Two if by Sea (22 page)

She grinned despite herself. “It was awesome. But—” she started, cutting off her best friend before she screamed again, “—it’s a one-time thing. They don’t want any more than that.”

“What? How do you know?”

“I just know. They aren’t really into me. It was the thrill of winning and bidding against each other. I could have been anyone, Dawn. They don’t think I’m special.”

“Oh, honey, that can’t be true.”

“Well, it is. And I’m glad. Honestly, I don’t know why I ever agreed to be in the auction. I’m not cut out to date a billionaire. Or have a one-night stand.”

Dawn didn’t give her usual snappy comeback and Miranda frowned. “What is it?”

“Don’t get mad.”

Oh no
. She closed her eyes and took a steady breath in and out through her nose. “What did you do?”

“I might have volunteered you to do something without asking.”

“Tell me.”

“Well…just…remember that it’s for the shelter, okay?”

“I’m listening.”

“It’ll only take a few hours tomorrow morning. You’ll be able to get to work by lunch. And it’s on a Monday. That’s a slow news day, right?”

Dawn was rambling, trying to play down whatever horror she’d dragged into Miranda’s life, but she needed her to spit it out.

“Just tell me, Dawn.”

“It’s nothing, really. You’ll show up, sit next to them, answer some questions. It’ll be done before you know it. Then they’ll do a feature spot on the shelter, how to donate, volunteer, everything. It’ll be amazing.”

Her stomach churned and she dragged herself into the bathroom. “Please tell me it’s not about the outrageous winning bid at your auction.”

“I’m sorry, Miranda.”

With a swallow, she opened her eyes and forced herself to look at her reflection. Puffy, mascara-streaked cheeks, eyelids open a crack. Curves no billionaire wanted to date. “They’ll never agree to it.”

“They already have.”

“What?”

“I—I have James’s number from the auction. When I called I didn’t know, I’m sorry. But…He said they’d be there.”

She blinked and asked the question she’d been avoiding. “Where exactly?”

Dawn paused a beat before answering. “It’s a live television interview of all three of you. On Good Morning New York.”

C
ontinue reading
Billionaires for Charity
right now with
Part Two
!

O
riginally a California native
, I traded coasts after college—swapping coastal breezes and year-round flip-flops for the summer rainstorms of the Southeast—and never looked back. When I’m not heating up the Southern nights with steamy romance, I’m reading everything from true crime to historical fiction, with the occasional zombie thrown in.

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Marie

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