Bidding On The Billionaire (The Sherbrookes of Newport Book 8) (8 page)

Brooklyn gathered everything from her backseat and slammed the car door closed.

“I thought your car was in front of me.” Addie’s voice had her turning around.

“Do you need any help?” Brooklyn asked. Addie had an infant car seat on one arm, a diaper bag over her shoulder, and she carried a plastic food container.

She shook her head and stopped alongside her. “Nah, I’m getting the hang of carrying a million things at once. But it’d be great if you’d get the door.”

Unable to stop herself, Brooklyn peeked into the carrier, surprised to see Kendrick awake and sucking happily on his fingers. “He’s awake.”

“He slept on the ride home from my mom’s. As soon as I took the seat from the car, he woke up. He’s starting to stay awake for longer periods of time. Of course, he still doesn’t sleep for more than a few hours at a time at night, but it’ll come I guess.”

Derek’s sister-in-law did look tired. “Don’t forget I’m downstairs if you need help. I never babysat, but my younger cousins used to visit every summer. I used to help my aunt with them.” She pulled open the stairwell door and let Addie walk in first.

“I appreciate the offer.” Addie started up the steps and Brooklyn followed. “Those flowers are gorgeous. Special gift for someone, or are they yours?”

“Trevor sent them to me today. They looked too nice to leave in my office.”

“Your date went well then?”

They’d reached the top of the stairs, so she reached around Addie to push the door into the lobby open. “Uh, yeah, I guess. Did Trent tell you I saw him as we were leaving?” They’d only exchanged a hello as they passed each other Friday night.

“He did. And Derek mentioned it too. I got the impression he doesn’t like your new boyfriend.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.” The words tumbled from her mouth. “We’ve only gone out once so far.”

Addie gestured toward the flowers with the plastic food container. “Looks like things are off to a good start.”

“Maybe.”

“I’ll see you later. It’s almost time for Kendrick to eat again, and when he’s hungry, he lets the whole world know it.”

A slight twinge pierced her chest as she watched Derek’s sister-in-law cross to the private elevator. Someday she’d like to have a husband and a baby to spend her time with too. By all accounts, Trevor was in the market for a wife and another child. Letting their relationship develop and grow like her father wanted could definitely lead to a family of her own. Perhaps he deserved more effort on her end. Maybe she should meet his daughter and spend time with both of them. Even as the thought crossed her mind, she had reservations. She didn’t even know how much she truly liked him yet. How would she figure out her feelings if they had a ten-year-old joining them on outings?

She pressed the button for the elevator. After the little conversation she needed to have with Trevor, it might not matter anyway. A secret part of her hoped he decided they shouldn’t go out again when he learned about the upcoming fundraiser and her starring role. If he decided they weren’t right for each other, any blame when a relationship didn’t materialize would be his fault not hers, thus getting her off the hook with her dad.

Guilt or something similar crept into her head. Oddly, the emotion wasn’t as strong as she suspected it should be. Maybe Derek was right. Perhaps Trevor was all wrong for her and somehow on a deeper level she already knew it.

Inside her apartment, she didn’t even bother changing before she pulled Trevor’s contact information up. The sooner she called, the sooner she could meet him and get everything out in the open.

***

Relax. Crisis averted. She’s sticking with the plan,
Derek reminded himself as he swam toward the shoreline. He’d headed out for a swim right after he got home with the hope it would improve his mood. He’d been in the water for a half hour now, and so far, the only thing his swim had accomplished was to make him wet.

Dropping down onto the sand, he watched the waves crash against the shore before rolling back out. The sight usually relaxed him; tonight it had little effect. He’d been grouchy since the weekend, but his mood had taken a steep nosedive this afternoon when he’d walked into Brooklyn’s office. He couldn’t blame it on their conversation either, and he wished he could. Actually, he’d expected a similar one before now.

No, the nosedive that led to his current grouchiness had started the moment he saw the flowers. He’d known without asking who sent them. The flowers only brought up the memory of Trevor standing close to Brooklyn on Friday with his hand on her lower back. A memory that shouldn’t bother him but did, and the more he tried to block it out, the more it reared its head.

