The Billionaire's Longshot: Betting on You Series: Book Three (19 page)

“J
ill, you really
should be asking Ross these questions,” Drew said while finishing his now cold eggs.

She shouldn’t have ordered anything. Her stomach was tossing and turning from anxiety over the meeting with Drew.
Get the info and get out.
Out of all of Ross’s friends, Drew seemed to be the least threatening. “He hasn’t been very forthcoming with information. I want to make this work between us, but as I’m sure you could tell from the dinner party, we still have some issues to work through.” That was putting it mildly. She needed Drew’s insight to what made Ross, Ross.

“He never has been one to share much with anyone. Guess it stems from his childhood.”

Not much help here, Drew.
He was stating the obvious. She needed something she couldn’t see for herself. “How long have you known him?”

“Since freshman year in college. That was when the five of us became friends.”

Five?
Who was missing from the picture? Maybe the answer lies there. “I know you, Jon, and Trent. Who is the other person?”

Drew paused, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked like he just let something slip and wanted to take it back.

No way, buddy. Spill it.
“Please, Drew. This might help me better understand Ross so we can fix some of the challenges we’re having.” Her voice was soft and pleading.
Sometimes it’s great to be a woman.
She laughed to herself as she watched him begin to cave.

“Out of all of us, Brad was probably Ross’s best friend back then. Brad lived on the edge between the wild crazy ones, namely Trent and me, and the stick-in-the-muds, Jon and Ross.”

“What happened? Why aren’t they friends now?”

Drew became quiet and seemed to be reliving something from the past, something painful. “He was killed in a car accident five years ago. It took all of us by surprise but no one more than Ross. Brad was always able to drag him out of his comfort zone, do what no one else could. Brad never took no for an answer. When he died, Ross shut down more than the rest of us. But then again, we all had families who supported us through our rough times in life. Ross didn’t. Most of his rough times came from being home. Home was a place he ran from instead of to, if you know what I mean.”

That wasn’t what she expected. She thought for sure it was going to be a horrible story about his mother, and she knew there were probably plenty of stories to tell there. If he felt as though he had no one except Brad, losing him would have caused a total shutdown. One she could relate to very well. Even now she found herself running from Rhode Island, trying to find herself, prove herself . . . and failing miserably. How could she fix what hurt him if she couldn’t fix her own pain? His friends, after all these years, hadn’t had any more luck with him than Elaine had with her. Was it only going to make things worse for him, and for her, by trying? Were they both so protective for reasons that shouldn’t be explored? She knew she didn’t want anyone probing into her life, but she was doing exactly that to Ross.
Whatever happened to treating someone like you want to be treated?
Guess that goes out the window when your heart is involved.

She needed to know more about Brad, understand him first, before she could understand Ross. “Tell me about Brad. What made him so . . .?”

“Special? That is the only way to describe him. He was selfless. A person who would have made a mark on this planet, a lasting one, if given the chance. Not by getting rich—money meant nothing to him, unlike us. His acts of kindness went unnoticed until his death.”

Jill couldn’t picture exactly what that meant. Unnoticed. By whom? The world, his friends, or family? That made no sense. “I don’t understand.”

“You’ve seen us at many charity events. Coming from a not-for-profit agency helping a community, then you know what it means to help someone who truly is in need. You don’t wear a T-shirt shouting it from the rooftop. You go there under the cover of the anonymity, fill the need, and watch its effects from the distance. That was Brad.”

“He does sound special. But what do you mean it was unnoticed?”

“We only found out when Brad’s mother gave Ross Brad’s journal. It all became clear to us then, but it was too late for us to tell him what we should have.”

Maybe that was what Ross chose to do, write down in his journal what he couldn’t bring himself to say out loud. “And what was that?”

“That is something each of us is still trying to figure out. I would have told him thanks for waking me up to what really is important. I’m not sure what it meant for the others, including Ross, though.”

Getting to understand Ross was going to take a lot more than she thought. There was more pain than she suspected. “Thank you for telling me.”

“I only did it because you seem to have that same ability to reach him like no one else can.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” She laughed.

“You got him on a dance floor the first time you met, you got him to take you away on a boat,
and
go back home. No, I would say you have something he can’t say no to.”

She hadn’t realized any of this before. For all she knew he had taken many women on the boat. And as far as his family’s home, she understood why no one went there. She would go again, but only if he asked her to, never by choice. Meeting with Drew was proving more enlightening than she first thought. “Can I ask one more thing of you, Drew?”

“I’m already in up to my neck, so why not?”

She laughed. “Please don’t let him know we spoke.”

“That’s easy. It’s not like I’m going to shout it out at the next dinner party,” he teased.

Ouch.
“I deserved that one.” She laughed. But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t get him back for it one day.

“I’m glad you
could meet me.”

Elaine stirred her coffee. “Ross, I was going to reach out to you if you hadn’t. Jill is very special to me. Like a kid sister. I’m very protective of her, if you hadn’t noticed.”

Like a lioness.
“That’s understandable. She is a sweet person. You don’t want to see her hurt. Neither do I.”

“The jury is out on that one. From what I heard, you haven’t been succeeding. She was very upset the other night. And for good reason, too.”

No arguing with that either. He wasn’t meeting her to deny anything he had said or done. He was there for one reason only. Trent.
Fix things with Jill, then with Elaine.

“Everything is good with us. We have an understanding.”

“What the hell does that mean?” she asked harshly.

