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He nodded. “I understand.”
He leaned forward and snatched his glass, glad I calmed down. “I’m just going to cut to the chase. I really need your help.”Luke gave me a sharp look. “Remember, all of this is confidential. You signed an NDA.”
“Just tell me what it is, already.” Some of the anger bit into my voice.
He looked nervous. He kept clenchinghis hands. “Yes. Right. Well, here it is. My dying father is threatening to write me out of his will unless I shape up and settle down. I'lllose my entire inheritance and my job unless I can convince him it’s happening. The disease is advanced, so I’m short on time. I need someone who'llact as my girlfriend. We’ll travel together, get photographed going out, and be in the same hotel rooms—though this relationship will be strictly professional. It’s all an act.”
Finally everything was out in the open. He wanted me to kiss him in public, hold his hand, and make eyes with him.
Easy peasy. I would have done it for free.
He stared at me. “Well, say something!”
All of it seemed so unlikely. “Would your father do that?”
Luke huffed. “Yes. Absolutely. My uncle Dominic was co-founder of Pardini Worldwide and each of his five children, my cousins, have shares. It would be a simple thing to write me out of the will, especially with the rest of the family hissing suggestions in his ear. Almost five billion would be distributed amongst them if I were kicked out. They would love it.”
Five billion?
My head spun as I imagined a gladiator arena with Luke’s family dressed in business suits all fighting each other to the death. It almost made my foster family life look civilized. They must be constantly at each other’s throats. Anyone would be driven mad by that amount of money.
The strain was livid on Luke’s face; it curled his shoulders forward. “My father is a cruel, narcissistic man. I’ve worked hard all my life for the company and I deserve this. I’ll be damned if I let that bastard take it all away from me.” He sighed and sank back into the sofa. “Sorry, it’s just that I don’t get to vent about him often.”
I felt sorry for him. It must be horrible to live your life at the whim of someone with so much power over you. “I don’t understand—why don’t you get a real girlfriend?”
“It’s not that easy."
The deflated look on his face alarmed me. Did he have self-esteem issues? “You’re handsome and rich.”
“Notice how you added, ‘and rich’? It’s hard to find someone who likes me for who I am and not for my money. I can’t trust anyone. Besides, I have little time. I need to leave next week for London.”
Wow. I didn’t realize I could ever feel so sorry for a billionaire. “But you’re letting your father control your life.”
“No, I’m not. I picked you. I want him to think he’s controlling me. That’s when he’s the happiest.”
“Why did you pick me?” I blurted.
“Because you’re educated and pretty. And we seem to have good chemistry.”
My cheeks flushed, and he smiled at me.
He leaned in closer, refusing to let me out of his gaze. “I have to warn you, though. If we don’t get along, we’ll have to go our separate ways. I mean—we’ll be together constantly. I know that this is a lot to ask for and that’s why I’m prepared to pay you ten thousand dollars a month.”
My mind went blank. “I’m sorry, what?”
I couldn’t have possibly heard that right.
He smirked, knowing then he had me. “Ten thousand dollars a month.”
“Jesus,” I whispered.
Get paid an absurd amount of money to travel with the world’s most handsome bachelor? Yes, YES!
“But what would we tell people? How did we meet? Where did I grow up?”
We would have to fabricate a huge back-story. I doubted his relatives would think highly of an orphan coming fromno money. I wondered if I could pull this off.
“We’ll figure out all of that stuff later. Will you do it?”
