The Wager: A Billionaire Romance (3 page)

While I was staring in the mirror, mentally bracing myself for going back out to the ballroom, the restroom doors opened and two giggling women entered arm and arm. They paused when they saw me. The pause was only brief before they went back to whispering and laughing in each other's ears.

I took it as my cue to leave, and as I walked back towards the ballroom, I resolved to find Maxwell and apologize. Even though he'd been mostly at fault, I knew I shouldn't have gone off on him like that. He just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. As I walked back to the ballroom, I was shocked to see how much bigger and louder the crowd was. It seemed like everyone had arrived while I was away. There was no way I could find Maxwell in this crowd.

I decided to head back to the bar and wait for Mel there. I had made up my mind that once I found her, I'd tell her I was done and leaving for the night. There was no way I could manage another hour in here.

As I made my way over, I could feel a hum in the crowd and a faint buzzing sound. People were whispering to each other as I walked by. I shook my head, thinking I must have been imagining it all. There'd be no reason for anyone to even know who I was, much less be talking about me. But something just didn't feel right.

Chapter Two: Roman

"Roman Conrad! Is that you?"

I turned my head at the sound of my name. The face staring back at me was unfamiliar, yet he acted like we were the best of friends. Then again, I was used to it. There were two reactions I normally got from people. It was either fearful deference or encroaching familiarity. This man had gone for the latter. The fact that he could stand there and look at me without an inkling of discomfort pushed him up a little in my estimation.

It was times like these that I wished I'd brought Lara, my personal assistant, with me. Normally she'd be my go-to date to attend these charity functions with. She knew who everyone was and most importantly could steer me away from people I had no time or desire to speak to. As it was, I had been somewhat forced to attend with a beautiful, but rather shallow woman. The fact that she was my best friend's little sister made her clearly off limits, but judging from the looks she had been shooting me all night, she left me in no doubt she would welcome me in her bed.

"You have no idea who I am, do you?"

I snapped my head up to look at the stranger again. An inkling of recognition was making its way through my brain.

"Warren Peters," I said, as soon as the name had popped into my head.

"I'm glad to see I'm not as forgettable as all that."

I shrugged my shoulders. "It's hard to forget the man who took something that belonged to me," I said.

"Oh come on, you're not still sore about that, are you?"

The truth was I had forgotten it all until he addressed me just then. Warren Peters had somehow outbid and out maneuvered me at auction for a rare Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic. There were only two in existence and one of them was in a museum. The other car should have been sitting in my garage, but this man standing before me with his Cheshire cat grin had stolen it from right under my nose. Now that I remembered, I felt that rare but bitter taste of defeat once again.

"Why don't you sell it to me?" I said. "Name your price."

The friendly smile on his face was replaced by a shrewd and calculating look. I instantly felt my hackles rise and knew that I'd be a fool to underestimate this man.

"I heard you bought the Cézanne painting at auction last year," he said.

"What is your point?"

"Perhaps we could make a trade."

I laughed in his face. "You're kidding me right? The painting is worth over $100 million and the Bugatti is $40 million at most. What do you take me for?"

"I'm just throwing the offer out there. To tell you the truth, I really don't even want to sell the car. I've grown attached to it. It's a real thing of beauty--"

"I'll give you $50 million for it," I said cutting him off. "That's more than what the car is worth."

He paused to think about my offer and I could almost see the wheels turning in his head. But before he could reply we were interrupted.

"Oh Roman! There you are. I thought I'd lost you in this crowd," my date Helen said as she came up and grabbed my arm.

I had to fight to keep the annoyance from my face at her untimely interruption. But I couldn't help rolling my eyes at her dramatic entrance. As if I wasn't standing exactly where I'd been for the last half an hour.

"Helen, this is Warren Peters," I said, slipping my arm out of her grip.

She turned around and barely acknowledged him before turning back to me. It would have been funny to watch her flounder when she found out Warren Peters was a very rich man, but I couldn't be bothered to enlighten her.

"The funniest thing happened, you'll never guess Roman!" she said looking up at me in that simpering way that I couldn't stand.

I didn't say anything knowing she'd tell me anyway. If there was one thing I'd discovered during our short acquaintance, it was that Helen Marsden was never one to hold back from gossiping.

"Maxwell Stein just got humiliated by some nobody. It was the saddest and most pathetic thing," she said.

Immediately, my eyes glazed over as I tried to tune out her voice. I had no interest in hearing about Maxwell Stein and his latest exploits. More than likely he was drunk and acting like a lecherous cretin again.

"What happened?" I heard Warren ask.

I was surprised by his interest in idle gossip which got my attention. Now that Helen had a captive audience, she didn't hold back.

"She actually threw a drink in his face and told him he was ugly and a drunk. Don't get me wrong, Maxwell probably deserved it, the pervert, but can you believe the gall of this girl to actually throw her drink in his face.
So tacky.
And she's not even pretty! Who does she think she is? I've never even seen her before, and her dress, it must be off the rack--"

"I can't say I disagree with her," I said interrupting Helen's tirade.

She shot me an irritated glance before catching herself. "Yes, but you should have seen this woman. I don't even know how she got invited. Cora's standards are surely slipping if someone like that four-eyed freak managed to make the guest list."

I held my tongue, not mentioning the fact that Helen wasn't invited either. She had been excluded from the guest list for the last five years and the only reason she was here tonight was because her brother, who was safely overseas in Asia, badgered me to take her.

"Oh look there she is, right over by the bar," she said.

