Irresistible Billionaires by Summer Brooks
Logan
Ihad no idea what I was doing. Here I was, standing in the middle of a very fancy, very well organized home store, the likes of which I would never, ever set foot in on any other given day.
But Bella would.
I couldn’t get that thought out of my head. I’d only planned to go on a little walk to attempt to clear the annoyingly nervous tickling from my stomach. Somehow, my feet had taken me all the way to Union Square and right into one of their fancy boutiques that the rich of this city so loved to frequent.
I, of course, was one of those rich. I just didn’t particularly enjoy frequenting these kinds of stores.
But Bella does. Just as the thought repeated, yet again, a pretty, thin woman walked up to me with her freshly painted nails clasped in front of her and a soft, sympathetic smile on her face.
“Is there anything I can help you find?” She asked. “If you’re interested in decorating your home with some Italian pieces, we just received a brand new shipment this morning.”
She swept her well-manicured hand out, already anticipating that I would want to follow. I knew her type. She’d prejudged me by the designer suit I wore. Boy, was I about to shock her.
“No Italian pieces, please,” I replied. “Do you have anything modern? Sort of… funky?”
So that’s what I was doing here. The words were out of my mouth before I knew it, but I finally realized what the rest of me had already known. I was here to buy an apology gift for Bella, as a way of making up for the fact that I’d never responded to her text. of course, that had prompted her to call me, and I never hated hearing the sound of her voice, so I couldn’t feel too guilty about it.
“Funky?” The saleswoman repeated, eyeing my very much not funky Armani suit with a pair of astute hazel eyes. “I can definitely help you with that if it’s what you want.”
“It’s exactly what I want,” I nodded, choosing to ignore the way Bella’s face had popped into my head as I said it.
“This way.”
The woman led me away from the front of the store, where I’d been standing in the middle of one of their display, and all the way to the back, where there was indeed a collection of funky modern pieces.
Clearly, no one else but me was interested in them. Most of them were a bit eclectic, with bright pastel pinks and sunny yellows all over. Honestly, for a moment, I was unsure of myself, which was pretty darn unusual. This wasn’t my first time buying a woman a gift. I normally just picked up a pretty, if unoriginal, piece of diamond jewelry and called it a day.
This was different, though. This was Bella. She deserved something as extraordinary, and beautiful and strange as she was.
“Do you like any of the pieces?” The saleswoman asked, interrupting my thoughts on jewelry. From the slightly sympathetic look on her face, I could tell she knew I was having a hell of a time figuring out what to get. I could tell, though, from her sleek, black leather skirt and studded tennis bracelet, that these pieces of modern furniture were no more her style than they were mine.
I was about to give up and ask her opinion on the pieces when I spied the absolute perfect lamp, tucked away on a black, chunky coffee table in the far corner.
The thing was hideous to me. It looked like it was made of bright pink and sky blue legos, stacked haphazardly on top of one another to create the lamp base. Then, two ovular bulbs had been stuck on top, covered in a thin white lampshade that didn’t do all that much to block the light while still managing to cut down on the glare that bounced off of the bright colors below.
I would never put it in my house. It wouldn’t even go in a box in the attic. But Bella would absolutely love it.
Plus, she’d just complained last week about needing a new lamp, because the one she had was two seasons too old. I hadn’t even been aware that things like furniture had seasons in the first place.
“That piece is perfect,” I told the saleswoman, pointing at the lamp.
“I’ll box it up for you,” she replied, hurrying to grab it. Moments later, she returned from the back room with a bulky white box in her hands. “This way.”
She led me to the register and made quick work of ringing the lamp up. When I saw the price that came up on the screen, I couldn’t help but be a little shocked.
“Fifteen hundred bucks? For a lamp?”
“Yeah,” she laughed. “Trust me, it’s a good bargain for the thing. Some people in New York have paid almost double for similar items.”
“Wow,” I breathed. “At least it’s worth it.”
That last sentence popped out of my mouth completely on its own and surprised even me.
“She must be special,” the saleswoman grinned.
For a moment, I was totally caught off guard by her assumption, but it wasn’t the least bit inaccurate. She smiled at me, a bit wistfully, as I nodded.
