The Billionaire From Portland: A Sexy BWWM Billionaire Romance (United States Of Billionaires Book 10)

by Simply BWWM

  Gabriella’s heart began to speed up. She felt like she might not be able to breathe very well as she searched for the courage to say what she needed to say.

  “I wanted to talk with you about the April issue. It’s already January and I know you’re working on it. I wanted to talk with you about the possibility of being on the cover. I heard that you were considering Veronica Wright for it, and that you might also be considering me.” Her heart was speeding up so much that she was certain it might just beat itself right out of her chest.

  Gabriella heard the rumor from James, the photographer, who was sure that she should have the cover instead of Veronica. He said it would sell out if she did, she was perfect for it. She felt ready for it. Her modeling career had shot upward as if she had been vaulted from a cannon, and she knew that she was close to reaching the opportunity of becoming an internationally-known model.

  She just needed a chance that last push, to get her to international status. She needed the cover of the magazine, it would change her whole life. She would have the publicity she wanted, she would have the placement she needed in order to catch the eye of the big names in the modeling world. She was so close that she could almost taste it. She could not let it pass her by, and it was that aching desire in her to reach the full potential of her career that drove her determination. It was that determination that placed her beside a woman who she wasn’t fully certain even liked her. Unfortunately, it was more than likely that it would be that woman who made the final decision as to whether or not Gabriella made it on the cover of the April issue of the magazine.

  “We are considering several things for the April issue, and we are making decisions on it every day. I don’t know where you heard the rumors about the cover, but if we ever decide to put you on a cover, we will let you know.” Kathy spoke coolly, her eyes and glasses reflecting the light of the screen she was looking at.

  Gabriella felt as if Kathy had pricked her with a dagger and was letting the steam and air out of her quickly. She wasn’t about to let it happen. She had worked too hard for too long to let a woman like Kathy stand in her way of international renown and work.

  “Kathy, I’ve worked here long enough and hard enough to be able to say that not only have I earned the cover, but I’m ready for it. Everyone thinks so.” She lifted her chin again and watched the other woman closely.

  Her electronic pen paused and hovered a moment over the screen, and she raised her grey eyes to look directly at Gabriella. “Everyone thinks so? I haven’t said what I think. Do you mean everyone but me? That’s fairly pretentious considering the fact that I’m the one who’s going to make the decision about it. I’m the only one whose opinion really matters. And it doesn’t really matter at all what anyone else thinks, because not only do none of them have a say in what I will or won’t do, none of them are capable of swaying my opinion.”

  Gabriella felt her stomach tighten and her eyebrows raise up slightly as anxiety began to build in her. Kathy leveled her gaze at Gabriella. “I know full well what you have done here and how long you have been here. Don’t dare to have the audacity to tell me what you’re ready for. I make that decision, not you.

  I’m the one who decides what happens with this magazine every month, on every page, and this magazine would not have realized a fraction of the success that it has without my control and my work.”

  She steeled her gaze on Gabriella. “If I ever decide to put you on a cover, I’ll let you know. In the meantime, don’t come up to me and—” she was cut off by a loud deep voice that filled the room and in an instant, Gabriella saw everything about her change.

  Kathy’s mouth parted and her eyes widened, she drew in her breath sharply and held it as she turned on the spot, forgetting Gabriella and everything that she had just been lecturing her on, and her attention was given in full to the man who had just walked into the room and was walking towards them with his hands in the pockets of his well-tailored navy blue pants.

  He was wearing a white button-up shirt that was opened just far enough to offer a hint of the black curls of hair on his chest, and the shirt was only visible where his navy blue jacket opened in the front; unbuttoned and casual. He had dark olive skin and big dark eyes, and his head was crowned with thick black curls of hair that hung around his dark brows.

