Mr. Handsome: A Billionaire Romance (6 page)

“Christina, come, we are going to get you a cell phone for Christ’s sake,” Marissa said dispassionately as she walked purposefully by my desk and towards the elevator. I quickly got up, grabbed my purse, and followed her out.

“I was going to get one today after work, I don’t have to take off for my lunch break,” I said as we stepped into the elevator. Marissa gave me a knowing look that said, “yeah,  right.”

“You’ve been saying that for a month now. Plus, my phone just revealed it has a crack in it so it must be fixed. I figured since I’m going to the phone store, so should you.”

I knew better than to argue and I simply got into her Mercedes while the driver took us to a nearby AT&T store.

Marissa was acting almost motherly, treating me similar to one of her models as she made sure I got a good cell phone and a good plan along with it. She walked out with a fixed Samsung and I got a brand new iPhone.

“It’s been a while since I had a cell phone. Thanks for giving me the bonus so I could get one, Marissa.”

She shrugged, I guess she didn’t want to be
too
nice.

“You should put Jeffrey’s number in and let him know that you have a cell…” she said and looked at me knowingly. My eyes widened a fraction and she nodded sagely. “Well, how do you think he found you?

Just yesterday he turns up at our offices without an appointment, which of course, was fine as I love to see all my clients. Anyway, he showed up asking for
you
and when I told him you weren’t at work, he asked how he could find you. I’d say he was very taken with you,” she informed me frankly.

I fished around in my bag for his card and programmed his number into it, Marissa took the phone out of my hand and called him while shooing me into the restaurant we stopped at to pick up lunch. A bit disgruntled, I did her bidding and walked into the pita shop to get our food. What could she be saying to him? I hope she wasn’t calling me Target girl…I mean the least she could’ve done was bump me up to Kohl’s. I sighed and paid for our food and then went back to the car.

“Oh, she’s back, I’ll hand you over,” Marissa had that weird adoring tone as she was ending the conversation with Jeffrey. She passed me the sleek gold phone and I answered a little self-consciously, Marissa was obviously listening in on the conversation. I could tell because she was watching me expectantly.

“I see you’ve gotten a cell phone; you know your voice sounds just as sexy over the phone as it does in real life…”

I laughed, more out of surprise and slight disbelief than anything else. Jeffrey’s voice sounded even sexier over the phone, which was insane, because that ought to be impossible.

“Wow, you laughed! I made you laugh, that means you like me,” Jeffrey said smugly and I couldn’t help but giggle again. Marissa rolled her eyes at me and motioned at me to talk instead of giggle. I probably did sound like one of his fan girls.

“You’re okay, I guess, I’m still not so sure…” I said, only half joking. Jeffrey chuckled; the sound was warm and inviting.

“I can understand why you’d say that, and don’t worry, I will change your view of me, so guess what?” Jeffrey sounded like he had a surprise or something, rather than a secret.

“What…?” I said cautiously.

“Marissa has a clear schedule tomorrow; you don’t have to work. So…can I come pick you up tonight?” My eyes widened in surprise and I looked over at Marissa who actually gave me a smile as to say “you’re welcome.”

“Um…sure I guess…” I said, though the hesitation was clear in my voice.

Chapter3

Jeffrey

“
Are
you sure?” I asked Christina. I had to admit that she was the toughest date to secure. I would make her feel secure, though; I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t get her out of my head. She was so soft spoken and had a quiet grace about her, not to mention she was beautiful. The kind of beautiful that would make you do a double-take because you didn’t notice her at first. Now she was making me work for a date with her and I fucking loved that.

“Yes, yes I’m sure. Tonight then, the same time?” she asked, her voice softening again. I could only imagine her being stuck in the car while Marissa was probably bullying her into what to say.

“Seven thirty, I’ll be there,” I promised and soon she was saying a soft “see you later.” She had such a way of making things feel so intimate and tender, even over the phone. I put my cell down on my desk and reclined back in the desk chair, my hands folded behind my head. I was feeling pretty good, I had to admit.

“Hey Jeff, we have a…what, did you just get a blow job or something?” Victor walked into my office, his expression suspicious.

“No. I just have a date tonight with a girl I like,” I grinned, and Victor’s expression turned into a confused frown.

“Since when do you get so excited over a date? You go for dinner, have sex and then move onto the next one,” Victor said bluntly.

A spike of anger rose in my chest at his inadvertent insult against Christina.

