Page 65 of The Billionaire Player

“That remains to be seen. She went to get the last of her stuff at her office today and then come back to my place. I was thinking of making her something when she came home, having a nice quiet afternoon, just the two of us, but I don’t know, maybe I should take her out, do something special,” I said.

“Since when have you not been confident when it comes to being with a woman? Go with your gut on that one. Or better yet, just ask her when she gets there. She seems like a woman who can make up her own mind,” Walker offered.

I laughed. “That she definitely does. I think that’s her at the door. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Good luck,” Walker said and ended the call.

I stepped out of the terrace and into the living room to see Lexi standing in the kitchen. My heart jumped a little at seeing her standing there. There was something about knowing where she had been, and that we were going to spend the evening together that just felt so right.

As I stood and looked at her, I knew that I wanted to have more evenings like this. More mornings like the one we had. More everything. I knew without a doubt that I was hopeless and completely in love with her.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Yeah. Sorry. I got lost there for a second. How did it go at your office?”

“Eventful.”

“Care to tell me about it? Maybe over some wine? Are you hungry? I could cook us something.”

“None. I’m good. I’m not hungry.”

“Is everything all right? Until last night, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you turn down food before,” I said.

“Really?” she asked and raised her eyebrows at me.

“I didn’t mean it that way. You enjoy food, as do I. It’s one of the many things that I like about us. Among other things,” I said and moved towards her.

She stepped away from me and walked into the kitchen. It was then that I noticed she hadn’t taken off her shoes. It was a small thing, but she always took them off, as most people in New York did, as soon as she got into my apartment. It gave me a sinking feeling that she wasn’t staying and that what she wanted to talk about was major.

“Did you know that your father and my former boss are friends?” she asked.

“Uncle Charlie? Yeah. They’ve been friends for years. Why?”

“Did you know that it was your father who wanted the article to be written about you?”

She leaned on the counter in the kitchen and crossed her arms. She definitely didn’t look like she wanted to come into the apartment and she certainly didn’t want to get comfortable. She looked tense and out of sorts, something I had never seen in her. I leaned up against the kitchen table that was across from her and waited for her to continue.

“Dad told me that Uncle Charlie’s paper wasn’t doing well and asked if he could do an article on me to help him out. I agreed, but I didn’t want to have to deal with any reporters. The rest you know. After I met you and saw who you were, I changed my mind and discussed with my family how it was time that the truth came out. Bailey was the one who championed it. We never counted on an employee sabotaging the company or the article.”

“Did you know that your father asked for me specifically to do the article?” she asked

“No. He must have heard about you and your work and wanted the best.”

“Wouldn’t that be wonderful, but I don’t think it was. I had hardly done any work and certainly not enough for Charlie to notice me, much less ask me to do such an important article,” she said.

“Maybe my father knew about you. He does like to do his research and I can’t imagine him picking you unless he thought you were the right person for the job.”

“Depending on what job he was hoping I would take.”

“What are you getting at?”

I couldn’t understand what she was talking about, nor did I like that she was disparaging my father. Sure, he did some unique things when it came to his family, either by protecting them or helping them get out of their own heads, but I couldn’t ever see him doing anything that would be damaging to the family. Lexi implying my father had so by getting her to do the article wasn’t sitting well with me.

“Whatever reasons my father had for wanting you to do the article were spot on. You’re incredible and exactly what we needed. We couldn’t have done it better ourselves or with anyone else. You should feel proud about what you’ve accomplished. If my father helped you get a leg up because he saw the potential in you when no one else did, what harm is there in that?”

“He wasn’t just looking for me to do the article on you. The main focus of the article was supposed to be you, not the family. It was only after you opened up about your sister and her past and everything involved that I even started looking at the rest of the family. You were supposed to be what I concentrated on. I think he did it with a specific reason in mind,” she said.

“What was that?”

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