The Virgin Billionaire: Switched at Marriage Part 2 (4 page)

I was awestruck by the attendees. How had he come to act so naturally and seemingly feel at home among this crowd? Little, shy Justin who everyone picked on. Seattle was home to some of the world's richest people, to the world's richest man. Many of whom were guests. Jus acted as if they were common, everyday officemates and colleagues.

Lazer was fielding questions about some work he'd had done on the lodge.

"Thank you. I've had some work done on it since last time you were here," I overheard Lazer telling the Canadian billionaire when she complimented him on it. "This is just my weekend retreat. I don't get out here as often as I should. This last winter I was here fewer than a half-dozen times. The snowmobiling and snowboarding were terrible. Not enough of the white stuff."

After ten or fifteen minutes of small talk, Lazer made an announcement. "It's time for the official induction." He herded us inside into a media room with another distracting view of the mountains and the sun that was threatening a showy sunset. He escorted Justin and me to a pair of seats in the front of the room and took the podium upfront.

"I would like to welcome all of you here tonight as we induct our newest member, our youngest member ever. The little bastard has taken the title from me. Overachiever!"

The audience laughed. Beside me, Jus smiled good-naturedly.

"I was dubbed the boy billionaire. I'd like to suggest we call the new guy the baby billionaire. If our members get any younger, they'll be in diapers."

I turned to Jus as he grabbed my hand.

"Don't worry. It's supposed to be a roast," he whispered. "It's tradition."

Lazer went on to enumerate Jus' many impressive accomplishments. Most of which I knew nothing about. A lot of the technical talk about Jus' contributions to the world of programming and software development went over my head.

"In all seriousness, he's a protégé of mine and I'm damned proud of him. Otherwise I wouldn't have nominated him for membership," Lazer said. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome our newest member, Justin Green."

The room erupted in applause.

"And welcome our esteemed president to the platform to present Jus his key to the club."

I plastered a proud, beaming wife smile on my face, all too aware of Lazer as he left the podium and took the chair next to me. I took my phone out and looked to Lazer for confirmation that it was okay to record and snap pictures. When he nodded, I pointed my phone at Jus and smiled reassuringly.

The ceremony was quick and perfectly timed to end as the sun set over the mountains in the most brilliant hues of pink and orange, just as it had been threatening to do all evening. I caught it all on my phone.

Lazer leaned into me and whispered, "Just don't post it anywhere." His smile was sweet, but dead serious. "We value our privacy. And it won't last long anyway if you do. Our security team will hunt it down and delete it."

Wow. Just wow.

The club gave Jus a certificate and a trophy, which looked like it was made of gold, like an Oscar. He gave a short acceptance speech, thanking his family, friends, and business partners. Lazer Grayson. And the club for inviting him in. Speaking to the crowd, he was confident and funny. He threw around a few stats about the odds of becoming a billionaire that made the crowd laugh. It was almost as if he was giving a TED Talk about billionaires.

I swelled with pride, proud he was my friend. Happy I'd made the decision to help him out. He truly had a brilliant career in front of him. Dex had been right—Jus was destined for greatness. No horrible identity thief should be able to derail his life and achievements.

As the ceremony ended, a waiter appeared and served everyone a glass of champagne.

When each person had a glass, Lazer made a toast. "As you all may have heard on the news, this is an auspicious time in our baby billionaire's life. The average age for an American man to marry is now twenty-seven. Our Justin jumped the gun and tied the knot at twenty-one. He likes to do everything young—youngest billionaire ever in the club. And now a young bridegroom.

"Now I'd like to raise our glasses, not just to Justin and his impressive accomplishment, but to the newlywed couple. Kayla, we still can't understand what you saw in him, but we wish you both happiness and joy and a long life together." He raised his glass and cheers went up. People clinked glasses with the people next to them.

"And now, business taken care of, let's do what we do best—eat and party!"

Servants appeared and opened the patio doors from the lodge to the terrace. Outside, the stars were beginning to twinkle. There was very little light pollution to interfere with them. When I looked up, the heavens seemed dizzying with their vastness and number of stars.

"Newlyweds and new inductees first." Lazer led us to the front of the line where servers waited with an assortment of food that made my mouth water, prepared by one of Seattle's finest chefs.

Lazer followed us through the line. The three of us settled at a table on the patio overlooking the pool, which was now lit only by starlight from above. It was a black pool, a dark, dizzying reflected sky filled with more stars than I remembered seeing since a childhood camping trip. A string quartet played softly at the edge of the terrace.

