The Billionaire and the Waitress
“Thank you, Mateo. Don’t forget to bring your wife in during my new restaurant opening. Dinner’s on me. I owe you.”
“You’re too kind,” Mateo said with a solemn bow of his head. “Please, enjoy your ride, sir.”
Logan looked at Rachel, his expression back to normal. “Are you brave enough?”
“To ride in a metal death trap with you?” She laughed, still feeling the remnants of butterflies in her stomach. “Just brave enough, I suppose.”
They walked outside and Logan let out a low whistle. Standing in front of them was a bright orange car that hugged the pavement. The two open doors stretched toward the sky like the wings of a bird ready to take flight. Rachel didn’t know much about cars, but even she could tell that never in her life would she be able to afford something like this, especially on a waitress’s salary. It screamed luxury.
Normally, she would’ve scoffed at something like that, but the look of wonder on Logan’s face made her rethink her opinion. Maybe, money didn’t always corrupt. After all, the Logan she was getting to know again was anything but snobbish and obsessed with business. Unlike her own father, who had never found time to attend any of his daughter’s dance recitals or school events or even her graduation ceremony. Business was always calling. Maybe, Logan was different. It seemed that his billions hadn’t dried up his soul. Yet.
But money had a way of ruining good things.
She watched him do a quick circle around the car, his jaw hanging open.
“This is the new Lamborghini Aventador,” he said in a reverent tone. “Over seven hundred horse power, hand-built V12 engine, and carbon-fiber monocoque chassis.”
She raised her eyebrows, not quite sure what he was rambling about, but it sounded expensive to her. “Should we get in?”
He placed a hand on the hood and gave her an intense gaze. “Does the Aventador come with an ISR transmission capable of shifting up to fifty percent faster than any dual-clutch gearbox currently on the market?”
“Uh...” She bared her teeth in a grimace. “I’m guessing that’s a yes?”
Closing his eyes, he nodded slowly. “That’s a yes.”
Laughing at his cute response, she climbed inside on the orange leather seats. A console with a control panel and screen separated her from Logan. He got into his seat and ran his hand softly over the steering wheel.
“Any chance you’re hungry?” he asked with a grin, bringing the car to life with a roar of the engine.
She smiled at him. Now he was speaking her language. “Completely starved.”
“I know a place.” He winked at her and threw the car into drive. “Believe me, there’s nothing quite as thrilling as taking a Lamborghini through a drive-thru. Just don’t leave any crumbs on the seat, or I’ll be forced to buy this thing.”
Rachel kept her eyes on the road as they sped off, her heartbeat hammering so loudly beneath her rib cage she was sure it was going to be heard above the drone of the engine.
No matter how charming Logan Madison seemed to be, she needed to keep her eyes on the prize.
Chapter Six
Rachel carried two cups of coffee down the San Jose street, her long legs stretching to walk faster toward Madison Park. It had already been two weeks since she’d started interning alongside Logan and they had been the best two weeks of her life.
Seeing the business side of operations was fascinating. Her mind whirled with ideas all day long on how to solve problems and improve the restaurant’s efficiency. It was unlike anything she’d experienced before. All these years, she’d scorned the uptight business types because of her father and his harsh opinion of her intellect skills, but here she was, finding her stride in a world he had always said would swallow her up whole.
And when she shared her thoughts, Logan didn’t patronize her or treat her like a stooge. He seemed to appreciate her opinions and took every opportunity to teach her about the business. They really seemed to work well together.
However, the soft opening of his restaurant hadn’t come without its challenges. Early mornings, long days, and working late into the night together. Already, she could see the strain in the fine lines around his blue eyes and the exhausted smiles he portrayed to the customers who trickled in.
Rachel could tell Logan was reaching the end of his line. He had a habit of loosening his tie just a tad and rubbing his chin when he was especially worn thin. They were small signs, but imp
ortant ones to watch for. She was doing her best to keep him stress free, although she felt as helpless as a puppy following him around everywhere. So this morning, she’d stopped at his favorite coffee shop around the corner from Madison Park to pick him up a grande cafe latte and an iced coffee for herself.
Anything to help his day start off better.
She was just about to cross the street when she bumped into a woman with her purse and the coffee nearly slipped out of her fingers. Righting herself and still managing to save every last drop of the precious liquid, she turned to apologize. She was met with the sound of a high-pitched squeal and arms being thrown around her shoulders.
“Rachel Knight, I haven’t seen you in years,” the woman cried.
Rachel blinked hard and tried to get a good look at the petite person currently crushing her ribs. The woman had long, strawberry blonde hair and sun-kissed skin. Her green eyes were rimmed with thick, black eyelashes. There was definitely something familiar about her. If only Rachel could remember...