“Works for me,” he said. “If you get there before me, there’s a big fiberglass dolphin by the entrance to the pier. I’ll look for you, there.”
“Yeah, I know the one. My sister and I used to climb on that thing when we were kids. I can’t believe it’s still there.”
“It is.” Only then did he realize his hand was still on her arm. He withdrew and slipped his fist into the pocket of his tuxedo trousers. “All right. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
Someone called to her and she waved to let them know she would be right over. Turning back to Alexander, she smiled. “Gotta go.” She wiggled her fingers and as she began to move away, she sang out softly, “Bye.”
He watched her go. A few minutes later, he caught up to Teddy and Danny just as they headed toward the cloak room. “You’re leaving?” Alexander asked. “The night is young!”
“But we aren’t,” Danny said, jerking his thumb between himself and his partner. He smiled, clear blue eyes twinkling. “Saw you flirting with that lovely siren earlier. From what I could tell, you two really hit it off.”
Alexander rolled his eyes but he could feel himself grinning. “We weren’t ‘flirting,’” he said. He felt like a kid being teased by his uncle for liking the new girl in school. “I just told her how much I admired her performance tonight.”
“Looked to me like you were interested in booking a private show with her,” Danny said, and jabbed Alexander lightly with his elbow. “Eh? Eh?”
Teddy came to Alexander’s rescue. With a loud sigh, he slid a hand around Danny’s waist. “All right,” he said, “you are clearly up way past your bedtime. Stop pestering the boy, now, and let’s go.” He smiled at Alexander. “We’re catching a morning flight back to Glasgow, but we’ve been talking about coming back next month for a longer visit.”
“You’re welcome to stay with me at the estate,” Alexander said. Teddy was as much family to him as Danny, even if neither of them were related to him by blood. Alexander adored them, and had complete respect for them. He hugged each man in turn. “Have a safe trip.”
Danny pointed a crooked finger at Alexander. “Don’t let that pretty songbird fly away, now,” he said.
“I’ll work on it,” Alexander promised, and it wasn’t a lie. Danny was right – he did find Piper to be very attractive. Just a few minutes spent in her presence made him want more. She was beautiful and talented, and incredibly charming. He looked forward to seeing her again tomorrow, when they could have a little more one-on-one time to get to know each other better.
***
Alexander could not stop thinking about Piper. As soon as he got home from the benefit, he got online and downloaded all her albums on iTunes. He read the Wikipedia entry on her life and career. He checked out video on YouTube of her performing the song “Easy to Be Hard” from Hair on the Tony Awards the year she won for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role. The powerful ballad had been part of her set list last night, her big finale.
While he could look up all these bits and bytes about Piper, Alexander knew there was so much more to the woman. She came across so strong and confident. As someone who headed his own company, he understood the need to present that kind of image to the world. Very few people knew the real Alexander Logan. Danny and Teddy knew, but they had been a part of his life since before he was born. His younger sister Catherine, along with her husband Steve, were both silent partners in the clean energy empire their father had built and handed over to Alexander before his passing in 2000.
Then he had Emma, Brad, and William, three people he met during his time studying at Cal-Tech, two of them now working for Logan Enterprises. The rest of the world saw a billionaire CEO, but to his friends and family, he was just Alex, the guy who still liked to watch old Saturday morning cartoons while eating a big bowl of cornflakes, who saw Weird Al in concert every time he toured, and who stayed by his mother’s side from the moment the doctors diagnosed her with ovarian cancer, caring for her around the clock until the day she died four years later.
And maybe it was what Piper had talked about going through with her niece that touched something inside Alexander; she was a kindred spirit, someone who understood what it was like to watch a loved one die a slow, terrible death. Piper Kennedy was a champion of many causes, lending her celebrity clout to projects that helped teens, the homeless, and the environment. Alexander shared those passions, and it made him curious to know more about Piper’s big heart.
“Hey, there, mister – waiting for someone?”
