Pretend Married (A Billionaire Love Story) (11 page)

A
couple
of days after we returned home I awoke to a wonderful surprise. It wasn’t the surprise I had usually come to expect, which was my lover’s morning wood poking me in the back, although that was always appreciated. It was something totally different and unexpected; it was a text from my brother Michael:
Julia I miss you!

It seemed like somewhat of a coincidence since I had already planned to contact him regarding my real engagement to Edward, as soon as my internal clock adjusted and I was no longer suffering from jet lag. I had to admit to being slightly nervous about it but his message broke the ice and put me at ease. I sent him a return text:
Me 2! Meet me at New Song Moon at 1?
And Michael responded back with a simple:
ok c u soon!

New Song Moon was our favorite Asian restaurant in the city. It was a small unassuming place that was popular with the locals and located in the heart of Chinatown. Michael and I had eaten there dozens of times over the years. Its ambience was nil and its décor consisted solely of paper lanterns but the food was outstanding. I got there before Michael and took a seat by the window, which looked out onto bustling Stockton Street.

I spied Michael approaching the restaurant and noted that he looked very upbeat, which made me feel optimistic about our lunch date. His text sounded positive and I was reasonably sure that he would not be antagonistic toward me or provoke a fight about Edward. He entered the café and I was relieved to see his face light up when he spotted me. He kissed me on the top of my head and plopped down across from me in the red vinyl booth.

“Julia you look fantastic Sis! Is there something different about you? Your hair? I’ve never seen you look quite
this
beautiful before!”

“I have sooooo much to tell you! I don’t even know where to start! But my hair is a little different actually. I got a new cut and style while I was in Paris!”

“Paris? As in Paris, France? Are you shittin’ me? When did you go there?”

Just then, Suzy Quan the owner came over with some tea and menus.

“Great to see you two again! Shall I bring you both your usual or do you need to see these menus first?”

“It’s great to see you too Suzy. I’d like my usual lunch special please. How ‘bout you Michael?”

“Yeah my usual is fine too. Thanks Suzy!”

“Okay two usual lunch specials coming up!”

“So when were you in France Julia?”

“Edward and I just got back a couple days ago. He had some business to do in Europe for the last two weeks so he took me along. We went to France, Italy and Austria! Oh Michael it was so incredibly amazing!”

“Wow I can’t believe it! I didn’t even know you were away! I
did
see video footage of you guys getting engaged at the San Francisco Bay benefit party though. That looks like quite a ring he gave you there. So when is the….um…..wedding?”

I took a sip of my tea and stretched my left arm across the table so Michael could get a closer look at my diamond ring.

“That’s my other giant news Michael! Edward and I are engaged to be married for real. The gala proposal was a pretense but then he asked me, seriously and honestly, to marry him. And of course I said yes. We don’t have an exact date yet. It will be before Halloween obviously.”

“Well that’s wonderful Julia! Maybe Edward Armani is an honorable man after all. You don’t know how happy I am to hear that.”

“We’ve also been working on……you know…..making a baby.” I felt my cheeks blush a bit, saying that to my little brother.

“I did not need to hear that sis… And… Awesome! I can’t wait to be an uncle!”

“See? Now you have no reason to hate him anymore Michael! I told you he was a great guy underneath.”

“Truthfully, I have to confess that I stopped
completely
hating him that evening he came down to talk to me at the club…..”

“What evening that he came down to the club? He never told me he visited you at the club. When was this?”

Suzy Quan brought out two bowls of steaming hot egg drop soup that came with our specials and we both started slurping them up while we talked.

“Oh I don’t know……..three or four weeks ago maybe?”

“That’s weird. Edward never said anything about that at all. I wonder why he would keep it a secret from me?”

“Maybe he thought you would feel like he was meddling. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything to you. Forget I ever told you.”

“I can’t forget something like that! What did you talk about? What did he say to make you start liking him all of a sudden?”

“I gotta really think about that for a minute…… that was a while ago.”

“Did he drop in just to talk to you? That seems kind of strange for Edward.”

