Second Chance Billionaire (The Billionaire's Club Book 1)

by Ann B. Harrison

  He should tell her now so there wasn’t anything to come back on him at a later date. “Listen, about that…

  “There’re hoops to jump over to get it but I’m so freaking excited. I can’t wait to go and see it. He’s taking Carly and me one day this week.” She squealed and he pulled the phone from his ear. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to do that but I wanted to let you know and I wondered if we could make our other dates later. I have so much going on now.”

  His heart took a dive. “Um, sure, I guess that…”

  She rushed in before he managed to get his sentence out. “Excellent. Not trying to get out of it, Simon. The last thing I want to do is re-neg on a deal when you’ve already paid for it. It’s just that we have so much to organize now we’re moving. Plus I have to try and rehome sixty animals before then to meet the requirements for a free lease. Our current lease was due to expire in three weeks and now we don’t have to renew, I doubt the owner will cut us any slack moving out.” She sucked in a breath. “Carly is freaking out over how we’re going to manage. I have to admit, I’m a bit the same.” She sighed. “The shelter is full and I don’t know how many dogs we can adopt out before we move or what upgrades we have to do to the buildings yet. So glad you understand, Simon. Knew I could count on you. Talk to you later. Bye.”

  And after that whirlwind of words, there was silence. He dropped his cell on the couch. “I think I’ve been pushed to the side, George. At least for now.”

  He stared out the window, staring as the city lights flickered over the water sending beams of light across the small waves. There wasn’t that much that needed doing to the buildings but he couldn’t tell her that. A couple of builders could section off the largest of the outside sheds into individual rooms for the animals to make them habitable in a couple of days. It would easily contain all the rescues they had for now and they could improve the other sheds as they grew.

  The office block was certainly doable. A lick of paint was all that would be needed there for the time being. The gardens were overgrown but didn’t detract from the entrance. The property was fenced off so security wouldn’t be an issue either. It was the ideal property and only ten minutes from the main street. There was even a small manager’s cottage on the property. All in all, the perfect place for the shelter. It was just a shame that he hadn’t been perfectly honest about it.

  * * *

  Ruby had hardly hung up her phone when it rang again. “Hello.”

  “This is Graham. Sorry to bother you at home Ruby but I thought it wise to get things moving with the new premises.”

  “But we haven’t met the target yet. You’ve only just told us and I’m still trying to get my head around it.” Ruby sat down and leaned her elbows on the kitchen table. There was so much to do and she was having trouble figuring out where to start.

  “I have great faith in you ladies. Besides, even if you don’t meet the target, you still have the place but you’ll be paying rent. Tell you what, I’ll give you a short turnaround to meet the target. That way you can move in and then concentrate on it. How does that sound?”

  “Are you sure?” It would take some of the pressure off and temptation nibbled at her.

  “I’m here to help, not hinder.”

  “Right, okay then.” She stroked Ziggy who nestled into her leg.

  “So tell me. What do you need cage wise for the animals? There are three large sheds on site which you’ll see next week and I can email you the plans to look over so you have an idea of what’s there but we may as well start the builders now. They can come and visit you to see what you have if you like and you can walk them through it. What do you think?”

  “That’s a great idea, Graham. What we have works well.”

  “Good. Expect a call from my guys then.”

  “Really? That quick?” Anytime she’d wanted something done she had to wait weeks for a tradesperson.

  “In my business I have trades people on the payroll. My team of builders can do whatever you need. The buildings don’t need much in the way of improvement. That’s one reason I thought they’d be perfect for you.”

  “What about permits?”

  He laughed. “I’ll take care of that too. You ladies focus on what you want and start packing up. When it’s time to move, we’ll make sure it all goes as smoothly as we can.”

  “Things are going too fast for me.” Ruby held her hand over her cheek, trying to slow her racing heart and the thought that this would all come crashing down around her ears. “Do we need to sign papers for this?”

  “If you’re worried about losing control, Ruby, don’t be. I’m having papers drawn up detailing what the foundation will do for the shelter and the lease from the company. Regardless of what happens in the future, this property will always belong to the animals of Sausalito County and nobody can take it away from you.”

  She breathed another sigh of relief.

  “Laura and I don’t want to take over the day to day running of the business. That’s up to you girls to figure out. What we will do is supply you with the money for everyday expenses along with fundraising and special events help. If you think of anything, you only need to come and talk to us. This is our gift to the animals of San Francisco.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. For a moment it was sounding all too easy and a little shiver of apprehension tickled her spine. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to lose control. It made sense that one day someone else would step up and take her job. She got that. Life changed. But for a mere second or two, she worried that someone would pull the rug from under the shelter and all her hard work would be lost.

  “Thank you for understanding. It’s been a hard road some days. Not everyone likes the idea of us being here.”

  “Well, that is going to change. You haven’t seen Laura in action. When my wife gets a notion in her head to do something, there’s no stopping her. This shelter will get all the money and support it needs but you ladies are always going to be in charge. I promise you that.”

  “I’m looking forward to meeting her.”

  “You will and soon. Listen, I had an idea about promoting this adoption. Give Wes a call. He did such a good job at the fundraiser. He might have an idea that could help you and you guys are friends, right?”