That we have great sex and no strings.
“We are going to take things slowly.” He almost choked when he said it. It was more like fast and hot. But it worked for them.

“Good. She is unique, full of life and promise, Ross. You might not realize it, but given a chance she will do great things in this world, more than any of us. Even with the work we do at Takes One, she will touch so many more, and it’ll never be noticed.”

Was she part of a secret group? How was it going to go unnoticed? Then he recalled Brad’s years of doing so much for so many, and no one had known. Not even him, his college roommate.
I guess no matter how much you think you know a person, they share only what they want you to know.
Is that what’s happening with Jill?
Was she only showing him what she wanted him to see? He wanted to know more, know all of her.

“I only wanted to be sure you understood. It is not my intention to hurt her, not before and not going forward.”

“I know you’re Trent’s friend and all, but I will not sit quietly by if I see a hint of you not doing right by her. If it wasn’t for Trent, I wouldn’t be here now. But he trusts you, and believes your intentions are good. I don’t happen to agree with Trent. I see you as someone who is unsure of what he wants. I suggest figuring it out quickly, or it will have one result, hurting Jill again.”

He had done the best he could to mend the fences with Elaine, but it was going to take a lot more than words. Though he wished to have smoothed things out so all was well with Trent and Elaine, his primary focus was on Jill. Meeting with Elaine wasn’t a complete waste of time; he agreed on one thing, he needed to figure out what he wanted.

‡

T
onight was going
to be different. He wasn’t going to direct the conversation. No, she knew exactly what topics she wanted to cover: Brad and the vineyard. Drew gave her some insight as to why Ross distanced himself, but she knew it was deeper than that. She might not get all the answers, but she was going to get some.
One way or another.
What if he was incapable of opening up? What then?
Is it even worth pursuing?
The answer didn’t come.

Ross was on time as usual, and they were quickly on their way to the restaurant. Jill wasn’t sure she would ever get used to the fancy meals. There was something about a family run diner with the old-fashioned meatloaf and mashed potato dinner. It was so much more relaxing. Though Ross chose places with excellent food, the staff was so darn attentive they almost seemed to hover. Every time she thought it was safe to hit him with a question, they were interrupted. Did she have the worst timing or did he just have the best luck?

Dessert had come and gone and still not one answer. She wasn’t about to give up so easily. Jill has spent half her week planning exactly what she was going to say, and she wasn’t about to let the opportunity slip by now. The night was still early. “Would you like to come up for coffee?”

“Sounds great,” Ross said, and followed her into her apartment. Jill went right to the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. Normally she wouldn’t have one so late, but there was no way was she offering him a beer. That would only risk the night taking a turn in a direction that left little time for conversation.
Good as it may be, no sex tonight.

When she returned he had taken his suit jacket off and was lounging on the couch.
Don’t get too comfortable.
Handing him the coffee she sat on the chair opposite the couch. “Dinner was nice, thank you.”

“Glad you liked it. Any reason why you’re sitting all the way over there?”

Definitely.
She ignored his question and started on her own. Might as well jump right in before she let him distract her. “Tell me about your college days.”

He took a sip of the hot coffee. “It was college. Nothing special.”

Oh yeah, this is going to be like pulling teeth.
“Since I’ve never been, how about a little more detail. What did you study?”

“Business.”

No shit.
“Play sports? Play an instrument? Get sent to the dean’s office for streaking?”

Ross arched a brow. “No. No, and definitely not. I was the levelheaded one. When I was in the dean’s office it was usually to show support for Drew, Trent, and Brad.”

Finally. Door’s open; here I come.
“Brad? Who’s Brad?” She smiled inwardly at her skill. He wasn’t the only one able to manipulate a situation.

“I met Brad in my freshman year at Boston University. He was an unusual character.”

“How so?”

Downing his coffee he placed the cup on the table and leaned back on the couch. “Unpredictable. Not like the rest of us. Jon and I were what you would consider the nerds of the group. Study hard, play little. Trent and Drew, let’s just say I was shocked they didn’t get kicked out for half the shit they pulled. Brad, on the other hand, was a blend. Always on top of whatever project was due, yet half the time he was the mastermind behind Trent and Drew’s antics. I have to admit, even I fell into his trap several times.”

Forcing a look of shock, she said, “Really? Do tell. What crazy things did you do in college?”

Ross shook his head. “You’re not getting me to admit anything.” He laughed.

“Okay, if you had done something crazy, what would it have been? Cheated on a test? Come on. Spill it.”

“I never cheated at anything,” he said seriously. “That doesn’t mean I didn’t get into my share of trouble.”

“Just admit it, you were boring,” she teased.

“Oh, you’re pushing it now. I said Trent and Drew were always in the dean’s office. That was only because they got caught. Brad and I were much smarter. My junior year, Brad and I decided to visit a rival university and kidnap their mascot. We held it for two weeks before returning it. During that entire time their rugby team did not win a single match.”

She burst out laughing. “Okay, you have proven your point. You were not boring. But please tell me it wasn’t alive.”

“Oh, it was and not easily hidden. The worst part was we discovered it liked to drink beer, and one night it got drunk and stumbled out of the dorm. I was chasing it in my underwear at two a.m.”

“Now that must have been a sight. Boxers or briefs?” she teased.

“Speedos,” he joked.

She could picture him running around chasing some crazy animal, a goat or pig or something.

“What are you smiling about?”

“I have a vision of it in my head, and it might haunt me all night.”

“I would be more than happy to give you something much more pleasant to dream about,” he said and reached for her hand.