Damn it
. He raked a hand through his wet hair, causing water to rain down on him. Who she spent time with should not matter this much to him. They were friends but also single adults who could make their own decisions. Besides, she never stood in his way when he dated. Even when he took out women she thought very little of. She deserved the same consideration from him. In the past, he’d always given it to her, hadn’t he? Like when she’d dated Kevin. Derek paused. No, Brooklyn hadn’t dated Kevin, his cousin Courtney had dated the creep. Okay, but he’d kept his mouth shut when she went out with Matt. Wait, Allison went out with Matt, not Brooklyn.

Derek racked his head for her past boyfriends. He didn’t count any of the men her sisters had attempted to set her up with. She’d never liked any of them. In fact, after the last one, Seth’s cousin, she sworn she’d never go on another date with someone her sisters recommended.

“Christ, why can’t I remember anyone?” They’d been close friends for ten years. He would’ve noticed if she never dated in all that time.

Regardless of her personal life in the past, he knew she didn’t go out often and he couldn’t remember the last relationship she’d been in. Maybe he should let his sister-in-law play matchmaker. From the little she’d described of her cousin, he sounded like a better fit for Brooklyn than Trevor. Of course, almost anyone would be a better choice.

Derek shoved his feet into his flip-flops and stood. He saw no point in sitting around out here. Despite the wonderful view and pleasant weather, his mood still sucked. In fact, the longer he sat there and considered Brooklyn’s love life, the worse it got. Rather than sit there and contemplate someone else’s life, he should get inside and take care of his own. His cousin Sara’s wedding was mere days away and family members from around the country had started arriving. Some he hadn’t seen in close to a year. Instead of hanging around his place, he should see if any of them wanted to spend some time together. Who knew when some of them would get back this way again?

Yep, he’d see who was around. It was better than sitting around and thinking about Brooklyn with Trevor.

Friday afternoon, Brooklyn sipped her iced tea and watched the door. Any minute Trevor should walk in. She’d arrived at the café fifteen minutes early in the hopes of grabbing a back corner table. She’d succeeded, so at least they’d have a little privacy while they talked. Of course she’d also picked Café Au Latte because it was not only close to her office but always packed at lunchtime, which meant there would be little chance of anyone overhearing them.

She’d hoped to see him before now and unload her conscience, which had been nudging her for days. However, today had been the only afternoon that worked in both their schedules for lunch. Despite not seeing him all week, they had chatted on the phone a few times. The first conversation had been on Monday when she called to thank him for the flowers. It had been during that conversation they’d arranged this afternoon’s lunch date. He’d called her again on Wednesday night. They hadn’t spoken long. They’d discussed their weeks so far, and then Trevor informed her Katelyn really wanted him to take her and a friend to some amusement park up in New Hampshire, so he wouldn’t be around this weekend. She hadn’t been upset by his announcement.

Across the café, she spotted Trevor entering and waved. When he saw her, he smiled and headed for the table.

“Good thing you got here before me. There’s not an empty seat in here. Even the tables outside are full.” He placed a brief kiss on her cheek before sitting down across from her.

Despite the unease swimming in her stomach, she smiled. “I had a feeling it’d be busy here. It usually is at lunchtime, but the crowd is worth it. The sandwiches and pastries here are fabulous.”

“Have you been waiting long?” He picked up the menu the waitress had left when Brooklyn first sat down and opened it.

“Not really.” She’d looked over the menu while she waited and picked out her own lunch. Not ready to jump right in to the true reason for meeting him today, she cleared her throat and then said, “So Katelyn and her friend must be excited about your trip this weekend. When do the three of you leave?”

Trevor folded his menu and placed it back on the table, his full attention settling on her. “She’s talked about nothing else all week. She loves it up there, and I try to get her there at least twice a summer. We leave right after the girls get home from school. Today’s their last day, so it’s a nice way for them to kick off their summer break.”

Before either of them could say more, the waitress who’d delivered her iced tea earlier returned and took their lunch orders. “I’ll go put these right in. If you need anything else, my name’s Sandy.” She collected the menus and walked away.

