Forbidden Billionaires, Vol. 3

City of Sin - Chapter 37

Bee

It really did feel like I was dreaming. I stared up at the grand old building through the car window. I had admired it from a distance whenever I walked through Central Park. The door opened and Mason put his hand out for me. I hadn't even noticed he had gotten out of the car.

He looked so handsome. When I was trying to convince myself to stay away from him, I had tried to ignore his good looks.

But he was one of the most handsome men I had ever met.

And with his wool jacket unbuttoned and his tux showing, he looked like he was straight out of a magazine.

He could have been advertising anything.

I'd want to buy whatever it was. How had I wound up here?

I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.

"Are you planning on driving off without me again?" He raised his left eyebrow.

I put my hand in his and stepped out of the car. "Not in a million years. Are you trying to get rid of me?"

He laughed and intertwined his fingers with mine. "Not in a million years, Bee."

I looked down at our hands. I felt like my hand fit well in his.

It really seemed like I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

Everything leading up to this point had been worth it if Mason was actually the guy he seemed to be.

The guy who wanted to be the reason why I stayed in New York. I was falling for that guy.

We walked up the red carpet on the front steps. The lights on top of the canopy above us lit up the entrance beautifully. It looked like something out of an old movie. Mason pulled two tickets out of his front coat pocket and handed them to the man who had just opened up the door for us.

The man looked down at the tickets. "Mr. Caldwell, the gala is being held in the ballroom." He handed the tickets back to Mason. "Down the hall to the left. I hope you both have a wonderful evening."

"You too," Mason said.

I gripped Mason's hand a little tighter when we walked into the hotel. The marble floor led to the most ornate staircase I had ever seen. The Plaza Hotel's emblem was emblazoned on the floor in gold. And the chandeliers completed the royal look of the entranceway.

Mason pulled me in the direction of the ballroom.

"It's beautiful," I said and looked back over my shoulder.

"Not as beautiful as you."

"Usually your pickup lines aren't so cliché." I smiled up at him.

"I'm not trying to pick you up. I already have you." He squeezed my hand.

The way he said it made my body feel warm. Is that what he thought? That I was his? It had been a long time since I had felt connected to someone. That's what I wanted. To be a part of a "we" again.

"Have you ever been here before?" I asked.

"I come every year."

"How many years have you been coming?"

"Six, I believe."

"So you've been donating to the hospital since you graduated? You're a bad boy with a good heart, Mason Caldwell."

"It's a good cause."

"Who do you usually bring to these events?"

"No one important in a long time." He smiled down at me. "Have you ever been to this hotel?"

"What purpose would I ever have for going to The Plaza Hotel?"

"Something fancy?"

I laughed. "I haven't done anything fancy in a long time."

"I heard the mattresses are exceptionally comfortable here."

I swallowed hard. I loved when he talked like that. I wanted to be witty back. "We're pretty good without a mattress."

"You don't have to remind me." He stopped outside the coat check. "Turn around, Bee."

I turned away from him. He slowly pulled my coat off of me, tracing his fingers down my arms. The electricity shot through me even stronger than before.

He pushed my hair to the side and kissed the back of my neck.

"Truly breathtaking," he whispered. The heat of his breath on the back of my neck made my skin tingle.

I turned around and watched him grab the tickets out of his pocket before handing both our jackets over to the attendant.

"The hospital thanks you for your very generous donation, Mr. Caldwell. I hope you and your lovely guest enjoy the evening. You will both be at table three."

"Thank you."

The man opened up the door to the ballroom for us.

I followed Mason inside. Whether or not I was breathtaking was questionable, but there was no question about this room.

It was absolutely beautiful. All the decorations were adorned with gold.

And the chandeliers were even more extravagant than the ones in the entranceway.

There was a dance floor in the middle of the room, surrounded by ornately decorated round tables.

It was like a room for a wedding reception, only way fancier than any wedding I had ever been to.

"Come with me. I want to introduce you to someone," Mason said.