Alexander turned away from the view of the ocean to see the subject of his thoughts standing in front of him. At the gala, Piper had come across as a goddess from the Silver Screen; today, she could have walked off the pages of a 1950s pinup girl calendar. She had chosen a white baby doll blouse, sleeveless and covered in red polka dots, over a pair of black pedal pushers. Her red platform sandals laced halfway up her smooth, white calves, and she wore a matching earring, necklace and bracelet collection made of large, bright red beads the same color as her lipstick. Her auburn hair was secured by a white bandana folded into a narrow strip and knotted at the top of her head. A large, retro-style bag with red plastic hoop handles swung from one of her arms. “You look great,” Alexander said, and he meant it.
She removed her white-framed sunglasses and smiled coquettishly. “Thanks,” she said, batting her eyelashes. “You look pretty good, yourself. You’re rocking the blue jeans with the plain black t-shirt.”
“Yeah, well,” he said, glancing down at his attire, “my tux is at the cleaner’s.”
“Monkey suits are so overrated. The only guy who should wear one is James Bond, because that’s his trademark.” She smiled. “But you really do look good like this. Very relaxed. There’s no way anyone would look at you and say ‘Oh my gawd, is that Alexander Logan, billionaire philanthropist and CEO of Logan Enterprises?’”
“That’s kind of what I was going for,” Alexander said. “Sometimes it’s hard getting out of the house without being spotted by the Paparazzi. I use a lot of back entrances.”
“Ooh, kinky!”
“That’s not what I meant…”
“Too bad,” she said, and treated him to a coy smile that made him blush for the first time since he was a teenager. “So. Where’s this coffee shop you mentioned?”
They made their way over to the little store nestled among shops selling beachside souvenirs and surfing supplies. Piper read the hand-painted sign over the door featuring a camel in a white burnoose. “’Lawrence of Arabica?’” She giggled. “Oh, I can tell this is already going to be a great place, with a name like that.”
Alexander held the door for her like a gentleman and followed her inside. They placed their order and, true to Alexander’s description, the barista informed Piper of the shop’s policy of donating half of what she paid for her caramel Frappuccino to the charity of her choice. “Well, since we raised so much money last night for pediatric cancer, let’s give this one to the Plant-a-Forest Foundation.”
They took their drinks to a table. Alexander opened his mouth to say something when Piper suddenly asked, “Has anyone ever told you that you look like Batman?”
“Which one?” he asked. “Adam West, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Christian Bale, or Ben Affleck?”
“Bale,” she said.
“Um, no…not recently.” He laughed. “Or ever.” He started to lift his espresso to his lips only to stop and frown. “You really think I look like him?”
“Well, pretty close. You could be his cousin.”
“Well, as far as I know, we aren’t related.” He sipped his coffee and set it down again, licking his lips. “Although that reminds me of this time we were in New Orleans – me, my parents and my sister – and we had rented this apartment in the French Quarter while Dad was doing some business down there with one of the local refineries. Catherine – that’s my sister – and I were sitting out on the balcony overlooking the street, and we could see
these men down on the corner below us. I said to Catherine, ‘hey, doesn’t that one guy look like Tom Skerritt?’ And she looked and said, ‘yeah, he looks like he could be his brother.’ Well, then we heard this woman’s voice coming from underneath the balcony, down on the sidewalk below us, and she called out to these men, ‘hey, were you in Top Gun?’ And the guy replies, ‘yes.’ Then she asked, ‘are you Tom Skerritt?’ And he said ‘yes, I am.’” Well, Catherine and I flipped out, we jumped up and ran downstairs, but by the time we got to the street, a car came by, Skerritt got in and was gone.” Alexander dropped back in his chair and shook his head with a forlorn sigh. “Window of opportunity, closed.”
“That is too funny,” Piper said, grinning. She poked a finger into the foam on top of her frap and then stuck it in her mouth, sucking it clean. “Mm. I had a chance to meet Cher, once. Missed her by one day. But that’s how life goes – Cher today, gone tomorrow.”
“Ugh,” Alexander groaned. “Bad pun.”
“Yeah, but you’ll probably use it at your next board meeting.”
