The Billionaire's Masquerade: Betting On You Series: Book Two (5 page)

Elaine woke to find she was alone in bed once again. She should be happy as it avoided the awkward morning-after discussion or worse, a repeat of the night before. She slowly dragged herself from the bed and made her way to the kitchen. She started the coffee pot. Closing her eyes, she leaned against the sink as it brewed. Normally the scent was enough to wake her. Today was going to be a two-cup morning. When she opened her eyes she noticed a note on the kitchen table saying, “Car will pick you up at 8:00. See you in the office. Trent.” The one positive? Trent appeared to be respecting her wishes for discretion . . . for now. She only hoped it would continue to be so in the office, otherwise this job was going to be short-lived.

Elaine quickly showered, dressed, and downed her coffee just in time for her ride to arrive. The car arrived promptly as Trent had said, and took her to the Davis Enterprises building downtown. Traffic was worse than she had anticipated at that time of day, and she was grateful Trent had made the arrangements for her first day. Taking a deep breath, she got out of the car and entered the building. A tall security officer at the desk met her. Elaine didn’t doubt for a moment Trent needed security in his line of business. He was not known for “playing nice” with other corporations. “May I help you?”

“Yes, I’m Elaine Manning. Today is my first day, and I’m not sure where exactly I should report.”

His unsmiling, stern countenance unnerved her. He appeared to key her information into his computer, then replied, “Welcome, Ms. Manning. Your office is on the fourth floor. Take the first elevator. I will let Mr. Davis’s assistant, Wendy, know you are on your way up. She will direct you from there.”

“Thank you.”
His only response was a short nod, and he gestured to the elevators on the right.
Yep, totally intimidating.
Elaine made her way to the elevator and pressed the button for the fourth floor. Day one of any job was always stressful. But the first day of a job that wasn’t really her job, for a company that wasn’t really her employer—and after spending the night with the boss of both her jobs? That was beyond stressful.
Too late to turn back now.
The elevator doors opened, and she stepped out.

“You must be Elaine Manning. Welcome to Davis Enterprises. My name is Wendy Taylor, Mr. Davis’s personal assistant. Let me show you to your office.”

Elaine knew Trent’s assistant wouldn’t look at all like Jill. But Wendy was not what she expected either. She stood a little over five feet with a few gray highlights and appeared to be in her mid-fifties. Somehow she’d pictured his assistant to be tall, young, blonde, and very shapely. She followed Wendy down the hall past numerous offices immaculately fitted with glass walls and doors. In a word—efficient. It wasn’t like anything she’d seen before. Must be a new way of having your own private office without ever truly having privacy.
Interesting.
At the end of the hall there appeared to be one office without glass walls. That had to be Trent’s. Wendy stopped two doors from his. The name on the door confirmed it—this was her office. “Thank you, Ms. Taylor.”

“Please, call me Wendy. Why don’t you take a few minutes to settle in, and then I can show you around? My desk is just down the hall by Mr. Davis’s office.”

Once alone, Elaine looked around the office. There was nothing missing. An iPhone, iPad, and MacBook Pro were proudly displayed on her desk.
Who needs both an iPad and a laptop?
Shaking her head she knew who.
Trent.
There was a paper listing her sign-in and passwords alongside them. An envelope contained a business credit card and a list of names and phone numbers. Trent was on the top, of course, then Wendy, followed by the driver who picked her up earlier, and finally the remaining members of Takes One: Jon, Ross, and Drew with their cell numbers. There was also a note.

The car is at your disposal. Wendy can point you in the right direction for any supplies or questions regarding Davis Enterprises. You may call me anytime you want. The remaining numbers are for your use only, more information to come.

Placing her purse in the bottom drawer, she decided it would be best to find Wendy for the tour. Then she would be ready to start her day.

“Did you find everything you need? If there was anything missing, please let me know,” Wendy said as soon as she arrived at her desk, located just outside Trent’s office.

“Everything seems to be fine. Is this a good time for the tour?”

“Yes, it is the perfect time. You know how to find me, and the office behind me is Mr. Davis’s office. The rest is the important stuff, like the ladies’ room and where to get coffee. I don’t know about you, but I really could use one, so why don’t we start there?”

Wendy was her type of woman, she got down to business but only after coffee. “That sounds wonderful.”

After their coffee Elaine spent about an hour being introduced to several Davis Enterprises’ employees before finding her way back to her office. Closing the door behind her, she sat down and opened her Mac. She found a few meetings scheduled, the first one on Friday—a monthly conference call at six a.m.
You’ve got to be kidding me. Who schedules a meeting at six in the morning?
At least it was a call; she could do that in her pajamas if she had to.

That gave her four days to come up with an agency for Takes One’s monthly donation. That wasn’t a lot of time. On the positive side, she wouldn’t have any other interruptions so she could make the most of the time she had.

