Bought: A Billionaire Romance (7 page)

“So what cars do you have?” asks the huge-breasted blonde that has been throwing herself at me since the moment I arrived at the bar.

I’m almost too bored to answer the question but I manage to force something out.

“Wow. That’s so cool,” she croons, “And where is your apartment? I bet it’s really cool.”

I don’t know why I even bothered to ask this girl out for drinks. I could have just invited her back to my apartment and had done with it. Maybe I was hoping that I could get more than just a quick lay from this one but I’ve just ended up trapped in a boring replay of every conversation I’ve had with the star struck skanks that haunt this city searching for a rich guy.

This one might have better luck with some of the older guys who want eye candy to drag around but aren’t too bothered about an intelligent conversation. Maybe I should give her Mark Greene’s number.

I check my watch. Time is dragging on and I decide I have to make some kind of excuse to leave.

“Look, Marcie—”

“It’s Mercy.”

“Really? I could have sworn—“             

“Nope, definitely Mercy.”

I was going to attempt to excuse myself politely, but seeing as I’ve pretty much blown that by forgetting the girl’s name I might as well give up.

“Marcie, Mercy, whatever. I’m going home.”

“What? Are you OK? I can come too if you like,” her voice is filled with desperation.

“That’s fine. You stay here. I’ll see you around,” I say.

I’m already on my way to the door when I hear her shout after me.

“Asshole! I would have let you put it anywhere you want. ANYWHERE!”

I’m think I just dodged a bullet.              

The cool night air feels good compared to the heat and noise of the bar so I decide to walk home.

My thoughts quickly turn to Clara as I stride confidently between the towering buildings of downtown. I could have used another shower after the evening I had with her. Preferably a cold one.

I pull out my phone and start typing a message to her before I wonder if it’s wrong that I got her phone number from her HR file. I can’t explain why but I just feel the need to let her know I’m thinking about her.

Kyan, you are a walking lawsuit waiting to happen
.

I know I should keep my distance, but damn if that meal I had with her wasn’t the best date I’ve been on in years. AND IT WASN’T EVEN A DATE!

She probably thinks I’m a complete douchebag, but even that is better than the parade of sycophantic gold diggers that have been drooling
1
over me pretty much ever since my bank balance hit one million.

You’re losing your cool, Kyan
, screams a voice in the back of my mind.

To hell with it.
I hit send.

I haven’t seen Kyan all morning. Perhaps he’s embarrassed about yesterday and he’s avoiding me or maybe he’s just got a lot of meetings. Either way, I’m kind of relieved that I haven’t seen him. It’s irrational, but I’m kind of worried he’ll somehow know what I imagined him doing to me last night.

I’m nearly done sorting through all the paperwork from Greene Earth when there’s a knock on the door of the small room I’ve been using.

“Come in,” I say.

Mira’s round and cheerful face appears a moment later.

“You’ve been shut up in here all day. Thought I’d bring you a coffee.”

She places the coffee on the table and takes a seat opposite me.

“Kyan wanted me to ask you if you’re free for a meeting later on, say 4pm?”

“Sure,” I say. I wonder why he didn’t come and ask me himself. He’s a busy man I guess, he can’t spend his time chasing his employees around the building.

“Do you think you’ll have the report done by then?” asks Mira.

“I should do.”

“No rush. He wanted me to make that clear. Just— if you do manage to finish it—he wants you to bring it to the meeting.”

“No problem,” I reply.

Mira fidgets slightly in her chair slightly. She seems anxious like there’s something she wants to talk about.

“So Kyan said you and him went for dinner last night?”

I smile and nod. Of course, I should have known Mira would want to know all the gossip, just like she looked at my résumé before I started here. I wonder if Kyan really told her, or if she just tracks where he is at all times like an overbearing mother.

“We did. The diner a couple of streets over. It was nice.”

“That’s good. I’m glad the two of you are getting along better,” says Mira.

“What makes you think we weren’t getting along?”

“It just seemed like Kyan had annoyed you a bit with the whole taking you from Greene Earth thing.”

