Billionaire Temptations: Rich, Ruthless & Obsessed

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

I spent the next couple of days inside my apartment building. I got up in the mornings, went down to the fitness center, worked out, and then sat in front of the TV all day. The only person I knew in New York was Max, and I hadn’t heard from him since the night he was over. He was probably too busy trying to fuck anything with legs.

School started tomorrow, and I couldn’t wait. I needed to keep myself busy and immerse myself in something other than thinking about him all day. What I thought was going to be easy wasn’t turning out that way. He had an effect on me that I couldn’t explain, and all I wanted to do was spend time with him. Maybe I felt this way because I lived alone in a strange city. I needed to get out and meet more people. I talked to my mom back in Miami and she was doing well. I’d never kept anything from her before, and it was hard not to tell her about Max. I missed my girls – Kara, Aubrey, and Molly – and I missed going out. After putting on my pajamas and climbing into bed, my phone beeped with a text message from Max.

“Good luck on your first day of school tomorrow.”

Really? I haven’t heard from him in two days, and he sent me that. I put my phone down and didn’t respond. Turning off my light, I snuggled under the covers and closed my eyes.

I arrived and took a seat in my Integrative Studio 1 class. I was nervous as hell, just like any other person would be when they started something new and unfamiliar.

“Hi, I’m Hannah.” The girl next to me sat down and smiled.

“Hi, I’m Emma.”

A prospective friend already. I was excited.

We sat and talked for a few minutes before our, oh my God, sexy-as-shit professor walked in. He scanned the class and smiled, welcoming us. I swear I felt my ovaries explode when he looked at me. He stood a little over six feet tall with messy brown hair and a light beard that sat upon his perfectly sculpted jawline. I frowned when my gaydar started flying off the charts. Hannah and I found that we had the next two classes together when class was over. Before our last class, we took a lunch break and grabbed sandwiches at Breads Bakery. She was a cute girl with curly brown hair and big brown eyes. Her tiny body fitted her five-foot-four stature. She was from Iowa and was in New York cultural shock. She lived in one of the campus apartments and was shocked when I told her where I lived. I explained to her that it was Macy’s place, and she was letting me stay there. As we were talking and getting to know each other, my phone beeped with a message from Max.

“You didn’t respond to my text last night. I expect a response when I send you a message.”

“At lunch now. Can’t talk. TTYL!”

I smiled, and another message came through before I set my phone down.

“I’m coming over tonight.”

“Hey, would you mind if I sat with you lovely ladies?” a handsome guy asked. “I’m Austin. I was sitting behind you two in the last two classes.”

“Hi, Austin.” I smiled. “I’m Emma, and this is Hannah.”

Another potential friend. This day was turning out better than I thought it would. Austin was the same age as Hannah and me. He lived with his boyfriend, who was six years older than he was, in a studio apartment in SoHo. The two of them moved to New York from California over the summer when his boyfriend took a job on Wall Street. After finishing our lunch, we returned to Parsons and headed to our last class. When I walked out of the building, I noticed Darren standing in front of the Rolls Royce.

“Good day, Emma. I’m here to drive you home.”

“Hi, Darren. He’s not in there, is he?”

He chuckled. “No. You’re safe.”

I smiled as he opened the door, and I slid into the back seat.

“How was your first day of school?”

“It was good. I met some new friends.”

He looked at me through his rearview mirror. “That’s great, Emma. I’m glad you had a good day.”

I opened the door to my apartment and stepped inside, setting my bag on the floor. The last text message Max sent me was that he was coming over tonight, but he didn’t say if we were going to dinner or not. So I decided to ask him.

“What time are you coming over? Are we doing dinner?”

“I won’t be over until after nine, and I already have dinner plans.”

FUCKER. He pissed me off again.

“Why are you coming over? I’ve had a long day, and I’m tired.”

“I have to talk to you about the engagement party my parents are throwing us, and I won’t stay long.”

