The Billionaires(#1)

08 ||

Walking into Billings' Cooperation, the man expected the place to be well organized and silent, but to his surprise, the place was as loud as a zoo during tourist hours as the people walked around freely, doing what they were paid to do.

He took in a deep breath and sauntered to the reception desk where the blonde secretary was busy talking on the phone. David Botha was never the man to ask for favours, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and right now he was desperate.

Having worked as a private detective for over twenty years, he had travelled the world and had a lot of connections worldwide. He was the best private detective ever known and worked for rich people.

He had never been in this part of London before and had never stepped foot into a single building belonging to the Billings.

"Hello, how may I help you?" The blonde woman asked, giving him a warm smile.

"Hi, I am here to see Jorge Billings." He said, unconsciously tugging at his leather jacket collar.

"Name?" The woman asked.

"David Botha," David stated while glancing around the area.

"Mr Botha, do you have an appointment?" She asked, and his eyes snapped to her face.

"Listen, Miss...?" He trailed off, waving his hand in the air.

"Meryl Anderson," Meryl said cheekily with a raised eyebrow. "And Mr Billings is not here."

"When is he going to be here?" David prompted.

"I don't know, but you can leave a message and I'll pass it on," Meryl suggested.

"Listen, Meryl, I really need to speak to him, can you please give me his numbers or address?" David asked, his voice filled with urgency.

"We are not allowed to give out personal information." Meryl scowled.

"But I need to speak to him, this is urgent. I wouldn't be asking you if it was not important." He gritted.

"No," Meryl said firmly.

"I'll do anything, I can pay whatever your amount is, just name the price. What is it going to be, dinner at any place of your choice?" David suggested, unintentionally offending Meryl.

"That's it! I'm calling security." Meryl snapped, and David's eyes widened.

"What? No!" David shouted in a whisper as Meryl furiously tapped the keypad away.

"Meryl. Botha." A cool voice resounded around the reception desk, causing Meryl to put down the phone.
It was none other than Jorge Billings. The man of the hour stood in front of the spectators with poise in his navy blue silk pants, a white T-shirt that tightened around his body, and white sneakers. His blond hair was ruffled up and his blue eyes were filled with mischief as he stared at Meryl who stared back at him with teary eyes. She averted her eyes from the heartbreaker, and Jorge's lips formed into a pout before his eyes turned to the man standing next to him, his gaze hardening.

"Billings." David greeted with a firm nod.

Jorge returned a curt nod and turned to Meryl who was staring unblinkingly at the computer. "Meryl, could you please tell Anita to come and see me as soon as she can? I've been calling her since yesterday, but she's not answering." He said.

"Can you blame her?" Meryl scoffed.

"Excuse me?" Jorge asked coldly.

Meryl looked up and fixed her glasses while David watched her in amusement. "I said I'll pass on the message." She said in a firm voice, her lips pressed together.

"Good." Jorge deadpanned before striding towards the private elevator with David in tow. They stood in front of the elevator in silence, waiting for the doors to open. When the doors opened, they both entered and stood at opposite corners as the elevator ascended. It was not long until Jorge decided to break the heavy silence. "You and I are not friends, so I don't understand why you are here looking for me of all people." He muttered gruffly as he stepped out of the elevator and walked to MJ's office.

He got into the office and walked behind the desk before settling down on MJ's chair, David settling down opposite him. Jorge crossed his legs and leaned back on the chair, waiting for David to explain himself.

"Look, Jorge; I know you and I are not the best of friends, and I know that we have had our differences in the past-"

"Lying about my sister is not a fucking difference, you son of a bitch!" Jorge snapped angrily.

David sighed heavily and ran his hands down his face. He knew talking to Jorge was not going to be easy; with their fuelled past, this was bound to happen. David knew Jorge blamed him for the past, but it was not his fault that he happened to see someone like Jorge's sister in the streets of London under unpleasant circumstances.

"As I was saying, you and I are not friends, but we share a mutual friend," David said calmly, hoping that the words got through to Jorge that this was not about them but about someone they both cared about.

"Talk," Jorge said sternly.

David was right; they had a mutual friend, and if anything they had to talk about, it would be him. "Cameron was arrested, but Logan refuses to bail him out, and I'm afraid if Cameron stays there for another hour, they are going to kill him," David explained.

"Where is he?" Jorge asked, and David finally relaxed. He was glad that for once, they were getting somewhere.