“I think I’m over that now. Mostly,” I reply honestly.

“I said a lot of stuff yesterday about him having a good heart and, well, he does but now with the two of you going out for meals and all…I just…well, what do you think of him, honestly?”

Mira is acting a bit strangely but there’s something about her grandmotherly nature that just inspires honesty. I feel like I can talk openly with her even though I’ve known her a short while.

“He seems like a…complicated guy. But, for what it’s worth, my opinion of him has improved dramatically. I thought he was a complete jerk when I first met him. Now I only think he’s a bit of a jerk.”

Mira smiles and my assessment.

“Good and that’s probably the best attitude to have. I like you, Clara, and I see a lot of girls when they meet Kyan are all doe-eyed and eager to impress him and in the end they get their hearts broken. You don’t seem like that, though. It seems like you’ve got a pretty good handle on him.”

“Oh, well, there’s nothing romantic going on between us,” I reply.

I realize I must sound pretty defensive. What is it with people? You go out for a meal with your boss and suddenly they’re all waiting for the wedding invitation.

“I know. I know. I’m just used to seeing people hurt when they get too close to Kyan is all, even if though he doesn’t mean to. I’m not saying it will happen to you, he just has this sort of restless energy. It’s what drove him to be so successful in the first place but it also keeps people away.”

I can see why she was anxious now. She has a lot of respect for Kyan but she’s also smart enough to see that sometimes he can hurt people. It must be a big deal for her to warn someone away from him. Still, I’m not stupid enough to let myself get obsessed with Kyan Ellis…am I?

“Thanks.” I don’t know what else to say.

“So I’ll tell him you’ll be in at 4pm?”

“Sure.”

****

I wave to Mira as I walk past her desk. I check my watch, 4pm, exactly on time and with the report finished. It took me the rest the day and I didn’t manage to get a lunch break, but I got it finished.

I knock on the door to Kyan’s office and wait for him to tell me to come in. I’ve learned my lesson about bursting into people’s offices uninvited after last time.

“Clara! Take a seat,” says Kyan.

I sink into the luxurious leather chair that sits in front of his vast desk and slide the printed report across its shiny, dark surface to him. I sent him an email copy as well, but I think he likes to have something he can touch too.

“You’ve finished the report?” he says as he picks it up and begins to leaf through it, “anything important I should know right now?”

“I don’t think so. The only problem we might have is getting the Chinese to agree to pay for the expenses listed on page four.”

“Ah, yes. Well, hopefully, that won’t be too difficult. It’s their power plants that are getting this technology after all.”

“I’ve also modeled the expected reduction in carbon emissions from the plants as an appendix. I know you didn’t ask for that, I just thought you might be interested.”

“Thanks. Hopefully, the Chinese guys in charge of the project will be into the whole eco-warrior thing,” says Kyan in a voice dripping with sarcasm, “I’m meeting them next week so I’ll find out then.”

“You’re meeting them next week?”

I didn’t realize the project was moving this quickly.             

“Yes. I want to move quickly on this. They’ve agreed to meet in Beijing next week. That’s why I called you in for this meeting. Clara, I want you to be at that meeting with me.”

I want to say something but I can’t. Typing up boring reports and sorting through paperwork isn’t the work I dreamed of doing, but this meeting is a huge deal. This is exactly what I wanted. A thousand thoughts are rushing through my head simultaneously.

This is a huge opportunity! What if I mess it up? What if they figure out I’m not really a genius? What if I’ve got all the numbers wrong? What if? What if?

“You know the numbers on this better than anyone else and I think you want to see this project through,” says Kyan, his words interrupting my waterfall of emotions, “If you don’t think you can handle it, I’m sure I can find someone else to take the trip with me.”

“No!” I almost yell, “No. I can handle it.”

“I thought so,” says Kyan.

After Clara leaves I skim through the report she’s prepared. She’s more than just a pretty face: she really knows her stuff too. I definitely made the right decision hiring her.

I tap the intercom button on my desk.

“Mira, can you come in here a second?”

