Page 44 of Recruited By the Billionaire

“He’s a player, Frankie! He doesn’t care anything about you or any other woman. He’s in it for what he can get out of it.”

“I know that,” Frankie said as she got up and went to the refrigerator.

“You know it? Then why are you hurt?”

“Who said I was hurt?” She pulled out a bottled water.

“If that man was into you like that, he would have been on more than just as second date with you.”

Frankie almost smiled. He’d been on several more dates with her, but that wasn’t Taymar’s business.

“If he was so into you, he would have already called you several times today just to check on you. Has he called you once today, Frankie?”

“He’s out of town.” Frankie stood at the center island and drank from her bottle of water.

“Out of town? What does that have to do with it? What, they have no phone service in thisout of townhe went to?”

Frankie’s anger flared. “Fuck you, Taymar.”

“I’m just keeping it real! He hasn’t called you once, has he?”

Frankie wanted to sayhe’s a very busy man, or give some such excuse. But she couldn’t. Because Taymar, in a way, was right. Robert never phoned her when he was out of town. She never questioned it. She was used to it. But it didn’t say a lot about where their relationship was heading. “No,” she said. “He hasn’t called me at all today.”

Taymar felt for her friend. “You thought he would?”

When Frankie didn’t respond, Taymar exhaled. “You can’t fall in love with guys like that, Frankie,” she said. “And I should know. I fell for a rich guy before. But they know how to do it better than anybody else. They make you feel like their queen. Until they see somebody else who’ll make a better queen. They never fall in love and marry regular folks like us. They just don’t. We’re the cheap seat people. They’re skybox people. And if you think there’s no difference, you’re dreaming girl.”

Leave it to her dear friend to bring Frankie back down off that artificial high she’d been on for the past two months. Because she couldn’t disagree with Taymar. She had evidence that Taymar was telling nothing but the truth. The way Robert treated her on his plane. The way Robert made passionate love to her that morning, but didn’t bother to call her at all that day. And he’d been doing that during their entire relationship, such as it was. She had the receipts.

But she also had theother receiptswhere he’d been nothing but wonderful and thoughtful and kind to her. But she wasn’t ready to go there with Taymar just yet. Besides, Taymar had eaten up her food and was ready to go.

At the front door, Taymar and Frankie hugged. “Mr. Right will come along for both of us one of these days,” Taymar said. “But to think some lover boy billionaire is going to be your Mister Right? Come on now. You’ll be just setting yourself up for heartache on top of heartache. Don’t do it, Frankie. I’m telling you: don’t do it girl.”

“You’re such fun to hang out with Taymar,” Frankie said with a smile. “Thank you so much for coming over and eating up my food and making me feel so much better. Let’s do it again real soon.”

Taymar laughed. Leave it to Frankie to find a joke in everything! But then the laughter died back down. “You’re okay?” Taymar asked her.

Frankie nodded. “I am now, yes. I guess I could use a dose of reality every now and then.”

Taymar stared at her. “But you aren’t convinced yet. I can see it in your eyes. You actually believe you stand a chance with that player. Don’t you?”

“Good night, Tay,” Frankie said as she began closing her door.

“Mark my words, girl. He’ll break your heart in the end. And good night!” Taymar laughed, and then she was gone.

Frankie closed and locked her door, leaned against it momentarily thinking about what Taymar had said, and then she went back into the kitchen to clean up Taymar’s empty bowl and fork. Then she went back into her bedroom.

But as soon as she walked into the room, she smelled what seemed like an unfamiliar odor. And then she saw, through her dresser mirror across the room, her closet door creak open slightly, as if somebody was behind it. Her heart began to pound in fear.

She wanted to get to her nightstand, but the closet was right beside it and as soon as she began to make a run toward it, the closet door flew open. She knew then that there was no option but for her to get out of that apartment and get out now!

But just as she turned to run, Cole Lindsey came out of the closet like a madman and ran behind her so fast that he was able to grab her by her hair and snatch it backwards just as she had unlocked and opened her front door. He slammed the door back even as she screamed out in pain and fear. But she knew she had to fight. She had to fight for her life. That was why she jerked away from his grasp and kneed him in his groin. But he fought back too and flung her across the floor in anger and pain, causing her to slam against the coffee table.

But as he hurried to her to do more damage to her, she was on her feet attempting to make a run for her bedroom. But he grabbed her again, and tried to sling her around again, but she broke away from him again and started grabbing and throwing everything she could.

She hit him over the head with a lamp. She threw books at him. She threw the TV remote at him. She threw a vase she loved at him, causing it to crash to the floor and shatter.

“Why are you doing this?” she was yelling as she threw. “You can’t get away with this!”

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