“No….. No I think he was already in the wharf area doing some kind of business and he came in for some dinner while we were setting up. I remember he was eating a gigantic burger smothered in mushrooms.”

“Well that sounds like him! Can you remember what your conversation was about?”

“Let’s see. I remember him saying a bunch of stuff trying to convince me he really wasn’t a snob.”

“He really isn’t Michael. I’m glad you finally see that.”

“But we both agreed you were acting a little bit snooty though…….”

“WHAT! What are you talking about? Me snooty?”

“Uh oh, maybe I should have kept that part to myself. We just thought you weren’t acting quite like your normal down-to-earth self. Like maybe you were letting his money change you.”

“Edward said that about me?”

“Well it was mostly me, but he didn’t disagree. I seem to recall him saying something like he was trying to keep you grounded.”

“Keep me grounded? What the hell? I’m not a helium balloon!”

We finished our soup and within seconds Suzy brought us our entrees.

“Okay here we are! Kung pao chicken for sister Julia and sweet and sour pork for brother Michael. Can I get you two anything else?”

“No thanks Suzy! Everything looks great thank you!”

“He didn’t mean anything by it Julia. Really. He was mainly trying to point out that he and I should both be on the same side since we both cared so much about you and we both only wanted the best for you. That’s when I realized he really
did
seem to have your best interest at heart. And I couldn’t possibly hate a guy for that no matter how much fucking money he had!”

“Still I wonder why Edward had to be so secretive about it all?”

“Julia c’mon. Don’t hold that against him. Men need to have guy stuff that’s just between them and other guys. I should’ve kept my big mouth shut. Please don’t rag all over him for this. After all, he’s gonna be my new brother-in-law soon. Can’t we just have a smooth peaceful start to our new relationship?”

“I guess you’re right. So that whole conversation at the club made you actually like him huh?”

“Yeah it did. And I’m also thrilled that you and I are sitting here, all back to normal, being tight again. It’s great isn’t it?”

“It sure is Michael. And I’m sorry that I acted in any way that wasn’t cool or sisterly.”

“Me too Julia. I’m sorry I was such a jerk. I should have had more faith in your judgment and been a more supportive brother to you.”

Suzy set the bill and two fortune cookies on the table in front of us.

“No hurry. Take your time. Whenever you’re ready!”

Michael and I finished our meals, opened our cookies and read our fortunes aloud. First I read mine to him:

“Mine says,
Be happy. An issue has finally been resolved.
”

Michael read his next:

“And mine says,
Man with big shoes……. sometimes puts foot in his mouth.
”

“Huh? What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Who writes these stupid things?!”

We looked up to see Suzy Quan hurrying past our table……trying to hide her giggle with her hand over her mouth.

B
eing
the CEO of Armani Industries was every bit as demanding as I had imagined it to be, but I was beginning to realize I had underestimated my grandfather as well. Every day on the job was a revelation wherein I learned something new about him. It was no surprise to me that my Nonno knew pretty much everything there was to know about Italian food. However, I found my late grandfather’s vast knowledge of people to be nothing short of astonishing.

His fingerprints were all over this business. Every customer and business associate I talked to said the same thing… My grandfather had known exactly what they liked, what they didn’t like, and what they expected from him… Consequently, he displayed an unwavering responsibility and dedication when it came to their satisfaction. It was also clear that he had love and understanding of his employees… He knew how to earn their respect and their loyalty. They became like family to him. As a result, our company had an outstanding workforce, which only served to make my job easier now.

They made me feel as if my presence was appreciated here… And they seemed to appreciate the time I was taking to put myself in my Nonno’s shoes without making any sweeping changes to his legacy.

In doing so, my grandfather’s true business genius hit me like a ton of bricks: My eyes were suddenly opened to the real value behind his philanthropy. His love of humanity and his need to make a better life for others had always played an integral part in the success of the Armani company. Nonno’s former office contained three entire filing cabinets completely filled with thank you letters and printouts of business correspondence from thousands of individuals and organizations who had been the object of my grandfather’s benevolence. I smiled at his dream of operating his business like Paul Newman’s. He wasn’t crazy at all. He was smart as a whip.