“We did something similar last year too, although we visited an amusement park in Pennsylvania instead. We went up to New Hampshire later on in the summer,” Trevor said, picking up their conversation where he’d left off. “Katelyn and Heather have been friends for a long time and have identical interests. They’re both only children, and they’ve developed a sisterlike relationship.”

Even though she didn’t always get along with her sisters growing up, she couldn’t imagine being an only child. “My cousin and I are close like that. When I was younger, we’d pretend we were sisters.” Actually she often wished Cheyenne was her sister instead of Paris and Milan. “It’s important to have close friends.”

“I agree. And it’ll be a fun weekend.” He paused when the waitress delivered his iced coffee. Once she left again, he continued. “But I’m sorry it means we can’t do something together.”

“No worries, I understand. Family is important.”

Trevor reached across the table and took her hand. “Next week I’d love to see you. I’m dropping Katelyn off with her mom Sunday night when we get back. She’ll be there until the following Sunday. I understand during the week after work isn’t ideal for you, but maybe next weekend we can get together. I haven’t gone to see WaterFire yet this season. I try to get to it a few times a summer. Maybe we could have dinner and see it next Friday. If the weather isn’t nice, we can think of something else.”

Time to lay it out there.
“I’m not sure then will be a good time either, Trevor. Have you heard about the fundraising event Helping Hands Foundation has planned?”

He made a face as if he’d just taken a large bite out of a lemon. “Hard not to.”

He had a point. All the local television stations as well as the Providence Gazette had run stories over the past several weeks. It had also popped up all over social media sites too.

“I take it you’re going?” The I-just-ate-a-lemon look remained on his face.

“Mom purchased tickets for the four of us. It’s for a good cause.” She’d tried rehearsing a speech last night and this morning, but no matter what, nothing sounded right. “And my friend Derek is participating in it.”

“Not surprising. It sounds like something he’d do.” A tinge of sarcasm laced Trevor’s voice.

“Actually, he’s only doing it as a favor to his aunt. And since he really doesn’t want to participate, he asked for my help.” Trevor’s comment annoyed her, and her voice took on a defensive tone.

The tiny crow’s feet near his eyes deepened as his eyebrows furrowed. “It’s a bachelor auction, correct? How can you help him?”

She licked her bottom lip. “Well…” She paused and took a sip of her iced tea to combat the sudden dryness in her mouth. “This is going to sound crazy, I know.” She cleared her throat and took another drink while she searched for the words. “His ex purchased a ticket and will be there.” A little fib right now allowed her to avoid the true reason. “She wants to give things a second try. Derek doesn’t and he’s afraid she’ll put in the highest bid, forcing them to spend time together. The highest bidder gets four dates with the bachelor they win.” Pausing again, she took another long sip from her drink. “Since she’ll be there, he asked me to make sure I’m the highest bidder when it’s his turn.”

“Dishonest but effective, I guess. Since the auction is Friday, the rest of the weekend remains open for us.”

Either Trevor was the most understanding man in the world or he didn’t completely understand what she was telling him. Regardless, she needed to make sure he fully understood what she’d promised Derek. “True.” She pushed up her eyeglasses. There was no sugarcoating what she needed to add. “The media is going to be all over this event. Everyone’s going to expect Derek and me to go out on some romantic dates. If we don’t, people will suspect it was a charade.”

His hand slipped away from hers and he cleared his throat before he spoke. “I see.” Trevor fell silent, but his severe frown conveyed his feelings.

Whether or not it was his intention, Trevor’s expression made her shift in her seat, unable to meet his eye. “Derek and I have been friends since college. I’m only doing this to help him. And it won’t be much different than when we spend time together now. After the required dates are done, the media will be happy and things will go back to normal between us.”

Trevor folded his hands together, his frown still locked in place making him look older and reminding her of the twelve-year age difference between them. “And while you help him, your life goes on hold? Is that how this agreement works? Sounds like Sherbrooke is getting the better end of the deal. Or do you get something in return?”