Really? An engagement party? Shit. I pulled out some menus that I had found in the kitchen drawer and decided to place a delivery order from the Chinese restaurant around the block. I changed into a pair of sweatpants and a tank top and put my hair up in a high ponytail. A while later, my dinner arrived, and I took it over to the couch with a glass of wine and turned on the episode of Revenge I was on during my two-day Revenge marathon.

It was eight forty-five when I heard a knock. I set my carton of sweet and sour chicken down and walked to the door, looking out the peephole to make sure it was Max. I opened the door, and instantly, his eyes traveled from my head down to my feet. I almost lost my breath when I saw him standing there in his dark gray business suit.

“How was school?” he asked as he walked in.

“It was good.”

“You’re eating Chinese, I see.”

I sighed and took a seat on the couch, picking up my carton and a piece of chicken with my chopsticks. Max sat down next to me.

“My parents are throwing us an engagement party next weekend at their home.”

“And? You couldn’t have told me that over the phone?”

“I hadn’t seen you in a couple of days.” His fingers played with the ends of my ponytail. “I wanted to tell you in person.”

I turned my head towards him so my hair was out of his reach. “How was your dinner?”

“Boring. It was with a prospective client. Why don’t you tell me about your day?” He softly smiled.

“Well, let’s see. I went to class, met some new friends, had lunch, and now I’m home. That pretty much sums it up.”

“What’s wrong with you? I’m sensing an attitude.” His fingers deftly ran across my shoulder.

I shuddered.

“Nothing’s wrong, and I don’t have an attitude.” I did have an attitude, but I didn’t want to. The fact that he walked into my life unexpectedly and decided to turn my world upside down irritated me. The more I was with him, and the more I stared into his amazing gray eyes, the harder I was falling.

“Tell me about your new friends.”

I got up from the couch and took my Chinese cartons into the kitchen. “Their names are Hannah and Austin, and they’re really nice.”

“Austin?”

I swore I heard a hint of jealousy in his voice, and there was no way I was telling him that he was gay.

“Yeah. He lives in a studio apartment over in SoHo, and Hannah lives on campus.”

“I’m glad you met some people. So I suppose you’ll be going out with them sometime?”

I narrowed my eyes at his question.

“Yeah. I’m sure I will be.”

He got up and walked to the door. “I better get going.”

I stood in front of him, and he stared at me for a few moments before placing his thumb on my chin.

“You look really hot in that outfit.”

My toes curled, and my heart picked up at a rapid pace.

“Are you trying to have sex with me again?”

He kissed my forehead. “No. I just wanted to tell you that.” He smiled and walked out the door.

I knew what I was getting myself into by agreeing to this arrangement. I knew that when I saw him for the first time in Miami, and my body started to tingle, I was interested in him, but I didn’t think I’d ever see him again. The more days that went by, and the more I didn’t see or talk to Max, the more dejected I became. I barely knew him, but we were engaged, and he was paying for my school. It was a Saturday morning, and I had just gotten out of bed when my phone beeped with a text message from Darren.

“Good morning, Emma. Max is sending me over to pick you up and bring you to his apartment. I should be there in about fifteen minutes.”

I sighed.

“I just woke up, and I need to shower and get dressed. You can tell Mr. Hamilton that I’ll be over when I’m done getting ready and no sooner. So I’ll see you in about an hour.”

Who the hell did Max think he was? I thought I had heard my phone beep as I was showering, so I took it from the nightstand in my room when I finished.

“Don’t eat breakfast. I have breakfast here for us.”

I rolled my eyes. What the hell was he doing?

I stepped out of the building, and Darren was waiting at the curb.

“Good morning, Emma.” He smiled.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of being summoned so early in the morning by Mr. Hamilton?”

Darren snickered. “I’m not quite sure.”

He drove me to Max’s apartment and pulled around to the parking garage, where an elevator sat at the far end.

“Take that elevator up to the top floor.”

“Thanks, Darren. Have a good day.”

“You too, Emma.”