Read Online Bad Boy vs Millionaire by Candy J Starr - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Candy J Starr
Tags: Romance, Literature & Fiction, Contemporary, Romantic Comedy, Contemporary Fiction, Contemporary Women, Women's Fiction, New Adult & College
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notice the tears that threatened to burst out or the quiver of my lip. He didn't say anything but I heard the door close and knew even a lifetime wouldn't be enough to make me trust my father again.
Still, I had no money to book my own flight. I rang the promotions guys to reschedule.
Chapter 9. Hannah
Everything about the restaurant reeked elegance. The soft music playing in the background, the sparkle off the cutlery, the dazzling view of the city lights from the 50th floor window. Dad and I had been led into a private room. The quietly spoken waiter pulled out the chair for me and, when I was seated, arranged the napkin on my lap. I'd forgotten people treated you like that when you had money.
“ Will you have something to drink while you wait?” he asked.
Dad gazed briefly at the wine list.
“ You prefer champagne to start?”
I nodded while Dad put in the order for the type of champagne few people even knew existed, let alone how to appreciate.
“ This is the life,” he said as we waited for his guests to appear. “This is how a man should live.”
It just seemed crazy that a person could go from rich to poor to rich again without any warning. Other people lived their lives at the same level forever, maybe veering up or down a little, but not moving from having to scrape coins together to buy a coffee to having a private dinner in one of the world's top restaurants. Surely it made more sense for people to live their lives with some stability, one way or the other, than to be on a stupid rollercoaster never getting time to catch your breath.
I didn't want to look at Dad and definitely didn't want to talk to him. He'd forced me to come along but he couldn't force me to talk to him or agree to his stupid plan. If he didn't let me go home, I'd sell all those fancy clothes he’d bought me and make a run for it. Or get Angie to send me some money or do something desperate like that.
Out the window, the city seemed to stretch on forever. I wondered where the lights ended. It seemed so immense. How did people live so cluttered together? Even though I was high above it all, I felt like the weight of all those people were pressing in on me.
I turned when I heard the door open. Dad rose to shake hands as Tamaki and his father came into the room. The older man wore glasses and had the kind of suit that has been cut to hide a paunch. His face was leathery and tanned compared to Tamaki, and he had jowls that gave the impression of a toad.
I smiled and shook his hand but his flesh felt clammy against mine and his handshake lacked any strength or conviction. As he shook my hand, he looked me up and down as if working out how much I'd bring at market. His tongue darted out over his lips. I shuddered. This man did not look like he could be Tamaki's father except for a certain similarity around the eyes and his height. He lacked the bone structure and fine features but he made sure it was obvious he had money with the big, gold rings on his fingers and the way he kept touching his Rolex.
They sat down and, after the formalities, the talk turned to business. International business and the problems they had. It wasn't that I couldn't follow what they were saying, just that I didn't care. The glass of wine had gone straight to my head and I could almost curl up under the table and nap. I picked up my glass of water instead, hoping it would wake me up.
“ What do you think, Hannah?” Dad asked.
What did I think about what? I'd not been listening. I'd been watching the lights through the window with their hypnotic flickering.
“ Sorry, I'm a bit sleepy,” I said.
“ I'm sure Hannah wants to help us out,” Ichiro said.
Help them out? If my father had agreed to anything dodgy, I'd kill him. I almost wished we'd been seated with everyone else in the restaurant, rather than in this private room where no one could see us.
“ But we can leave the business talk until after dinner,” the old man
Still, I had no money to book my own flight. I rang the promotions guys to reschedule.
Chapter 9. Hannah
Everything about the restaurant reeked elegance. The soft music playing in the background, the sparkle off the cutlery, the dazzling view of the city lights from the 50th floor window. Dad and I had been led into a private room. The quietly spoken waiter pulled out the chair for me and, when I was seated, arranged the napkin on my lap. I'd forgotten people treated you like that when you had money.
“ Will you have something to drink while you wait?” he asked.
Dad gazed briefly at the wine list.
“ You prefer champagne to start?”
I nodded while Dad put in the order for the type of champagne few people even knew existed, let alone how to appreciate.
“ This is the life,” he said as we waited for his guests to appear. “This is how a man should live.”
It just seemed crazy that a person could go from rich to poor to rich again without any warning. Other people lived their lives at the same level forever, maybe veering up or down a little, but not moving from having to scrape coins together to buy a coffee to having a private dinner in one of the world's top restaurants. Surely it made more sense for people to live their lives with some stability, one way or the other, than to be on a stupid rollercoaster never getting time to catch your breath.
I didn't want to look at Dad and definitely didn't want to talk to him. He'd forced me to come along but he couldn't force me to talk to him or agree to his stupid plan. If he didn't let me go home, I'd sell all those fancy clothes he’d bought me and make a run for it. Or get Angie to send me some money or do something desperate like that.
Out the window, the city seemed to stretch on forever. I wondered where the lights ended. It seemed so immense. How did people live so cluttered together? Even though I was high above it all, I felt like the weight of all those people were pressing in on me.
I turned when I heard the door open. Dad rose to shake hands as Tamaki and his father came into the room. The older man wore glasses and had the kind of suit that has been cut to hide a paunch. His face was leathery and tanned compared to Tamaki, and he had jowls that gave the impression of a toad.
I smiled and shook his hand but his flesh felt clammy against mine and his handshake lacked any strength or conviction. As he shook my hand, he looked me up and down as if working out how much I'd bring at market. His tongue darted out over his lips. I shuddered. This man did not look like he could be Tamaki's father except for a certain similarity around the eyes and his height. He lacked the bone structure and fine features but he made sure it was obvious he had money with the big, gold rings on his fingers and the way he kept touching his Rolex.
They sat down and, after the formalities, the talk turned to business. International business and the problems they had. It wasn't that I couldn't follow what they were saying, just that I didn't care. The glass of wine had gone straight to my head and I could almost curl up under the table and nap. I picked up my glass of water instead, hoping it would wake me up.
“ What do you think, Hannah?” Dad asked.
What did I think about what? I'd not been listening. I'd been watching the lights through the window with their hypnotic flickering.
“ Sorry, I'm a bit sleepy,” I said.
“ I'm sure Hannah wants to help us out,” Ichiro said.
Help them out? If my father had agreed to anything dodgy, I'd kill him. I almost wished we'd been seated with everyone else in the restaurant, rather than in this private room where no one could see us.
“ But we can leave the business talk until after dinner,” the old man
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