Billionaire by Design (A BWWM Romance) (7 page)

“Oh, shut up, you look fine,” she replied playfully while rolling her eyes. “Let me just grab my purse and we can get out of here.”

“So, this is where you live, eh?” he asked curiously as he peeked inside without being overly intrusive.

“Yes, this is my palace,” she joked as she quickly grabbed her black clutch from the kitchen counter. “Try not to be too jealous.”

She couldn’t help but notice that he had politely remained outside and hadn’t made any attempt to invite himself in. She respected that, and with her clutch in hand she headed out the door, stopping to lock it behind her.

“It’s not a bad place,” Zane said, resuming the conversation as they headed downstairs. “Looks cozy from what I saw.”

Reaching the parking lot, he hurried ahead to open the waiting town car’s back door for her.

“Thank you,” she said, acknowledging his chivalry with a polite smile as she comfortably situated herself in the vehicle’s back seat. Seeing that she was settled in, he shut her door and made his way around the car to take a seat next to her.

“See? I don’t always ride in a limousine,” he said humorously.

“Yeah, but you still have a driver,” she ribbed while rolling her big, brown eyes as the car set off towards the undisclosed destination.

“The limousine’s mostly to impress clients,” he divulged. “Shh… don’t tell anyone,” he winked as he placed his index finger to his lips.

“And the driver?”

“Mostly for meetings,” he explained with a smile. “And I do a fair amount of my own driving, I’ll have you know.”

“Oh, so this is a meeting?” she smirked as she looked into his gorgeous blue eyes.

“No,” he returned her gaze intently, “I just wanted to give you my fullest attention tonight. No distractions. I want to focus on you for every second I have you,” he grinned.

“Oh?” Jenna gulped, a sudden wave of heat coursing through her. The energy between them was palpable, and she suddenly had no doubt that this outing was much more than business.

They rode for fifteen minutes with conversation flowing freely along the way. Despite her initial burst of nerves, she found herself quickly at ease in his presence. Her confidence, which had never been shaken by a man before, had now returned. Laughter radiated from the back seat as they playfully bantered, enjoying each other’s company as the town car weaved through the city.

Arriving at the restaurant, Jenna wasn’t surprised to find it was one she’d never heard of before. As a transplant from New York City, and a broke one at that, she’d never experienced Tucson’s fine dining and rarely ventured into the business district.

Zane helped her out of the car and guided her inside where her senses were immediately overcome with the sights, smells, and sounds of Italy. As she would quickly find out,
Primavera
was a five-star restaurant known for its wealthy clientele. It was where the city’s socially elite gathered to feast on authentic Italian cuisine, and its lavish interior was unlike anything she’d ever seen.

The decor was immaculate, its stone walls adorned with artwork she knew was expensive. The lighting was low, adding an almost romantic ambiance throughout the restaurant, and Sicilian music played softly in the background.

She went from a sense of welcome to a feeling of dread as she surveyed the mobbed dining area located to the left of an impressive full bar. The city’s most prominent businessmen and women sat feasting on
Primavera’s
pricey courses, all of them dressed to the hilt. She glanced down at her dress, suddenly self-conscious in her choice of attire, and she could feel her face grow flushed as the hostess approached them.

“Zane Talbot, reservation for two,” Jenna heard him tell the woman as she continued absorbing the restaurant’s atmosphere. She knew New York City must have restaurants as nice as this, but she’d never had a chance to experience any of them.

“You look gorgeous,” he whispered to her as the hostess guided them to a private table in the far corner of the dining room. He’d sensed her concern, and the sincerity in his reassuring words instantly soothed her. She followed closely by his side as they crossed the busy floor.

“Thank you,” she whispered back, unsure if Zane could even hear her over the low roar filling the restaurant.

Seating them at their table, the hostess pleasantly informed them that their waiter would be with them shortly before disappearing back to her station by the restaurant’s entrance. Jenna was left sitting at a candlelit table across from a rich, handsome man she hardly knew but was undeniably attracted to.