  “Yeah, we are. He adopted his dogs from us.” An idea started to gel in her mind. “Thanks, Graham. I’m really getting excited over this. Can’t wait to go and see the new premises.”

  “I’ll call you in a couple of days and I’ll pick you up. I have to deal with a couple of business issues first then my time is a little bit more flexible.”

  Ruby sat at the table long after she’d ended the call, her mind churning over.

  The following morning Ruby arrived at work with a folder full of notes and a buzz that couldn’t be blamed on coffee. “I’ve got it.” She dumped the papers on Carly’s desk and grinned. “Wes came up with the idea last night. He’s going to star in an advertising campaign and Paul is going to film it guerilla style for us for free. We can use it on social media, wherever we can slot it in.” She blew her hair off her face and giggled. “They’ll have it to us by tomorrow.”

  Carly’s mouth dropped open. “You’re kidding me?”

  “Nope. He called me last night to see how the dates were going and we got talking.” She slapped her hand over her mouth. “Crap. I really need to call Simon back and apologize. He called me and I cut him short. I was so focused on what we have to do that I brushed him aside.”

  Carly squinted and stared at her. “How much coffee have you had already today?”

  She flicked her fingers in the air. “Probably not enough at this stage. Listen, Wes is going to be calling you. Wants you to take over the posters. Yes, that’s right, the posters. Paul is doing some still shots as well and will email them to you today. You can add text to them with all the details and do the printing. You’re good at that stuff. I’ll go around and put them in shop windows and tape them to light poles if I have t
o. We’re going to get the new premises for zilch if I can help it and these babies are going to get a new home.”

  Carly held up her hands. “I agree but slow down. You’re making my head spin.”

  “Don’t have time to slow down. Too much to do. I need to talk to Graham’s builder about the floor plan. They’ll be in contact with us today and will come and measure what we have here. You should be getting an email sometime this morning with the plans so we can see what we’re getting.”

  She tapped her finger on her lip. “Check and see what else we need. We can’t move in without the place being ready. Can you imagine all the animals in one big shed?” She shuddered as she recalled the phone call last night from Graham.

  “Girlfriend, you need to slow down or you’ll make yourself sick.” Carly shook her head but Ruby didn’t have time to slow down or be ill. Not if she wanted to make the best move for the shelter.

  But what about her? What did she want besides finding the animals a permanent home they could afford? She wanted Simon back but did she have the nerve to go and fight for him or had that ship already sailed? He said he was happy with friends when she asked him. Maybe that’s all he wanted now. She’d walked away once before and left him. What guarantee did he have that she wouldn’t do it again?

  Chapter 11

  “Excuse me, ladies.” Graham stepped away and left them to talk as he answered a call.

  Ruby let her gaze roam over the property again, still in disbelief that it was theirs. One more move and that would be it. She couldn’t wait. Carly tucked her arm through Ruby’s and leaned her head on hers. “You deserve it, kiddo. You’ve worked so damned hard at this.”

  “We both have. If it wasn’t for you coming on board after college and taking over the books, I doubt I would’ve got this far. It’s like a dream, you know. I thought we’d always be fighting for what we needed. And here we have Graham and Laura who want to hand us whatever we want. It’s taking some getting used to.”

  “I know. But I’ve been checking things out and he’s above board.” They watched the man in question talking on his cell again. “Been into property for years and years. Happy to donate to charities too but the last few years since their son died, he and his lovely lady have been almost in hiding.” Carly sighed. “Did you know he and Simon have some property deals together? Apparently Simon’s dad and Graham are old school friends.”

  Alarm bells rang in the back of her mind. “No, I didn’t know that.”

  Carly shrugged. “Doesn’t mean anything other than I think that only makes him more trustworthy. At least in my book. As much as Simon may have pissed you off, he can be trusted. And if he’s a friend of Simon’s dad, you can’t go wrong.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  Graham slid his cell into his pocket and walked back over to them. “Do you want to go over anything again or are you happy with what the builders are doing?”

  “I’m all good, thanks. They seem to be doing everything we wanted and more. I think I should be back at the shelter packing up. Getting everyone over here is going to be a major mission.”

  Carly spoke up. “Depends on how many dogs we manage to adopt out. So far it’s looking pretty good. Four went yesterday plus a cat found its fur-ever home. I have appointments booked for three more viewings tomorrow too. Thank goodness for Wes and Paul. That video has had so many hits on social media, it’s insane. People have been sharing it everywhere.” She paused for breath and fanned her face with her hand. “But to answer your question, we can call for volunteers to help move the animals. People with crates for the smaller dogs and cats. Confident handlers for the bigger dogs. I can start a spreadsheet now and hopefully by the time the move comes around, we’ll have enough people.”

  Graham smiled. “Give me the details of what you need and I’ll get Laura onto it too.” He handed over a business card. “My private email address is on here. If you and I could share a spreadsheet, it might make things easier, Carly.” He paused a moment. “Listen ladies. I have to say this again because I don’t know if you understand how important this is to me. If it wasn’t for the work you both do, I wouldn’t have my wife today. I mean that with every fiber of my being. Losing our son was incredibly difficult. Even though we knew he wasn’t going to make it to his twenty-fifth birthday, we never gave up hope that a miracle would come along. Little did we know that the miracle we needed would happen after his death.”

