Page 114 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 11

Thursday

My phone buzzed and I jumped.

Jacob laughed.

“It’s not funny,” I said. “You weren’t supposed to pick a scary movie. I’m going to be up all night.” I hated scary movies. I probably wouldn’t sleep for a week.

“You know you loved it.”

“I did not love it.” But I knew I was smiling.

“Your face says otherwise.”

I lightly shoved his shoulder. My phone buzzed again and I forced myself not to jump this time.

I pulled out my phone and stared at the new messages from my kiss thief.

He’d been texting me all night. But I’d ignored him throughout the movie.

My last text to him was letting him know I was seeing a scary movie with Jacob.

I felt my cheeks growing hot as I read his newest texts.

“Was that him?” Jacob asked. “Your kiss thief?”

I nodded.

“Who do you think it is?”

“I have no idea.”

“But what’s your best guess?” Jacob said. “Do you really think it’s Leo the Rugged Thief?” He laughed. “I can’t believe I just called Leo that.”

I laughed. “I mean...he is a thief. But I don’t know. All the evidence kinda points to Mr. Halifax. Which is just so...ugh.”

“I don’t think it’s Mr. Halifax. I’ve seen the way he looks at Sophie.”

“And how does he look at Sophie?”

Jacob shrugged. “Like he’s terrified of her.”

I laughed.

“But that he also wants to rip her clothes off.”

“Good point.”

“So what did your mysterious kiss thief say this time?”

I looked back down at my phone. “A scary movie, huh?” I read. “And ‘If I was your boyfriend I’d spend all night with you so you wouldn’t be scared.’ ”

“This guy is full of himself,” Jacob said.

“He definitely is.” I slid my phone back in my purse.

“Maybe he’s overcompensating for a tiny penis.”

I laughed. “So Zach the Shy Spy is your guess?”

“I have no idea,” Jacob said. “But I do know that Zach is not a stallion. And I would have a sleepover with you, but your dad would literally kill me.”

I laughed. “He would.” My dad had already threatened as much. And I had a pretty strict no-boys-allowed in my room rule I had to follow.

The elevator doors dinged and I threw myself into Jacob’s side, clinging to him.

Jacob laughed. “It’s just the elevator opening, Scar.” But he put his arm around my shoulders, keeping me locked into his side.

I groaned. “Sorry.” I even knew what the noise was but I’d still been terrified. I really was going to be up all night. I shook my head and we both stepped off the elevator.

“Do you seriously like this kiss thief guy?” Jacob asked as we stopped at my door.

I shrugged. “I don’t even know who it is.”

“What about when you thought it was me?”

“It’s not you.”

He stared down at me. “But when you thought it was?”

“You already know the answer to that,” I said. When all of us were hanging out in my secret lair - I mean the secret lair - I’d told him I thought it was him. I really had thought it was. I’d wanted it to be. I’d wanted us to work.

“Maybe we should try kissing in a dark closet,” Jacob said with a smile.

“Now who’s full of himself?”

“Moi?” Jacob pointed at his chest. “Nunca.”

“You’re mixing up your French and Spanish, hot shot.”

“Nunca.”

I laughed. “Maybe you can ask Mr. Nigel for some extra French lessons. Trick him into hanging out so you can get those backup security tapes.”

“Je n’ai pas besoin de cours de francais.”

“What did you just say?” I asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe you should ask Mr. Nigel for some French lessons and find out.”

I stuck my tongue out at Jacob.

He laughed. “All I said was that I don’t need French lessons. But seriously, do you want me to come in for a bit? If you’re scared?”

“I think I’ll be okay. I’ll just hold my red panda stuffed animal tight all night.”

Jacob smiled. “Maybe the zoo should be our next date. Like old times.”

“I’d really like that.” I knew what Sophie would say.

She’d wonder how on earth that would make Axel jealous.

But I was just having fun spending time with Jacob.

Besides, Axel may not have been jealous, but the kiss thief was.

I’d told him about my date tonight and he’d been texting me a lot.

Axel was too busy making out with Gemma to be jealous.

Jacob leaned in a little closer. “Do you think your security guards are watching?” he whispered.

“Without a doubt.”

“Then I should probably kiss you goodnight. To keep up appearances.”

I swallowed hard. “Right.”

He slid his fingers in my hair and tilted my head back. “Goodnight, Scarlett.” He placed a soft kiss against my lips.

My heart was hammering against my ribcage.

His fingers fell from my hair and he took a step back.

I cleared my throat. “Goodnight, Jacob.”

He winked at me and stepped onto the elevator.

I knew I was smiling when I walked into my apartment. I may have only been fake dating Jacob, but I knew 100% that my date tonight was better than Axel’s stupid date. Yes, I’d been scared during the movie, but...