“Yeah. She is.” Just how special she was hadn’t hit me fully yet, but I was starting to wonder what the hell I was doing.
It was just Bella. Why was I buying her a fifteen hundred dollar lamp?
It’s a token of our friendship, I thought—an apology for not responding to her text.
That was all it was.
I took the lamp and headed home, placing it by the door, so I didn’t forget when I left for the restaurant.
And the entire time, I was beating myself up. What was wrong with me? Why was I suddenly all weird when Bella wanted to hang out? Why did I just compulsively buy her a gift before dinner? I’d never done that before. In fact, I was slightly worried that I’d show up to Mura Sushi with the bulky box in my hands, and she’d take one good look at me and start to laugh her ass off.
At least I’d get to see her green eyes sparkle with mirth. I always loved it when they did that.
Okay, no, I thought, shaking my head. You need to talk to Zach. He’ll have some brotherly way of telling you to knock off this weird gift buying shit and get back to normal.
Thankfully, Zach’s office wasn’t too far away. I knew it was a Saturday, but Zach worked almost every day. He had that kind of a work ethic. Don’t get me wrong, I would work my butt off to get what I wanted, but there was no way I'd go into the office on a Saturday.
“Is my brother in?” I asked the weekend receptionist as soon as I arrived. She glanced up, giving me her usually flirty smile, but for the first time in probably ever, I completely ignored it.
“Yes, he is,” she replied, dropping the smile in confusion.
“Thanks.” I tapped once on her desk and then jogged off toward my brother’s office, in desperate need of a good smack on the head, which Zach was never afraid to give me.
Zach raised a hand when I opened the door, indicating he was busy and pressed the Bluetooth headset closure to his ear like he was having trouble hearing.
I held back a laugh. It was something Zach did whenever he was in total disbelief of what he was hearing, and I knew that meant the person on the other end was attempting to feed him a load of crap.
“Yeah, Xavier, I heard you say that the first time,” Zach was saying, keeping his voice level, though his annoyance showed on his face. “I’m going to tell you again. I don’t care what he thinks he did. The papers are not on my desk. Which means he hasn’t filed them. And I don’t think I need to tell you what happens if we lose this patent?”
Patents. I wrinkled my nose. Business and paperwork were not my things.
I took a seat in the leather armchair in the corner of Zach’s office, playing with his stack of books just for fun. I rearranged them so the titles were no longer in alphabetical order, making sure Zach didn’t see as I did so. At some point, he’d sit down and see that his precious books were no longer alphabetized, and he’d have a conniption.
One of these days, I'd have to install a nanny cam so I could watch his reactions when I messed with his stuff like this.
“Yeah, have a good day.” Zach sighed and ripped the Bluetooth out of his ear. “I get why people complain now.”
“Sure, because you’ve never complained a day in your life,” I laughed, rolling my eyes.
My joke wasn’t met with a typical brotherly pushback, though, and I looked back at Zach to see that he was staring at me with narrowed eyes. “What?”
“You look different,” he replied curiously. “Are you on a new gym regimen?”
“Yep, I stole Barry Bonds’ gym routine,” I replied seriously.
Zach busted out laughing. Barry Bonds’ gym routine consisted of about two push-ups and a couple of needles full of steroids.
“Right,” he replied disbelievingly. “What’s up?”
“Just came to visit my brother,” I shrugged. “What’s up with you?”
Zach marched over and smacked me on the backside of my head.
“Ow!” I protested. “What was that for?”
“Out with it, Logan,” he replied. “Remember when you gave me hell at my fake wedding to Clara? You saw right through me. The road goes both ways, dude.”
“Fine,” I sighed. “I bought Bella a gift.”
Zach looked at me blankly for a second, but then he puckered his lips and nodded slowly.
“Are we talking about a new car or a book?”
“Somewhere in between.” I shrugged, hesitant to share exactly what it was. But I could tell from Zach’s face that he wouldn’t take my avoidance as an answer. “I bought her a fifteen hundred dollar lamp. From some store in Union Square.”
“Fifteen hundred? For a lamp?” My brother and I may have differed in a plethora of different ways, but one thing stood steadfast between us: we valued money. And more than that, we appreciated good purchases. A fifteen hundred dollar lamp typically wasn’t a good purchase in either of our books.