“I’ll have you know, I don’t just attend board meetings. I actually work for a living. I know that’s hard to believe, given how Hollywood paints the picture of company presidents as sophisticated jet-setters sailing around on their yachts and trying to decide which Rolex to wear today.”
“Yeah?” She jerked her head, indicating the watch on his wrist. “And which one is that?” Alexander dropped his head forward in defeat, and she laughed. “Sorry,” she said, “I can’t help it, I love giving people shit and teasing them. You’ll find I have a warped sense of humor that way.”
“Sounds like something we have in common,” he said, and then added with a sly arch of his eyebrows, “consider yourself warned.”
“Oooh!” she said, pretending to be scared, which made them both laugh.
They finished their drinks and decided to take in the sights along the boardwalk. Piper came prepared, pulling a pump bottle of spray sunblock out of her bag and using it on her pale, exposed skin. “Sucks to be a redhead,” she said. “I love the sun but the sun, it does not love me.” She held out the bottle to Alexander. Could you do me a favor, please, and get the back of my neck and shoulders?” She turned around, reached up and gathered her hair to hold it out of the way.
“Nice tattoo,” Alexander said, noting the colorful design centered just below the base of her neck. It was a cluster of blue flowers with a large, brightly-colored butterfly just above them, its wings like stained glass windows. “Is there some kind of meaning behind it?”
“Yeah,” she said. “The flowers are forget-me-nots, and the butterfly represents my niece, Madelyn. My sister has the same design inked on her back, too. Butterflies are beautiful but their lives are so short and fleeting.”
Alexander could hear the sadness in her voice, an echo of the grief he detected last night when she spoke on stage. “I understand,” he said quietly. “I lost my mother to cancer. It’s one of those terrible reminders that life is too short, that we should love one another while we can.”
She glanced back over her shoulder at him. “I couldn’t agree more.”
They strolled along, reminiscing over the boardwalk, family trips to the beach, and favorite vacation spots. At one point, there was a lull in the conversation. Alexander stuffed his hands down into his jeans pockets. “Would you like to go see a movie?” he asked.
Piper snorted a laugh and favored him with an incredulous look. “With you?”
He rolled his eyes. “Of course, with me.”
“Well, you never know…you really have to be specific.”
There was that weird sense of humor again that she warned him about. Alexander found himself getting a kick out of it. He grinned. Jogging a few feet ahead, he halted right in front of her, forcing her to stop walking. He looked her right in the eyes. “Come to the movies with me,” he commanded.
Piper shrugged thoughtfully. “What’s playing?” she asked. Before he could answer, however, she held up a cautionary hand. “And if you even remotely suggest 50 Shades of Grey, you lose a testicle.”
That made him laugh out loud. “Oh my god,” he said, shaking his head in amazement, “you just paraphrased a line from Ferris Bueller.”
“Oh, you know that one?” She pursed her lips and folded her arms under her ample breasts. “All right. I’ll make you a deal. If you can quote at least one line from five different John Hughes films and in five minutes, I’ll go with you to see a movie.”
He blinked, smile fading. “Wait, what? Five minutes?”
“That’s the deal, take it or leave it.” Piper held up her hand, fingers spread. “Five quotes. Five films. Five minutes.” She looked at the Minnie Mouse watch on her left wrist. “Aaaaand…go!”
“Wait, I’m not ready!” Alexander protested.
She made a verbal sound that sounded like a game show buzzer. “Ehhh! I’m sorry, that is not a line from a John Hughes film. It’s apparent you aren’t serious enough about going to see that movie.” She sighed dramatically. “Ah, well. Guess I’ll be on my way…” She turned and started to walk back the way they came.
“Does Barry Manilow know you raid his wardrobe?” Alexander blurted out.
Piper stopped, pivoted, and raised an eyebrow. “Breakfast Club.” She nodded in approval. “Hitting the ground running, I see. Okay, the clock’s started. Five minutes. Four more quotes. Keep going.”
“I want a serious girlfriend,” Alexander said, quickly calling up another line. “Somebody I can love, that’s gonna love me back. Is that psycho?”