My mom stepped into the hall and I screamed bloody murder.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” my mom asked. “What’s wrong?” She hurried over to me.

“You just surprised me, is all.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. But I’ve been waiting for you to come home. Your dad is busy grading some assignments. And I have something I want to give you in private.”

Okay... I followed her into the kitchen.

She looked around like she was about to be caught, and then she opened up a cabinet. She pulled a shopping bag out of it, looked both ways again, and then turned to me. “This is for you.” She held the bag out for me.

“This feels like contraband that I’m going to get in trouble for having.”

My mom laughed. “Nonsense.”

“You literally hid it in a cabinet no one ever goes in. And said you had to give it to me in private.”

“Just open it, sweetie.”

My mom was going to get me grounded. But I pushed back the tissue paper. There was a pair of flannel pajamas in the bag. Like she’d told me she was going to get me. “Um...okay,” I said. “Thanks.” I was so confused about her theatrics right now. “Dad is going to love these.”

“I know. But look underneath of them,” she whispered.

I pushed the pajamas to the side. A pair of the silky ones we’d seen at Odegaard were hidden underneath. I looked up at her.

“Just in case,” she said.

“Just in case?”

“You have your first boyfriend now. No one expects you to be wearing flannel for...intimate times.”

“Intimate times? Gross, Mom.”

“I’m just saying that you and Jacob might...I don’t know. It’ll be your first time. I want it to be perfect for you. My first time was terrible and I...no...don’t look at me like that. I’m not talking about this.”

“Why was your first time terrible? And are we talking third base or fourth?”

“We’re talking about you right now, Scarlett. And have you already gone to third base?” She looked a little freaked out.

“No.”

“Oh.” She smiled. “Good.”

“Good?” I laughed. “You just bought me a sexy outfit for my first time.”

“Shhhh,” she hissed. “I’m just trying to help.”

“If you want to talk to me about stuff like this, we have to actually talk. Which means you have to tell me stuff too, Mom.”

“When you’re 18.”

I groaned. “You know, if you told me all your stories, maybe I could avoid some of the mistakes you made.”

“I didn’t make any mistakes.”

“You literally just said your first time was terrible.”

“But it all led me to this moment, Scar. So how could any of those things been mistakes?”

“Any of those things ? How many things are we talking about? Lots?”

“I don’t know what you think things means in this scenario.” She lowered her voice even more. “Are you talking about penises?”

“Mom! No! Ew! I’m talking about mistakes.”

She laughed. “Well, that was very unclear.”

“How are my girls doing,” my dad said as he walked into the kitchen.

I jumped.

And my mom pushed the shopping bag into my chest so my dad couldn’t see inside of it.

My dad laughed. “Are you okay, pumpkin? You look scared.”

“Yeah,” I said. “I am. I just saw a scary movie with Jacob.”

“Well, let me know if you need any snuggies.”

I didn’t need snuggies with my dad. I was 17. “Mhm.”

“What’s in the bag?”

“Ellen went out and grabbed Scarlett those pajamas you requested,” my mom said.

Was she throwing our housekeeper under the bus right now? I held back my laugh.

“Oh, let’s see,” my dad said.

My mom stepped behind my dad’s back so he couldn’t see her. She started pointing to the bag and gesturing.

I was pretty sure she was telling me to just show him the flannel pajamas. Which I was already going to do. I wasn’t an insane person. I pulled out the thick top. It had a collar and buttons all the way down. And it looked two sizes too big. I glanced at the tag. Yup. It was.

“Those are cute,” my dad said.

We had very different definitions of cute. “Mhm.”

“Want to try them on for us?”

I didn’t want to take the matching pants out. That might let him see what was beneath them. “Maybe later. I have a pop quiz to study for.” It wasn’t until next week, but it was the first thing that had popped into my head.

My dad lowered his eyebrows. “Aren’t pop quizzes supposed to be a surprise?”

I shrugged. “Yeah, but Mr. Halifax likes me.” Ah! No! Why did I say that?!

“What do you mean by that?” my dad asked.

Of course my dad would hear about a teacher liking me and assume the worst. “I’m one of the best students in calc, Dad. Get your head out of the gutter. Just because you banged one of your students...”

My dad held up his hand so I’d stop talking. “Point taken.”

“He’s just a really good teacher. He’d never do anything inappropriate.” I needed to stop talking about Mr. Halifax immediately. The more I said the more suspicious it sounded.

“Great. Go study then.” He turned to my mom. “I’m all done with those assignments.” He put his hands on her waist and pulled her close. “Now what should I do to preoccupy the rest of my evening?”