Page 253 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 3

No.He had sent me this before I had even drunk texted him. Which meant he had been thinking about me since our lunch date. And not just thinking about me, but buying me something. I had wanted him to come up last night. I had been pretty surprised that he hadn't said yes. But it made me like him even more. He was respectful. He thought I was too drunk to make that decision. But I wasn't. And I remembered every part of our conversation last night.

I sat down on my bed and untied the green ribbon. I pushed it out of the way and ripped the brown paper. There was a white box with a small envelope on top of it. I opened up the envelope and pulled out the card.

Bee,

I'll be picking you up at 7. I can't wait to see you again.

-Mason

P.S. I ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch today. You're rubbing off on me.

I ran my finger across his words. I liked that he never asked. There was no uncertainty on his part. He wanted to see me, so he was going to see me. Every time we talked I liked him more and more. I couldn't deny the fact that I had a huge crush on him. That was the best way to put it, because for some reason it felt like I could never really have him. He was out of my league. But it made me want him even more.

I looked back down at the package. Had he sent me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Or maybe something for our date? I slowly lifted off the lid and pushed aside the tissue paper.

Oh my God.I picked up the dress and stood up so that I could see the whole thing. It was a deep red, mermaid style dress with a plunging neckline. It was simple but elegant at the same time.So elegant.He hadn't just been thinking about me, he had been buying me the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. It was like something one of the contestants from Miss America would wear. There was something different about the fabric of this dress. I wanted to say it was almost heavy, but that didn't explain it right. It wasn't like other dresses I had. It was well made. Thefabric was luxurious. And somehow it looked like it might fit me. Mason was a good guesser.

7 o'clock.I grabbed my phone and looked down at the time. I still had a few hours. But I somehow needed to look worthy of this dress. I laid it down on my bed and ran into the bathroom.

***

I took the last of the hot curlers out of my hair and ran my fingers through the curls to loosen them. My makeup and hair were done. Now I just needed to see if the dress fit me.

I put on my nicest bra and pulled the dress over my head. It was the perfect fit. I never would have chosen something that accented my breasts so much, but it was beautiful. I took a step back from the mirror. It hugged my curves like it was made for my body. I didn't really want anyone to stare at my cleavage all night though. Maybe I had something that would draw attention toward my face. I pulled out my box of earrings and picked up a pair of dangling earrings with diamonds. Patrick had bought them for me a few months before I found out that he was cheating. It was probably because he felt guilty. I hadn't worn them since our breakup. But when I looked at them now, I didn't want to cry. They were the nicest jewelry I had aside from the engagement ring I once wore. And I wanted to look nice for Mason.

Marie was right. Mason was a perfect choice to help me get over Patrick. It was already working. And maybe I was what he needed too. If I wasn't, why would he have bought me this dress? This was too elaborate of a scheme for a one night stand. He liked me. The thought gave me butterflies in my stomach. This was more than a rebound for me. Maybe this was why I had wound up in New York. Mason had said he wanted to be the reason I stayed in the city. And I didn't realize it before, but he already was. I was actually happy. I was happier than I had been in months. I put on the earrings and looked at my reflection in the mirror. It was like they were made for this dress.

I picked up my phone to look at the time. There was a message from Marie: "Kendra and I are dying to know how the sex was. Text me back."

I laughed. "Still don't know that yet," I texted back. But maybe I would soon. I looked at my reflection in the mirror again. Tonight could be the night. If he could resist me in this dress, maybe he was gay or something. The thought made me laugh again. If there was anything I was sure about regarding Mason Caldwell, it was that he was straight. And right now, for some reason, he wanted me.

There were still a few minutes before he was supposed to be here. I grabbed my notebook and flipped to a blank page. It was like I was living in a fairytale. This was how every girl desired to feel at some point in their lives. Something that captured this would make a great advertisement. For what I wasn't sure. But it was a good idea. Hopefully it wouldn't be an idea that just sat there forever without anyone hearing it.

A buzzing noise sounded through my apartment. Mason was downstairs, waiting to come up. But I didn't want him to see my place. It was bad enough that he had seen the inside of the building. I set my notebook down on my nightstand and grabbed my nicest jacket out of the closet.

I locked my door behind me and walked down the stairs as quickly as I could in my heels.