Overture (Rain Dance, Book 1) (Rain Dance Series) (57 page)

     
Ethan shook his
head and chuckled. "It seems that the two of you together make for a
rather formidable pair. Must've been one hell of a party you had
yesterday."

     
"The
best." Jillian was still grinning ear-to-ear. "We're having another
one tomorrow night. You're welcome to join us this time. Dale's girlfriend will
be coming. And two others, possibly."

     
"Nothing
like the one you just described, I hope," he smiled.

     
"This time
we're just going to stick with karaoke. Will you come?" she asked
hopefully.

     
Ethan's smile
turned wry as he gazed at me. "...Karaoke? Well...I suppose if it's a
group gathering I won't feel so bad about getting in the way of your
reunion."

     
"If you
have any friends, you can bring them along as well. The more people, the
better."

     
Shit.

     
"I'll see
what I can do."

     
Double shit.
They both knew I hated large groups. Were they trying to torture me?

     
Jillian patted
my hand and looked at me gently. "It'll be good for you, Baby. Just
another small step forward, yeah? And this way he won't get bored when Cooper
and I steal you to sing along to the awesomeness of our youth."

     
Oh. She did
have a point. I nodded in agreement. Looks like I would just have to deal by
getting thoroughly smashed tomorrow night.

     
"We'll let
you get back to work, then," she said to Ethan, who was now watching her
curiously. "I'm borrowing her for the rest of the day. Girl time,
y'know?"

     
"Did you
walk here?" he asked after a pause.

     
"Cab," I replied, knowing where this was going.

     
"Douglas-"

     
"Not
necessary," I interjected.

     
"
Very
necessary if you plan on buying anything. And knowing you…" He looked me
over with dubious eyes.

     
"We're not
going to have him wait on us. And don't you need him?"

     
"It's his
job and I'll be working in my office for the rest of the day."

     
Jillian, who
had been looking back and forth between us, decided to speak. "…What's
happening?"

     
Ethan turned to
her. "Douglas, my driver, will take you wherever you want to go."

     
Her eyes lit up
like a puppy eyeing its favorite flavored bone. "Really?"

     
"I
insist." His smile was triumphant. He knew I wouldn't say no when Jilly
made
that
face. "By the time you exit the building, he should be
waiting for you." Motioning us to start walking, he began leading us to
the elevator. "You can have him for the rest of the day. Anything you need
at all, feel free to ask. He'll look after you both."

     
"That's
very kind of you," Jillian said gratefully as he hit the call-button.

     
"Not at all.
Actually, I would like to thank you for taking such good care of Daphne for so
many years." As he spoke to her, he swept a lock of hair behind my ear.

     
"I haven't
really been around for most of them," Jillian admitted.

     
"But for
those in which you were…" He paused, taking a moment to smirk at me before
looking directly at Jillian. "She'll say no, but I'm hoping you might
persuade her otherwise." The elevator opened and he ushered us in before
backing away. "Douglas will give you the details. Please enjoy the rest of
your day. It was lovely meeting you, Ms. Tamblyn." He gazed at me and
spoke softly, "Daphne."

     
"Nice to
meet you, too," Jillian replied just before the doors closed. Then she
turned to me, her expression blank. "His stare is fucking intense. How the
hell do you do it?"

     
Huh…That's
right.
"I guess I must've gotten used to it by now."

     
She laughed.
"However long, I don't think I could ever get used to
that
kind of
man. So who is this Douglas and what did he mean by you saying no?"

     
That
kind of man…The kind that other people saw. The kind that
I
had seen the
first time I'd smacked into him. At what point did I stop seeing
him
?
The doors opened and I held onto Jillian again, leading her out. "...I
guess we'll find out."

     
Sure enough,
Douglas was waiting right outside when we exited the building, though I don't
know how he managed it so quickly.

     
"Hey,
Douglas," I called. "Hope you don't mind."

     
"Not at
all, Miss Myers. If I didn't enjoy my job, I wouldn't do it," he said with
a smile.

     
Right.
I
nodded and apologized. "Sorry. Um, this is Jillian…Tamblyn." I
remembered that he would probably want to call her by her last name, too.

     
"Nice to
meet you, Douglas."
Oh, Jillybean.
I could tell that she'd been
struck just as hard as I had been by those dimples. Or maybe it was the auburn
hair. Or just his overall look. Whatever it was, she was giving him her most
charming smile.

     
"Likewise,
Ms. Tamblyn." He bowed his head slightly and opened the back door for us.

     
As soon as we
were in, Jillian turned to me and mouthed, "Oh my
God
. How old is
he?"

     
"I don't
know how old he is. But he also serves as a bodyguard, I think."

     
"Are you
serious?"

     
I nodded. When
he entered the car, we both went silent.

