Page 59 of Billionaire Bachelor

“That bad?”

He leans back in the chair, shaking his head. “It started out really well. Good conversation, good energy. It was goingexactlyhow I’d envisioned. Penny’s awesome. I wouldn’t mind getting to know her better. But Mercedes…”

“The friend?”

Ryan nods. “Theex-girlfriend.”

I arch a brow. “Well, there’s a plot twist I didn’t see coming.”

“I know!” Ryan scoffs. “Penny swears they were more like friends-with-benefits, but I don’t think Mercedes agrees. I’m pretty sure the only reason she agreed to the wholethree’s companyvibe, was because she wanted to prevent Penny from hooking up with me.”

I chuckle. “What’d she do that gave you that impression?”

He rubs the back of his neck. “At first, it was small little digs, like implying I wasn’t Penny’s type, or talking about all the reasons whytheywere perfect for each other. I let it slide because whatever, I get it. Penny’s hot and she seems like a fun girl. So when her first plan failed, Mercedes claimed she felt a migraine coming on and wanted to head back to Penny’s place. But when Penny invitedmeover to hang out while her friend rested, Mercedes’s headache miraculously disappeared.”

I laugh. “Of course it did.”

“Right? And whenthatdidn’t work, she switched tactics and started hitting on me. I got the impression she was trying to make Penny jealous, except Penny was too busy flirting with me herself to notice.”

“So, let me get this straight. The one youreallyliked seemed to dig you as well. But you spent the evening trapped in some weird pissing match with her ex while said ex also used you as a pawn in her jealousy ploy?”

Ryan groans. “Pretty much.”

“How did you manage to extricate yourself from that awkward situation?”

“I didn’t want to be straight-up rude, but Mercedes was really pushing it, so I just called it a night. It’s not like I won’t have plenty of opportunities to see Penny again.”

“True.”

Ryan’s disastrous date runs the coffee shop in our lobby. We see her nearly every morning on our way up, sometimes multiple times a day.

He shrugs. “I figured it was better to wait until Mercedes leaves town.”

“Seems like a smart move,” I agree.

“Women,” he groans, scrubbing a hand down his face. “But man, at first, that date had so much potential. A Penelope-Mercedes sandwich seemed like a solid investment.”

I shake my head. “But instead, you ended up in the middle of some unresolved ex drama and went to bed with your right hand.”

“Asshole.” Ryan flips me off.

I snort. “You really know how to pick ’em, Ry.”

“Yeah, yeah. Lesson learned.” Ryan groans and stands, stretching. “Well, I should let you get back topretendingyou’re focused on work. But don’t think you’re off the hook about this mystery woman, bro.”

I pointedly glance at my watch. “We’ve got twenty minutes until the meeting. Why don’t you duck downstairs, grab us some coffee, and see if you can get Penelope to commit to a solo date with you.”

He smiles. “I like the way you think.”

I exhale sharply as he darts out, relieved my distraction worked.

At least for now.

Thankfully, all it took was a slight increase on our offer, and we officially acquired the IP rights to PPA’s algorithm. We’re about to have our first team meeting to discuss logistics. I have just enough time to skim through my inbox and review the final integration plan before it starts.

I’m the last to arrive just as Jared, our Head of Product andInnovation, pulls up a presentation deck on the screen. All the executives are here today because we have to pull this off without a hitch. If everything isn’t perfect when we walk into that meeting with Olympus, we’re fucked. Failure isn’t an option, but there’s only so much I can control. Precision is paramount, so if anyone on my team has a question or concern about the project, now is the time to discuss it.

I quietly take a seat at the head of the conference table. “Jared, the floor is yours.” I take a sip of the coffee that was waiting for me, nodding to Ryan in thanks.