“You heard me,” I nodded.
Zach paused for a moment, thinking his next words through carefully. “Has it occurred to you that you might feel a little bit… deeper for Bella than you’ve realized?”
“She’s my best friend,” I pointed out. “I want to make her happy.”
Zach tilted his head and sucked in a breath, knowing full well we were treading water in the middle of a lake. And if either one of us got too tired, we’d go under.
“I know that,” he replied. “But would you buy a lamp like that for any of your other buddies?”
“Please,” I snorted. “Connor would just make a bong out of his. And Rhett would… probably never open the box.”
“That’s what I’m saying,” Zach replied, attempting to make his point without really saying it.
Luckily, his office phone rang at that exact moment.
“You know what, you’re busy,” I replied. “I should let you get back to work.”
Before Zach could protest, I was out of his office.
“Logan, just so you know, it’s completely possible to make a woman fall for you,” he called after me. “You just need a plan.”
I was halfway through the lobby when his words actually hit me.
Could I really have feelings for Bella? We were so different. I hated talking to people or meeting new friends, and she absolutely loved it. She was always the loudest voice at the party, but I preferred to stay quiet, not wanting to be disturbed by people I’d have nothing to talk about with.
She loved things like eclectic modern furniture, while I was perfectly happy with a flat-screen T.V. and a couple of armchairs.
It felt like we were opposite ends of a magnet… but on the exact same magnet. I knew people said that opposites attract, but it was hard to be pulled to the other side when you were already stuck to the person.
I just didn’t see a way for us to really work like that. But then again, I’d never tried to envision it.
Those thoughts plagued me as I changed out of my usual suit and into a pair of dark jeans and a tight gray t-shirt. I tried to ignore the fact that I always found myself changing outfits so Bella wouldn’t laugh at my expensive suits.
I brought the bulky lamp box with me to Mura Sushi. Specifically, I asked the waitress to seat us at the table where Bella and I had first bonded. In a way, I felt like I needed to try and retrace my steps to figure out if there had been something there in the beginning.
And if there was something now.
“Oh, thank God, you already got us a table!” Bella gasped as she rushed inside to sit down. “I forgot how crowded this place gets on a Saturday night. There’s already a line outside.”
“Kentaro knows us by the sound of our voice, at this point,” I laughed, referring to the owner of Mura, who always made sure we had a table whenever we came. “I don’t think we need to be too worried about a line.”
“It pays to know people,” Bella giggled. She took off her jacket and plopped down into her seat, glancing at the menu before she even made eye contact with me.
She was acting totally normal. It was just me who was the weirdo.
I’d almost forgotten about the box at my feet, seeing as I was spending the majority of my time staring at Bella, until her foot kicked it.
“What’s that?” she demanded, glaring underneath the table as if the gift had jumped out at her, all on its own.
“Oh, I, uh, bought you something,” I replied, trying my best to keep it totally nonchalant. It was completely normal to buy random, expensive gifts for your best friend.
“Okay," she replied, blowing air into her cheeks awkwardly. “Let me see it."
“Please?” I chuckled at her. Oftentimes, Bella forgot her manners, and it had become a little inside joke for me to remind her.
Only when we were alone, of course. I’d tried it once in front of other people and she’d chewed me out for a week straight.
“Please,” she rolled her eyes, but a ghost of a smile blew across her lips.
I grabbed the box and handed it over, waiting excitedly as I watched her open it. The moment she’d gotten the lid off, her eyes went wide with shock.
“Oh my gosh,” she breathed, pulling the lamp out. “It’s beautiful! And I needed a replacement lamp for the living room.”
‘I know,” I replied proudly. “You were saying that the other day.”
Bella glanced up at me, and there was a soft emotion I couldn't really place in her eyes.
“It’s… perfect,” she replied, turning the table lamp over in her hands. “But it must have been expensive.”
There was no fooling an interior designer into believing an expensive piece of home decor was cheap.
“Nah.” I shook my head. “Not really.”
Bella looked up at me in slight disbelief, and I could tell from the way her eyes flicked back and forth that she was debating something.
Whatever it was disappeared, though, and she just smiled at me.
