Bidding on the Billionaire (Bad Boys Billionaire Bachelors Club) (9 page)

Chapter 17

M
orning came and Mandi was exhausted and
tired.  Sergio was definitely acting differently and she couldn’t stand it. It
irritated her. If he didn’t love her—fine, but he didn’t have to act like an
aloof ass about it. 

Mandi
knew that she had started this and she wanted to end it.  She didn’t want
Sergio to pull away from her because of what she said.  It was time to do some
damage control so their relationship, however you would define it, wouldn’t
just fall apart.  The three words, I love you, were apparently powerful enough
that they could destroy relationships and make confident men cower in fear.

Mandi
walked up to Sergio. He was finishing getting dressed for the day. “Hey, is
everything alright?”

Sergio
looked at her and you could see the hesitation in his eyes, trying to assess
what she may be getting at. “I’m fine, Mandi. Just tired and preoccupied with
some things.”

Mandi
had an idea that she knew what things Sergio was occupied with and knew that it
was her fault. She’d told him she loved him too quickly, startling him from
what he believed their arrangement was.  Suddenly the day of building up
confidence to say those words yesterday seemed like one of the most foolish
things she’d ever done.

“Sergio…about
last night.  I’m really sorry.  I just blurted it out in a moment of passion. 
God knows that I’m not ready for something serious and I know we haven’t known
each other long in a more intimate way for me to really be in love with you. 
I’m hoping you can just forget about it.”

Sergio
looked at Mandi and she could see his clenched jaw.  He breathed in deeply and
put his hands behind his neck.  “That’s probably for the best.  Well, I’ve got
to get going.”

“Okay
then. Have a great day,” Mandi said.  She didn’t even know what Sergio was
doing that day, but it was clear that it involved getting as far away from her
as possible.  She didn’t think she could have felt any worse than she did at
that given moment. 

Mandi
did follow Sergio downstairs because she was ready to eat breakfast. Sergio sat
down too and the mood was dull to say the least.  The conversation was so dull
and mundane that it seemed like they didn’t even like each other.  Sergio’s
cousins, Frederic and Angelica, were their saving grace.  They were talking
about some project they had going on and chattering away animatedly, not aware
of the tension between two adults—one hurt and one on the run.

“Well,
time for me to go,” Sergio said.

“Have a great
day.  I’ll see you later,” Mandi replied.

Sergio nodded
and headed toward the door, grabbing his keys in the small stand that was in
the front entrance foyer. After the front door shut Mandi casually strolled
over and peeked out the sidelights of the grand front entrance. There was a
group of guys out there and Sergio was laughing and giving enthusiastic
handshakes. Mandi peered closer and recognized those guys. They were from the BBBBC. 
What were they doing here?  Probably making sure that Sergio stayed the
bachelor.  They could thank Mandi for making sure that happened.

Mandi
walked out to say hi to everyone, not that she knew them very well, but she
just had to do something.  She recognized two of them.  One was Marshall Kent
and the other was Leroy Marston, the one who’d been calling for Mandi at the
gallery.  She wasn’t sure who the third guy was, but immediately realized that
Sergio was not all that warm and friendly toward him.

Confidence
was one of the big issues with the BBBBC, but Sergio had still managed to tell
Mandi a little bit about some of the members.  She recalled that Marshall Kent
was an actor and had just opened up an indie film company.  He was one of those
men that was so handsome that they almost seemed plastic.  He’d really had
quite the interesting life, being raised in foster care and eventually finding
out that his father was some eccentric billionaire when he was in his early
twenties.  He’d inherited a fortune and was the male version of an Annie story
in many ways. 

Then
there was Leroy Marsten.  Mandi had thought he was a very good looking guy when
she’d met him at the auction, but was so distracted with everything that she
hadn’t thought much more about it.  His sandy blonde hair and blue eyes were so
appealing, making him look very playful.  He was also very flirty and confident
in his ability to claim a woman’s heart, Mandi suspected.  Why wouldn’t he be? 
He was a self made billionaire after all, pioneering the internet security
market at a very young age.