  His nonchalant smile may have looked easy-going, but his dark eyes moved around the room, stopping momentarily on every single woman he saw, drifting over their forms and drinking them in for a lingering minute before looking at the next. He didn’t bother to look at Kathy, but as Gabriella’s watchful gaze moved from the man back to Kathy, who seemed to have forgotten that she existed, she realized that nothing in Kathy’s world existed except for the man she was looking at. Kathy’s grey eyes were locked on him with laser beam intensity, and Gabriella was fairly certain that even if she reached her hand out and touched Kathy’s arm, the woman would not know it.

  Julian surveyed the room around him, taking in his staff, taking in the new models who were being touched up for hair and makeup. He called out a greeting to James, his best photographer, and James raised a hand and waved at him before going back to his camera.

  He felt her staring, his editor-in-chief, Kathy. He knew how much she wanted him. She probably wanted him more than any woman in the room, and he loved the knowledge of that, and the powerful feeling of satisfaction that it gave him to know how hot he made her.

  He smiled a little at the corner of his mouth to think that she was probably there soaking her panties just thinking about him. He’d never do anything about it, but it amused him that she longed for him the way she did.

  He decided to tease her a little. He looked everywhere but at her for a few torturous moments, as she stood near him, staring up at him, just waiting for him to notice her. He scoffed to himself in his mind. He’d never notice anyone like her, with her little brown bun of hair pinned up tightly at the back of her head, her buttoned up clothes, her thin mouth and her wide staring eyes. That cold, bitchy demeanor of hers that ran a magazine well would never heat him with desire.

  She could never make him want her. Not like the hot young models she always hired. The budding beauties who were always just old enough for him to take to his bed or, at least, the back seat of his limo. He could spend an hour or two tasting their young firm flesh with his mouth, filling them with his body, and then send them back to work to make money for him.

  Julian had run a little short of playthings that week and he was feeling randy and desirous, so he left his office on the top floor of his glamorous building in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, and he decided to stroll through the working floors of the magazine to see what hot new models might be there to satisfy his lustful cravings.

  Kathy was like a wet rag on his burning fire and even looking at her diffused the heat in him, but at the same time, he loved to think of her wanting him, daydreaming about him, slaving away at her job just to please him. He finally turned his attention to her, and she quivered slightly as she stared up at him.

  He laughed to himself inside and let his eyes drift down to her small breasts, the hint of their curves hidden behind her starched white blouse. He let his eyes remain there until he saw her chest expand as she drew in a deep breath, and then he lifted his gaze to meet hers. His mouth twitched with a small smile.

  “Hello, Kathy,” he said lightly. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything here today. I just thought I’d drop in and see how things were going. Please don’t let me interrupt your work.”

  She nearly panted as she responded and he forced himself not to laugh. “Oh, no problem at all… it’s never a problem. Come down anytime. It’s wonderful to have you here!” she gushed nervously, and he saw her cheeks begin to burn red as she spoke to him. He was careful not to roll his eyes.

  “Are you shooting some of March today?” he asked, glancing over at the photo shoot set. It seemed fairly obvious.

  She nodded enthusiastically. “We are. We’re going
to have it ready by the end of the week, so we’re just wrapping up with the Spring Fling photos today.” She didn’t take her eyes off him. He felt a twitch of annoyance.

  “Great. Which models did you use for it?” he asked almost disinterestedly. He preferred to keep his curiosity about the girls low key, just to stem the rumors of him bedding so many of them.

  She looked distressed for a moment, her brows knitting slightly and her thin mouth somehow narrowing further as she frowned in frustration and annoyance. “Well, we had Kelly, Emily, and Gabriella in here today.”

  Gabriella was still standing a few feet behind Kathy, irritated that her conversation had meant so little to Kathy that the woman could just drop it like a hot potato the second some guy walked into the room. She wasn’t sure who the man was, but it was obvious that he was part of upper management.

  An idea began to creep into Gabriella’s mind. She wondered if it might be possible to get a little support for her bid for the April cover by discussing it with the man that Kathy was so intent on.