“Thanks, Logan,” she replied. “It’s really perfect. It’s almost like you know me or something.”
“Woah, really?” I pretended to gasp in surprise. “That shocking!”
“Are you two ready to order?” Our waiter came up to us, smiling gently.
“Yep,” I nodded, turning over my menu. I didn’t even need to look at it anymore, because I was pretty sure I had the whole thing memorized.
Bella and I ordered our usual, and the conversation fell for a moment as we waited on our massive spread of salmon and tuna nigiri, coupled with gyoza and a side of seaweed soup.
“You had news?” I reminded her, thinking of her text the day before.
“Oh!” Bella jumped, knocking her fork into her plate. She’d been lost in thought, though for once, I wasn’t sure over what. “You know what, it’s no big deal.”
“Lies!” I laughed. “You just chewed me out on the phone earlier today, so it must have been a very big deal. Did something happen at work?”
Her green eyes popped wide open, and she brushed a curl back over her shoulder, a classic sign that she had something she didn’t want to say.
For the first time in our friendship, I didn’t push her, though. I didn’t want to make her uncomfortable or force her to tell me something.
“Well, I chewed you out because I thought you’d been kidnapped,” she replied as if that sentence was completely normal.
“You thought I’d been…. what?” I laughed. Most of the time, I didn’t know how her brains drew the conclusions it did. “Explain.”
“You didn’t respond to my text!” She accused. “What else was I supposed to think? That you were having a pool party at Beyonce’s new house?”
“That seems more logical than my being kidnapped,” I pointed out. “We sometimes end up in the same places, you know. Perks of being rich.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying, next time send me a sign that you’re okay so I know I don’t have to go tracking you down in the middle of the woods at one a.m.”
“Bella,” I said seriously, reaching across the table to grab her hand, “if I am ever kidnapped, please don’t do that. I’ll never get out alive that way.”
“Hey!” she snapped.
But that was all she said. Because both of us were suddenly acutely aware that my large, warm hand was covering her smaller, much colder one.
For a moment that felt like ten years, we just stared at each other. And then, suddenly, she pulled her hand back, pretending she wanted to set up her soy sauce plate in anticipation of our meal.
Even when we were no longer touching, though, I could still feel her hand beneath mine.
“Oh my God, I forgot to tell you!” Bella gasped suddenly, slamming the soy sauce bottle down on the table so hard I was afraid it might crack.
“Calm down,” I chuckled, slowly moving the bottle away from her disastrous fingers.
“Nope, can’t be calm where this is concerned,” she grinned. “I just found out the best thing today.”
“What?” I demanded. Bella loved to draw things out and make them suspenseful, whereas I preferred to just know. And quickly.
“So, you remember how annoying Nosy Nancy was when we were on the phone today,” she started.
“And how is that different from any other day?” I asked.
“Not the point.”
Wow. She didn't even want to rail on Nosy Nancy. This must be important.
“Okay,” I prompted.
“So, I was just fed up with her today,” Bella replied. “I don’t know what it was, exactly, but I was just tired of having to hold any of my important conversations in the middle of my condo, you know? Anyways, I marched right over there after we hung up, and was just about to demand that she keep her nosy personality out of my business when she told me she’s selling her condo!”
“What?” I blinked, not ready to trust that this news was really true. It was far too good. I recalled one time when something I'd told Bella, in confidence, about OBEL had ended up in the paper because we’d spoken too close to her open window. So, suffice it to say that I was very mistrustful of Nosy Nancy.
“It’s true,” Bella nodded vigorously. “She even showed me the ad in the paper. I think she was trying to brag about how much she's asking for the place, but, I mean, come on. It’s San Francisco. If you don’t get at least two million for that place, you’re getting screwed. Oh, yeah, and get this: her name’s not Nancy. It’s Barbara.”
“Barbara.” I wrinkled my nose. “That just doesn’t seem to fit.”
But even though my words were still fully engaged in conversation with Bella, my mind was not.
That condo was up for grabs. Anyone could buy it and live in the little two bedrooms, two-bathroom space.
I was in need of a new place to live. And something told me this was the perfect opportunity to downsize and be eight feet away from Bella at all times.
I really liked this idea.