Edward Armani Senior was truly a world-class businessman just like Luigi said, and at long last I understood why he had commanded so much respect from so many people. Why had it taken me so long to see it? I was not without shame or embarrassment. Better late than never I supposed. To my credit, at least I was quick to grasp the bigger picture now that I was at the helm. I now knew exactly what was required in order to maintain the stellar Armani business reputation.

By the end of the week I had grown quite tired of conducting all manner of business and I decided I needed a fun weekend adventure. I was reasonably certain Julia would be up for a bit of excitement as well. I had to laugh sometimes; For a woman who used to be all business with a side of sexy fun, she was sure opening up to new experiences with ease. She was in her office typing on her laptop when I came home.

“Julia! TGIF! Do you have any plans for this weekend?”

“No not really. Only that dinner party invitation; That’s on Saturday night. I RSVP’d that we were coming but it’s not like we can’t get out of it. There’s like twenty-five couples going. I doubt if we’d be missed.”

“You mean the Reynolds’s new house-warming dinner party?”

“Yep. That’s the one!”

“Shit! I really can’t stand those people Julia. Why’d you have to say yes to that?”

“How was I supposed to know you didn’t like them? You never told me that! I’m not a mind reader you know.”

“Well I don’t give a shit if it hurts their feelings. We’re not going. Benjamin Reynolds is an insufferable boor and his drunken wife is always trying to get me alone with her. She grabbed my balls under the table last time……. That was before I was with
you
of course.”

“What? Leslie Reynolds? You think she has a thing for you?”

“I believe grabbing a fella’s nuts is usually a pretty reliable indicator.”

“You’re right. We’re definitely not going. Screw her and her ugly new house!”

“Great! That takes care of that. So how do you feel about sailing down to Half Moon Bay this weekend?”

“You mean in the spectacular Armani 200-foot yacht? You betcha!”

“No. Actually I don’t mean that one.”

“You mean you have more than one yacht Edward?”

“I’m talking about my sailboat. I guess some pretentious people might still call it a yacht but it’s much smaller and it’s definitely a different animal than the company yacht you’re thinking of.”

“Well what’s it like? How come you wanna take that one? It’s still a pretty nice boat though isn’t it?”

“Obviously it’s not a piece of shit if that’s what you mean. It’s a sweet little 40-footer that I can captain all by myself. No crew required. But I could always use a hot sexy first mate. Any volunteers?”

“What does a first mate do exactly?”

“Well they mostly pose topless on the bow of the boat. And of course, they rank immediately below the captain so when he yells
Blow me
down matey!....
they go below him…….. and you know……blow him down!”

“You really know how to show a girl a good time, don’t you Eddie? I guess that’s why I’m so attracted to you! So sign me up! I’d love to be your first mate! ”

Julia kissed me real sexy and slowly while she traced the outline of my dick in my pants.

“Think maybe I can get a little first mate experience before we go?” she asked, smiling wickedly and working at my belt.

“Hold that thought you little sea siren! I need to check some ocean and weather reports if we want to set sail first thing tomorrow morning.”

“The weather won’t change in the next ten minutes,” she said, pulling my cock free from my pants. Before I could say another word her lips were wrapped around me, a moan sending vibrations straight down the shaft.

“I don’t think I can last that long,” I whispered as she took me deeper, her tongue slipping softly along the underside of sensitive flesh. She pulled away just long enough to look me in the eye and reply…

“Good.”

A few minutes of incredible pleasure later I excitedly ran out of Julia’s office and into my own across the hall. I powered up my laptop and verified the information I needed for a smooth sail. The weather forecast looked clear and the water appeared calm for the weekend. I just needed to make sure Julia knew to wear warm enough clothes and sensible non-slip shoes. Sailing through “the gate” where the Pacific Ocean meets the San Francisco Bay was always damp, windy and chilly. Ever since I was a kid I loved going sailing so I was really excited at the thought of sharing it with my wonderful woman.