     
"Did you
happen to have a destination in mind?" he asked.

     
"We were
just going to explore," Jillian answered.

     
Douglas started
the car. "Mr. Desmond hopes that you'll allow him to thank you by
accepting an afternoon at the spa. It's already been paid for, so all you need
to do is give them your names."

     
Jillian looked
at me again, her eyes alight with excitement.

     
"The area
houses plenty of shops, all within an easy walking distance, as well as a
number of restaurants. And…" Douglas glanced at me from the rearview
mirror, almost nervously. "As it is a rare treat for you to be in
another's company, he hopes that you'll make the most of your time and enjoy it
to the fullest without any hesitation." He then reached into the glove
compartment and pulled out a card that I instantly recognized. It was the same
card he'd used when purchasing all my art supplies. Holding it up, he waited.

     
Jillian stared
at it as though it were the Holy Grail. "…Are you going to take it?"

     
I felt sick.
"Definitely not."

     
"Okay," she nodded. "…Why not?"

     
"It's not
right."

     
"Oh.
Okay," she repeated. "But you know…you
are
his girlfriend. And
he so obviously wants you to have some fun." Jillian didn't even bother
lowering her voice while in front of Douglas. I wondered if everything we said
would eventually get back to Ethan.

     
"Just
because we're...
involved
…it doesn't give me a right to his money."

     
"Clearly,
he thinks it
does
," she argued. "This is what he meant, isn't
it?" Her voice turned accusing, "Baby, have you been denying the man
a chance to spend a little bit of his fortune on you?"

     
Right,
because fifty thousand dollars for a mural is nothing.
"Dinner is
fine. Ice cream is fine.
That
," I nodded towards the card,
"...is too much."

     
"I don't
see how. Anyway, it's not like you're a gold digger or anything, so why should
you feel bad about it?" When I shook my head, she sighed and continued,
"He's not like us ordinary folk - there's no such thing as too much when
you're dating a billionaire. All rules go right out the door."

     
"…Billionaire?" I knew he was wealthy, but...
billionaire?

     
There were
tiers of wealth, this I understood. Levels
within
levels. A couple
hundred thousand grand a year was not the same as a million. The difference
between a few million and hundreds of millions was gapping. The difference
between hundreds of millions and just a few billions was beyond staggering. I
couldn't even imagine what any one person would do with that much money. You
would literally have to work just to spend it.
Billionaire?
Nothing I'd
seen had ever pointed to Ethan being
that
wealthy. He lived quite
modestly from what I'd observed.

     
Jillian
chuckled. "You look confused."

     
"I am. Are
you
sure
?"

     
She stared at
me like I was crazy. "Are you serious…? Um, big building? Driver? Mansion?
Did all that just happen skip right past you?"

     
"He
doesn't live in a mansion…just a fairly big house. And he usually drives me
himself."

   
  
"But when you've looked him up, you
must
have seen…?"

     
I swallowed.
"I've never looked him up."

     
Jillian's
expression turned rather pitiful, but soon she was laughing again. "That's
what you get for going solo all those years. It pays off to wait for Mr.
Perfect, I guess." She shook her head and then leaned in close, whispering
in my ear, "Baby, he inherited a company. When he took over, he turned it
into a billion dollar business. I don't remember what number he was listed at,
but it was up there. He literally makes millions in a single day."

     
I just wasn't
sure I could believe it. "But…he doesn't have a tanning bed. Or a wine
fridge. Or a fancy, overpriced food processor. I mean, the man drives an Audi,
not a fucking Ferrari. Hell, it's not even one of the higher-end models."

     
Douglas coughed
then, reminding me of his presence. I leaned back into my seat, too shocked to
be embarrassed about my stupidity. But wouldn't it have been more obvious if
Ethan was
that
wealthy? Paparazzi, multiple bodyguards, private jets,
and all that jazz? Or did that kind of stuff only exist in movies?
Well, he
had a whole background check done on me - and more, so there would be no point
in feeling bad about doing a little Google search on him, right?

     
Jillian took
the card from Douglas and held it for me to take. "Here. You don't have to
use it, but it won't hurt to have it on you just in case."

     
I didn't even
feel like arguing anymore, so I simply took it and kept my mouth shut for the
rest of the ride.

     
I'd never been
to a spa before. The idea of going to one was always unappealing, especially
since I didn't like people touching me. But with Jillian it wasn't so bad. As
soon as we gave our names we were granted instant access and treated very
kindly. Unlike my friend, I didn't feel comfortable with getting a massage, so
I opted for a facial instead. At least that way I could see exactly what was
going on. It was only a thirty-minute treatment, so while waiting for Jillian
to finish up, I looked over the menu. When she was done, we both sat down for a
manicure and pedicure.