Not Daddy Material (Billionaire's Contract Duet 2)

She leaned forward. “What did he do?”

I giggled, remembering Beau running out of the driveway and down the street. “He ran. Literally ran away—all the way back to his apartment.”

Nina started laughing. “Well, that’s one reaction.” She halted her giggling fit. “But it means he’s totally into you.”

“Really?”

“Yes. He couldn’t handle it, so he ran. It’s obvious. We just need to get you two in a situation where he can’t run. Like hometowns.”

“I don’t want to cage him.”

“It’s not caging, London. You are just eliminating escape exits. That’s all.”

Nina’s eyes zipped back and forth. “How about you take him home with you instead of you going to his house? He will definitely be stuck.”

“To my house? You realize my parents aren’t the most open-minded people on the planet.”

“Oh, they’re fine. They’ll like Beau.”

“But it’s a bit crowded at home. I don’t know if I should take him. Meeting my parents is a big deal. They might scare him away.”

“Your parents aren’t going to do anything like that. It will be fun.” Nina’s smile was wide.

“You really think this will work?”

“You worry too much, London. Watch how Victoria does it. It’s going to work. He’ll win your parents over. They’ll fall in love with him and then you’re on to overnights.”

“Overnights?” I was nervous just hearing the word.

“Let’s just take it one week at a time.” Nina smiled. I was glad to have my friend back.

The phone call to my mother had been awkward. Explaining to her that I was coming home for the weekend with a boy that wasn’t my boyfriend was tricky. She was way too nosey.

“But, London, what kind of professor would assign a weekend trip? I don’t see how this is proper by any standards.” This was the same mother who made sure I was in an all girls dorm my first two years on campus.

“Mother, she didn’t assign the trip. It’s just how the project has evolved. He’s nice. You’ll like him. He’s pre-law.”

“Pre-law? Hmm…I’ll mention that to your father. All right, if you have to, then we’ll get the guestroom ready for him.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it. We’ll see you Friday night. Tell Daddy I said hi.”

“London, be careful on the drive. The roads are still slick at night.”

“Yes, Mother. I’ll be extra careful. Bye.”

I hung up the phone with my mother and sighed. Nothing about this weekend was going to be easy. My parents had always had high expectations for me. I knew they didn’t want me to pursue acting. My mother thought it was a total waste of my time, and my father thought I was neglecting more important brain cells. They both would have been much happier if I had gone into pre-med or law, like Beau.

Now, to plan B—getting Beau to go along with this concocted Nina idea. I only had a few minutes until class. I grabbed my backpack and headed out the door.

Professor Garcia was particularly wrapped up in today’s theory. She recounted her days in graduate school and how she selected a dissertation on gender communication styles. I was trying to be less critical of her; she was, after all, my new ally in class. Without her support, I wouldn’t be getting ready to ask Beau to go home with me for the weekend.

Every few minutes, I saw her taking us in at the top corner. Beau didn’t seem to notice the new attention. He had no idea we had our own London and Beau super fan. If only class would end so I could ask him about the hometown date.

“See everyone Thursday. We’ll really dissect gender styles then.” She walked away from the podium and unclipped her microphone.

Beau shot out of the seat and had escaped through the doors before I had a chance to utter the first word of my question. I gathered my notebook and chased him out of the building.

“Hey, Beau. Wait.”