Love And Money (Love Series - Book 2)

by K. L. Prince

  Olivia looks at her through the mirror and says, “The last time I checked it wasn’t my job to keep you informed of all of Caden’s father’s businesses. You really should give me a better job description.”

  “A heads up would have been nice,” Harper replies, laying her head back down on the bed and looking up at the ceiling.

  “Sorry. Are you going to fire me,” Olivia says teasingly.

  “You’ve now been put on probation,” Harper says and chuckles.

  “I promise to be on my best behavior. I need the paycheck,” Olivia says and begins to line her bottom lip. When she is finished, she continues, “Go on. You ran into Caden at the garage and then what? What did he say when he seen you?”

  “He asked me out to lunch,” she says and smiles.

  Olivia turns around in her chair. “He asked you out to lunch and then what?” she exclaims.

  “I said yes.”

  Olivia gets up from her seat in front of the mirror, walks over to the bed, and sits down next to Harper. “There better be some juicy gossip about to spill forth,” Olivia says with an excited look on her face.

  “You’re a little too excited, aren’t you?” Harper says, grinning at her friend.

  “Excited is an understatement. If what you’re about to tell me is what I think you’re about to tell me - I’m beyond thrilled. You know how I feel about you and Caden getting together. I think that it would be the best thing that’s happened in a long time – probably this century. You need some lovin’ in your life. I’ve been telling you that. So, spill,” Olivia says and bounces up and down on the bed with excitement.

  “There’s nothing to really tell. He took me to lunch,” Harper replies nonchalantly. She doesn’t want to make a big deal about the whole situation. She’s been burned before. She doesn’t want to get excited and then have everything blow up in her face. She doesn’t want to make a big deal about something that may turn out to be nothing.

  “Where?” Olivia asks, pushing the conversation forward.

  “Le Studio,” Harper says and sits up on the side of the bed.

  “Fancy. Caden went all out. I’m proud of him. You deserve fine dining,” Olivia says. “What did you guys talk about?”

  “Life. His father.”

  Olivia groans. “Here we go.”

  “Liv, I can’t get what his father said out of my mind.”

  “Well, you should. Did you tell Caden that you don’t meet the expectations of his father?”

  “No,” Harper says and starts to play with the ring on her finger.

  “Harper, you’re fidgeting. What are you not telling me? Why didn’t you tell Caden that you don’t meet his father’s expectation? Is it because it didn’t come up?”

  “It’s worse than that.”

  “I don’t understand. How is it worse?” Olivia says and comes to sit beside her friend on the edge of the bed.

  Harper turns to her friend and says, “I lied to him.”

  “You lied? What did you tell him?” Olivia asks confused.

  Harper gets up and starts to pace. “I told him that my father is a successful businessman and that I come from a family that has money.”

  “Harper!” Olivia exclaims. “Why did you do that?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. When Caden asked me about my family, all I could think about was what his father said. I was enjoying being with Caden and I didn’t want to ruin things by telling him the truth. You should have seen the relief on his face when I lied to him. He was happy that I met his father’s expectations of what would be the perfect wife for him.”

  “Harper, you do realize that you’re going to have to tell him the truth eventually. What do you expect is going to happen?”

  “I know and I don’t know,” Harper says, continuing to pace and wring her hands.

  “So, besides the massive lie that you told him, how did the rest of the date go?”

  “It was perfect. I swear Liv, being with Caden felt so good. We talked like we’ve known each other forever. There was none of the awkwardness that first dates usually have. It was just smooth conversation and we laughed a lot. Caden is so sweet. He even paid for my car to get fixed.”

  “I told you that Caden is a good guy. I encouraged you to answer his phone calls, remember? I would never try to fix you up with someone that I thought was a jerk. Caden will treat you like a princess at all times. I know him. He would never do anything to intentionally hurt you.”

  “I believe you now and that is why lying to him feels so wrong, but what was I supposed to do?”

  “That’s an easy question, Harp. You should have just told him the truth. The relationship that you have with him is being built on lies now. You need to tell him the truth and you need to do it right away. I’m sure that Caden will forgive you.”

  “I will tell him…..eventually. I’m just going to wait until I feel it’s the right time. He invited me to another charity event. Depending on how the night goes, I might tell him that night. The charity event is really why I’m here, actually.”

  “What about this charity event?” Olivia asks.

  “I was wondering if you would loan me something to wear again.”

  “Of course. You know that you don’t have to ask. Help yourself,” Olivia says and motions towards her closet.

  “That’s not the only favor I have to ask,” Harper says and looks at her.

  Olivia groans. “I know that look. What is it?”

  “I can’t exactly have Caden pick me up at home. I need him to pick me up somewhere that jives with my lie.”

  “Harper, I really don’t agree with what you are doing, but I will help you because you’re my best friend. My parents and I are going out of town, so you can’t use here. Plus, Caden knows where I live, but you could use my Dad’s apartment that he uses when he’s too tired to drive home from the city. It’s really nice and Caden won’t suspect a thing. You can stay there while we are out of town.”

