Billionaire Protector - Alexa Hart Page 0,44

That’s just how he is. Trust me.”

“And why would that bother me? You think I have something to hide?” I tried to sound as indignant as possible.

“Don’t you?” Preston stared back at me, entirely unaffected.

“No.”

He shook his head. “You do. You’re lying. And probably for decent reasons. But they’ll figure it out. Pierce is worse than Dad.”

“How is Pierce worse?” I realized after I’d said it that the question almost was an acknowledgement of the deceit that Preston was accusing me of.

“Pierce’s wife, Sarah, died about four years ago. Did Penn tell you that?”

“No.” I shook my head.

“The dude was a serious mofo before that happened. I mean. We all were a little serious after Mom died. Did Penn tell you that?” Preston’s voice had grown softer as he spoke of his mother, and I was entirely sure that he wasn’t aware of it.

“He did. Not in detail or anything... But yeah. He told me.” I felt like I should add something comforting, but for the life of me, I couldn’t think of anything.

“Well. Anyway. Sarah kinda lightened him up. They had two kids. Did Penn tell you that?”

I wanted to scream at Preston. I’d only known Penn for four days. While I had met every single inch of his body, I assumed it was going to take a lot longer to go through his entire family history.

“We’re getting to know each other, Preston. So no, I don’t know the entire family tree yet. I met Pierce for about five minutes at the party – the same as you. He seemed nice enough.” The fact that we were having this conversation at this time of morning in this giant fucking house... It all felt surreal.

“Okay. Well. They had two kids – those kids live here too, by the way. And then Sarah got in a car accident and boom. Gone.” Preston shrugged his shoulders, as though it were a simple thing.

I knew it wasn’t, and furthermore, I knew it wasn’t for him either.

“My parents both died in a car crash. I was super little, though. I don’t remember them very well.” Immediately I regretted the share.

“Who raised you then?” Preston seemed genuinely interested now.

“My grandparents.” I refused to expound upon that story. I wasn’t going to talk about foster care at 5:00 a.m. to Penn’s completely hungover older brother.

“Huh. Tough. Life’s a bitch, isn’t it?” He wasn’t actually asking, so I didn’t bother to answer.

We both knew the answer.

“Anyway. Pierce is just... he’s crazy protective of the family now. He’ll want to know your entire background. And believe me, little Anne, he has the necessary means to make that happen. Endless resources. Nearly endless money.” Preston paused and stared at me hard. “If there really is anything about yourself that is some sort of... dealbreaker... you’d be better off just telling Penn now. Or break it off. It’ll come out, one way or the other.”

I hadn’t known it was possible for a person to deliver such a stinging speech in such a nonchalant, disinterested manner. Preston hadn’t offended me so much as he had given me a bit of brotherly advice.

“Don’t you have to work today?” It was the only subject change I could think of.

“Maybe. Don’t you?”

“Maybe.”

“What were you doin’ out here anyway? It’s like, five a.m.”

“Looking for a bathroom.”

“Oh. Well. There’s one right behind you.” He pointed over my shoulder. “And there’s three that way. And four that way. And if you make it out to the main hall, I mean, I can’t even count them anymore. This house is the most ridiculously awesome piece of work that my father ever brought to life.”

I raised an eyebrow. “That was a dig at his writing career, wasn’t it?”

Preston smiled. “You catch on pretty quick, don’t you?”

I nodded, feeling bolder than I had in a long time. “You know, Preston, you’re not the only one who can spot a wall from a mile away. Ever gonna let yours down? Find ‘the one’?”

He shook his head and laughed a little. “I don’t believe in that bullshit, Anne. My father does. Penn does. Payden does. And Pierce used to.” Preston’s face went somber. “But not me.”

Sadly, I believed him. Sadder still, I could see that he fully believed himself.

“That’s kind of...” I searched for the right word.

“Depressing?” Preston offered.

I nodded. That’s exactly what it was.

“Meh. It’s not depressing for me. I’m wired different than most people.”

We were both silent then, and I started to walk back to Penn’s wing of the house