Page 32 of The Billionaire's Fake Wife
"FOK Media?" Edward blinks.
"What’s that short for?" Arpad smirks, "Full of Kink?"
"Funny Ornery Kangaroos, maybe?" Damian rolls his shoulders.
I shake my head.
"Oh, wait, let me guess." Saint snaps his fingers, "Fill or Kill?"
"An obvious guess," I make a mock gun with my fingers, point it at him. "But no, it’s Full of Kindness."
Silence descends.
Saint snickers, "You’re joking?"
"No." Not completely. I begin to pace, "After our last unmitigated disaster," I turn to Weston, "because of which we had to sell off our shares, divest our portfolio—"
"Hold on." Weston raises his palms, "I made you a profit. We dumped the shares before the stock market tanked."
"Maybe…"
Weston frowns.
"Your sins turned out to be damn profitable for us, this time." I lower my chin.
"As long as you don't repeat them." Edward tilts his head.
Weston raises his hands, "I never should have been caught on that sex tape… Besides, everyone who is anyone has one of those. And it hasn’t affected business, has it?" Weston steeples his fingers, "On the contrary, it’s brought in a flurry of new patients. Seems the sight of my arse inspires confidence, as much as my success rate in surgeries."
"Win-win situation…" I prop my fingers on my hips. "So we are ploughing in the profits, forming a charity that will invest in a cause—"
"—that gives us legit write offs." Saint drums his fingers on his chest.
"But what’s the real business?" Arpad widens his stance.
I scan the room, "We invest in start-ups, in upcoming artists, in musical talent, medical scholarships, we cast our net wide."
"And the returns?" Saint widens his stance.
"Twenty-five percent of their income streams for the rest of their lives."
Weston hums, "It’s steep."
"It’s fair." I set my jaw.
"It does good." Edward’s tone is considering. "I concede that much."
Not that it matters to me. My soul is going to rot in hell, but it’s not a bad idea to have side benefits.
I'll also say whatever it is these assholes want to hear to get them to agree.
"If it weren't for the incident, the Seven of us wouldn't have kept in touch. This..." I jerk my chin, "shared venture would be a more positive reason to keep us together."
"All the more reason to walk away from it," Saint grimaces. "If I see any more of you guys, I'll end up resembling one of your ugly faces and that's not on my wish list, no offense."
"None taken." I bare my teeth.
"But." He pauses.