“She’s not like that, things are not going to be like that with us.” My tone was firm and Victor’s expression turned perplexed. Man, was this guy expressive today.

“Alright, then…well, we have a little hiccup in one of the warehouses. There was a small fire and it destroyed a few ignition pieces that we got from Cromwell this morning.”

I sighed heavily. The last thing I need is any suspicious activity going on where Cromwell was concerned.

“Report it, get all the necessary paperwork done. Then send in to Cromwell’s factory that we need replacements and have the proof to back up our reason for needing it,” I said clearly, Victor nodding as if he was already having all that done.

“Yeah, the fire department is on the scene. I just wanted to let you know. Also, you need to set up a meeting with Vanessa, she’s great at her new position and is in talks with the UK, more specifically Northern Ireland…so there could be a deal pending,” Victor said, his eyebrows lifting with intrigue.

“Alright, well I’m free now if she has twenty minutes, otherwise I’ll be busy until Monday.” Victor nodded, he knew my schedule better than I did, of course.

“It’ll have to be Monday, then; she’s booked solid with meetings. You should give her a
raise.”

I laughed at Victor, the fool was so whipped it was hilarious. Nessa had him wrapped around her finger, that was for sure. Victor left to go and deal with the fire incident in our Hell’s Kitchen warehouse and I went to go and get lunch.

I really wanted to talk to Christina again, but I didn’t want to seem weird. Plus, Marissa was probably loading work onto her plate. Now that Christina had a cell phone, I’m sure it would be much easier for her to get the job she really wanted. I went downstairs to the little soup and salad cart in the lobby. By the time I returned to my desk, I couldn’t help myself. I sent her a text:
Hope Marissa isn’t working you too hard…
I sat back with my salad and took a few bites before she replied.

No…she’s being weirdly nice to me today. I think it’s because we’re going on a date tonight.

I smiled, Marissa was an odd character, beautiful, but odd.

What?! You’re going out on a date with Marissa? I thought we were going out?
I sent the message and waited for her reply with a stupid smirk on my face. Not three days ago I had walked in on Victor texting Vanessa with the same goofy grin and I threw my shoe at him.

Of course, we then started wrestling right there in the office and Vanessa walked in, asking if we had something to tell her. The point was that Victor was acting like a silly teenager and it peeved me that I didn’t have that. Now I did and it was ironic, it also felt fucking
good
.

You’re silly, ha-ha, I meant you and I.
I could imagine her soft giggle and my smile turned into a full on grin.
Where are we going by the way? Do I have to dress fancy?
I was planning on taking her to a nice restaurant, it was intimate and had great food in good portions. Romello’s was my favorite Italian restaurant in the city.

Yeah, it is kind of fancy. I’ll be wearing a jacket and tie over jeans, so hopefully that gives you an idea. Or a vivid picture in your head and you can imagine undressing me
. I sent her a winking face and waited for her reply.

I think I have something to go with that…I have to get back to work, I’ll see you tonight.
I wondered if she meant she had something to go with the image of me naked, or what I was going to wear on our date. A vivid image of Christina popped into my head.

When she was soaking wet at the photo shoot I could clearly see her sexy curves through her clinging top and jeans. Her curly hair was glistening with water droplets and a lock of it kept dripping water onto her lips. I was floored with the need I had to lick the water from every inch of her body.

Just thinking about it made my cock stiffen and I forced myself to get it together. I had a meeting with several of my department heads in less than ten minutes, for Pete’s sake. Plus, I wouldn’t push Christina past her comfort zone. I’d go at her pace, well I’d push things a little, if her pace was bailing out of our date, but I would simply do whatever she allowed. I nodded to myself resolutely and finished my salad before heading over to the conference room.

The meeting went routinely, everything was running smoothly, apart from the small fire, of course, but things were cleaning up quickly and the warehouse would be back in good order soon. I just hoped Cromwell wouldn’t think anything fishy was going on. Cromwell wanted our partnership to work, but he was far from having blind faith as well. The rest of my day went by with painful slowness.

When I got home, I quickly showered, changed, and then headed over to Christina’s place. I was thirty minutes early, but I couldn’t wait any longer. I stepped inside her building and used the intercom so she could buzz me up.

“Jeffrey?” her voice was a little flustered, I wondered if she had to run to get to the intercom.

“Yeah, it’s me, I’m a little early,” I said while feeling kind of lame. It’s like I was a freaking ninth grader about to go on his first date. Maybe I should have stayed home and forced myself to wait it out.