Lazer and Jus joked and ribbed each other like old friends, competitive friends, while I sat quietly listening and studying them both. Thinking traitorous thoughts about how hot Lazer was. And funny. And charming. And how Jus was…sweet.

The conversation turned to movies and pop culture.

"What do you think, Kay?" Jus said, putting me on the spot. "Does Lazer remind you of anyone?"

His tone was teasing and light, but there was an edge to it, too. It was as if he'd read my cheating mind and seen me watching Lazer too closely. I thanked my good luck that the lighting was dim and mostly filtered from candles and the light streaming out the doors and windows from the lodge. It hid my guilty expression.

I played along and studied Lazer openly, enjoying the chance to memorize his face. "James Bond?"

Jus laughed and grabbed another cocktail from a tray a waiter brought around. The booze flowed like water. Everyone was drinking heavily. It was Jus' fourth one. But who was counting?

"Fictional character. Close." The edge grew sharper in Jus' voice, masked by a twinkle of a joke. "He thinks Christian Grey was based on him."

Lazer laughed. "Jealous? Can I help it if women from across the country write me and ask if I was the inspiration? I've had girls show up at the gates of my house begging to meet me. Girls who've flown in, just to get a glimpse of me, Seattle's real-life young billionaire."

"Yeah," Jus said. "He's as popular as Forks since
Twilight
. You should put up a booth and make an appearance at the gates once in a while to charge them for autographs."

Lazer turned to me. "See what I have to put up with?"

I didn't reply. I was too busy trying not to laugh.

"Can I help it if women make the connection? Grey and Grayson. Same age. Both Seattle's Best Man. Youngest billionaires in Seattle's history."

"Until now," Justin said.

"We're both suave and handsome." Lazer laughed again.

"And humble," Justin said.

I laughed with them. "And the red room of pain? Is that based on you, too?"

"That's where the comparison ends." His grin was infectious and seductive.

And I thought,
Maybe he isn't into that, but I bet he's a good lover.

Lazer winked. "I have the red room of game."

I took another sip of my cocktail, letting the alcohol take the edge off my nerves as the boys tried to one-up each other.

"Gaming nerd," Jus said, playfully. "That doesn't count. You put that in after."

"Do you have the red room here?" I asked. "Or is at another one of your homes?"

Justin stared at me in surprise, as in why would I be interested in a gaming room?

"I have a mini one here," Lazer said. "I'll show it to you later if you'd like to see it."

Jus shook his head. "Keep my wife the hell out of your red room of game, Grayson. She doesn't like video games."

Lazer laughed and gave me a conspiratorial look, mouthing,
Later
.

As the drinks continued to flow, the noise level increased. As dessert approached, Lazer seemed excited about something, as if he was keeping a secret or had planned a surprise.

"Look at this group of power players," I said to Jus and Lazer. "It's a wonder no one's come up with a conspiracy theory about you guys and your secret Jet City Billionaires."

"You mean like we plan to control the world markets and take over the world? We choose the next world leaders over poker and a cigar? We're busily planning the one-world government?" Jus put his arm around me. "Don't we?"

Lazer laughed. "Oh, definitely. You should see our war room."

I shivered. The day had been warm and pleasant, but as the dew and night fell, the patio was cool despite the strategically placed heaters.

"We're not the Bohemian Grove, Kay." Jus pulled off his suit coat and wrapped it around my shoulders.

Attentive and considerate.

"Aren't we?" Lazer made a gesture that encompassed the surroundings. "We have enough booze to qualify. My mentor has been to the Grove several times. He says it's all a bunch of guys sitting around drinking. No women allowed."

"Except for the strippers, I imagine," Jus said.

Lazer kept glancing toward the door. A waiter finally came up and whispered in his ear.

Lazer looked around the room and nodded. "I think we're ready. Bring it out."

The waiter gestured to someone inside the lodge. The string quartet began playing Pachelbel's "Canon in D." Two women dressed in white bakers' uniforms wheeled a cart out with a three-tiered wedding cake.

I gasped. I knew I was saying, or rather, thinking, every other minute since we left the city, that this or that was the most beautiful, most gorgeous thing I'd ever seen. You would think it would be getting tiresome and I would have reached my limit. But that cake really was the most beautiful one I'd ever seen. And it was from the most prestigious bakery in the city. I knew brides who'd tried to book a year, even two, ahead and couldn't get a cake. To get one on the spur of the moment in an afternoon? That was power.