  She took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and walked up to them. She knew he hadn’t seen her yet. She’d been standing far enough back that she was out of sight, but she stepped forward until she was centered between Kathy and the dark haired man, and as she did so, his gaze left Kathy and moved to her, and as his eyes met hers, she saw something in his demeanor change in an instant.

  Kathy frowned and Julian stared at the crystal blue eyes that were focused on him. The young woman was more than striking. He owned a fashion magazine. He had seen plenty of beautiful women in his life. Almost countless, when he thought about it, but he had rarely seen one quite as exotic as the one standing before him. Curiosity sparked in his mind and warmth and hunger began to spread in his groin.

  He held out his hand to her. “I’m Julian Medici,” he said with a growing smile as she reached for his hand. He heard Kathy sigh heavily as she frowned almost imperceptibly and looked down at the ground.

  Gabriella felt her heart began to pick up speed. He was taking initiative. She hoped with everything in her that it meant that she might somehow impress him enough and he would tell Kathy to give her the chance she so desperately wanted and needed.

  “I’m Gabriella,” she responded, closing her hand in his and shaking it. His grasp was firm and he held her hand for a lingering moment before she pulled away. His name rang a bell in her head, though she was too focused on what she wanted to do to think why it should be familiar to her at all. Maybe he was a designer or a buyer from higher up in the company, she thought.

  “I was just talking with Kathy about possibly being on the April cover of the magazine. It’s something I’ve worked toward for a long time now, and I’m hoping she agrees with me on that. I feel like I’d be just the right woman to represent our April issue.” She was being beyond bold and she knew it. It was a brash step to take, especially considering that she didn’t know who she was saying it to, but by the look on Kathy’s face, she knew she must have said it to someone with influence, and that gave her a swift jolt of encouragement. If Kathy wouldn’t give her a yes right then on her own, then maybe she would do it for Julian.

  Julian chuckled, his brows raised slightly as he looked from Gabriella to Kathy for a moment, and then back to Gabriella. “Is that so?” Intrigue ignited in him and he began to see an opportunity forming before him. The woman had guts, he thought, trying for the cover of the magazine.

  She was good enough to look at, but he hadn’t seen her photo work and he didn’t know if she was good enough to be on the cover, but truth be known, he didn’t really care. He spent as little time and effort as possible working on the magazine; he had almost no real interest in it.

  That was why he had people working for him, so they could worry about the magazine, and he could focus on things like planning his next party and making sure that he had an array of girls ready to pleasure him and please him in the coming week.

  It mattered very little to him who was on the cover of the magazine, but as he stood there looking at the breathtaking woman before him, he realized that her desire to be on the cover of his magazine could dovetail very nicely into his growing desire for a little fun with her.

  Kathy glanced down and her voice was low as she mumbled. “Well, she was mentioning it. I was working. I have a lot of work just now and discussing who may or may not be on the cover of an upcoming issue isn’t at the top of my list,” she replied coldly.

  He saw Kathy’s jealousy and irritation bubbling up in her and he enjoyed it. The corner of Julian’s mouth turned up in an almost hidden smirk. “I don’t know, Kathy, I feel like this request of Gabriella’s could merit some more discussion, don’t you?”

  Gabriella’s heart nearly jumped from her chest. She couldn’t believe she had heard the words coming out of his mouth. If only Kathy took them to heart. Her eyes flicked from Julian to Kathy, and she watched the editor’s response carefully.

  Kathy looked back up at Julian and smiled, her thin lips stretching wide. “Oh… right… of course, Julian. Whatever you want. I just meant that I hadn’t gotten to it yet. Of course you know that if it’s important to you, it’s certainly important to me, and I can take care of it right away.

  We’re still in the discussion stages, and nothing has been decided, but we can talk about it.” She hesitated a moment and the end of her tongue flicked out and ran over her lips once. “I don’t know if you saw the other girl we’re considering for the cover, Veronica Wright. She’s an excellent candidate as well. You and I should sit down and look it over together. We could talk about it.” She looked as if she was hanging on to the edge of her own life, waiting for him to respond.

