Page 29 of Kicking it with the Billionaire

All eyes were on me. “Dex is rich. Dex is really rich, and he didn’t tell me.” My face burned with shame and embarrassment.

Parker chuckled uncomfortably. “Like, how rich are we talking?”

“Park!” Travis hissed.

I shook my head. “No, it’s okay. The article Archer found online said he’s worth over a billion dollars.” Every single one of them gasped or murmured their surprise.

“You didn’t know?” Cam asked gently. When I shook my head, he put his hand on my shoulder for a quick squeeze. “That’s… a lot to keep a secret.”

“Mom’s treatments. The article in the paper said his company is one that gave the donations to the Michaels Foundation—that’s the group that is paying for Mom’s treatments. My… boyfriend is paying my mom’s medical bills.”

“That’s not the weirdest thing in the world, though,” Theo murmured.

“It’s not the most common thing, either,” Levi said. “Not if he’s keeping it a secret, anyway.”

“Wait a second.” Jared held up his hand. “The Michaels Foundation is paying for your mom’s treatments?”

I nodded, a lump in my throat. “We couldn’t afford it. There’s no insurance. It’s just… there was no other way to keep Mom and Tam from losing the house and everything else. I had to get help, and the grant is paying for… a lot of it.”

Cam squeezed my shoulder again. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

I swallowed hard, fighting the tears that threatened to fall. “When I was a kid, we were poor. Really poor. Not just ‘money’s tight and we’re broke’ poor but more like ‘electricity? I hardly know her’ poor. I was made fun of—a lot. Not just made fun of. Bullied. It was bad. I didn’t—” My voice broke. “I didn’t want you guys to think differently of me if you knew I didn’t have money. Didn’t come from money.” In my pocket, my phone vibrated. I pulled it out, worried that it was a call from Mom, but on the screen, Dex’s name was displayed. A sour rush of acid hit my throat. I knew I couldn’t talk to him, so I let it go to voicemail.

The guys were all silent for a few moments. I was sure they were going to abandon me, or laugh at me, or kick me off the team. Something terrible was going to happen. I could just feel it in my bones. Wordlessly, one by one, they all put their arms around me, piling on into a massive group hug with me at the center. It was then that tears fell.

After a long hug, they all released me and stood back. Ethan spoke first. “So, what’s next for you and Dex? Are you going to break up with him?”

I shrugged and took a shaky breath. “I don’t know. Should I?” My phone vibrated again, and I ignored it.

Parker spoke next. “I think you should talk to him.”

That sounded terrible to me, but I knew deep down he was probably right. “Do you guys mind if I—”

Jared held up a hand. “Are you talking about missing practice?”

I laughed a little at his incredulous look. “Yes,” I said in a small voice.

Jared smiled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Once I was safely in my car, I checked my phone’s notifications. One was a voicemail from Dex and I had two texts, one from him and one from Mom. I read Mom’s first.

Mom: Are you coming to the oncologist with us tomorrow?

I responded with of course I was, and turned my attention to the next message.

Dex:Missing you.

For the time being, I ignored it and listened to the voicemail. As I pressed play, my hand trembled and my heart raced.

“Bennett, it’s Dex. Listen, we need to talk. There was an article in the paper about the banquet today. I don’t know if you saw it, but there were pictures of you. And… it made some pretty big claims about me and my life. Can we talk?”

I pulled up my texting app again.

Bennett: Let’s talk face to face.

He answered almost immediately.

Dex: Will you come here? To my house? Do you trust me enough to do that?

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