Was I impressed? It sounds stupid, but this may have been the most impressive thing of the evening.

My eyes went wide. "How?"

Lazer just smiled and rose. "Go cut your cake."

Jus took me by the elbow. "Is a girl going to jump out of that thing?"

"You already have the girl." Lazer looked at me with regret.

I moved toward the cake as if in a dream, trembling as one of the bakers handed me a cake-cutting knife.

The crowd clapped as Jus cupped his hand around mine. "Ready?"

"As ever."

We cut the cake while Lazer snapped our picture on his phone. "One for the gossip rags."

I slid the slice onto a plate, picked up a fork, and filled it with cake. I held it to Jus' mouth and fed him a bite. Then he fed me one. Just like at a wedding reception. We handed the cake cutter and duties over to the bakers. I took a minute then to study the cake, with its intricate gum paste flowers and scrollwork. It was only then that I got a good look at the cake topper. And the illusion shattered. My mouth fell open. I blushed to my toes and flushed with anger.

Jus saw my distress. His gaze followed mine. "Shit," he muttered beneath his breath. He pulled the cake topper off the top tier and shook it at Lazer. "What the hell is this?"

K
ayla

"Who's this barefaced dude on my cake?" Jus hammed it up. Played along. He held the plastic cake topper, looking as if he might take a swing at the plastic groom. "And why is my bride all over him?" He comically cocked an eyebrow.

Lazer was laughing so hard he had to wipe a tear away. "How the hell you finally found a girl who finds you attractive is a mystery to the rest of us."

The cake topper was a clean-shaved groom holding a blond bride in his arms. Her legs wrapped around his waist and hips, climbing up him as if she couldn't wait to get him in the bedroom. She was clearly throwing herself at him. The implication was clear to me—I'd thrown myself at Jus for his money. Maybe I was being too sensitive.

Lazer looked at me as understanding dawned. "Oh, shit. Kayla, I'm sorry. I didn't think. I was just giving Justin a bad time."

The string quartet continued playing in the background. But the crowd of billionaires had gone largely silent, enjoying the show.

And then I realized that Lazer really
hadn't
meant to imply I was a gold digger.

Maybe it was the buzz from the alcohol. Maybe it was the completely ludicrous situation. And all the faking it. Maybe I was just tired. But suddenly, it
was
funny.

I set down the piece of cake I'd been holding, hitched up my short skirt, and threw my arms around Jus. "Pick me up," I whispered to him, and threw my legs around his waist, mimicking the pose. Then I pulled him into a passionate, bright kiss to raucous applause.

"How was that? Did that look right?" I said to the crowd. "Look at this guy and tell me he isn't hot!"

The software mogul flashed me the okay sign as I started laughing.

Someone called out, "Looks like you got the right girl, Green."

I think then I earned the respect of the Jet City Billionaires' Club. If you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?

Jus was beaming as he set me down and kissed me again for good measure. He looked exactly like a happy groom
should
look.

"Hey, Lazer," I said, lightheaded from the cocktails and the events of the day. I grabbed the cake topper. "You couldn't get one with a bearded groom?"

"In an afternoon? No," Lazer joked back. "Not even I have that much power and money."

I set the topper down. "Let us eat cake!" I grabbed Jus, and my plate of cake, and pulled him away from the serving table.

We mingled, hand in hand. It quickly became apparent the guys wanted to talk to Jus about business. Given Jus' business, you would think it would have been interesting talk about fashion and retail merchandising. But these techie types were more interested in his programming. Or the complicated details of running a retail business and managing a multibillion IPO.
A unicorn.
I quickly grew bored.

Ever the gracious host, Lazer was suddenly at my elbow. "This must be boring as hell for you. Let me show you the house."

"I'd love that!" I'd been dying to see it since we arrived. I turned to Justin. "Do you mind?"

Jus was engaged deep in conversation. He nodded. "Just keep her out of that game room."

Lazer grinned at him, took my elbow, and guided me toward the house. "I hope you didn't promise to honor
and
obey him?"

I laughed. No, I hadn't, actually. All I'd really promised was not to blow the cover of our convenient marriage. "Obey? No way."

"Good." Lazer's grin was devilish and made my heart race.

If I wasn't mistaken, there was chemistry between us. It was just too bad I was a married woman. He couldn't know I was married in name only. And life, with its merciless sense of humor, prevented me from telling him.