Elaine spent the rest of the morning reading the welcome packet Human Resources had left on her desk, which they asked to kindly have signed and returned by the end of the day. Trent thought of everything. She almost believed she worked there.

Her stomach said she must have missed lunch, but she decided there was no time like the present to start her research. She keyed in a few agencies she knew were struggling more than Another Chance had been. She needed to determine which one was making the largest impact and utilizing their funding the wisest way. She did her research, so different from what she had done in her prior role. Instead of the need coming to you, you are searching for the need. It was going to take some time to get used to, but she could already see how Takes One could and would make a difference in many lives. If Elaine questioned her decision before, all doubt was now gone.

Before long there was a knock on her door. It was Wendy. She waved her in.

“Ms. Manning, I hope you’re not planning on spending the night here on your first day.”

She’d enjoyed herself so much that time had slipped by quickly. “Please, call me Elaine. I guess I was caught up in some paperwork. Are you leaving for the evening?”

“Yes, everyone else left shortly after five. Only you and Mr. Davis are burning the midnight oil. Don’t be catching his bad habits.”

The last thing she wanted to do was to become like Trent.
Elaine smiled at Wendy. “Don’t worry, I’m heading out in a few minutes myself. Thank you again for showing me around today.”

“You’re welcome. Have a good night, and I’ll see you in the morning,” Wendy said and shut the door behind her.

It was time to shut down and go home. As she was closing the laptop there was another knock on the door. Looking up, she thought Wendy was back, reminding her to leave. Instead she found Trent standing there watching her. She’d been able to avoid him all day.

“You’re working late. I like your dedication.”

“Thank you. I was about to leave.”

“So was I. Let me give you a ride home.”

“No, thank you. I can find my own way home,” Elaine said firmly.

“Never thought you couldn’t. We are both leaving, and your apartment is on the way; it only makes sense to let me give you a ride.”

Crossing her arms across her chest she said, “Trent. I’m not inviting you in.”

“Elaine, it’s just a ride home, nothing more.”

It always seemed to start so innocently, then ended up so hot and heavy. She was tired and hungry and didn’t have the strength to argue with him tonight. Giving in she said, “Okay then, I’m ready; let’s go.”

Once inside the car Trent asked, “How was your first day?”

“Surprisingly very productive. I thought it would take more time to get into the groove of things, but I was able to get a few good leads for the meeting Friday.”

“There wasn’t much notice for your first meeting, so don’t feel like you have to go crazy first time out of the gate.”

“Your donation will be very important to the recipient chosen, which makes it very important to me.” They pulled up in front of her apartment building. “Thank you for the ride, Trent.”

“You’re welcome, Elaine, but I wanted to clarify something.”

Elaine turned to face him. “What is that?”

“Tonight was only a ride home, but it won’t always be so. If it weren’t for a prior engagement, we would be enjoying ourselves again tonight. Don’t ever doubt that.”

His tone said he wasn’t joking.
What an arrogant ass.
She should correct him or slap his face for being so damn bold, but she couldn’t even bring herself to respond. Instead, she grabbed her purse and laptop bag, and got out of the car, and made her way to the door. She was grateful the doorman opened it for her because her hands were still trembling. Not out of fear. But she was afraid. Afraid of who she was when they were together. He brought out a side of her she hadn’t seen before—she was reckless and wild. It was a side meant to be shown only behind closed doors, and his lifestyle was anything but private. When she entered her apartment she headed directly for the couch, emotionally exhausted. He said he had a prior engagement. No doubt she would see that
prior engagement
splashed about the tabloids in the morning, giving her more encouragement to stay away. The battle she was facing was the one inside her. Tonight she was alone, but she was going to have to work very hard to resist his charm and keep her distance in the future.

To her relief, she hadn’t bumped into Trent at work for a couple days. That didn’t mean her mind had not wandered and secretly hoped he would knock on her door. It was better this way. After all, it was what she told him she wanted. Then why was she missing him?
It is only physical attraction, nothing more.
Oh, who was she kidding? She was battling a love/hate relationship. There were times when they were together she didn’t want to be anywhere else, and then a moment later he could make her want to strangle him. How could one person bring out such different emotions? If she had any sense at all she would put as much distance between them as possible. Even that simple thought affected her. It was something new, something unfamiliar and deep within her. There was no running from this. There was only one thing to do. Find a way to figure out who the real Trent Davis was.

His business and public life said playboy/corporate giant; he chewed competition up and spit them out when he was finished with them. Everything she hated in a person. But when they were alone or when he spoke of Takes One and the things they had accomplished in the past, she would see a hint of someone totally different. A compassionate, gentle, caring, and giving person. But in a blink of an eye, that person could disappear. Things would be so much easier if he was an arrogant jerk all the time.

