Page 25 of Rival to the Billionaire

"Is that right?" I say, seizing the chance to burst her bubble. "Have you found your own ideas instead of constantly trying to steal mine?" I allow myself to give her the once-over. "I saw what you're doing with your ReadCo app, Chas…and I gotta admit, it looks strangely familiar." I snort. "Just like ours."

"I'm actually here because I wanted to try and make up for what I did last year." Her eyes stay on my face as I stare everywhere but at her. "And I'm here because you owe me."

"Owe you?" I gaze into her hungry eyes. "What do you mean by that?"

She smirks. "I know Hare & Holeton is going public soon. You're going to start offering shares to investors."

"And?"

"I've got the perfect investor…if you're ready." She pauses as if waiting for a drumroll. "Devin Baxter. You know him?"

"Of course I know Devin Baxter. His father, Henry, is the chairman of Baxter, Inc. Henry's also one of our biggest investors. Devin is one of my biggest clients."

"Exactly. He's looking to diversify his portfolio and wants to get into the tech sector."

"So I've heard…"

"And he's also my fiancé."

"Your fiancé?" I laugh and shake my head, taking a long drink of my fresh drink. "You can't possibly be serious.”

"Why not? We've been engaged for a month now. We're going to get married as soon as we're finished with some…business we're working on together."

"Forgive me for asking, Chas, but it seems you're still obsessed with my money and my business… Does he know that?"

"I'm here because of my business," she says. "As Mrs. Devin Baxter, I, along with my husband, will potentially own a major stake in you and your company. As a result, I will have a large say in big decisions, such as how much we invest in Hare & Holeton. And I think we should. Invest a lot, that is. Depending on…"

Suddenly, the flashing lights and music of the hotel lobby feel so much louder. The heat on my skin is magnified. “Depending on what?"

"Whether or not you roll out that new app of yours in a partnership with our company. That Ultimate Reading crap or whatever it's called."

"You're fucking kidding me, Chas." I take a hard drink from my glass. "Please tell me you're kidding."

She puts her hand on my thigh. "I can assure you, I'm not. I'm here because I know how much it means to you to be the big man on campus. I know how much you need your new app to go public and grow Hare & Holeton. If you launch it exclusively in partnership with Devin and Baxter, Inc., the sky’s the limit. If you want your app to go public and to get all the press, and investors, you think the app deserves…you'll want to talk to Devin. You'll want to put your app in my husband's hands. He'll be more than happy to help you with your project. He wants to invest; he's looking for a cosign… And if I know him, he'll have his own idea of how to shape you up." She brushes imaginary lint off my shoulder. "Here… I've got his number right here." She places a card on the table. "He's expecting your call."

"You want me to hand the biggest thing to happen to this company over to Devin Baxter? You have a better chance of that 'secretly gay' rumor you spread about me coming true."

"Maybe. Yes. But he's not just going to invest in your app. He's going to invest in you…or not. And if Devin doesn't invest, well," she shrugs innocently, "then I'm not so sure Henry will invest in you anymore either. God, and wouldn't that be a shame for Hare & Holeton's stock prices?"

"And my app will be a bust, if we don’t have the capital to back it up.” I exhale hard. “Meaning I will be a bust, if I don’t deliver what I promised to the board.”

"You wanna know something?" She licks her lips. "I've always wondered what it was you saw in me…and if some part of you is still as intrigued as me… I'd like to find out."

She reaches over, her hand running up my thigh. "I'd like to invest in you, too, Ryder. And I would like you…to invest in me. Tomorrow night. In my suite. Room 1435."

She puts a card—her room key—right in my palm. "I'll make sure the deadbolt isn’t locked."

I don't move my hand. I don't even let my eyes wander. I just sit there.

I stare at the flashing lights and the palm trees in the bar a long time after she walks away, hips sashaying.

I can hear her high heels tapping out a rhythm against the marble-tiled floors as she makes her way through the bustling lobby.

I should have seen this coming.

I'd known the app had the power to stand on its own feet…to get the press coverage and investor attention it deserves.

What I hadn't considered was the power it had to catapult me into the likes of Devin Baxter…or Chastity and her kind. I hadn't considered this one thing about the app would do me in. And that, in a way, was the ultimate power of it.

---