It
was the third guy that intrigued Mandi and she didn’t have to wait long to find
out more.  Leroy saw her and immediately went up to her and gave her an
affectionate hello. It was far more intimate sounding than what their
relationship was, but at that moment she was glad to accept any affection that
soothed her stung pride.

“It’s
so great to see you,” Leroy said.

“You
too,” Mandi agreed.

The
unknown guy approached Leroy and Mandi.  “So, you are Mandi.  I’ve heard a lot
about you.” Mandi smiled, not sure what to say. “I’m Benjamin Ferrante.  It’s
great to finally meet you.  I’ve heard quite a bit about you.”  Benjamin was
smiling and Mandi was trying to process that name.  Where had she heard it before? 
She halted.  Benjamin was the guy that Olivia had cheated with.  No wonder why
Sergio was not thrilled to see him.

“It’s
nice to meet you,” Mandi replied.  “I’ve also heard quite a bit about you.” 
She smiled, causing Benjamin to pause for a second.  She was a bit shocked at
her boldness and protective instincts over Sergio.  He certainly didn’t need
her to do that for him.

Leroy
started laughing, almost too much, and Mandi looked at him and winked.  She was
going to flirt her way to feeling better right now and nothing was going to
stop her.

“So,
why are you guys here in Italy?” Mandi asked.

“We’re
here to go to the Venice Film Festival.  Marshall has a film entered into it
and we’re all pretty excited,” Leroy replied.

“I’m
an investor in the company and definitely curious to see how one of our films
competes on this level,” Benjamin added.  Mandi looked at him and saw that he
was more structured and serious than the other guys.  He was good looking, but
in more of an academic way with his tight features, serious glasses, and poised
attitude.  He was the exact opposite of Sergio in the sexiness department and
Mandi wondered what his draw was to Olivia.  Oh, that’s right—money.

Sergio and
Marshall came up to Leroy, Mandi, and Benjamin to join the conversation.

Sergio
looked to Mandi and announced, “Change of plans.  We’re going to the Venice
Film Festival.”

Mandi
smiled.  It was good that Sergio wasn’t treating her like poison any more. 
There was safety in numbers and that must have reassured him that she wouldn’t
say the toxic words, “I love you,” again.

An
hour later the five of them were all on Sergio’s private jet and heading toward
Venice.  It would only take an hour or so to get there this way compared to a
four and a half hour drive.  Mandi could get used to this…for convenience sake
if anything.

They all
stayed in one penthouse suite that the Leon family owned in Venice and they
each had their own room.  It stung that Mandi wasn’t sharing a room with
Sergio, but so be it.  This film festival was the crème de la crème and Mandi
was going to fully take advantage of the experience.  For the second time in
one week, Mandi found herself getting very dressed up.  This time it could be a
more fun and flirty dressy outfit though, not overly formal like the factory
anniversary celebration dress requirement had been.

Mandi
put the final touches on her outfit and assessed herself in the mirror.  She
was wearing an ankle length aquamarine silk sheath with a slit up the front
center.  It clung to every curve of her body and had a strap over one shoulder
with a decorative clasp of intricately woven silver on the top of the strap. 
Small delicate strands of silver thread were woven through the fabric at random
and Mandi smiled as she looked at herself.  The color reminded her of the ocean
and she was its mermaid, ready to go and draw attention.  She wore her hair
down in loose tendrils that caressed her face and accented her tanned skin. 
Her heels were some fun sparkly silver ones with open toes and laces that strapped
around her ankles.  It was classy, fun, and festive. “Venice, here I come,”
Mandi whispered.  Then she walked out into the living room of the penthouse.

There
were four men standing there, laughing and talking casually, enjoying a glass
of scotch, and they all stopped talking abruptly to look at her.  Mandi’s cocky
confidence suddenly made her feel a bit awkward and thankfully Marshall came up
and saved her.

“You
look exquisite.  I think you should be  in one of my films.  Ever acted before,
Mandi?”

“I’m
not too good at acting.  If you need someone to handle the business aspect I
may be able to help you out,” Mandi replied, laughing.