“What do you think?” Zane asked eagerly while studying Jenna’s face for a reaction.

“This is too much,” she replied with an awestruck smile as she continued to soak in the restaurant’s decor. Their table was slightly recessed from the rest of the room, and she had a feeling he’d paid a lot of money to have it arranged that way. It was draped with a white tablecloth, and a small floral arrangement sat beside the tall, red candle. Although she couldn’t smell them over the restaurant’s savory aroma, she could tell the flowers were real.

“I seriously can’t get over how beautiful you look,” he grinned as he looked her over.

“I’m so underdressed,” she said with a quiet nervousness. “I feel like everybody’s looking at me.”

“Oh, stop.” His smile widened and his mesmeric blue eyes lit up. “Seriously, you look amazing. Belle of the ball!”

“I’m wearing all black,” she commented while looking down at her outfit. “I look like I’m going to a funeral. Why did I wear this? Ugh. Stupid.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Zane teased. He’d placed a hand over his mouth, and his chest heaved as he silently laughed in amusement. “Hey, maybe this date will be the death of you!” he moved his hand to comically blurt.

Jenna couldn’t help but giggle. He seemed to have a way of alleviating her anxiety. A few hours earlier, she’d been a nervous, self-conscious wreck around the man, but all of that had somehow changed, stemming from both his approval of her work and the flirtatious suggestion that he found her attractive.

A friendly waiter scurried over to deliver a basket of fresh ciabatta bread and take their drink orders. In a gentlemanly fashion, Zane gestured for her to place her order first and looked at her curiously when she only asked for a water.

He ordered a glass of red wine, and as the man hurried off to fetch their drinks, Jenna followed Zane’s lead and opened her menu. The selection was wonderful, but she couldn’t believe the prices she was seeing as she scanned the list with wide eyes.

“Do you know what you want?” Zane asked as he scoured his menu as well.             

“Jesus, the prices are… And I thought the drinks were…” Jenna mumbled, trailing off as she realized the thoughts she’d been meaning to keep private had unintentionally come tumbling out of her mouth.

“Wait, is that why you only ordered a water? Because you’re worried about the prices?” Zane questioned, his brow raised in worry.

“Well, come on. A soda is, like, seven bucks—” she started, only to be interrupted by Zane’s deep voice.

“You order whatever you want, okay? Don’t worry about price. Not tonight.”

“Are you sure?” she asked. “I mean, you’ve already done so much for me today. That check was—”

“You earned that check,” he interrupted again with his face suddenly serious, “and you’ve earned this dinner. So, please, order anything on the menu. I mean it.”

“Okay,” she conceded apprehensively.

“If it makes you feel any better, I’ll write the entire meal off as a tax deduction,” he joked, sensing her trepidation.

“Doesn’t that only apply to business meetings?” she smiled as she turned her eyes back to the menu. She’d never been to a restaurant where the menus didn’t feature pictures of the food. This place was indeed fancy, she noted as she made her choice.

“Well, since you mentioned it, I do have some business I’d like to discuss,” he announced as he adjusted his posture and folded his hands on the table in front of him.

“Oh?” she asked with her brow raised in interest. “And what business is that?”

“My unexpected stop at Family Burger made me realize we haven’t heard much from them over the last couple of years. They were doing well, then suddenly stopped expanding and halted their advertising campaigns,” he explained.

“Go on,” Jenna prodded.

“I’ve been in touch with Raul Lopez over the last few days. He and his wife started the chain together over twenty years ago.”

Jenna nodded her understanding, listening attentively as he continued.

“Turns out his wife got sick a few years back. Cancer. They sunk all their money into her treatment.”

“So that’s why they stopped expanding,” Jenna pieced together. “My manager told me she was sick but didn’t give me many details.”

“Exactly. It crippled them financially. They barely had the money to keep their existing stores open, let alone pay for marketing,” Zane replied as the waiter brought them their drinks. Insisting that Jenna enjoy the red wine with him, he asked the man to bring the entire bottle and an additional glass. He darted off to retrieve it as Zane went on.