A few moments later Mira’s plump form is breezing into my office.

“Mira, I’m going to be taking the jet to Beijing next week. Can you get the flight plan and all the usual documentation filed please?”

“Sure,” she replies, “How many passengers?”

“Just two: me and Clara.”

“You’re taking Clara to Beijing with you?”

I detect some surprise in her voice.

“I am. She knows the numbers better than anyone so I want her by my side in that meeting. You know, in case the Chinese throw some technical questions at me I can’t handle.”

“Questions that you can’t handle? That doesn’t seem very likely,” says Mira

“She’s got an incredible head for numbers. I need her there in case there’s something that has to be calculated on the spot. I don’t want anything to hold this deal up. What’s with all the questions anyway?”

“No reason. Just seems like she’s getting different treatment from most new employees,” says Mira.

I immediately see where she’s going with this. Mira’s opinions on my love life and her willingness to share them is one of the things that makes having her as my secretary a curse.

Then again, how many other secretaries would be forthright enough to question my actions? I should probably be thankful there’s someone around to make me question whether I’m making my decisions with my head or with my dick.

“How many times do I have to say it? There’s nothing going on between Clara and me.”

“I know. What I’m saying is that I think it would be best if you kept it that way. I know you struggle with that sometimes.”

“Well that’s not really any of your business, Mira,” I say bluntly.

“It will be my business when I have to deal with yet another employee coming to me in tears because she walked in on you with another woman.”

“That was…regrettable and I did apologize to you and to her.”

“I’ve been talking to Clara,” Mira continues, “and she’s a really nice girl. She cares about her work. Just…don’t mess her around is all I’m saying.”

“We’ve already agreed that we’re going to keep things purely professional,” I say.

I hope that will be enough to get Mira to give me a break on this.

“I know I’ve made some mistakes in the past,” I continue, “but I was younger then. The money, the status, the power, that was all new to me and I was kind of in love with it.”

“Well, alright then. You’re a grown up and you’ll just do whatever you want regardless of what I see. I’m not your mother anyway.”

She could have fooled me with the amount of motherly advice she seems determined to give me.

“Anything else?” I ask.

“I’m going out. Do you need me to pick you up a sandwich or something for lunch?”

Sometimes having someone to mother you isn’t all bad.

I pull another dress from my closet, cram it into my almost overflowing case and try the zipper. It closes, just.

“How many weeks are you going for?” asks Kelly.

Kelly is lying on the bed, watching me pack and being of no help whatsoever.

“I know, I know,” I reply, rolling my eyes, “it’s only one night but I just don’t know how I’m going to want to dress when I’m there.”

“What’s the weather like in Beijing this time of year anyway?”

“Hot. I think. I don’t know, I just kind of assumed it would be hot. Do you think I should take a jacket or something? What if it’s cold?”

“I think you’re freaking out a bit.”

She’s probably right. I’ve got at least a week’s worth of clothes jammed into this suitcase for a one-night business trip. All I should really need is something smart for the meeting and something casual for the evening.

“Are you taking something sexy to wear for the evening?” asks Kelly.

“Kelly. It’s a business trip. Nothing is going to happen. We’ll probably go to the meeting and then back to the hotel, get dinner and go to bed.”

“Straight to bed just like that? You work fast, Clara Young.”

“
Separate
beds. In separate rooms,” I clarify, “And then we’re flying back the next morning.”

“Beijing. The Paris of China. Most romantic city in Asia. Anything could happen.”

“How do you come up with such bullshit?” I ask.

“What shoes are you taking?” asks Kelly, ignoring the question.

Shoes! I completely forgot shoes and my case is already full. I’m going to have to unpack everything and start again.

“Oh, I don’t know, black heels for the meeting and then something comfortable for the evening.”

“Comfortable? Boring. You want to look hot,” says Kelly as she gets up to start rummaging through the small collection of shoes I keep under my bed.

“How about these ones? They’d go great with that dress, you know, the black one,” she says, holding up a pair of strappy heels.

“Fine. Whatever.”