She grinned. “Sixteen Candles. Next?”
He gestured to her outfit. “This is a really volcanic ensemble you’re wearing.”
“Pretty in Pink,” she said, clearly delighted with how this was going. “And that’s another quote about clothing. I wasn’t aware you were so into couture. Are you sure you never dated Heidi Klum?”
Ignoring her quip, Alexander came up with another quote. This time, he decided to go with one that had a double meaning, not only a part of this game but something he wanted to say to Piper directly. “When are you gonna learn that people will like you for who you are, not for what you can give them?”
“Good one from Weird Science.” She shook her head in admiration. “One more. Hit me with something good – and don’t even think you can do the hands-on-face scream from Home Alone; that will automatically disqualify you.”
Alexander nodded. He thought for a moment, and then he had it. Looking into her brandy-colored eyes, he said, “You can’t tell a book by its cover.”
That caught Piper off guard. She pulled back, face scrunched in confusion. “Huh?”
“It’s an actual line from a John Hughes film,” he said, feeling a bit smug. He stepped closer to her. “If you know it, you know what comes next.” He smiled, and said it again. “You can’t tell a book by its cover.”
She looked down, and he could tell she was searching her memory. “Can’t tell a book…” she muttered under her breath. “What the hell is that from?”
“That’s not the line,” he said. Mimicking her from a few moments ago, he heaved a sigh and turned to go. “Ah, well. Guess I’ll be on my way…”
“Hang on!”
Alexander stopped. He looked at Piper, amused, watching as she pressed her fingers to her temples and rubbed them like trying to summon a genie from a lamp. “I’m waiting,” he said.
“I’m thinking!” Piper said. She muttered under her breath. “Come on, Brain – we’ve seen every John Hughes movie ever made, there’s got to be some kind of – oh!” Her eyes popped open as it hit her. Excitedly, she beckoned to him. “Okay, okay, I got it! I know it!” She braced her feet apart and shifted like a catcher preparing for the next pitch. “Come on, give it to me again – I’m ready.”
It was all Alexander could do to say the line a third time without laughing. Clearing his throat, he schooled his face into an expression of pure solemnity. “You can�
�t tell a book…by its cover.”
She looked him in the eye. “No,” she said, equally serious, “but you can tell how much it’s gonna cost you.”
“Wow,” he said, continuing to recite from the film. “I never knew you were so deep.”
“You want shallow?” Piper snorted and tossed her head. “Call Amanda Jones.” She managed to hold onto that imperious expression for several beats before it began to crack. Finally, she broke into a giggle, and covered her mouth with both hands. “Oh, my god,” she said. “I freaking loved Some Kind of Wonderful. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize that line when you threw it out.” The breeze off the ocean whipped a few strands of her red hair around into her face and she reached up to brush them away. “Seriously, I always identified with Watts. She was the one destined to be the ‘best friend’ and never the ‘love interest.’ Story of my life, especially through high school. I almost took up the drums because of that movie, too.”
Alexander smiled. “Well, you’re not in high school anymore,” he said. “And if I’m not mistaken, I do believe I just passed your little test with flying colors. Which means you have to see a movie with me.”
Piper rolled her eyes. “Fine,” she said, trying to sound put-upon, but another grin slipped out. “I never would have pegged you for a Hughes geek.” She nodded, impressed. “You’re all right, Logan.”
“It’s ‘Alexander,’” he said, correcting her. They fell into step again, continuing their amble along the weathered planks of the old boardwalk. “I’m a huge fan of 80s teen comedies, in general. Have you ever heard of Fraternity Vacation?”
“With Tim Robbins and Fright Night’s Stephen Geoffrey’s?” she asked. “Oh, yeah, I loved that one!”
“Same, here!” He shook his head. “Isn’t it amazing how much we have in common?”
“Yeah, it’s kinda creepy.” She glanced up at him and smiled. “But creepy in a good way.”
Interracial Romance: Gay Romance: Bound By His Own Desires (MMM Endowed Black Men Bondage Threesome Romance) (A Billionaire's Freedom Book 3) Page 83