I held on to his hand. I was suddenly incredibly nervous. All the people here were rich like him. If he hadn't bought me this dress, I definitely would have stuck out in the crowd. And not in a good way.

"James," Mason said and stopped in front of a man I instantly recognized.

He was that professor who had gotten fired from the University of New Castle.

Although, I guess Mason said he had actually resigned.

He hadn't changed at all. I never had a class with him, but I had seen him around campus.

He was hard not to notice. He was ridiculously good looking.

And he had this air of authority around him.

It almost transported me right back to school.

The two men briefly hugged and slapped each other's backs. It was funny when guys did that. They just had to make hugging masculine too. I couldn't help but laugh.

Someone else laughing made me look away.

It was the girl standing right next to James.

She was really pretty. Her long red hair looked beautiful against the green fabric of her dress.

She seemed to be tickled by the fact that they had slapped each other's backs too.

She was staring up at James in the most loving way.

I wasn't sure I had ever looked at anyone like that.

I looked back at James as Mason and him ended their hug.

There was so much warmth in the smile James gave her as he wrapped his arm back around her shoulders.

I had heard rumors about their relationship at school.

But the horrible rumors couldn't have been true.

They definitely seemed to be in love. Not that I had much to compare it to.

My parents got divorced when I was really young.

And my relationship with Patrick had ended in disaster.

Marie and Carter were the only real couple I knew.

And they seemed perfect for each other. But even they didn't look at each other like that.

"Bee," Mason said and turned back to me. He wrapped his arm around my back so that his hand was resting on my hip. "Bee, this is James and Penny."

"Hi," I said, and nervously shook James' hand and then Penny's. I liked that Mason kept his arm around me. It was like I was his and he was excited to introduce me to his friends. I always got nervous at things like this. But I felt comfortable next to him.

"Bee actually went to the University of New Castle," Mason said.

"I thought you looked familiar. What year did you graduate?" Penny asked.

"A few years ago. In 2015."

"Oh." Penny smiled up at James. "We had some overlap, then. We moved here in 2015. Maybe we had a class together?"

"I don't know," I said. "I spent most of my time at the Sigma Pi frat house. My ex lived there. Maybe I saw you there?"

"That must be it! One of my best friends lived there too. Tyler Stevens."

"I knew Tyler!"

"Wait who was your boyfriend?" asked Penny.

"Patrick Huff."

"I don't recognize it. But I'm sure I ran into him. Although, I didn't spend that much time there. James took up most of my time." She smiled up at him again.

"Maybe we shouldn't talk so much about our exes, Penny," James said.

Penny laughed. "Sorry." She looked up at Mason. "Sorry, Mason, I didn't mean to remind your girlfriend of her ex."

"Very funny, Penny," Mason said.

I wasn't sure what was so funny. But I didn't want to dwell on it.

"What did you major in, Bee?" James asked.

"Marketing. And I had a minor in advertising."

"I'm surprised I never had you in one of my classes."

"Yeah, I always tried to get in, but your classes filled up so fast. I heard you were a great teacher."

He laughed. "I wasn't that great. You didn't miss out on anything."

"You were great," Penny said. "He was definitely the best professor I ever had."

"That's just because you were sleeping with him," Mason said.

Oh my God. I was about to apologize for what Mason had said when Penny started laughing again.

"You're probably right," Penny said. "James was definitely the highlight of my time at the University of New Castle. And everything after that too." She looked a little embarrassed when she said it. But her embarrassment seemed to evaporate when James leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"I still have to do the rounds," James said. "Want to come with me and we can spare our dates the boredom?"

"Sound like a plan," Mason said. "I'll be right back, baby." His hand slid down my hip and he lightly squeezed my ass before walking off with James.

Oh my God. Did he seriously just goose me in front of all these people? I hoped my face wasn't as red as my dress.

Penny turned to me. "I can't believe you're from Delaware too. I never meet anyone who grew up where I did."

"Me either," I said. "It's quite the transition moving here."

"Yeah it is. But Central Park is really nice."

"That's what I always say to everyone whenever I miss having a lawn."

