A Billionaire With Benefits

“Good for you.”

“Any update with Justin Henderson?” Lynne teased.

“No,” Mikaela quickly said. “Tell me how your date goes?”

“I’ll call you as soon as we’re done and stuff. Can’t wait!” she shrieked.

Mikaela smiled as Lynne ended the call. She was happy for her friend, but knew about Lynne’s track record. With her looks, she never ran out of dates. Every time Lynne was excited for some prospect boyfriend, these relationships would fizzle out as quickly as they had started. And Lynne would cry and get over it quickly with the next guy that came along.

She couldn’t be like Lynne. There were some things that she could never do, like date at least four guys in a span of two months. She wanted things to last, wanted good emotions to last, which explained her previous relationships and those all lasted for a year at least. Mikaela felt bad about not telling Lynne again about the current happenings in her life. It sounded too sleazy though, poor decision making. Even Lynne wouldn’t bother with a contract. But Lynne didn’t need money for school.

Mikaela looked at the contract again, determined to make things work for her, no matter the contents of their agreement.

***

The deal had pulled through; it was a difficult acquisition but his corporation was now a billion dollars richer. A good pull to the existing twenty. All for steel and construction materials. His father had turned his grandfather’s little hardware store in Kensington into a global conglomerate in twenty years, and he felt the constant pressure to maintain its status.

He was doing this not only for his father’s legacy, but for his sisters’ and his mother’s as well. They were the only family he had left, aside from those annoying relatives his father had. Those relatives tried to mess with the company and he had no relatives directly involved in Henderson Steel. He was wary of help from other people, unless he knew their conditions when helping. That contract was a part of his business personality, after all. It was for good measure, with terms and conditions set, Mikaela knew what to expect from him and vice versa.

His phone rang. He hadn’t expected her to cancel this soon. She wouldn’t dare, right? He hesitated to answer it at first. Then he told himself she had signed the contract. Like he had assumed.

“Yes?” he said, sounding harsh without meaning to be harsh.

“I signed it,” she said with a breath.

He was quiet at first, but then he smiled. “All right. I’ll pick it up tomorrow before your shift starts.”

“At, what, five-thirty in the morning?” her voice sounded hesitant, like she didn’t want to see him so early.

“What time does your shift start? Seven?” he asked her. He wanted to catch her off guard. Well, not totally off guard, but when she was at her most vulnerable, a recently awoken person was pretty vulnerable. He knew when her shift started as well.

“Yes, seven.”

“All right. I’ll be there at five-thirty.”

“Fine,” he heard her groan.

“I’ll see you,” he said. He wondered what she was planning to do. She would most likely wake up at five in the morning, just so she could look presentable.

“Yeah.”

A forced reply, but he didn’t mind. Justin kicked off his shoes and elevated his feet up on the coffee table. The day had ended well. A business deal and a contract signed, everything was coming up roses. That was why he was CEO. He made things go his way. He didn’t want to get too excited. He still had to sleep. He would get excited in the morning.

***

She had barely stepped out of the shower when her doorbell rang. She wondered who let him in so early in the morning. She knew it was him. He rang it only twice, in deference to her neighbors who were still sleeping.

She opened it, flustered, her hair still damp and all frizzy. His eyes widened a little, seeing her in her bathrobe. She noticed this and she held onto the top part, afraid she was showing too much cleavage so early in the morning.

“Hello,” he began. He was dressed in a plain gray shirt, jeans, and sneakers which surprised her.

“Hi. Wow, you really are on time,” she said.

“Time is money.”

“I bet.”

“You don’t need to act like I haven’t seen you naked,” he remarked as he walked into her apartment.