The Billionaire's Fake Fiance

Chapter Eleven

"Yes, big bro. What's up?"

"Meet me at the coffee shop near your office. In ten minutes, Richie, hurry." Alex hastily disconnected the line and Richard could only hear the bleeping sound of bad network.

Alex irked him too much, sometimes, Richard thought vilely, getting up from his chair and making his way out of the building. He knew Alex and he knew his big brother wasn't someone to plan impromptu meet-ups out of the blue, that too, in office hours. Something was definitely up, and he felt that it wasn't pleasant.

Reaching the coffee shop by five minutes of walking, Richard noticed Alex's car parked in the parking area. He entered inside quietly and saw Alex waving at him from a corner table. "What happened? Is something wrong?"

"What," Alex rolled his eyes. "can't I see my brother spontaneously?"

"No." Richard replied, his answer curt and sharp. "What is the matter?"

Alex sipped his already ordered coffee and cleared his throat. "Richie, I'm taking Faith on a trip to Coney Island."

Richard processed that piece of information and basket in happiness. "Wow, great! As much as it makes me glad, I don't understand how I'm related-"

"You are coming, too." Alex sharply said, drumming his fingers on the finely polished, wooden table. "Not only you, you, Ben and Vivian. And of course, some of my friends."

Richard gaped open his mouth and then closed it again. Alex continued, "And all of them are bringing their plus one. Friends, lovers or wives. You're bringing Jean."

There was a dead silence. Richard thought he had forgotten how to breath or do anything, probably. "Ah....what? Why, why...would...I bring...Jean?"

"Because she's your girlfriend." Alex said, casually shrugging his shoulders. "Isn't she?"

"Are you telling me, or asking me?" Richard questioned, dumbfounded.

"Both. I suspected you had feelings for her when you asked me if you could borrow her 'skills' for your project. You wanted her close, didn't you?" Alex made an air quote, smirking.

Richard was speechless. His elder brother was thinking just the opposite. "Don't you think you are assuming too much?"

Alex pinched the bridge of his nose. "Even if I'm assuming too much, Jean is surely joining us on this trip because she's my wife's best friend." He said, calmly, straightening up his arms.

Richard remained silent. To this, he had no retort. All protests died down in his throat as he embraced the reality. Jean was Fay's best friend, he knew it. "Okay, I don't have any problem with that."

But he did have a problem, Richard mused. The trip's duration was one week, and if he and Jean went away, they would lose one week from their month together. This could harm their plan to make Grace and Neil jealous. "Alex, please excuse me and Jean from all this, we need to work on my upcoming project! That's why I've hired her for one month!"

Alex shook his head, instantaneously. "But I think your secretary is coming too. What's her name? Oh, Grace." He drank his coffee in one possessive go and smiled at Richard. "She's coming with Neil, I guess."

"Neil is coming with us?" Richard's voice was strained. What the hell was happening? Was his brother taking every person on the earth to this trip?

"Yeah. Dad invited him."

"Now, dad is coming?" It was too much for him to take now.

Alex sneered. "You know how interfering he is. He self-invited himself and his known ones to this trip. Obviously he will invite Neil, he's his doctor."

Fuck. Richard cleared out the heavy weight that had settled on his bones. "Mmm, okay then. Count me in."

"Yeah, and I'll call Jean and invite her." Alex was about to take out his phone when Richard stopped his hand. "What?"

"I---I'll tell her."

Alex rolled his eyes, "Whatever, loverboy." he got up and then beckoned Richard to follow him. "Let's go take a walk."

"Why?" Richard asked, dumbstruck, following his big brother outside the coffee shop and towards the sidewalk of the city. "So, what, are we bonding now?"

"We don't need to bond, Richie. We're bonded from childhood. I know exactly what you think or how you behave." Alex suddenly stopped walking and then looked at Richard. "Richie, what's wrong? I've been noticing that you're restless, nowadays. Are you having those nightmares again?"

Richard shivered. "No, Alex." Lying to his big brother who meant so much was very difficult, he mused.  

Alex sighed. "You won't tell me what's worrying you, will you?" He patted Richard's arm. "Fine, I won't ask again. Just don't feel you're alone, Richie. We are here with you, always."

Richard nodded his head like an obedient younger brother. "Yes, I know that. By the way, when are we leaving for Coney Island?"

"We're leaving on Sunday." Alex said, seeing his phone, matching the trip details with his cyborg memory.

"We're not going on our respective private jets. Dad thinks that it is very arrogant of us. We're boarding a normal flight, together, as a family, as a friends group." Alex continued.

Richard cleared his throat. "Wow. Classic Josh Hamilton." He approached Alex and gave him a side hug. "See you later, Alex."

Alex nodded. "Bye, Richie." He turned around, leaped inside his car that was parked a meter ahead and drove off towards Hamilton Inc.

Richard started breathing, again. All this while, he had most probably forgotten how to breathe. Gosh, the one thing he hadn't wanted was to let his family and friends know about him and Jean. Grace and Neil were going too? Perfect. He began sweating, walking past, almost marching towards his office building, with big, monster-like steps. He needed to reach office fast, he needed to tell everything to Jean. How would she react?

He finally reached his floor and looked here and there, madly searching Jean. At last, he spotted her in front of the coffee machine in the recreation room. He barged inside, "Jean, I need to talk to you!"

Her red hair dangled as she turned around, with a disposable cup in her hand. Probably her coffee. "What, what is it, Rich?"

"We're going on a trip!" Richard blurted out, breathing loudly.

"Coney Island?" She asked, dazed and dazzled.

The sunlight streaming from the glass window behind her coloured her red hair more vibrantly, as if there was golden halo around her head. Richard sighed. "How do you know?"

"Faith is my best friend. I think you're forgetting that."

He came closer to her and by instinct, she placed the cup on the table behind her. He looked into her eyes. "I'm sorry for making you do this. I didn't know Alex was planning something like this."

"How did he find out?" She asked, with wide, wondering eyes.

"He assumed that we're dating just because I hired you. He found it fishy." He laughed. "Only if he knew I'm crazy about Grace and I hired you to make her jealous."

After he said that, he held her hands and cupped them in his. "Grace and Neil are coming too, Jean. We need to go. It's a great opportunity to execute our plan, properly."

Jean nodded her head. "Yeah. Okay." She withdrew her hands from his and then took her cup of coffee. "Rich, can I take tomorrow off? My mother is alone. I need to visit her and tell her I'm going away for one week."

"Oh, sure. No problem." He smiled and watched her nod at him and leave the room with a quiet air.

What happened? Was she okay? Generally, she wasn't so quiet, Richard sighed.