Penny laughed. "Me too."

"Do you ever miss it?"

"Home? Or having a lawn?"

I laughed. "Both, I guess."

"Sometimes." Penny looked over at James again. "I've found that the company is more important than the location."

"I just have to say that you and James are the most adorable couple I've ever seen."

She laughed.

"What?"

"He does not like being called adorable. You know, I don't think I've ever seen Mason like this."

"Like what?" I asked.

"The way he looks at you. I've never seen him look at anyone that way. I think he really likes you."

"Why did Mason say 'very funny' when you apologized for reminding me about my ex?"

"Oh. Nothing really."

"Come on. Us Delaware girls have to stick together."

She smiled "I don't know. His reaction to what I said was more so about the fact that I called you his girlfriend I think. It's just that Mason doesn't really date. I've known him for almost two years and I've never seen him with the same woman twice."

"Really?" I looked over at him and James. I had never seen him like this before. He looked like he was in his element, making small talk with these people. Maybe I didn't know him as well as I had thought.

"But you shouldn't let that bother you. Like I said, I've never seen him like this before. He seems different."

"I feel like every time I'm with him he's different."

"Every time?"

"We've been on a few dates already."

"See. You have nothing to worry about. You two are already dating."

"We haven't really discussed that yet."

"Sometimes you just know."

"Like with you and James?"

"It wasn't easy with us either. I mean, he was still married when we met."

So that part was true. "I guess. I feel like there's still so much I don't know about him. It's hard to let myself fall when there are so many uncertainties."

"I still learn new things about James every day."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, I haven't even met his parents yet."

"But you've been dating for a really long time."

"Mhm. Every time we make plans, they cancel at the last minute. I guess I'm just not exactly their first choice for their son."

"I'm sure that's not true."

Penny laughed. "No, it is. James is way out of my league."

"I'm completely out of my league with Mason too!"

She laughed again. "I am so glad that you are with Mason. Now we can finally go on double dates. Whenever he comes over, I feel like I end up being the third wheel."

"They are kind of cute together," I said and looked over at them again.

"Do you know what I miss most about Delaware?" Penny asked.

"What?"

"Grottos Pizza."

I laughed. "That is my favorite pizza ever. There's so many on the boardwalk that whenever I eat it, it just tastes like summer."

"I know! Pizza here is great, but it doesn't taste like summer."

Mason and James both shook someone's hand and then started walking back over to us.

"Can I ask you something real quick?" I asked.

"Of course."

"Do you think Mason knows how to be in a relationship?"

Penny hesitated for a second. "Yes. Mason is a really good guy. It just takes some time to get to know the real him."

"Tell me about it."

"Please don't worry about what I said before. I think you're perfect for him. I mean, look at how he's looking at you."

Mason was staring at me. Maybe I was imagining it, but it wasn't that different from the way James was looking at Penny. Maybe this really could be more.

"And you're lucky," Penny said. "You don't have to worry about meeting Mason's parents anytime soon."

"What do you mean?"

"After everything that's happened between them? They're not even speaking. It's been good for him, though. He seems more grounded now."

Wait, what? He hadn't mentioned any of that to me.

An ad executive made good money, but not great money.

How were we here? How did he afford the dress I was wearing?

Or the fact that he lived in a hotel? All that money couldn't be from his side business.

Could it? I looked down at the dress I was wearing.

Was it possible that Patrick had actually paid for this dress? The thought made me nauseous.

"I'm going to steal her away now," Mason said and wrapped his arm around my back again.

I almost jumped when he touched me.

"It's always a pleasure," Mason said to Penny.

"Always," Penny said. "It was really nice to meet you, Bee. And get Mason to give you my number." She looked back over at Mason. "Next time you come over, you're bringing her."

"I think I can arrange that," Mason said.

"It was nice to meet you, Bee," James said and stuck his hand out to me. "Like Penny said, you're welcome to our home anytime."

I shook it. How does Mason have such nice friends? James and Penny seemed so normal. Everything I knew about Mason was anything but normal.