he’ll buy me a yacht next, and park it in the middle of the town square.”

Silvy snickered. “You’re not mad at the idea, though.”

“Yes, I am! And I don’t trust him! He’s too... toorich, too charming, too?—”

“Too good at kissing?”

My face went hot and I stuck my nose in the air primly. “I’m not dignifying that with an answer.”

“That’s all the answer I need.” Silvy chortled, grinning like a cat with a bowl of cream. “Admit it, Em. Youlikehim.”

“No, I don’t. He’s?—”

The bell above the shop door jingled, cutting me off, and I spun around to see the man himself walking in, looking far too smug for someone who wasn’t supposed to exist in my carefully curated world of trivia night and dog hair-covered furniture.

“I’m what?” Wade asked, his deep voice dripping with amusement.

“Late,” I blurted. “We started five minutes ago.”

“Really? Because I didn’t see any trivia games happening when I walked in.” He held up his hands in mock surrender. “But if you want to penalize me for tardiness, go ahead. I’m willing to accept my punishment.”

Behind me, Silvy snorted.

“You’re on thin ice,Playboy,” I muttered, grabbing my note cards and walking around the counter.

“Good thing I’m excellent at skating,” he remarked, falling into step beside me.

* * *

Beachy Keen Reads endedup packed for trivia night, with every table filled and most of the mismatched chairs borrowed from my cottage and Silvy’s apartment down the street. Wade had, of course, claimed the best seat in the room, conveniently located smack in the middle of the store where he could bask in all his smug billionaire glory.

To my utter annoyance, he’d also brought backup. Ryker—myfriend and now apparently Wade’s wingman—sat to his right, whilemy otherfriend Meg perched beside him with her camera slung across her shoulder.

“What are you even doing here?” I hissed at Wade as I passed his table.

“Participating,” he said innocently, holding up a trivia sheet.

Ryker smirked. “He’s very competitive. You should see him at poker night.”

“Please don’t give him more reasons to stick around,” I said, glaring at Wade.

“Too late,” Wade replied with a grin.

I rolled my eyes and walked to the front of the room, where Silvy was waiting with her own trivia sheet and a pen twirling between her fingers.

“Did he just wink at you?” she whispered as I passed her.

“No.”

“He definitely did.”

I ignored her and cleared my throat, raising my voice to get everyone’s attention. “Okay, folks, welcome to this month’s trivia night! Tonight’s theme is ‘Literature Through the Ages.’ Get ready to put your knowledge of classic novels, contemporary bestsellers, and everything in between to the test.”

The crowd cheered, and I caught Wade smirking at me like he knew all my secrets.

The first round went smoothly—questions about Shakespearean plays, Charles Dickens novels, and the Brontë sisters. Wade’s table wasn’t doing terribly, though I strongly suspected Meg and Ryker were carrying most of the weight.

By round two, the questions got tougher. I threw in a curveball about obscure 19th-century poets and immediately felt guilty when half the room groaned.

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