I tip out the contents of the suitcase and start trying to decide what to discard so I can fit some shoes in.

Kelly returns herself to the comfort of my bed and turns on her side to face me, one arm dangling over the edge.

“Man, I am so jealous of you,” she declares, “this time tomorrow you’ll be riding in a billionaire’s private jet.”

“You’re a lot more excited about this than I am.”             

“Clara, you need to relax and enjoy it. It’s going to be AMAZING.”

I can’t relax. I’ve just spent the last few days going over the numbers again and again, including the weekend. I can’t stop imagining that I’m going to make a fool of myself at the meeting.

“It’s easy for you to tell me to relax. In your job you only need to remember how to make a mojito. I’ve got to know the numbers in this report inside and out,” I exclaim, brandishing the report at her, “Last night I dreamed that I showed up to the meeting in my underwear.”

“Oh yeah, that one. I used to get that all the time in college.”

“Then there was that one time you actually did it. I’ll never forget the look on the professor’s face.”

“What can I say? Vodka plus energy drink is a dangerous combination for me,” laughs Kelly, “So have you seen much of our favorite billionaire this week?”

“I assume you’re talking about Kyan? No. I haven’t seen him since he asked me to come to the meeting with him. I guess he’s been busy but I was really hoping to have some time to discuss it beforehand.”

“Well, you will have some time tomorrow. You’re going to be cooped up in his jet together for…how long is the flight again?”

She’s right. What’s going to happen with just the two of us jammed together in a small space for so long?

“I’m not sure. It’s a long flight.”

Kelly has her phone out to search for the answer. She sucks a sharp intake of breath between her teeth when she finds it.

“Wow. Fourteen hours. That’s fourteen hours in a metal box with a hot guy you keep telling me you don’t like but that you’re obviously attracted to. I’m calling it now, you’ll either have killed him or fucked him by the end of the flight.”

“Kelly! Gross.”

“Sorry, I keep forgetting you’re a good girl who would NEVER do anything like that. Ah, I forgot the return flight so that’s twenty-eight hours total, plenty of time.”

“If last night is anything to go by I’ll be awake all night so maybe I can just sleep the entire flight.”

“No way! This is a great opportunity for you to join the mile high club. Totally private, no having to sneak into the gross airplane toilet. Although, that might take some of the fun out of it.”

“More like a great opportunity to work out how we’re going to deal with the Chinese.”

“So what is this meeting about anyway?”

“Well, the whole reason why I’m working with Kyan is because his company is undertaking a joint venture with Ellis Energy to introduce carbon sequestration to the Chinese coal power plants that Ellis Energy have invested in. The only complication is that the Chinese partners in the deal don’t want to pay for it. That’s why we’re going out to Beijing to talk to them.”

“What’s carbon masturbation?”

“Carbon
sequestration
is about capturing the carbon emissions of a fossil fuel power plant so they don’t end up in the atmosphere and contribute to global warming. With the new carbon taxes that are being introduced in two years it will end up more expensive to pollute than to not.”

“That sounds wonderful,” yawns Kelly as she goes back to playing with her phone.             

“Isn’t it time for you to go to work?” I ask. I could really do with some time alone to finish packing so I can get back to reading the project file through for what feels like the thousandth time.

“Shit!” says Kelly when she checks the time, “OK I’m going, but I’ll be back to tease you about Kyan in six hours. Try not to miss me too much and please, relax!”

****

It’s almost 8:30am and my taxi is only just pulling up at the airport. I throw some money at the driver and dash into the terminal.

Dammit, you forgot to get a receipt! Now you’ll never be able to claim it back on expenses. Maybe I’ll just ask Kyan for the money.

The plane is scheduled to leave in half an hour and I’ll still have to clear security. There’s no chance I’m going to make it on time. I hope Kyan isn’t too pissed off.

I text Kyan to let him now I’ve arrived and race through the terminal towards security, my overstuffed suitcase dragging and bouncing along behind me. I have no idea what the process is for traveling on a private company jet but I figure I’ll see him on the other side of security.

