Billionaire Undercover - J. S. Scott Page 0,65

and listened to Taylor. The two females both sat cross-legged on the sandy beach near the back patio of Riley and Seth’s home.

From my patio lounger, I couldn’t hear a damn thing they were saying, but since both of them were smiling, I didn’t give a fuck what they were talking about.

As expected, everyone at the casual barbeque had seemed to adore Taylor, especially Riley and Cooper.

Honestly, I’d been surprised by how easily Taylor had pried Cooper out of his usual, introverted self.

“You look like a guy who could use a beer,” Seth joked as he held out a cold bottle, and flopped into the lounge chair next to me, holding a half-empty beer of his own in his other hand.

“Thanks,” I said as I took the cold brew from him. “It’s hotter than hell today.”

“It’s summer in Southern California,” Seth said nonchalantly. “There isn’t much of a breeze today coming off the water, so it just feels hotter.” He paused for a moment before he nodded toward Maya and Taylor. “Those two look like they’re becoming fast friends. It looks like Taylor is teaching Maya something about the sand or the beach, and Maya is loving every minute of it.”

I nodded. Maya had always been scholastically advanced for her age, so she’d probably have no problem following anything Taylor was trying to teach her. “I don’t doubt it,” I responded. “Taylor is an environmental geologist, and Maya has always loved Earth science.”

Seth snorted. “That little smarty pants loves any science. Period. She’s way too smart for a kid her age. And Taylor is brilliant. I heard her talking geology to Cooper earlier, but that discussion was way over my head. A guy who never got past a high school diploma didn’t stand a chance of joining that conversation.”

I pulled my eyes away from Taylor long enough to send Seth a quick glance. He looked perfectly happy that he hadn’t understood a damn thing that Cooper and Taylor had been discussing. “I’m sure they would have been happy to explain it. Please don’t start the I-only-have-a-high-school-diploma bullshit with me. You’re one of the smartest guys I know.”

While it was true that Seth hadn’t gone to college, it hadn’t stopped him from building his own commercial real estate and construction empire. He sucked in knowledge faster than anyone I knew, including me, and he’d learned the construction business from the ground up.

At one time, my sister’s husband had been a construction worker just trying to get by and help raise his younger siblings. I had a lot of respect for Seth. I just didn’t tell him that very often.

“That’s high praise coming from you,” Seth mused. “You must be in a good mood today. Does it have anything to do with the pretty redhead you haven’t taken your eyes off of since the minute you got here?”

“None of your business, and who said I was in a good mood?” I grumbled.

“Oh, come on, Hudson, you’ve never brought a date to any of Riley’s parties, and you’ve never looked at a woman like you do Taylor. I’m a guy who is, and always will be, madly in love with my wife. I know the signs. Plus, she is staying with you right now. When is the last time you had a woman at your place?”

I took a long slug of beer before I answered. “Never.”

“Exactly. Why now?”

“Riley didn’t tell you?” I asked skeptically.

Seth shot me a puzzled look. “Tell me what?”

Either Seth deserved an Academy Award, or Riley hadn’t even shared the kidnapping incident with her own husband because I’d asked her to keep it a secret.

I looked around. Seth and I were well away from the rest of the partygoers. Everyone else was either in the water, on the beach, or hanging out near the food and bar.

I hadn’t meant that Riley couldn’t tell Seth, so I quickly explained what had happened to Taylor, minus her sexual assault, Last Hope’s involvement, and my part in the rescue. “She’s a Montgomery Mining intern, so yeah, she’s recovering at my place. The woman went through hell. It was the least I could do,” I said, finishing the explanation.

“Jesus!” Seth cursed. “I haven’t heard a single word about the kidnapping of any of your employees, much less three of them.”

“We’d like to keep it that way,” I warned. “It would make it a lot harder on Mark’s family, Harlow, and Taylor if they were being hounded by the press. The U.S. government isn’t eager