Page 45 of The Billionaire's Special Relationship

“People like her enjoy the publicity,” he continued. “They thrive on it. She’s no TishJames. She doesn’t stand on principal, she stands on publicity. She’s trying to find something else she can pin on me. That’s why it’s taking so long.”

“But six days?”

“Yes. We’ve been cooped-up in this apartment for six long days waiting on her to make a decision, yes.”

“But I need to check on my house. My cousin Stacy said Keith and his brother already out of jail. What if they break in my house again?”

“You’ll go back and check on your house. But not now.”

“But I can just check on it and come right back.”

“You aren’t going without me, and I can’t go right now.” Then Stuart gave her a stern look. “That’s the end of that discussion.”

Tabby wondered why he didn’t just let her go alone. Or with one of his bodyguards. She understood why she needed him, but over the last few days she was beginning to wonder why did he need her?

That was why she decided to ask him a question she wanted to ask him days ago. Because his answer would tell her a lot. “You don’t have any friends?” she asked him.

Stuart studied her. Where did that come from? “I have far too many friends. Why?”

“Where are they?” Tabby looked around as if they could be hiding somewhere. “Nobody’s called that I know of. Nobody’s come by to checkon you. Where are these people if they’re supposed to be your friends?”

“They aren’t those kinds of friends. Fair-weather only, darling.”

Tabby didn’t understand.

“They aren’t going to taint their brand by hooking their wagon to me. At least not right now. They’ll come around in droves once the charges are dropped.”

That was not the answer Tabby was hoping for. Because it begged the question: Was that why he was keeping her around? Because he had nobody else? Once the charges are dismissed and his friends come around again, was he going to kick her to the curb? Was that going to be the end of their “relationship,” such as it was?

And what about women? There was no way a man who looked like Stuart, and who did like Stuart did in the bedroom, was going to be flying solo all the time. No way. “What about the women?” she asked him.

Stuart could tell that was more likely the question she really wanted to ask. “What about them?”

“Don’t you have any girlfriends?”

She knew he’d be lying if he said he didn’t. She watched him intensely.

“I do not have girlfriends, no. Do I have friends? Yes.”

But that was even more troubling to Tabby. “Friends with benefits?” she asked.Like me?she wanted to add.

“Some have benefits, yes,” Stuartresponded honestly.

Tabby’s heart dropped. He didn’t say one of his lady friends had benefits. Which would put her in competition with one other person. But he saidsome? That sounded like a lot. That sounded like this beautiful man that she was falling hard for every day she was around him, was even more out of reach than she already assumed.

And to think she had unprotected sex with this man every single time they had sex? Why would she trust that he wouldn’t put her in danger if he was slinging it around to whomever wanted it? She took care of her part. She was definitely on birth control. But why didn’t she make him take care of his part? And why didn’t he do so himself?

But before she could ask any of those questions, the intercom buzzed and the silvery voice of the slender black man she knew as Mr. Joshua, Stuart’s house manager, came on. “Excuse me, sir, but Mr. Fenson is here to see you.”

Stuart pressed a side button. “Send him up, Josh.”

“Yes sir,” Joshua responded.

Tabby attempted to get off of his lap, but Stuart pulled her back down. “You’re fine,” he said as he gave her butt a quick rub over his penis.

But Tabby didn’t feel fine siting on his lap when somebody she didn’t know was about to join them. What would this person think of her? But it was Stuart’s world. She was justvisiting. “Who’s Mr. Fenson?” she asked him.

“He’s on my security team. He’s my chief investigator,” he said as he repositioned her body again.