The Virgin and the Billionaires: The Complete Series (9 page)

“Far from it. You handled
it like a pro.” Alexander realized what he had just said. “Um, not that I would
know –”

Dana laughed uncomfortably.

“Oh my god. My car. Nobu
must be closed by now. How am I going to get to work tomorrow?”

“Don’t worry about it. We
can take care of it later. You may stay here tonight if you wish.”

“Sure, I’d love that.”

Alexander only smirked. “It
seems like we both have early mornings tomorrow. Let’s get some rest.” He
leaned over Dana and kissed her forehead before turning his back to her,
shutting off his lamp, and going to sleep.

Dana lay awake for a
moment, but realized that she was also pretty tired. She turned off her
nightstand lamp and followed suit.

***

The next morning, Dana awoke
in Alexander’s bed. Alexander had already gotten up, and Dana could hear him in
the shower. She looked around the room from her pillow and out to the Pacific.

I can’t imagine what it’s like to wake up to
this
every morning,
she thought. The bed,
the room, the view – it was all too much.

She smoother her hair away
from her face, noticing that it had become tangled from the friction of last
night’s sex. She still couldn’t believe that she wasn’t a virgin anymore. She
never thought it would ever happen, and here she was lying in a billionaire’s
bed, in his Malibu mansion, looking out at a million-dollar view.

Dana panicked for a moment
when she realized that she didn’t know what time it was. She looked over at
Alexander’s side of the bed. It was only 7:30. Dana didn’t have to be at work
until 10:00. She lay in bed for a few more minutes until Alexander emerged from
the shower.

He stepped into the
bedroom, his bottom half wrapped in a plush white towel. The olive skin of his
chiseled upper body caught Dana’s attention immediately. Alexander basked in
her attention, nonchalantly rubbing his hair with a second towel and showing
off his toned arms and back.

“You may use the shower if
you’d like,” he said, continuing to dry his hair. “I’ve asked the cook to
prepare us breakfast and coffee. I hope you like fruit.”

Dana sat up, covering her
buxom torso with the sheets. “Sure. Thank you.”

Dana nodded and stood up as
Alexander disappeared into his walk-in closet. Curious, she took a peek inside
on her way to the shower. Alexander stood in the middle of the cavernous
closet, which could have doubled as a menswear store, wearing only a pair of
boxer shorts. He noticed Dana standing in the doorway and drank in her
voluptuous frame with his eyes.

After the most luxurious
shower of her life (she felt like she was standing under a waterfall), Dana
stole a bathrobe off of the bathroom wall and made her descent into the
kitchen. Alexander was sitting at a small table nestled up to the window wall,
sipping coffee and reading the Financial Times. A large plate of food was set
at the seat across from his.

Dana approached the table
and noticed the beautiful breakfast comprised more than fruit. Eggs, sausage,
and toast were also on the menu. Dana sat down and began eating.
 

 
“Alexander?”

He peered over the top of
his paper.

“I can’t go to work in the
same dress I wore yesterday.”

Alexander paused for a
moment. “I’ll take care of that.” He raised his voice. “Sebastian!” he cried.

A slightly older man in a
button-up and slacks appeared, seemingly out of thin air.

“Please find my guest a
dress appropriate for work.”

Sebastian gazed at Dana’s
figure for a minute, presumably assessing her size.

“Certainly.” Sebastian
turned around to leave.

Dana interjected meekly.
“Alexander? My car –”

“Will you also call her a
car to Nobu, to arrive at 8:55 and leave at 9:00?”

“Yes, sir.” Sebastian left.

“Let’s take a walk around
the house. I’ll give you a tour.”

Dana smiled and nodded.
Together, they walked around the kitchen.

“I built this house myself.
Not with my own bare hands, but I bought the land and had the house designed
for my needs. Every inch of the property has my ‘fingerprint’ on it.”

Alexander showed her the
great room, the living room, the wine cellar, the game room, and his indoor
pool before taking her out to the wrap-around deck.

“It’s great for
entertaining out here,” he said, pointing to a second swimming pool on the
ground level patio below them. People have to come a long way, but they usually
don’t regret it.”

“How could they?” Dana replied,
in awe. “It’s so beautiful here.”

“It is.” Alexander pointed
to an equally large house on an adjacent hill. “William lives over there.”

“Oh, really? How funny that
you two live so close to each other.”

“It’s certainly not an
accident. I’d like to be as close to my business partner as I can. If we need
to meet outside of the office, neither of us has to drive all the way across
town.”

Dana nodded. “That makes
sense.” She closed her eyes and enjoyed the ocean breeze.

“Come,” Alexander said.
“Let’s go back inside.”

They stepped back into the
great room, where Sebastian stood waiting with three garment bags.

“Your dresses, ma’am.” He
handed Dana the hangers.

Alexander pointed out the
nearest spare bedroom for Dana to change. He followed her as she made her way
back.

Dana unzipped each garment
bag, revealing three dresses of different colors and cuts, all in her correct
size – 18. Dana was very impressed with Sebastian’s haste and acuity.

Alexander stood by the
mirror and watched Dana as she changed.

The first dress she tried
on, a loose fitting, sheer scoop neck dress with a lively, Missoni-like
pattern, fit Dana perfectly. She liked it so much that she didn’t bother to try
on the other two dresses, though they were both things she would have loved to
have in her closet.

Alexander flashed a grin of
approval. “You look great,” he said, walking back out into the main area of the
house.

