Misjudging the Billionaire

“Why?”

“She was a sweet woman, don’t get me wrong, but I’ve been doing some downsizing,” he replied with a sigh. Before Eva could probe into this further, his demeanor abruptly changed and he shot upright in his seat with an excited smile. “Almost there!” he announced loudly.

“Where are we going, anyhow?” she asked, baffled yet fascinated by his sudden change in mood.

“You’ll see in just a minute!” he fired back enthusiastically, leaning in towards the middle of the car so he could see past the front seat and get a clear view out the windshield. His smile was infectious, and she also found herself grinning while leaning in to follow his gaze. Peering over the front seats, their faces were only inches apart yet Devon’s stare didn’t deviate from the road. Eva could smell his cologne as they eyed the buildings rolling by them until the car slowed down to make a sharp left.

“We’re here!” Devon yelled as he clenched the back of the passenger seat in exhilaration. Eva’s evening had already been confusing enough, but it got even more bizarre as she realized the parking lot they’d pulled into.

“Burger World?” she asked incredulously.

“You better believe it!” he belted, a look of pure joy glued to his face.

Her blood began to boil at this seemingly offensive stunt. Had he really pulled her from a five-star restaurant just to bring her to a cheap burger joint? She knew when he claimed to hate places like Tavolino that it was too good to be true. No, he’d yanked her out of the fancy Italian restaurant because he had been embarrassed, and now he was bringing her to a place where none of his elitist friends could see them together. He was ashamed of her, that much was obvious, and she wasn’t going to be treated like this. She opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind but he beat her to speaking first.

“My parents used to take me here when I was a child. You know, I’ve eaten at dozens of five-star restaurants in my life, yet none of them have ever had a burger as good as Burger World’s,” he said, staring at the sign with his eyes wide and almost childlike. “This is where somebody like me fits in,” he continued, his eyes growing damp. He looked as if he may start to weep, and Eva felt her anger immediately vanish. With a deep inhale, he regained his composure. “Shall we?” he asked, motioning towards the local fast-food chain. His words seemed so earnest that she scolded herself for once again judging this man who’d been nothing but kind to her. Seconds earlier she was about to lay into him but, as usual, it appeared she’d jumped to yet another incorrect conclusion.

“Sure,” she said with the smile returning to her face. “I’m starving.” She made a pact with herself to set aside her doubts and stop second-guessing the man’s intentions. Climbing out of the town car, the two headed into the restaurant with Devon holding the door in the same gentlemanly manner she’d already grown familiar with.

Inside, they found the lobby to be much quieter than Tavolino’s crowded dining area and Devon quickly marched to the counter to place his order, a clear indication that he’d definitely been here before and wasn’t just stringing her along.

“I’ll have the quarter-pounder with cheese, medium fries, and a Coke,” he said politely while Eva looked at the backlit overhead menu and deliberated on her order.

“Have you ever been here before?” he asked her while ignoring the glances that the Burger World employees were shooting them. Not even twenty minutes ago Eva had worried she was underdressed, but she now felt incredibly overdressed. She didn’t mind the looks, though, and a part of her actually enjoyed them. She felt beautiful, and she could tell by the faces of the few men who sat shoving greasy food into their mouths that they also found her attractive. Unlike the snobs at the Italian restaurant down the street, these people actually noticed and appreciated her.

“Are you kidding me? I used to come here all the time. I love this place,” she replied. “I’m just surprised you like it, too. Oh, and I’ll have a number two with a Diet Coke,” she told the waiting cashier. Devon paid the young woman and the two took a seat in a corner booth while waiting for their order to be called.

“Thank you for coming here with me,” he said, his blue eyes looking sincere as always. “It really means a lot.” He caught a young child in a highchair staring at him from a few tables over and waved at the little boy with a smile.

“You sure you weren’t just embarrassed to be seen with me at Tavolino?” she asked with an eyebrow raised in doubt.

“What? No, of course not. These are my people,” he said as he looked around Burger World‘s dining area at all the feeding faces, “not them,” he added as he pointed in the direction of the Italian restaurant he’d practically ran out of.

“And your parents used to take you here?” She found herself increasingly intrigued by Devon Cross, the same man she’d vowed never to see again only a few days earlier.

“When I was a child, yes, and I’d always get the same thing: the quarter-pounder with cheese, medium fries, and a Coke. I still stop in at least once a month and order it. Not at this location, but the one closer to my house.”

Before she had a chance to explore this further, their number was called and Devon motioned for her to remain seated while he retrieved their tray from the counter. He walked back to the booth slowly as to not spill their drinks while looking quite pleased at the hot meal he was carrying.

“Now this is food!” he exclaimed with a grin as he returned to his seat and excitedly unwrapped his burger.

“I’m surprised you eat this stuff,” Eva commented as she followed his lead and unwrapped her double cheeseburger. “You look like you keep yourself in good shape.”

“Just once a month, as a treat,” he explained. “I love this place too much to stay away. I appreciate a good burger and this place has the best. Maybe it‘s just the nostalgia factor making me bias, though.”

“Tell me more about that,” she said, bringing

the subject back to his personal life. “You know way more about me than I know about you.”

“Well,” he began, taking a sip of his drink to wash his burger down. “I know you think I’m your stereotypical rich snob, but I’m not. Can you believe I actually grew up in your neighborhood?”

“What? Yeah, right,” she said in disbelief.

“I swear. Two streets over from where you live now on Montgomery Avenue.”

“If you’re trying to mess with me, it’s not funny,” she hissed angrily.

“The park by your place is my old stomping ground,” he said with pride. “I was glad to see the monkey bars were still there, at least. I used to spend so much time at that park when I was a kid.”