“They were keeping the severity of her illness fairly hush-hush. She’s gone into remission, thankfully, and things are looking well.”

“That’s a relief,” Jenna agreed. Raul Lopez and his beautiful Dominican wife had visited her store on several occasions, and they both seemed like wonderful people. They treated their employees with the utmost respect, even taking the time to learn a little about their personal lives. It made the whole “Family Burger” title seem that much more fitting.

“They want to begin advertising again, but they’re still recovering from the huge financial blow,” Zane told her. Always the gentleman, he refused to touch his wine until she had hers and waited patiently for their waiter to return.

“So what are you going to do?” Jenna questioned, hanging on his every word.

“I agreed to work with them at half the normal rate. We have a history together, so I figured it’s the least I can do.”

“Didn’t you say they were one of your first clients?” Jenna asked.

“That’s right,” Zane replied with a small smile, clearly shocked that she’d remembered this detail, “they were. They were willing to give a nobody like me a shot, and I owe them for that.”

“That’s really sweet of you,” Jenna smiled affectionately.

The waiter reappeared with the requested bottle of wine, pouring Jenna a glass and gently placing it in front of her. He set the bottle on the table and politely asked if they were ready to order. Once again, Zane motioned for Jenna to go first, and she stumbled as she attempted to pronounce the penne all'arrabbiata. Zane silently chuckled at how adorable this was, and even she had to giggle at her own fumble. He effortlessly ordered the pollo alla cacciatore, and their waiter departed with a smile.

“Anyhow, this is where you come in,” Zane resumed after coaxing Jenna into trying the wine. She’d never been a huge wine drinker, or drinker in general for that matter, and its bitterness caught her off guard.

“How so?” she asked as she forced the sip down.

“I want your help with their campaign,” he said bluntly as he took a sip of wine, his eyes locked intently on hers.

“My help? Why? I mean, you have an entire team and I wouldn’t even know where to begin!” Jenna spat, stunned by his proposal.

“You’d be perfect,” he persisted. “You’ve been working with Family Burger for how long? You know their menu and how they operate inside and out.”

“Well, that is true,” she conceded. “What are you suggesting?”

“I’m not suggesting anything,” he smiled as he took another gulp of wine. “I’m telling you flat-out that I want you to join my firm.”

“Zane…” she began. “That sounds wonderful, but between school and my job, there’s no way I’d have the time for that.” She nervously took another sip of wine, and this one went down much smoother.

“No, no, you don’t seem to understand,” he countered as he leaned in closer. “I want you to leave Family Burger and work for me. I know you have school, but we can work around that. It’s not a problem.”

“Jesus, this is so…”

“Unexpected?” Zane finished for her. “I know, but I’m very impressed with your work, and the Family Burger account would be the perfect campaign to start you out on.”

“I don’t know…” she replied hesitantly. “This is all so sudden.”

“To be honest, I was going to offer you a job when you finished your schooling anyway,” Zane admitted. “I might as well bring you on board now, though. No sense in waiting, especially with the Family Burger account opening back up.”

The waiter returned, briefly interrupting them to drop off an antipasto salad and two small plates. Zane nodded a thank you at him, and he raced off for the third time. Zane wasted no time returning to his offer.

“You’d be working less hours than you are now, and with better pay. Plus you’d be doing something you love and are amazing at. Seems like a no-brainer to me,” he persuaded.

She had to admit that his proposition sounded extremely enticing. She’d planned on searching for new employment in a few months anyhow, and definitely wouldn’t miss slinging greasy cheeseburgers. Juan, her manager, would be sad to see her go, and Michael would be as well, but they both knew she planned on leaving soon. This opportunity could launch her career, and working for Zane’s successful firm meant she’d be seeing the gorgeous entrepreneur on a regular basis. As much as she hated to admit it, that alone was incentive enough.