Page 38 of Faking It with my Bestie's Billionaire Brother

"I don't know what to say, Ralph. Maybe she's joined the new century."

"Perhaps," he said doubtfully. "But I think, all things considered, that it would be wise for us to consider that there might be others involved now."

I did not need this extra complication. I almost wished it was just Connie, that would be simple. I could deal with her, as she was a known entity.

But Ralph did make a point. The people who had been fired had been around for a long time. The only reason they'd been able to stay was because I needed a surefire paper trail to get them out first. If I'd fired them the second that I'd had taken over the CEO's desk, there would've been a mutiny in the company.

But they were a smart bunch and had managed to cover their tracks well enough that it was difficult to prove. They had taken advantage of my lack of substantial proof over the years, commandeering parts of the building that didn't match their title just because they felt like it. Taking vacations whenever they liked. They had been the consistent voices of dissent with every improvement that I had tried to make to Ashbury Corporation. Every new initiative that I put in place to help a charity, every new idea for creating a community fund, they were the villains in the room bitching about how it would affect the bottom line.

The bottom line was that the company would still be richer than God. So what if we spent a fraction of the company’s fortune on helping a good cause? Who cared, as far as I was concerned. My father had acquired the vast majority of that money through nefarious means, and I hated it. So, the least I could do was see some of that money put to good use, and I did that at every opportunity I could.

Seemingly, the final straw with a couple of them was the fact that I invested so heavily in Penelope's school. But it was a worthwhile cause, and even more importantly to me, it was her dream. The kids in that school would never have had an opportunity to be a part of such a program before if it wasn't for people like Penny and Ava. The dropout rates for most of the population in Penny's school district was staggering, but now that she’d been running it for a couple of years, she was changing that. Thanks to her efforts, the kids in that neighborhood were much more likely to actually graduate high school if they went to Ashbury Academy of the Arts. They also had more opportunities for advancements and job opportunities because Penny was dogged in setting those up for them as they progressed through their schooling.

What was more, all of those kids had a more well-rounded education than typical public-school students. Because, unlike other public schools, this one embraced the arts instead of the standard STEM classes. The kids were allowed to explore and see what worked for them, and they had a much better idea of where they wanted to go by the time they graduated. The majority of my staff was one hundred percent behind such a worthy endeavor. Most of them had lived in the Los Angeles area for several decades, and they were excited about such a place improving their community. The usual suspects, however, cried foul.

No matter how hard I argued that my father would want to see his youngest child be successful in helping her community the way she wanted to, they worried that it would appear that we were going soft, or that it was just a publicity stunt.

It wasn't long after that that one of them made a costly mistake, and I happily started picking them off one by one. When I finally had a chance to nail them and get them the hell out, I took it, but now, I was paying for it.

I'd laughed in their faces at the time. I was just so ecstatic to get rid of them, the last traces of my father’s influence finally gone.

But what Ralph said could be right. What if somebody had gotten to Connie, somebody who had been around long enough to be aware of her?

She certainly wasn't all that great at "staying dead."

Most of the money I’d given her had been sent to an offshore account in Mexico. As far as I knew, she bounced around between there and Sweden for the last couple of decades. But maybe she'd found her way home and decided to buddy up with one of Dad's loyal servants.

Ralph broke into my thoughts. "Listen to me, Spencer, I can't exactly explain why I think Connie has help, it's just a gut feeling I have. I've given my life over to your family and the corporation—"

"I know that, Ralph, and you have no idea how much I appreciate that—"

"Then listen to me and let me finish," he said sternly, and I did just that. Ralph was a typically very amiable guy, but when he got stern, he meant business. "Something is off. The asses you just got out of the corporation are a little too quiet now. I know they released interviews and whatnot, but I've known them for a long time, and it's not like them to lay low. So, I can't help but worry that they're cooking something up."

"What do you think we should do?"

"I've got my eyes on a couple of them in particular, and I think you know who I'm referring to. They definitely have the potential to make a media splash, so we need to stick with the original plan and keep the public’s eyes elsewhere. I know this probably won't be your favorite plan, but I think we need to up the ante with this relationship with Ava."

"What exactly are you suggesting, Ralph?" I asked intensely, feeling shivers go down my spine just at the mere mention of her name.

"The gala that the company holds every year is coming up soon. I think you two should announce your engagement there. It'll be a way for everyone who hasn’t yet met Ava to lay eyes on her and get pictures of you two together in the papers. There’s also the added benefit of seeing you two at a benefit for charity.”

"Don't you think that's a little soon?"

"As far as everyone else is concerned, you two have been in a relationship for a while, it’s just that you’re finally feeling comfortable enough to go public. Ava seems like a bright girl, I'm sure she can get with the program quickly enough, and I think it'll help if you get her involved. Don't just tell her to show up and have her looking awkward."

I kind of liked her awkward, but Ralph wasn't done talking.

"Listen, there's no doubt that Miss Moretti is a beauty, but we're going to need to get her fixed up properly for the gala. I know Penny can help her, so that shouldn’t be too big of an issue. We also need to prepare Ava for the people she's going to be dealing with that night, especially if one of our old friends," he said in a withering voice, "decide to show up."

I swallowed hard. I didn't know why any of Ralph’s suggestions surprised me, as using Ava to improve my public image was the whole reason why she was staying in my apartment. If she was going to pretend like she was dating me, we needed to be out there more, so that we could get the focus off the dissenting voices.

But the thought of telling Ava that we were going to be announcing our "engagement" so soon made my heart start to race, especially after what just happened between us.

I didn’t want to think about Ava and I presenting a united front and preparing her—whatever that meant—for this whole thing. I wanted to go back to that room, scoop her up in my arms, and show her yet again just how much pleasure that sexy body could handle.

"Spencer? Are you still there, my boy?"

I cleared my throat. "Yes, sorry, I'm still here."

---