“Are you going to Beijing for a night or a month?” says a familiar voice from behind me.

“Kyan?” I spin around to see him leaning against a pillar his cool demeanor a contrast against my red-faced bluster, “I was worried we were going to be late.”

He checks his watch with a casual flick of the wrist.             

“Nah, we’ve got plenty of time. You want a coffee?”

“But how are we going to get through security on time?”

He laughs and places a hand on my back, guiding me away from the line for checking in luggage.

“You’re flying private now,” he says, “We don’t have to worry about queues. Wait here."

Kyan disappears for a few moments before reappearing with a cup of coffee. I imagine it’s strong and black like he always has it.

“Follow me,” he says.

Together we walk around the main line to a small booth attended by two people.

“Mr. Ellis!” says one of the attendants cheerfully, “Let me take your bags.”

The process for checking in and going through security is all done in just a few minutes. So this is what it’s like to be rich.

Once we are done with security we follow the attendants through the terminal and out onto the tarmac of the airport runway. There in front of us stands a jet bearing the insignia of Ellis Energy. I was imagining something a lot smaller. It’s huge!

“She’s a beauty, isn’t she?” says Kyan, “the company jet. Great for traveling to meetings, even better for a weekend in the Bahamas or anywhere else I want to go.”

We make our way over to the plane and start ascending the steps to the cabin. At the top of the stairs, Kyan greets the captain and the other flight crew.

If the outside of the plane was impressive, the inside is even more so. Far from the rows of seats crammed together that would normally occupy a plane like this, it looks like the inside of a luxury city apartment. I feel like I’m entering someone’s home.

As we walk through the plane I notice a small, plush kitchen and a bathroom with a shower that looks like something out of a five-star hotel. Eventually, we come to a space set up like a living room with comfortable chairs and a huge TV on the wall.

“Normally a plane like this would seat a couple of hundred people,” says Kyan, “But we’ve got space for twenty or so to travel in luxury.”

I run my hand over one of the leather seats. It feels as expensive as it looks.

“Where can I sit?” I ask.

“Anywhere you like.”

****

Takeoff goes smoothly and a few minutes I’m looking out of the cabin’s large, oval-shaped windows at the fluffy, white clouds sailing past. It’s amazing how much more comfortable flying can be when you’re not being crammed in with a few hundred other people.

The luxury of the cabin has done nothing for my nervousness. This is only the second time I’ve left the country in my life and now I’m flying across the world for a business meeting that I don’t feel ready for, one that could change the future of the company and my future. If I’m ever going to go back to working for Greene Earth, I need to make this project a success. Kyan seems to sense my agitation.

“It’s going to be fine,” says Kyan

“What?”

“The meeting. It’s going to be fine. You wrote the report, you know the numbers. You’ve got this.”

“But what if I mess it up?”

“If I thought you couldn’t handle it, I wouldn’t have brought you along. Look, I’m going to do most of the talking, what I need from you is to check the numbers they’re feeding us and just make sure I don’t say anything stupid.”

“OK.”

I feel more at ease knowing that he has faith in me but I still get the report out of my bag to read through it another few times.

“You’re reading the report again? There’s a state of the art entertainment system on board if you prefer, hundreds of movies, anything you want to watch.”

“I just want to make sure I know it all. Have you even read it?”

“I skimmed it.”

“You haven’t read it?” I say without even trying to hide the exasperation in my voice, “How are you going to be able to discuss it if you haven’t read it?”

“That’s why I brought you along. I know what the deal is about and if there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s talking. You’re here to throw in some facts to make sure I’m not completely bullshitting them.”

“Thanks. That makes me feel a lot better.”

“Doesn’t it, though? We’ve got this. No problem.”

With that, Kyan reclines his seat and closes his eyes
. Of course he’s relaxed,
I think,
He’s probably done this a hundred times.

I’m barely through the first page of the report when my eyes start to close by themselves. All the sleep I’ve been losing over the last couple of days has caught up with me, and this seat is so comfortable. The words and numbers on the page just look like a blur so I stop fighting it and let my eyes close.