Page 23 of A Billionaire Between the Sheets

CHAPTEREIGHT

What the hell are you doing, Deke?” Nash’s voice came through the phone receiver before Deacon could even say hello. “And don’t give me the crap you gave Grayson and Dad about wanting to make sure the contract got to Olivia. We both know that Michael’s lawyers could’ve easily handled that.”

Suddenly exhausted, Deacon put his brother on speaker before placing the cell phone on the hotel nightstand and lying back on the king-size bed. Kelly had done a good job of picking out a hotel. The mattress was pillow-top and the bedding plush. It was too bad that his brother had to ruin his relaxing evening in the nice room by pointing out his stupidity.

“Something didn’t feel right, Nash. And I couldn’t sign until I found out what that something was.”

“So don’t keep me in suspense.”

Deacon ran a hand through his hair and released his breath. “French Kiss is on the brink of bankruptcy. According to what I could get out of Olivia’s assistant and the Parisian designer, the company was struggling even before Michael’s stroke.”

He was surprised by how disappointed he felt. As much as he might have hated Michael Beaumont, there was a part of Deacon that had also admired him. Unlike Donny John, he had made something of himself. The only Beaumont who had.

“Well, damn,” Nash said. “Does that mean that Olivia withdrew her offer?”

“No. The offer still stands.”

“So what’s the holdup? Sign the contract before Olivia changes her mind.”

“She’s not going to change her mind. She’s got some harebrained idea about saving the company by selling men’s lingerie.”

“Men’s what?”

Deacon snorted. “Exactly. You should’ve seen the pair of rhinestone thongs. I swear, I don’t know who is more crazy—the French designer who designed them or Olivia for putting her trust in the no-talent woman in the first place.”

“So I take it that Olivia isn’t as business-savvy as Michael was.”

“Not from what I can tell. If she were business-savvy, she would jump ship while she could. Instead she’s willing to use all her money to buy the shares of a bankrupt company.”

“I’m sure she won’t go broke,” Nash said.

At one time Deacon had been sure of that too. But after seeing the For Sale sign at her house, he had to wonder how deep in debt Olivia was willing to go for the company. He massaged his temples. “The crazy woman is gambling on a dream.”

“She wouldn’t be the first,” Nash said. “You sold everything you owned to buy the land by the lake.”

“Yeah, but my plan is at least feasible. No man I know is going to buy feathered robes and rhinestone thongs. And Olivia needs to pull her head out of the clouds and realize that. Hell, the woman doesn’t even remember to close her garage door. And do you know all the nuts that wander around a big city? When I was leaving her house tonight, I saw some Peeping Tom in a trench coat trying to peek in her windows. The pervert ran off when I jumped out of the car.”

There was a long stretch of silence, and Deacon wondered if their connection had been lost. He had just reached for the phone to check when Nash spoke.

“So that’s how it is.”

Deacon took the phone off speaker and held it to his ear. “What? That’s how what is?”

Nash released his breath in one long sigh. “Olivia has become a damsel in distress, and you want to be her knight in shining armor.”

“What are you talking about? Have you been drinking some of Dad’s moonshine?”

“I’m talking about your Lancelot complex—the one where you feel like you have to come to the rescue of every woman in need.”

Deacon laughed. “You have been hitting the moonshine.”

“You know I don’t drink after what happened, Deke. You have issues with saving women. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about getting your butt kicked by those bullies when you defended Katie Day? Or giving Rhonda Lyons money until she found a job? Or fixing that single mom’s car for free when it broke down on her way through town? I even think you agreed to be Francesca’s cougar cub because you felt sorry for her. And there were at least a dozen more times that you’ve given money and time you didn’t have to help some woman in need. But you can’t help Olivia, Deke. Not only because you don’t know shit about the lingerie business but also because Olivia doesn’t want your help. From what I could tell, she wants us to sign the contract and get the hell out of her life.”

Nash paused. “Look, I love you, Bro. You were more of a father to Grayson and me after Mom died than Dad was. And it’s not about the money—I don’t need much to survive. But this money could help you achieve your dream, Deacon. A dream that you put off because of my screw-up.”

“You didn’t screw up, Nash,” Deacon said. “It was a trumped-up charge.”

“Was it?” Nash’s reply surprised Deacon—as did the raw emotion attached to the words. He’d thought that Nash had released the past, but it looked like he’d been wrong. “She said no, Deke,” he continued. “Did it matter when she said it?”

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