“Oh, it’s fine. I’ll buzz you up,” she said before I heard the buzzer and the door leading to the stairs opened up. I walked to the third floor and knocked on 3B. She opened the door a few seconds later and I had to physically restrain myself when I saw that she was in a towel, her hair was piled high on her head with a few escaped tendrils falling into her face. “I was just getting into the shower. Make yourself at home, there’s beer in the fridge if you want.”

She quickly scurried into the bathroom and I stepped fully inside, closing the door behind me. I heard the shower start up and the image of her wet from the rain came barreling to the forefront of my mind.

I went right to the fridge. She had four bottles of Yuengling and I smiled at her choice in beer. Not bad at all. I grabbed one, popped the cap, and then took a long swig. The sound of the shower running as background ambiance was almost painful. I had wanted nothing more than to rip that towel away from her smooth brown skin when she opened the door and explore her every curve and peak.

I tried hard not to even peek inside the bathroom like a weirdo. I glanced around the open space. It was a nice studio apartment, hardwood floors and decorated in nice pastels. She had a balcony and a nice view of the street, too. The kitchen was updated with granite counter tops and a breakfast bar. She had a distinct living room area and her bedroom area was sectioned off on a step lower than the rest of the apartment. I wondered how much this place cost her, or how much Marissa was paying her.

Urban Plus was a high end modeling agency, so maybe that’s how Christina could afford the place. Then she did say that her father was an investment banker so he probably helped her out with rent. The shower turned off and my eyes glued themselves to the bathroom door, just waiting for her to have to come out to the main room to change.

I prayed that she had maybe forgotten panties or something in the wardrobe across from her bed. The door cracked open and I put my beer down on the breakfast bar, she poked her head out and smiled at me, seeming embarrassed.

“Would you mind…um, going in my night stand over there and pulling out a pair of panties for me?” Would I
mind
? Hell no. I nodded and went directly where she pointed to get the panties for her. I pulled out a black lacy pair and then glanced over my shoulder.

“Do you need a bra too?” I asked, she bit her lip nervously, she was obviously mortified I had to do this for her. I didn’t mind in the slightest.

“Yeah actually…it’s in the drawer below that one,” she said and I found the matching bra to go with her panties. There was no way I wasn’t getting to see her in those before the night was over. I went to hand her the underwear and she gripped the towel against her chest tightly before taking them from me.

“Thank you, I’ll be ready in just a few minutes,” she said before quickly shutting the door and leaving me standing there imagining her sliding those panties on.

My cock stiffened once again and I had to take a few deep breaths to control my need for her.

I went back to my beer and finished it in three gulps. A few minutes later, Christina stepped out of the bathroom looking positively stunning in a little black dress and red pumps. The skirt flowed at the waist and showed off her incredible legs. It was shorter in the front than the back and had a low neck line,

showing just enough of her cleavage that I could let her out of the house. Her hair was pinned over her shoulder and she wore long dangling gold earrings that brushed her neck and a thin chain around her neck that had a small diamond set into gold that was tear drop shaped. She wore a simple gold bracelet to match.

“You look…amazing Christina, really,” I said, feeling a bit like taking her right to bed.

“Oh…thanks, um, do you want to head out now?” she asked tentatively.

I shook my head no and her expression turned to one of bemusement.

“I mean yes, of course, let’s go eat…” I tried to recover, but she simply masked her brief confusion with a smile and I led her out to my car.

“So are you going to tell me where you’re taking me or do I have to guess?” Her tone was teasing and she had a little spark to her caramel colored eyes. I smiled at her and she bit her lip, turning my thoughts almost instantly. It was a nervous gesture of hers, but it came across completely differently.

“I’m taking you to my favorite restaurant called Romello’s. It’s an Italian restaurant and kind of romantic. I always look like the odd man out whenever I go,” I said jokingly.

Christina quirked an eyebrow at me in interest.

“You’ve never brought a date there before?”

I shook my head; their food was so good that I never saw myself as able to hold a conversation over dinner. I’d just be eating the entire time.

“It’s too good for talking, their food, I mean. So I never thought to bring a date there. But I wanted to take you someplace I thought was special.” Christina smiled shyly and I slid my hand around hers. “I promise you, it’ll be the best Italian food you’ve ever had,” I assured her. I studied her face and found she seemed to be looking forward to our date.

We were on the right track then. “You look really beautiful you know.” Christina nudged me, her expression bashful. I lifted her chin and forced her to make eye contact with me. “I mean it. You’re a beautiful woman, Christina.”