  “Thank you so much, Olivia. I owe you a massive one,” says and gives Olivia a hug from sheer relief. “Your Dad won’t care that I stay there?”

  “My parents love you like you are their daughter, you know that. Sometimes I think that they love you more than me, actually,” Olivia says and chuckles. “I don’t even need to ask them. You’re family and what’s ours is yours,” Olivia says while digging around in her purse and pulling out a set of keys.

  “You have no idea how much this means to me,” Harper says, taking the keys from Olivia and placing them on her key ring.

  “Don’t mention it. I am going to say this though - you really need to tell Caden the truth. If you want your relationship with him to have any validity, you need to be one hundred percent honest with him. If there is no trust and respect, then what is there? I can tell that you really like Caden and I don’t want to see you get hurt, Harper. Caden could be the one and I don’t want to see things ruined down the road between the two of you because of stupid and unnecessary lies that could have been easily avoided.”

  “I hear you and I promise that I will tell Caden the truth when the time is right. I want to give Caden and my relationship the best shot and you’re right about it starting with the right foundation. We can’t go anywhere when one of us is lying to the other. I wouldn’t appreciate it if he had lied to me and I need to treat him the way that I want to be treated. I just hope that he understands why I did what I did.”

  “I’m sure that he will. Like I’ve said over and over, Caden is a good guy. He will understand, and if he likes you as much as I think that he does, he will forgive you and then you two can move forward in a healthy relationship. Right now, your relationship is sick, you need to make it well again.”

  “I will,” Harper says and means every word. She knows that everything that Olivia has said is the absolute truth and she makes a vow to herself that she will absolutely do the right thing. She will do the right thing and she will do it as soon as possible, but first she is going to enjoy her n
ight with Caden at the charity event.

  “Good,” Olivia says, grabbing her hand and leading her towards her closet. “I just bought this amazing silver, glittery dress that I think would look perfect on you to wear on your date with Caden to the charity event. You’re going to absolutely love it.”

  “I can’t wait to see it,” Harper says and follows her friend into her walk-in closet with a huge smile on her face.

  She looks forward to her date with Caden and every single moment that she will be able to spend with him in the near future. She will relish every moment she gets with him because once she tells him the complete truth about herself it may be the last.

  * * * * *

  Harper parks her car and walks to the entrance of Olivia’s father’s city apartment. She looks up at the tall building and she wonders what she’s going to find behind the apartment door. She is surprised when she makes it to the front door and finds there is a doorman dressed up in a suit to allow her into the building.

  “Hello, ma’am,” the doorman says and opens to door for her.

  “Hello,” she replies and smiles, feeling a little strange. She’s never had anyone open the door for her to let her into an apartment building before. She is sure that an apartment building that has a doorman means that the building that she is entering is a luxury one. She wonders how much a person gets paid to stand outside a building and open the door for residents and visitors.

  When she is inside the lobby of the apartment, she is stunned by the elegance of the building. She is mesmerized by the chandelier that hangs from the ceiling in the center of the lobby as she walks and her shoes click across the spotless and shiny floor. She wonders how much Olivia’s father pays to keep an apartment that he rarely uses in a building so posh. Without even seeing the inside of the apartment, she’s sure that he pays more for the apartment than she and her mother probably pay for theirs for an entire year.

  A security guard sits behind a desk. When she reaches him, he asks her for her name. She starts to feel nervous because this isn’t what she expected when she had pictured the apartment building in her mind. She thought that she was going to a building where you just let yourself in with a key and that was it. She didn’t expect this level of security or service.

  She gives the security guard her name and waits for disappointment. She pulls her cell phone out her purse, expecting to have to call Olivia. She hopes that she is able to get in touch with Olivia, but she’s worried because Olivia left for her vacation with her parents and might be incommunicado.

  “Oh, yes, here you are,” the security guard says, looking up from a computer screen and smiling at her.

  She lets out a sigh of relief. Olivia must have put her on the list. Thank you, Olivia, she says in her mind. Her friend is always so efficient and is always one-step ahead. The thought never crossed her mind that she would have to have her name on a list. She is glad that Olivia has taken care of it for her. She doesn’t know what she would have done if she wasn’t permitted entry to the building. She wonders what she would have done about Caden. She has no idea where she would have told Caden to pick her up for their date and she is glad that she doesn’t have to figure it out. She feels bad about it, but she is glad that things have worked out and she can continue her lie for now.

  “Sir, is it possible that you could leave a note on the computer that anyone that visits and asks for me that the Grace’s name as the tenant of the apartment isn’t mentioned?”

  The security guard doesn’t even bat an eye at her request. He immediately responds, “Absolutely, Ms. Bailey. That’s no problem. I’ll put that into our system right now.” She watches him type and is relieved that her cover won’t be blown when Caden arrives to pick her up. “Your request is entered and I can guarantee that it will be honored,” the security guard says when he is finished typing.

