Crushing on my Billionaire Best Friend - Jolie Day Page 0,26

from the restaurant. Which meant I was officially late.

“I’ve got plans for dinner. I was just heading out the door.” Laney’s face dropped in disappointment, and I had to admit I was disappointed, too. “Hey, do you wanna come? I can call the restaurant and have them add another guest to the reservation. Miles will be there. I could even invite Damon. You remember those guys, don’t you?”

“Oliver, no.” She shook her head, seeming a little offended. “You don’t have to drag me along on your date out of pity or whatever. I’m more than happy to cook something for myself and curl up on the couch. You go out and have fun. I’ll see you later.”

“It’s not a date,” I said. “We’re just celebrating a contract we signed yesterday at work. Please come?” I batted my eyelashes (like a damn girl), flashing the puppy dog eyes. That face had historically always made her cave into whatever I was trying to drag her into. She swayed with a little grin while she thought it over, but I could tell she was about to give in. It’d worked since we were kids. She couldn’t resist.

“I see that smile!” I taunted, pulling her in for a friendly hug. “I know what that means. You’re coming.”

She smacked my chest playfully, pushing me off her. “Okay, fine. I’ll go. But please give me a few minutes.”

“We’ll have a blast.” I raised my hand to hers for a high-five. “We’re taking my bike.”

“Oliver…”

“Just kidding. Relax.” I chuckled. “We’re not taking my bike.”

“Okay, good! I almost changed my mind. Let me just freshen up a bit, and then I’ll be ready to go.”

I glanced down at the message from Adriana, and another from Miles, letting me know they were being seated at our table. Fuck it. They can wait.

“Sure thing.” I smiled up at Laney. “The tequila and I will just be waiting here for you.”

She laughed and added over her shoulder, “That bottle better not be empty when I get back. I don’t want to spend all night babysitting your drunk ass and then dragging you home.”

I held up my hand, crossing my fingers. “Scouts honor.”

“You weren’t in the scouts, Pumpkin!” she shouted just before slamming her bedroom door.

7

Laney

“Hey, Laney.” Miles pulled me into a hug as I took my seat, and the waiter set a dirty martini on the table. “It’s been a long time. You’re looking great. How have you been?” He cringed. “Yeah, sorry. Heard about the fire. I mean other than that.”

Smiling, I didn’t know what to respond to. He’d rattled off several different things at once. “I’m good. Loving my job. And congrats on the new deal. Oliver told me all about it.”

Miles quirked an eyebrow and chuckled. “Did he now?”

“Shut up, asshat.” Oliver interrupted before I could respond, and I had to laugh, because it reminded me of when we were all teenagers. The guys were still the same. “Yeah, I told her about our success.” He turned to me with a smile.

My heart fluttered in my chest.

“So, Elaine…What is it that you do?” Adriana asked as the waiter brought another round of drinks for her and Miles. Adriana Miller looked like Posh Spice with her blunt cut and friendly expression.

“Please, call me Laney. I work in medicinal chemistry.”

“She’s a scientist.” Oliver beamed.

The woman’s eyes widened. “Very impressive. What does medicinal chemistry do exactly, Laney?”

“A lot of different things.” I shrugged. “I specifically work in synthetic chemistry, developing oncology drug discoveries.”

Adriana tilted her head, as if she didn’t understand.

“She cures cancer,” Oliver chimed in once again.

“I’m not actively curing cancer,” I corrected. “But we are working to find more cures and treatments, yes.”

“That’s a very noble pursuit.” She sent a surprised glance across the table. “I feel very shallow now in celebrating our real estate deal. All we really do is exchange buildings and properties from one set of hands to another.”

Miles tipped his glass in the air. “And we make a lot of money in the process.”

“Yes, but your friend over here is saving lives.”

“Trying to,” I added with a smile.

“She’s about to start attending NYU’s PhD program,” Oliver said, picking up a breadstick and breaking it in half.

“If I get in,” I amended. “In addition to my work in the lab, I’d like to contribute more to the research side of things. There are so many treatments that don’t get picked up by big pharmaceutical companies due to a lack of profit or understanding of how the