"Let me show you the house." He leaned in to whisper in my ear. "Game room and all. Jus is worried I'll show him with my superior gaming skills. Not many guys can last longer or penetrate deeper than I can. Into a game."

Was Lazer flirting with me? That wasn't full of innuendo and double meaning. Guys! Always bragging about their prowess.

"I suppose you never go soft on anyone," I said, flirting and playing along.

He raised an eyebrow. "Definitely not. I'm not one of those limp-thumbed players. I'm hard…on everyone."

"How long are we going to keep this up?"

"I can keep it up all night." There was that sensual tone of his. "I'm having fun."

I flashed him my flirty smile and rolled my eyes.

"Anyone ever tell you this one? Gaming is like sex. You never know how long it's going to last."

I lost it. "You
are
bad."

"This is nothing. I can be worse. What's wrong? You don't like innuendo?"

"Innuendo is not an Italian suppository, you know," I said. "And I'm a blushing new bride."

"I don't see you blushing." He sounded almost regretful as he guided me down a hallway off the great room and became suddenly serious. "I'm sorry about out there." He nodded toward the patio. "The cake."

"There's no need to apologize." I looked away from him.

"But I'd like to. I was thoughtless. I didn't think about your feelings. I didn't think about anything but teasing Jus. He's so boyishly innocent around girls. He wouldn't know what to do with a girl if she threw herself at him."

I put my hand on my hip and gave him a look that said,
Really?

"So I was wrong!" He laughed softly. "Justin getting married out of the blue shocked everybody. He hasn't had two dates in a row since I met him. A girlfriend?" He made a sound of disbelief and rolled his eyes. "How in the hell did he find you and keep you a secret?

"Since he started Flashionista he's been working twenty-four-seven. He's barely had time for a catnap. Let alone a relationship, serious or otherwise. And then here you are—" He halted, and sighed as if frustrated with himself. "A girl who's definitely out of his league. You must be the most understanding woman on the planet."

I looked at him and arched an eyebrow.

"I'm still messing this up, aren't I?"

I laughed. "Yes, you are."

He turned to face me and pointed to the room off to our right without looking at it. He was staring me in the eye. "You've seen the media room. I use it for parties and business meetings, like tonight."

"Yes. Gorgeous room. Perfect space for it," I said without breaking his gaze.

"We affectionately call him the virgin billionaire. Damn you," he said. "We'll have to come up with something else now. There's no way it will be as wickedly funny."

He had my full attention.
Was
Jus really a virgin?

"I tried one or twice to set him up. He joked he didn't have time to be distracted by a woman." Lazer shook his head, as if he still couldn't believe Jus had married me. "I had no idea he was seeing someone.
You
. That's what made the cake topper so damn funny. The only way Justin was going to get a girl was if she stripped naked and threw herself at him."

I fought to keep my composure and not laugh at the absurdity of things. "I see. You think I threw myself at him? For his money?"

"I don't think anything—"

"You're an empty-headed billionaire?" I raised an eyebrow. "How disappointing. I like men with substance."

His eyes lit up. "You don't back down."

"You don't like being challenged," I shot back.

When he grinned, he was devastating in his perfection. "I take pride in knowing what's going on. With businesses I'm invested in and my friends."

"Am I a threat to either?" I felt bold.

"Time will tell."

I couldn't help noticing little things about him. Like how good he smelled. How white and straight his teeth were. How strong his chin was. How thick the dark stubble on it was. How the electricity crackled between us.

I shrugged. "For your information, we had a whirlwind four-hour romance. Our engagement was even shorter. I think you could measure it in minutes. We knew each other in college. Bumped into each other in Reno. Hours later, we were married. Does that allay your fears?"

Marry in haste. Wait a year. Collect ten mil. Repent with an even hotter billionaire at leisure. Great new plan?

Lazer was staring at me with an appraising look in his eye. "So you
did
throw yourself at him?"

The identity thief had. If I was supposed to be her, then yes.

I shrugged. "Maybe."

Lazer took my elbow and started walking again. "I'm going to keep my eye on you."

"Please do."

His laughter echoed off the walls. "You make it hard to apologize."

We stopped inconveniently at the doorway to a lavish bedroom, complete with a fireplace and bearskin rug that looked perfect for a round of lovemaking.

"I was a complete douche for not thinking my gag through all the way." He looked and sounded genuinely apologetic. "I'm sorry."

"That's okay. Douches have always been my kind of guy." I almost snorted. I was thinking of Eric. But Lazer couldn't know that.

