Marrying My Billionaire Hookup - Nadia Lee Page 0,119

Lauren dress. She’s wearing diamonds and sapphire earrings and necklace, her heels high and stylish. A very elegant look. I approve. Everything she’s wearing adds to her fragile and vulnerable air. Not an easy effect to pull off.

“Jo Martinez?” she says. Her voice is soft, but strong enough for me to hear.

Jo? She must’ve met me a social function with friends, then, because my clients always call me Josephine.

“You’re Jo, right?” she asks again, coming closer.

“Yes.” An expensive floral perfume wafts over me. This close, I realize her eyes are different colors—one blue and one green. It’s like her eyes couldn’t decide on a single color, so they decided to be greedy and take both. “Can I help you?”

Surprise crosses her face but quickly vanishes, replaced by a friendly smile. “I’m Margot Blackwood.”

Margot Blackwood…? Edgar’s mom?

I blink. What is she doing here? Is she stalking me? Or—

“I know, it’s sudden. I thought I should travel here to see you, and I was told you’d be here today.”

Did she have somebody follow me around? That’s…more than a little creepy.

She continues, “Edgar’s not interested in bringing you to Tempérane, although Lane asked more than once.”

The awkward dinner, the one Lane crashed, flashes through my mind. Warning bells go off and every muscle in my body tightens.

“I’m comfortable where I am,” I say carefully.

“Of course. Los Angeles is a lovely city. And most especially if you’re from a multi-ethnic background.” Her smile grows more gracious.

Everything she’s saying clashes with my preconceived notions. Although I try not to form opinions based on tabloid articles, I thought she’d be colder…even harsh. But the woman in front of me is incredibly warm and sweet.

But why does it feel like that warmth and sweetness are like accessories she can discard any time?

“I don’t want you to be put off,” she adds. “I’d just like to get to know the woman my son seems determined to marry.”

“Oh. Well… I see. It’s awkward to talk here in the lobby. Do you want to go to a café?” I gesture at the place the security guard said was good.

She smiles. “That sounds lovely.”

We walk over to the café. Although I’m doing my best to be polite and open-minded with Margot for Edgar’s sake, I’m a bit uneasy. I don’t know why she’s here when she has to know Edgar’s isn’t around, especially when it’s obvious she’s been in touch with her ex-husband. I also don’t know why she was waiting for me in the lobby, rather than calling to set up an appointment. It’s not like my phone number’s a secret. I have a website for my business, for God’s sake.

I get an iced herbal tea, and she gets a latte and we take an empty booth. She takes a sip of her coffee, then places it on the table. Her fingers are moving constantly, smoothing the napkin in front of her, rearranging and repositioning her cup.

Why is she so nervous?

“Edgar must love you very much.”

My wariness goes up a notch because what she just said isn’t a statement, but a fishing attempt. It’s in the way she speaks, the probing tone, her eyes searching mine.

Saying nothing, I sip my tea.

“I hope he’s said as much. He can be a bit obtuse and not very communicative. Quite like his father,” she says, tittering a bit. “And an oldest child can be overly responsible. Edgar’s been… Well, he’s always been very serious. We girls have to figure things out from what isn’t being said as much as from what they tell us.”

“I’m sure.” I still don’t know the real reason she’s here. I doubt it’s just to see me. I’m not that important. Besides, she hasn’t said a word about the baby. Does she even know about it yet?

On the other hand, she’s acting like she’s on my team, although…against who? From some of the things she’s saying and the way she’s saying it, if I didn’t know better, I might assume she thinks we’re a team—me and her against everyone else.

The thing is, I don’t want to be on her team. I already have a team of my own consisting of my family and friends. And I don’t like people who stalk me to client sites like Margot has done. That speaks to the motive and the general tactics they like to use—sneaky and underhanded.

“Margot, may I speak frankly? You didn’t travel all the way out here just to say hi. Can you tell me what you really want?” I