  Ruby swallowed down the emotion.

  “If it wasn’t for you holding an open day, I doubt Laura would still be with me. So when I say you can have anything I can give you, I sincerely mean it. I will do anything I can to help. No questions asked.”

  Ruby pulled a tissue from her pocket and dabbed her eyes. “I’m so glad we were able to help and when Laura feels ready, I’d love to welcome her and help choose another fur baby.”

  “Thank you. I’ll make sure she knows. It’s something we’ve been discussing.” He waved his hand at the property. “I’ll have a team of guys out here cleaning up in the morning so everything is ready for the big move. Shall we?” He held the gate open as they passed through.

  On the way back to the shelter, Carly ticked off a list of things she needed to have at the new office before she could move in. “Power, internet, phone lines. I can pack up the office in less than a week. It’s easy on my side of things. I’ll start a spreadsheet when I get back, Graham, and send it to you in a shareable document. I’ll also give you the details to our social media sites so you and Laura can post there too. We’re going to get this done with as little fuss as possible.”

  “That’s what I like to hear.” He drove the short distance to the shelter and pulled up at the front door. “Now, don’t forget. If there’s anything you want the builders to do, get it done now before you move in. They’ve almost finished the kennel area and updated the office. Done the repairs to the other shed. You have the space to expand and it’ll be easier now than later.”

  “I was thinking of a sickbay away from the main part of the facility since there are so many buildings available.” Ruby chewed on her lip, still concerned about cost. “Some animals need to be quarantined and that’s been a challenge where we are now.”

  Graham nodded. “I think that’s a brilliant idea, Ruby. Give Ryan a call and chat to him about it. You don’t need me involved.”

  Ruby got out of the car. “Thanks so much. We’ll be in touch.”

  As Graham drove away in his big black sedan, Ruby commented. “I always wondered what it would be like to have a fairy godfather. Now I know.”

  Carly snorted. “You had that in Simon.”

  Ruby bristled. “That’s where you’re wrong. I thought I did but trust got in the way.”

  “Trust or pride? There’s a subtle difference, Ruby.”

  Was there? Had she taken things the wrong way or had he treated her as badly as she’d assumed for the last few years? She didn’t have time to worry about it now. She had a shelter to pack up and move. That was going to take all of her focus for the next couple of weeks. In a sense it gave her breathing space to try and unpack her feelings for Simon. More importantly, what she was going to do about them.

  Because as things were right now, it would be too easy to fall back into the old routine and she hated that she was so indecisive. She’d made up her mind when they broke up that she wasn’t going to give him another chance.

  Now she wasn’t so sure.

  * * *

  He’d promised her she could have a break from the dates but Simon was feeling the divide widen between them. He got in his car, buckled George in and headed to Ruby’s house. If nothing, he could walk the dogs for her.

  When he pulled up, the door was shut and there was no sign of life. He got out of the car and knocked on the door. Barking erupted from inside so she must have been home at some stage. He waited. Nothing. She wasn’t home from work and it was getting late.

  He stood there for a moment, wondering if he should hang around
or if that would make him look tragic when her car pulled up.

  “Simon, what are you doing here?” She opened the door and grabbed a bundle of papers in her arms, kicking the car door shut with her foot.

  “Just driving past and thought I’d call in and see if there was anything I could do to help out.”

  She shuffled the papers in her hands and reached for her handbag. “You can grab the keys and open the door if you like.”

  “How about I hold the papers and you look for the keys. I hate going into ladies handbags.” He took the posters from her. “These are catchy. What are you doing with them?”

  She grinned and his stomach flipped. “Sticking them in shop windows and anywhere else I can find that won’t get me into trouble.”

  “Need any help?”

  Ruby opened the door and the dogs came flying out. As they sniffed around his feet and vied for attention, Simon raised an eyebrow. “Sure. We can take the beasts for a walk and share the load. What do you say?”

  “I say yes.”

  Simon walked over to his car and let George out. “Walkies time, puppies. Let us get organized and we’ll hit the road.”

  Once they had the posters in a backpack, Simon slung it on his back. “Tape?”

  “In the backpack.” Ruby grabbed the dogs leads. “Where do you want to start?”

  “Up to you. We can drive into town and park then walk. We can even have a bite to eat halfway if you like.”

  She tilted her head and smiled at him. “I think you’re being sneaky, Simon. Sounds remarkably like a date to me.”

  He laughed and put a hand on her shoulder. He was prepared to call it one if she insisted but that hadn’t been the plan. “You got me there. But we need the fuel for the walking we’re going to do and I bet you haven’t eaten either. I know I haven’t so we may as well do it on the run.”

  “You’re right. Thank you.” She followed him to the car and loaded the dogs in the back of the Porsche. Soon they were down in Sausalito and walking the streets. At each open shop, they stopped and asked if they could put a poster in the window to promote the adoption day.