His eyes lit up. He squinted as if studying me. "That's too damn bad. You've picked the wrong man. Justin is the least douchey guy I know."

"If it doesn't last, we'll know why, then, won't we?" I turned my attention to the bedroom before I gave everything away. "Very nice. Love the fireplace. And the rug." I smiled at him. "Your guests must be very comfortable here."

"Yes, I hope so. I have eight guestrooms. They're all fairly similar, done in lodge style. Each has its own bathroom suite. Let me show you."

Being alone in a bedroom with him made me feel incredibly guilty. Mostly because of the thoughts I was having about him. This afternoon when I'd signed up for this job, I would never have imagined meeting a man who piqued my interest like Lazer did so soon, if at all. Hadn't I sworn off men just a few days ago? Life was a bitch.

I murmured and cooed about how fabulous the bathroom was, and we left the bedroom. He showed me the rest of the house, talking about his vision for it and how his interior designer had implemented it. It could have sounded pretentious. But the passion in his voice was genuine.

I loved design of any kind, so I was fascinated. And fighting to keep from gaping the entire time.

Lazer and I connected on so many levels. As we talked, we discovered we had enough common interests to score high on any compatibility test. There was so much about him that was perfect. Lazer was twenty-eight, mature, and sophisticated compared to Jus and his boyish charm. I'd always liked guys who were a few years older. Being in Lazer's company felt right. I was fighting crushing on him.

We reached the end of the tour.

"I saved the best for last." He opened a door and the lights magically came on. "The red room of game!"

I peeked inside. "It's not so red, really." Though the logs of the walls had a reddish hue and there were red accents here and there. Red pillows with outdoorsy designs. Prints with red themes. "But it is magnificent." I took a step inside. "Look at all your gaming systems! And the retro games."

His eyes lit up. "From your reaction earlier, I'm guess you like video games?"

"I'm a casual gamer. I mostly play with my cousin. He generally beats me. But I'm your biggest fan girl. I played the game you developed before you moved on to networking. Loved the character of yourself you put in. Meeting you is like—" I caught myself in time. The alcohol had loosened my lips. "It's a thrill."

"Thrill, is it? I like that." His eyes danced.

"Narcissist!"

He laughed. "Would you like to play the new game my good friend is launching soon? It's not on the market yet. It's just about to go into alpha testing. You'd be one of the first people outside the company to play. Of course, you'll have to swear on your life you won't tell a soul a thing about it. Or I'll have to kill you."

I lost the battle. My mouth fell open. "Are you kidding? Do you want a blood oath? Or will a pinkie swear do?"

He laughed and led me deep into the room. "If you tell anyone you were playing, I'll deny it."

"I can keep a secret, believe me." I was getting myself deeper and deeper into secrets.

He explained the game while he set it up. His passion was catching as he talked about its development, the creativity behind it, the storytelling. "I own a decent chunk of the company."

He sat down on the plush leather sofa next to me and handed me a controller. And then we were playing. Real gamers don't play like the actors on TV, hands flying, bodies moving. Real gamers barely move their thumbs and hold their controllers steady. Gaming is a mind and thumb activity.

Lazer was subtle, and good, as he guided and coached me. Both of us laughing. Making jokes. And bragging when we did something brilliant. Which he did more often than I did. But it
was
his game. He had the inside knowledge.

I squealed and laughed like a teenage girl as we played. He
was the warrior king. I was his warrior queen. Saving the world together. I was hyperaware of everything about him. The way he concentrated. The smell of his cologne. The way his arm accidentally brushed mine from time to time. Why? Why hadn't I met him earlier?

"I would love to live in this video world," I said at one point. "It's"—I stared at him—"awesome. A real fantasy." He was awesome.

He paused and turned to me. "Your wish is my command, my queen. You can live in this world forever. Say the word and I'll make you a character in it."

Okay, were my eyes as big and round as they felt? Were the joy, awe, and surprise blatant on my face? In that instant, my heart beat for him. "Immortality? Are you serious?"

His sexy grin almost made my heart stop. "If you want to live forever, I'm your guy. Send me a favorite picture of yourself. I'll get my friend's artists right on it. Top priority. With any luck, your character will make it into the alpha test version. The guys who play the game will love you." He used that sensual tone on purpose, wielding it as effectively as his character swung a sword onscreen.

He knew how to flatter a girl. But then, when it came to him, it didn't take much. What he didn't supply, me and my hopeless optimism did. I was a complete pushover around him. "Can they make me a hot warrior princess?"