  “Thank you very much,” she says and picks up her bags.

  “Not a problem. You have a good evening.”

  “You as well,” she says and makes her way to the elevator.

  She rides the elevator up to the eleventh floor and gets off. She feels excited about the place she is going to live for a couple of weeks before she is even in the apartment. After she has unlocked the door and is inside, she is so stunned by what she finds that she can’t take a step. She drops her bags at her feet and takes in her surroundings.

  The apartment is more than she could have ever imagined. The apartment is huge. It is ten times bigger than the apartment that she shares with her mother. The living room has floor to ceiling glass windows with an amazing view of the city. After the shock has worn off, she stands in front of the windows and stares out across the city. The view is breathtaking. She can see clear across the city.

  She turns around and walks over to the leather furniture that sits in front of the window and sits down on the sofa. She relaxes into the coolness of the leather and looks towards the kitchen. The stainless steel appliances glimmer from the distance, as if they have just been cleaned. Olivia said that a housecleaner would come around once a week and clean the apartment during her stay. She’s sure that Olivia probably had the apartment cleaned for her arrival and stay.

  She gets up from the sofa and walks towards the open concept kitchen. She runs her hand along what appears to be a marble countertop that sits on top of the island separating the kitchen and the dining room. She opens the cupboards and then the heavy refrigerator door. The shelves of the cupboards and the fridge are fully stocked with everything that she could possibly need. She is sure that Olivia had a hand in the stocking of the kitchen as well because she’s noticed that some of her favorite things to eat sit on the cupboard shelves and in the fridge. She is once again thankful for her friend for taking such good care of her. There is so much food available that she will have to buy minimal groceries, if at all. If she wanted to, she could probably stay in the apartment and never have to leave to get anything.

  She peeks in the office that is just off the kitchen before making her way to the spiral staircase in the center of the apartment that leads up to the second floor. She slowly makes her way up the stairs while looking out the glass windows, once again taking in the magnificent view.

  When she gets upstairs, she finds three large bedrooms covered with beautiful linens. The master bedroom is the largest and she decides that is where she will definitely sleep. The master bedroom has a fireplace with a seating area in front of it and a king-sized bed. The bedroom is bigger than her and her mother’s bedrooms combined.

  She flops down on the enormous bed and rolls around in the softness of the comforter. She gets up and turns on the television that sits above the fireplace using the remote control she finds on a dresser. The bedroom is filled with the sound of the television from a hidden surround sound system. She is sure that she will spend many nights in the comfort of the master bedroom and she can’t wait.

  She wanders to entrance of the master bath and she stands in the doorway. The bathroom is like something out of a magazine. There is a large granite shower enclosed by glass doors. She walks over to the shower, opens the door and steps inside. She admires the large showerhead with many spray options. She can’t help but reach out and touch it, moving it from option to option. She has never been more excited to take a shower before in her life. She can’t wait to take a shower and feel the warm spray from the spray option of her choice hit her skin.

  She steps out of the shower and admires the soaker tub that has jets adorning the sides. She is even more excited to slip her tired body in the tub and enjoy the massaging effect of the spa-like tub after a long day at work. She makes her way over to the double sinks and turns the tap of one of the sinks on and off. She stares at herself in the large mirror that is surrounded by soft lights.

  She starts to imagine what life would be like if the apartment was hers and she woke up everyday to an amazing apartment like Olivia’s father has. She would feel like the luckiest girl in the entire world and she would be gr
ateful every single day for what she had. She would never for one second take what she had for granted. She would cherish every moment that she was able to live in such luxury.

  After she has explored every single part of the second floor, she makes her way back downstairs. She grabs her bags from the front door and lugs them up the stairs to unpack. It is time to make herself at home and get used to her new surroundings. The apartment may not belong to her, but she feels lucky that she has been given the opportunity to spend some time in it, even if it is as a result of deception. Her lies to Caden have afforded her the opportunity to live in the lap of luxury for awhile, and even though she knows that what she has done is wrong on so many levels, it is not going to stop her from enjoying every minute of the chance that she’s been given. She starts to unpack with a huge smile on her face.

  * * * * *

  The phone on the wall at the front door of the apartment starts to ring. When she picks it up and says hello, the security guard at the front desk tells her that Caden is downstairs. She tells the security guard to send him up.

  When she hangs up the phone, she starts to feel nervous. She’s nervous for so many reasons. She’s nervous about whether or not she looks okay and she’s nervous about what the night ahead of them may hold. She’s not sure what’s going to happen and she hasn’t fully decided, but it may be the night she discloses the truth to Caden and lays all of her cards on the table.

  When he knocks on the door, she takes one last look at herself in the mirror at the door, before opening the door. When she opens the door and sees him standing on the other side, a feeling of happiness washes over her. Her happiness and excitement to see him is something that she has never felt for any man that she has ever dated before. Along with the feeling of pure joy that she feels when she sees him is a feeling of having missed him so much. She is once again so glad that he is around.