Billionaire by Design (A BWWM Romance) Read Online Free

he waited for his coffee to cool down. No cream or sugar for him. He liked it black. He found his mind drifting back to Jenna, the gorgeous young woman he’d met earlier in the day by pure happenstance. Her long, wavy hair and big, brown eyes were hard to forget, but from the moment he’d laid eyes on her, he’d sensed that she was much more than just stunning good looks. He’d always been good at reading people, and his instincts hadn’t failed him when it came to this breathtaking beauty. Even though he’d only seen the few drawings decorating Family Burger’s storefront signage, they’d been enough for him to tell that she was quite the talented artist. He couldn’t help but wonder what other surprises this aspiring graphic designer had in store, and he truly hoped to see her again in a week. His thoughts were interrupted by the snapping of Phil’s fingers.
    “Hey! Hey! Where are you?” he smirked from across the table.
    “What? Oh, sorry. Just have a few things on my mind,” a flustered Zane replied as he placed the mug to his lips only to decide the coffee was still too hot. “Listen… I want to revisit the Family Burger account.”
    “Family Burger?” Phil scoffed incredulously. “Family Burger? Hell, I forgot they were even a client still. Why the fuck would you want to revisit them? Aren’t they one of our smaller accounts?”
    “I started this company to help businesses succeed,” Zane began in his typical matter-of-fact tone. “I drove by one of their restaurants earlier and they don’t exactly look like they’re succeeding anymore. I want to fix that.”
    “Poor management isn’t our responsibility and you know that, man. If I recall, we gave them an awesome campaign they did great with for quite some time. If they’re not doing well anymore, it sounds like it’s their fault and not ours.”
    “First of all, I gave them an awesome campaign, not we ,” Zane corrected. “Secondly, I don’t want to see any business fail.” After a moment of thought he added with a chuckle, “Unless they’re our competition, of course.”
    “Right on,” Phil laughed and gave his boss a fist-bump.
    “Plus I forgot how good their food is. Especially for the price.”
    “Wait, you ate there? I thought you said you just drove by,” Phil said with his eyes widened in disbelief.
    “Okay, okay… I might have grabbed a burger,” Zane smirked.
    “Zane Talbot, goddamn billionaire, pulling over to grab a meal at Family Burger,” Phil threw his head back and bellowed laughter. “I never thought I’d see the day!”
    “Whoa, slow down. I’m not a billionaire yet,” Zane grinned. “A few more clients, maybe…”
    They shared another laugh, then went on to discuss the possibility of expansion as Zane casually finished his coffee. With roughly one hundred and twenty clients, yet only fifty overworked employees on payroll, they’d have to undergo another round of hiring if they wanted to snag more accounts.
    Setting up an East Coast branch in New York City and joining the ranks of the Madison Avenue elite weighed heavily on his mind. He’d worked hard to build a successful marketing firm in the Southwest, the most unlikely of places, and knew a location in New York City or Los Angeles was inevitable if he wanted to take business to the next level by forming a corporation. Yes, big changes would have to come soon, and even though he’d only met her briefly, he hoped Jenna would be a part of them.

Chapter Four
     
    “So, who was the suit that was chattin’ you up?” Michael asked Jenna after handing order fifty-nine to the elderly man and the young boy accompanying him.
    “Said his name was Zane,” Jenna answered as she grabbed the business card from her back pocket and studied it more thoroughly. “Zane Talbot from Enterprise Marketing. Oh, and he wasn‘t ‘chattin‘ me up,’ you goof.”
    “Sure looked like it,” Michael teased.
    “Shut up,” she giggled as she rolled her eyes.