  Julian felt like laughing at her obvious plea for his time and attention. There was no way he would spend any time with her going over it. His time was meant for much more important things, like getting to know every soft dark curve on the woman standing in front of him; tasting her lips, her skin, her body, and then burying himself in the depths of her until she cried out his name and came for him. That was a much better use of his time. He couldn’t care less who wound up on the cover of the magazine.

  “Well, Kathy, you know I trust your judgment, but I think I am going to ask Gabriella for a meeting so I can discuss it with her and really see what would be best for her and the magazine.” He shifted his gaze back to Gabriella.

  “What do you think? Do you have some time to meet with me tomorrow evening to talk about the cover position?” He smiled and let his eyes drift over her face. She was stunning, and quite delicious to admire, he thought. If she went out with him the following night and was good enough in his bed, he would consider having Kathy give her the green light. What did he care who wound up on the cover of the magazine?

  Gabriella grinned almost from ear-to-ear, and forced herself not to squeal. She was getting somewhere. She wasn’t sure who he was, but he obviously had influence, and that was one step closer to getting where she wanted more than anything to be.

  She wasn’t sure why he would want to meet with her in the evening rather than during the day and normal business hours, but she was willing to accept whatever time he had to discuss the possibility of her being on the cover.

  “What time do you think would be best?” she asked as hope soared through her heart. She didn’t miss seeing the look of revulsion just barely concealed on Kathy’s face. Julian smiled at her and winked, taking a pen and reaching for her hand. She watched in surprise as he took her hand in his and turned it over, facing her palm upward. The point of the pen moved over her skin and when he released her hand, she saw that his phone number was written across it.

  “Call me, and we’ll figure it out.” He gave her another wink and a smile.

  She blinked, looking at the ink on her skin and then looked back up at him. “I… I’ll do that. Thank you,” she said with a surprised smile.

  Julian felt the desire in him for her growing stronger and he warmed to think of what was goi
ng to happen between them. His gaze turned back to Kathy as she stared up at him, her thin lips slightly parted.

  “Kathy, I’ll be in touch about possibly putting Gabriella on the cover. Wait for my decision,” he said coolly, and then he gave Gabriella a nod and turned to walk from the room.

  Kathy watched him go as if nothing else existed in the universe, and then she turned sharply to Gabriella and narrowed her eyes. “Well,” she snapped in a thin voice. “That was a sneaky trick to pull.”

  Gabriella stared at her and shook her head in confusion. “What are you talking about?” she asked, wondering why Kathy had turned so cold.

  Kathy sneered and lifted her chin. “You… flirting with the owner of the company, just because you know he likes to sleep with the models. You think you can screw your way onto the cover of the magazine. Well no one is going to respect you for that, even if you do somehow make it happen! It’s not going to help your precious career, and you won’t have any right talking about how hard you’ve worked if you lay down for him just to get what you want.”

  Gabriella gasped in horror at what she heard. She shook her head and lifted her hand toward Kathy, shaking it. “No! No that’s not it at all! I’m not sleeping with anyone, and I didn’t know who that was!” she insisted.

  “Ha! Right,” Kathy scoffed. “Sure you didn’t. You saw him walk in and start talking with me, and right away you figure you can seduce him into giving you what you want instead of working for it like so many other successful models do. I’m not going to forget this, Gabriella.”

  She turned then and walked away and Gabriella watched her go, staring after her with her mouth fallen open a little, wondering how any of it had happened at all. She hadn’t realized that she was speaking to the owner of the company, but as she thought back over it, his name should have rung a bell in her head, and it might have if she hadn’t been so focused on the April cover.

  She hadn’t given it a second thought when the name Julian Medici rang a little bell in the back of her mind. Not one extra thought, and Kathy had automatically assumed that she knew who Julian was and that she was after him to sleep with him so he’d give her the cover.