I looked over to where she was pointing and noticed a woman standing by herself. She seemed harmless enough if it weren't for the combative stance she took. She wasn't an unattractive woman, from what I could see, but her dress did nothing to flatter her figure. It made her hips look wide while she was practically spilling out of her top. Her breasts were pleasantly perky and full though, but it was all overshadowed by the hideous glasses she wore on her face. I had no idea if this was a fashion trend she was trying to start, but she looked utterly ridiculous. If it wasn't for Helen pointing her out to me, I'd have taken no notice of her whatsoever.

"She's not bad," I said after my perusal. I knew I was being overly generous in my assessment, partly to shut Helen up and partly to goad her.

"You can't be serious, Roman!" she spluttered. "Don't tell me you actually find her attractive. I've seen your ex-girlfriends and this girl couldn't even hold a candle to them."

"Why thank you, Helen. I'll be sure to mention that you said that next time I see them," I said drolly.

Helen was too flabbergasted to make a reply and I hid a smile behind my champagne glass.

"Roman's right," Warren said. "She's does have somewhat of a pretty face, if you can look past the unfortunate glasses, though she could stand to hire a stylist. Who is she?"

"I don't know. No one knows who she is. Like I said, she's probably a nobody that managed to sneak in," she answered before she turned and shot Warren a resentful glare.

"You seem to be taking a lot of interest in her," I said to Warren. "Do you fancy her?"

"She's not really my type. Besides, it's a moot point. The Ice Princess obviously thinks we're all beneath her. Look at how she looks down her nose at everybody here. I don't even think you could win her over."

"Care to make it interesting?" I said. I smiled as I hit on a brilliant plan.

"I'm listening."

"I bet you I could make her fall in love with me in one month, tops," I said. "If I win, you give me the Bugatti."

His eyes widened in interest. "You really rate your charms highly, don't you? I mean don't get me wrong, I have no doubt you could make her fall in love with you, but making it happen in one month is moving pretty fast."

"So you're afraid to take the bet?" I asked.

Warren looked me over appraisingly, before he turned his attention back to the Ice Princess, as he had called her. His lips pursed in thought before a slow smile spread across his face. "No, I'll take the bet. Something tells me it's going to take a lot of work to crack that hard shell. But if you lose, I get the Cézanne."

I stared long and hard at Warren. He knew the Cézanne was worth more than twice the value of the Bugatti, and he also probably knew how competitive I was. I had to give it to the man for sheer audacity. I'd never failed at a challenge I set for myself yet, so I had no doubt that I could pull it off. My confidence was unshakable as I agreed to Warren's terms. Our handshake sealed the deal, and I smiled as I thought about the fact that in one month I'd finally be the owner of a Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic.

***

I didn't waste a minute starting my plan of action. The first thing I had to do was find out who the Ice Princess was. I excused myself from Warren and Helen, and made my rounds around the room, always keeping an eye on her. There must be someone here who knows who she is, I thought. There was no way she snuck in here and crashed the party. She looked like she'd rather be anywhere else.

Truthfully, I could relate to that sentiment. I hated these formal black tie galas as well, but as a member of the board of directors, this was one event I couldn't skip out on. After making my second pass around the room with no more information to go on than what Helen had already told me, I was ready to bite the bullet and introduce myself to her directly.

Just as I was making my way over, I finally saw a petite redhead approach the mystery woman and grab her hands excitedly. She looked familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on where I saw her before. The two women had their heads bowed close together chatting excitedly. I saw them pointing at the front of the Ice Princess' dress, and wondered what they could be talking about.

Finally they broke apart when another person joined their party. I smiled when I realized that the newcomer was none other Chad Remington. He'd be the perfect person to help me gather information. I'd briefly dated his sister years ago and I knew he had a reputation as being extremely friendly and guileless--almost like an irrepressible puppy.

I made my move when Chad left the girls to head to the bar for drinks. Before he could grab the drinks from the counter, I stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Chad! It's so good to see you," I said.

He looked at me in surprise before quickly regaining his composure. "It's good to see you too Roman," he said. "I didn't know you'd be here tonight. You don't normally come to these events."

"Yeah well, I like to make an appearance once in a while. It lets people know I'm still alive and kicking," I said light heartedly.

"Ha-ha good one," he said. "Well, it was nice seeing--"

"Hey, who's that woman you were talking to earlier?" I asked cutting him off before he headed back to the ladies.

He furrowed his brow at me. "Who do you mean?"

"The one standing over there?" I said pointing to where the Ice Princess and her redheaded friend were standing.

Chad frowned and his body tensed as he looked to where I was pointing. "Which one? The redhead or the blonde?" he asked.

"The blonde."

He instantly relaxed and gave me a sheepish smile. "I was hoping you'd say her. Her name's Lily Hayward and her friend, the redhead, is Melanie Abelgard."

I lifted my brows at that. "Cora's daughter, I take it?"

"Yeah, but she's nothing like her," he blurted a little too quickly.

"What else do you know about her, Lily that is?" I asked.

"Not much else. We've only just met. I can introduce you if you'd like."

"Lead the way" I said, smiling at how easy that was.

I followed Chad back to the ladies. They were surprised to see me, judging by the expression on their faces. The redhead recognized me instantly I could tell, but the Ice Princess quickly shuttered her expression and looked at me blankly.
Interesting
. Soon after Chad made the introductions, he left to bring the redhead, Melanie, out to the dance floor, leaving me alone with my prey.