Checking her watch, it was almost six a.m. She sat at her kitchen table and opened her laptop. Elaine was ready to present her first suggestion regarding the Takes One donation, however she wasn’t sure what to expect from the group. When she’d looked at the appointment on her calendar last night she was shocked to see she’d missed a very important piece of the meeting. They were all going to Skype instead of call.
Skype.
Pajamas wouldn’t have made the impression she was looking to give them. Elaine was never one who enjoyed rising earlier than need be, so she did her best before the sun came up. Business attire from the waist up, the rest she would take care of later.

One by one the gentlemen joined the meeting. First was Ross. “Good morning, Elaine, welcome to Takes One.” He looked wide awake, dressed in a shirt and tie. She couldn’t help wonder if he was using her tactics.

He was followed by Jon who appeared to already be in the office. “Morning, everyone.”

Then Trent joined, far from ready for work as his hair was still dripping wet, a towel hung around his neck barely covering his naked chest. “Yeah, I know. I’m late. Are we all on?”

Really! Couldn’t he at least put on a robe or something? This is a business meeting for goodness sake
. She had to remind herself these guys had been friends for years, so she was probably the only one who cared. How was she supposed to present her proposal with a view like that? Talk about a distraction.
Not going to be easy.

Drew was the last to join. “Trent, you lucky bastard, where are you this week that allowed you an early morning swim?”

She’d heard he may have been traveling, but no one knew where. Or maybe they were just not sharing his whereabouts. That explained why she hadn’t seen or heard from him the past few days. Happily, that had meant she could concentrate on work.

“Dubai,” Trent replied.

“Business or pleasure?” Drew asked.

“A little of both,” he said.

Pleasure?
The thought of him there on pleasure with someone else sent a cold chill through her. She was angry, pissed off, wanted to yell, and throw something at him. Why? She had no right. She’d told him again and again there was nothing between them except a business relationship. He never offered her anything more. Yes, they had sex, wonderful passionate, hot sex a few times. Apparently that was all it was for him if he could so easily go away with another woman. That was just another reason she couldn’t be with him again.

“I thought Lizette would have taught you to relax a bit,” Drew joked.

“We can’t be all as relaxed as you, Drew.”

Elaine had stopped listening to them for a moment and then finally heard Jon say, “Elaine. Hello, can you still hear us?”

“Sorry, I had it on mute.”
Great, another lie.

“No problem. Why don’t we get down to business? Elaine, I hope Trent informed you what we are asking you to do for us each month. I know you only started Monday, so we’ll understand if you don’t have anything prepared for today.”

She was more than prepared. “Thank you for this opportunity. I have a PowerPoint presentation prepared and have shared a WebEx link for you to follow along.”

Elaine spent the next twenty minutes discussing the potential donation recipient, the reason why the funds were needed, and exactly how they would be applied over the next twelve months, as well as the long-term benefits. “Do you have any questions or concerns with this choice?”

“I’m impressed. This is exactly what we’re looking for. Trent was right when he recommended you for this position,” Ross said.

Trent recommended me?
“Thank you.”

“So are we all in agreement with Elaine’s choice for this month?”

The other three men responded, “Agreed.”

“Elaine, I look forward to seeing what you bring to us next month,” Ross stated.

“So do I. Since you are working closely with Trent, we will leave it to him to finalize the transaction with you,” Jon added.

“I know Trent can be what some would call
difficult
to work with, so feel free to give me a call if you need to vent or need a shoulder to cry on,” Drew joked.

“Don’t worry, Drew. Elaine and I have a good understanding of each other. Your assistance won’t be needed,” Trent responded in a tone that said he was not amused by Drew’s offer.

Good understanding? Who does he think he is kidding
? Every time she thought she understood him, he either did something or said something to change her mind. Today was just more proof she didn’t understand him at all. And even more proof he didn’t understand her either.

“That sounds like more than just business,” Drew teased.

She needed to change the subject before someone implied or said something closer to the truth. “Thank you for your offer, Drew. I will give you a call if needed. For now I have all the information I need to move forward with the donation, and I will provide you with a follow-up email once the transaction is complete. Have a good day, gentlemen,” she said before she disconnected the call.

Letting out a scream of frustration, Elaine pushed the laptop away, folded her arms on the table, closed her eyes, and laid her head down. How could things be so perfect and so screwed up at the same time? At least she knew Trent wouldn’t be in the office again today since he was in Dubai.
Who is he with? Is it the young blonde cheerleader he was with last month or someone new?
All she knew was it wasn’t her. Why she wished it was, was beyond her. Time was needed to build her defense against his sweet persuasions. Yes, it was good he was gone and the longer the better as far as she was concerned.