The Pretend Girlfriend (A Billionaire Love Story #1)(104)

Put that way, Gwen knew that the chastising voice was right. Still, the pressure needle for her anxiety swung deep into the red when she held out her offering.

"What is this? A check? It better be a check," Beatrice said, one corner of her mouth curving up as she lost control of her signature sense of humor.

Cold anxiety pooled at the bottom of Gwen's stomach while she watched her friend open the envelope and pull out the piece of paper within. Beatrice unfolded that piece of paper, her eyes fixing on the single word written within.

Five seconds went by. Ten. That anxiety in Gwen's gut felt like one of those awful aliens from those movies. You know, the ones that burst out from inside you.

"Is this what I think it is?" Beatrice said.

Gwen nodded. When she saw that Beatrice hadn't looked at her and thus didn't see the nod, she followed that with a, "Yes."

There followed another terrible silence while Gwen watched her friend digest this new and terrible fact. What was it going to be: friendship restored, or eternal ridicule?

"I knew it!" Beatrice said. She grabbed Gwen so fast that Gwen thought at first that she was being attacked.

But it was just a hug. A long, diaphragm-crushing hug that simultaneously forced all the air from her lungs and prevented her from breathing any more in. Tears began forming in the corners of Gwen's eyes.

Just as she began seeing dark spots pirouetting across her vision, Beatrice released her. B kept looking at the letter and chuckling.

"What? What does it say?" Aiden said, having assessed the situation and discerned and acceptable outcome. He tried looking over B's shoulder at the paper.

B folded it back up and rammed it into her purse. "That's for me to know and you to find out, mister!"

Gwen loved her friend dearly at that moment, especially since she was still trying to catch her breath from that hug, and therefore couldn't do anything herself to stop Aiden from seeing the letter's contents. She didn't know if her relationship with Aiden could take such a revelation yet.

Stop being so melodramatic, that criticizing voice interjected. Gwen told that voice to shut up.

"So, you guys need help taking down the big man, do you?" Beatrice said. She sat down in the wingback chair and helped herself to a few morsels left on the plates from supper.

"If by the big man you mean my father, yes," Aiden said, apparently not particularly fond of that nickname.

"Yeah," Gwen said, sitting on the corner of the bed closest to her friend, "It's just that you seem to know everyone. Or know someone who knows everyone. I'm not sure if you've been watching the news lately..."

"Hey, at least you're a high class, high cost hooker... escort I mean," Beatrice said, "Could have been worse. They could have called you a crack whore."

"...I see that you have. Moving on," Gwen said. Beatrice's particular brand of humor was an acquired taste, and it seemed that Gwen had lost that particular palate and needed time to get it back. "We need to find something, anything we can use against Henry to get him to call all this off and leave us alone. Aiden doesn't have anything, and we couldn't think of anything together..."

Beatrice broke in again, "Yeah, yeah. I get it. I'll be your Obi-Wan." The joke fell flat. Beatrice huffed a sigh. "You know? Because I'm your only hope? Don't you watch movies?"

"So that's a yes, for the record?" Aiden asked.

"Yes, yes, yes," B replied, "I think I know someone who could help. Thing is, help's not cheap."

"I thought we were friends?" Gwen said, shocked that Beatrice would use this situation as leverage for money.

"Not for me," Beatrice replied, "The guy I know. I guess we're just lucky you're dating Scrooge McDuck's son." She gave Aiden a pointed look.

He shrugged, that reference also flying over his head. "If that means I'll pay, I will."

"Good. Let's get going," Beatrice said, standing up and jerking her skirt back down to a somewhat more modest level. When neither of them followed her when she opened the door, she turned back. "If I know this guy, he'll want you two to be there with me. He likes a good laugh. So come on, rich boy, get that butt in gear!" She waved Aiden out the door.

And then she looked over her shoulder and gave Gwen the most evil look she'd ever seen. "You too, Gladys." She winked.

A chill went down Gwen's spine, and she hoped Aiden hadn't heard.

She hoped this was worth the price.





Chapter 32


The man they went to see liked to style himself an "Information Broker." His name was Samuel Schullman and, as far as Gwen could tell, he basically collected dirt on rich, famous, and powerful people that he either used himself as leverage or sold onto someone else who wanted it badly enough.

According to Beatrice, if Sammy-boy (Beatrice's words, not Gwen's) didn't have something they could use to metaphorically pin Henry's arm behind his back, no one did.

And the information brokerage business apparently paid quite well, judging by the man's penthouse suite overlooking the park. Looking out the big window that ran the length of the exterior wall, Gwen thought she could see Aiden's building somewhere on the other side.

Beatrice had met him at some party or other, and their senses of humor meshed so well that they saw each other on the regular. They seemed like they'd be perfect for each other, but, to Gwen's shock, neither noticed the compatibility vibes going between them.