Billionaire Temptations: Rich, Ruthless & Obsessed

Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chloe

I nervously walked around the gallery, watching, staring, and hearing the whispers of the people who came to the exhibition. Connor and Ellery were standing in front of the sculptures talking to Oliver and Liam Wyatt. There was no reason to be nervous, but I was. I think I was more nervous for Caden. Looking at my watch, I wondered where Sienna was. Suddenly, I felt two arms wrap around my waist from behind.

“Hello, gorgeous.”

Turning my head, I gasped when I saw Sam staring at me.

“Oh my God. What are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t get on that next plane when I landed in Boston. I just couldn’t do it. I already missed her too much.”

“Aw. Where is Sienna?”

“She’s in the bathroom. She told me to come up and surprise you.”

“Well, I’m glad you did.” I placed my hand on his chest.

“SURPRISE!” Sienna smiled as she held out her arms.

Hugging her tightly, I could tell she was happy that Sam was back.

“This is a great surprise, right?” I whispered in her ear.

“Yes. It sure is. I’ll fill you in on all the details later. For now, I’m going to check out that sexy artwork over there.”

She hooked her arm in Sam’s, and they walked over to the display.

“I thought he went back to England.” I heard Sebastian’s voice behind me.

When I turned around, the butterflies awoke in my belly as if they were happy to see him.

“He never made it out of Boston. He came back.”

“I see. How are you?” He smiled.

“Nervous, but good.”

He placed his hand on my shoulder and said, “Don’t be nervous. It looks like everyone is enjoying the exhibition. I will admit that I am curious to see what the artist has done.”

“Then follow me.” I smiled as I held out my arm to him and led him over to the display. “Well?” I asked.

“It definitely is erotic, that’s for sure.

“You like it, though, right?”

“Yes. It’s very expressive.”

“Exactly!” I smiled.

“He does photography too?” Sebastian asked as he stared at the beautiful naked girl in the stiletto heels with the pouty mouth.

“Yes.” I laughed. “Do you like her?” I nudged his shoulder.

“Who me? She’s not my type.” He winked.

I wanted to ask him what his type was, but I refrained for fear he’d get angry.

“Hello, Sebastian.” Ellery smiled.

“Hello, Ellery. You’re looking as lovely as ever.” He kissed her cheek.

“Thank you. If you don’t mind, I’m going to steal Chloe away for a moment.”

“I don’t mind at all.”

When I walked away with Ellery, she led me downstairs.

“Richard Borne is very interested in purchasing almost half the display. He wants a couple of paintings, five photographs, and two sculptures.”

“What’s he going to do with all that?”

“Apparently, he has a,” she held her fingers up, “room that they would be perfect in.”

“Ah. I bet it’s a very special room.” I smiled.

“Ew!” she shrieked. “Him and that room. The thought.” She laughed. “Go ahead and talk to Mr. Borne and find out exactly which pieces he wants and put sold stickers on them.”

“I’m on it. Caden will be very happy.”

“So will Connor.”

Walking back up the stairs, I went into my office, pulled the sold stickers from my desk, and found Mr. Borne. The exhibition was well received, and Caden sold almost every piece of artwork. Standing there staring at the wall that was devoid of all but three paintings, I felt a hand softly touch my back.

“The exhibition went well,” Sebastian spoke. “I told you that you had nothing to worry about.”

“It did. Didn’t it? I’m really happy for Caden.”

“We can head to my penthouse for dinner if you're ready.”

“I’m more than ready. I’m starving. Just let me grab my purse.”

Grabbing my purse from my office, I left the gallery in Gregory's hands to close up, and Sebastian and I headed to his penthouse.

“Wow,” I spoke in awe as I looked around his forty-five-hundred-square-foot penthouse. The light beige walls and light oak flooring made the space look even bigger.

“So, what do you think of my stuffy penthouse?” The corners of his mouth curved upwards.

“Okay. So, I was wrong. It’s very light and airy. No dark wood floors, no dark trim, but I was right about the beige walls.”

“Everyone has beige walls.” He chuckled.

“Mr. Bennett, dinner is ready.”

“Thank you, Karina.”

It was apparent that Sebastian wasn’t going to introduce me to the hired help. So I introduced myself.

“Hi.” I smiled as I held out my hand. “I’m Chloe.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Karina.”

“Nice to meet you too, Karina.” I narrowed my eyes at Sebastian.

I followed him out onto the patio, where a table next to an outdoor fireplace sat.

“I thought it would be nice to dine out here. Of course, if you get cold, we can move inside.”

“No. This is fine.” I smiled.

We took our seats, and Sebastian picked up the bottle of wine and poured some into our glasses.

“So, are you going to tell me what that text was about earlier today?”

He sighed as he brought the glass up to his lips.

“I was supposed to sign the contracts to become a capital investor in a company I had been dealing with for the past several months. It was a multi-million-dollar deal, and I got to thinking about how much I lost in Vegas.”

“Go on.” I smiled.

“It’s not a big deal, Chloe. I just thought that maybe this deal wasn’t supposed to happen right now, so I didn’t sign the contracts. Needless to say, they were not happy.”

“That’s too bad for them. You did the right thing.” I winked before sipping my wine.

We talked mostly about the exhibition, my job, Sienna and Sam, and nothing personally about him. So, I decided to turn it into a game.

“I want to play a game.”

“Oh?” His brow arched. “What kind of game?”

“A personal game. It’s a great way to get to know each other. I’ll start.”

I could tell by the expression on his face that he was on the fence about it.

“My favorite color is yellow.” I pointed at him.

“Black.”

“My favorite food is chicken.” I pointed at him.

“Lobster.

“My favorite kind of flower is the gerbera daisy.” I pointed at him.

“You don’t like roses?” He cocked his head.

“Yes. Answer the question.”

“Orchids.”

“Really?” I smiled.

“If I had to pick one favorite flower, it would be them.”

“I was sixteen when I lost my virginity.” I pointed at him.

“Fifteen.” He smiled.

“With who?” I cocked my head.

“Doesn’t matter.”

“I was homeschooled until the age of ten.” I pointed at him.

He didn’t say anything and got up from his seat. “That was fun, but I think we should go inside now.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked as I grabbed my glass and followed him inside.

“Nothing. I want to make something very clear to you. My past and childhood are off limits.”

“I don’t understand.” I frowned.

He ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t talk about my past to anyone, including you.”

“But why?” I asked in a soft voice as I stepped closer to him.

“Because I don’t.” His voice was authoritative and harsh. “If you can’t respect that, then maybe you should leave.”

“You can talk to me, Sebastian.”

As I went to place my hand on his arm, he backed away.

“No, Chloe, I can’t, and I won’t.”

“How am I supposed to get to know you if you won’t open up to me?”

“You know enough. Leave it at that. It’s not like you need to know anymore.”

“You’re right.” I looked down. “I know enough. You have so much hatred in your heart, and I feel sorry for you. But I know somewhere in there you have more good. I’ve seen it, and I’ve experienced it.” I grabbed my purse, and as I was about to walk out the door, I turned and looked at him. “Life is lost without love, Sebastian, and I hope someday you find it.”