Page 2 of The Bet
Xavier scratched the side of his jaw. “When?” Tobias wasn’t a party-animal. “He’d rather watch the stock market than hang out in a bar.”
“He’s been here a few times with Savannah.” Luke’s eyes twinkled. He seemed to be enjoying the telling of this news. Xavier angled his head. Yeah, well, things were slightly different now that his brother had met Savannah. These days Tobias was a changed man who had gone from spending most of his time in the office, to actually having a life outside it.
Another shriek of laughter bubbled across from the table behind him, forcing him to cast another look over his shoulder. He quickly scanned around the table and zeroed in on the same woman again. His gaze settled on her a moment longer than usual, until she returned the stare, and then he turned his back on her.
Show interest, but not too much. Raise their hopes, get them excited, and then pull back.
“His fiancée seems like a nice girl,” Luke said. “And he looks happy.”
“He is. He never used to go out much. I had to drag him out so he could mingle and get some pussy.”
Luke slanted an eyebrow. “That was considerate of you.”
“I thought so, too.” Xavier leaned in, eager to know, “Are you getting any?” Luke’s mouth twisted as if he was trying to formulate an appropriate reply. “For a 27 year old, you still talk like a teen.”
“I’m being serious, dude.”
“I am too. Quit the pussy talk.”
Quit the pussy talk?It made him wonder. “Are you batting for the other side?”
“You idiot.” Luke gave him one of his you’re-a-shithead-looks. “Some of us don’t like to talk about it as much as you do.”
“Where were we?” Tobias rejoined them, slipping his cell phone away.
“You were about to order a glass of whiskey,” Xavier replied, then raised his hand to summon a server. He should have ordered Tobias a drink while he was taking his call.
Tobias turned to Luke. “Do you have everything under control?”
“It’s all taken care of,” Luke assured him. “I’ve met with your security guys. We arrive the morning of your birthday, and I’ll be there to oversee everything. You don’t have to worry about a thing.”
The server placed the whiskey glass down, and Xavier slid it over to Tobias. “Here you go, bro.”
Tobias dismissed it with a wave of his hand. “No thanks. I’m good.”
“Since when did you give up drinking?”
Tobias gave him a hard stare. “I haven’t. I don’t need one now. Get me a Coke, will you?”
“Coming up.” He caught the server’s attention again and ordered the drink before turning to Tobias. “You need to loosen up.”
“I still have work to do before we fly out. We can’t all work from home in our PJs.”
Luke sniggered. “What is it that you do again? I’ve never been able to figure it out.”
Tobias grinned back at him. “Let me know when you find out, because I still can’t work it out myself.”
“He drives a 488 Spider, though,” Luke remarked casually. “He can’t be doing too badly.”
It ground on his nerves, the two of them talking about him like this. “I’m here, guys. I’m right here. And I’m doing fine.” Xavier raised his bottle and waved it at the two of them for ganging up on him. Tobias and him were opposites. His brother was far too rigid, far too organized. But then, he was a billionaire running a hedge fund. People thought that because he was Tobias Stone’s brother, that he was as successful, and as wealthy. He was nowhere near a billionaire, and never would be, and he’d almost made it to millionaire status a couple of times.
Sad thing was, a million was nothing in today’s world. You had to have at least ten mill to get by. “Not all of us get Daddy’s trust fund.” This was aimed at Luke.
“I gave my old man the middle finger,” Luke shot back. “And I’m building my empire with my own blood, sweat and tears. I haven’t taken a cent fromDaddy.”
Tobias listened and nodded his head. He didn’t need to say anything because he was a self-made billionaire who counted politicians and captains of industry as his friends. Not particularly close friends, Xavier assumed, but close enough that he could call them up if needed.
It wasn’t that Xavier was jealous, but he knew he couldn’t rival that. He had never been as smart, or as astute as his brother, and he was painfully aware of the fact. “Laugh all you want, but I’ve been creating and running businesses ever since I quit high-school,” he said, a little too defensively. “And I can afford the Ferrari just fine.” He lifted his chin in defiance.