Sebastian approached them
as they made their way back out, ready to show Dana to her ride, which had
parked itself in front of the double doors.

Alexander walked with her
to the car. He kissed her on the cheek before she got inside. Dana blushed.

“I’ll be seeing you,” he
said.

“Goodbye, Alexander.” Dana
smiled as the driver shut the door.

As the black Town Car
rolled down the hill, Dana watched Alexander disappear into his giant home.

Wow
, Dana thought, reliving the last 12 hours in her mind.

The car made its way down
the Pacific Coast Highway. Dana was applying makeup in the back seat when her
phone began to ring. When she saw ‘Blocked’ appear on the screen, she assumed
it was Alexander calling to tell her that she forgot something. She answered
with the smooth, familiar voice she’d used with him earlier.

“Hi, this is William.”

Embarrassed, Dana took on a
more cordial tone. “Hi, William. What can I do for you?”

“I have a proposition for
you.”

Dana was intrigued. “Go
on,” she replied playfully.

She could feel William
smiling on the other end of the phone. “I’m going to a party on Saturday night.
A lot of local fashion types will be there – modes, editors, designers -
it would be a great chance for you do some networking.”

“Wow, that sounds great.”

“Come with me. It’ll be a
lot of fun.”

“Absolutely. Count me in.”

“I have to warn you,
though. This won’t be like any party you’ve ever been to. Just be prepared,
okay?” He paused for a moment. “Oh, and wear something cute.”

“Uh –“

“I’m sorry, Dana, I have to
go! I’ll see you on Saturday.” William hung up the phone.

“What was
that
?” Dana exclaimed out loud, to no
one in particular.

---

Part 3:
Indulging Alexander

It was Thursday morning at
the SoCal style offices and Dana had just arrived. Her head was swimming as she
prepared for the day’s shooting. She was still in a blissful state of shock
from her evening with Alexander earlier in the week.

I lost my virginity to the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen. I lost my
virginity in a mansion on the beach. I lost my virginity to a billionaire!

The other people in the
office had noticed Dana’s new spring in her step and the many moments she took to
blush and giggle to herself. Graciela had noticed Dana spacing out while she
was briefing Dana on the important shoot she was scheduled to lead tomorrow.
Dana received a sharp reprimand when she couldn’t recall the name of the model
she was to shoot (or her agent, who was scheduled to attend the shoot).

Amy and Emily were also
giving Dana some cheeky grief over her lackadaisical affect.

“What happened to
you
last night?” they snickered from
their desks.

Dana could only smile.

She was doubly dazed
because she was going to a party with William that Saturday, and it was
apparently going to be a little crazy. What was her life becoming? Hot sex with
a billionaire and wild, star-studded parties? Dana was inching closer to the
conclusion that moving to LA was the best decision she had ever made.

And yet, there was still
something unsettling about her situation. Somebody was lying to her about that
awkward encounter the last time she and William had gone out, and she was
pretty sure it was William. Alexander and Jessica had both said or implied that
William hadn’t told them about the dinner at the Poisson d’Or.

While staring at the
ceiling from the comfort of her desk chair, Dana’s phone began to ring. She
wasn’t fazed by the now-familiar ‘Blocked’ notification on the screen.

“Hello?”

“It’s Alexander. Can you
meet me on Saturday for drinks? I have something I want to discuss with you.”
What did
that
mean?

Dana’s heart sank. She knew
that she couldn’t bail out on this party. It was too good of an opportunity.

“I’m really sorry –”
She stopped herself from saying Alexander’s name, knowing that Amy and Emily
were probably eavesdropping. “I already have plans that night.”

Dana thought she sensed a
hint of dejection in the sigh that escaped from Alexander. “I thought that if I
asked you early enough that you’d be free.”

“I appreciate the advance
notice, really – but I already made plans earlier this week to go out
with some old friends, and I can’t change them.” Dana immediately felt bad for
smudging the truth.

“Alright. I guess I can’t
do anything about it.”

Dana was surprised at
Alexander’s reaction. He really seemed a little upset.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I
really can’t change them. How about Sunday instead?”

Alexander was silent for a
moment. “I suppose that will work. I’ll move around my appointments to schedule
you in for some drinks.” Alexander let out another irritated sigh and hung up.

***

The next day, Dana arrived
at the office early to prepare for her shoot. She ran around the studio like a
maniac, making sure that the makeup artist, hair stylist, and wardrobe people
were all prepared for the subject’s imminent arrival. The model and her agent
showed up ten minutes early, looking remarkably put together and cheerful for
being up at 7:45 in the morning. Dana greeted them at the office door after
buzzing them into the building.

“Francesca Gray, Fashion
One Models. So nice to meet you. This is Bela,” the agent said, pointing to the
lovely brunette at her side.

Bela extended her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you,” she said, with a hint of a Russian accent.

Dana found Bela’s warm
smile infectious. She led them back to the studio, motioning to the idle
interns to fetch the guests some water and coffee as they walked by.

Setting up the shoot, Dana
got the chance to talk with Bela, who was very chatty. Dana found out that the
young model had moved from the Russian city of St. Petersburg to the United
States three years earlier to begin her modeling career, and had been quite
successful. She explained how she had traditionally split time between New York
and Los Angeles, but that work had been picking up for her in LA recently.

“That’s okay with me,” she
had said. “I like the LA weather much more!”

“I’ve never even been to
New York,” Dana realized out loud. “But if it’s as noisy and crowded as
everyone says it is, I’ll take LA over New York any day! I
would
really like to visit sometime, though.”