“I
just might take you up on that,” Marshall said.  Then he turned to Sergio and
said, “You were very lucky to get auctioned off to such a lovely woman.”

“Lucky
I was, but I thought you had eyes for my sister, Sophia?” Sergio was looking at
Marshall and Mandi saw that he was assessing what was going on.  Was he
jealous? 
No, stop thinking you are more to him than what you are.

“I
think it would be in poor taste to date the younger sister of one of my very
best friends, don’t you?  Plus, Sophia and Andre are having a rather
adventurous time of it lately.  Nobody’s seen the two apart.”

“Really?”
Sergio asked. He looked at Mandi.  “Did you know that?”

“I
had an idea, but it wasn’t my information to share.”

“Oops,”
Marshall said, laughing off the fact that he’d just told Sergio that his sister
was having some fun with another BBBBCer back home.  Mandi saw a spark in his
eyes and could tell that he enjoyed creating a bit of drama.  That’s probably
what made him such a good actor and from the sounds of it, director now.

Sergio
walked over to Mandi and whispered in her ear softly. “You look absolutely
beautiful.  I think you could have any man’s heart you wish.” Then he kissed
her cheek softly, sending a shiver down Mandi’s spine that she wasn’t so sure
she was welcoming.  It appeared that Sergio was set to be territorial by his
friends and she wasn’t sure how to respond to that.  She didn’t want to read
into it too much and make any more emotional mistakes that allowed her heart to
get trampled on.

*
* *

Mandi
felt like a queen as she was escorted by four men to the film festival, making
people turn their heads to wonder what was going on when they walked down the
red carpet.  She’d never been involved in such a thing before at this high of a
level.  Part of her was star struck with the sight of some of her favorite
actors and actresses, but she kept her poise, realizing that she was being
escorted by celebrity of a different sort—both in the looks and money
department.  Her dates were considerably wealthier than most of the celebrities
there.

In
the large banquet room there was assigned seating and full wait staff service,
serving the best champagne and appetizers.  Everyone was laughing, animated,
and excited.  It clearly showed that it was a big day.

Sergio
hadn’t left Mandi’s side since they’d arrived at the festival and when he
excused himself to take a call Marshall didn’t hesitate to slide into his
chair.  “You and Sergio seem very…intimate.”

“We
are having a wonderful week,” Mandi said, not wanting to bring up the mysteries
that were currently surrounding their relationship.  She wanted to change the
subject. “What I’d like to talk about Marshall is the little conversation that
you and Sergio had about Sophia.  What’s going on there?”

“She’s
obviously an amazing and lovely woman, but I am in no place to have a serious
relationship.”

What
a surprise,
Mandi thought.  “Why not, Marshall?”

“I’m
quite dedicated to never falling in love again.  I got a broken heart once and
suffice it to say, it has not mended and part of me doesn’t want to forget the
pain.”

“Rather
poetic point of view, isn’t it?” Mandi asked.

“That’s
the way us creative sorts are,” Marshall replied.  For the next ten minutes the
two continued talking away and Mandi found a fun and casual friend in Marshall.
He’d dropped his Casanova airs and talked to her like a friend.  She
appreciated it and saw a really down to earth fun guy under his professional
persona.

Sergio
was still not back.  Mandi wondered if he was talking with Olivia.

Leroy
came up to Mandi and Marshall, interrupting their conversation. “Mandi, would
you like to take a walk with me outside briefly before we sit down for a few
hours watching the artistic lot of the world receive their due credit?”

“That
sounds nice,” Mandi said.  She hoped that she could see Sergio on her way out
and find out what was going on.  She’d know if he was talking to Olivia by the look
on his face and the way he was pacing. 
I cannot believe how much I’ve
learned his mannerisms in such a short time.

The
venue’s back patio area was so beautiful and it overlooked the gondolas on the
canals of Venice, something the city was renowned for the world over. Mandi
sensed that Leroy was watching her closely, trying to figure out what to say. 
She gave him a break and said, “The canals are every bit as beautiful as people
say, aren’t they?”

“Yes,
they are,” Leroy said.  He was smiling and acting a bit nervous.  “So, how’s
your date with Sergio going this week?”