Brody and his wife and kids lived in an upscale but homey residential neighborhood in North Vancouver, his house surrounded by large trees. Right now, we were parked on the curved, neatly landscaped and stone-paved driveway loop in front of what looked like a hotel.The Westshoresaid the gold letters over the grand glass entrance. It didn’t feel like a hotel, though; there was no concierge or bellhop stand, and it was too quiet.
“Uh, where the fuck are we?”
Johnny helped me out of the limo and I looked up at the building that soared high into the dark sky above us. It was a tower. I blinked at the beautiful lanterns on posts along the curved drive, leaning into his warmth; it was cool out and I gathered the wrap I’d brought around me.
Johnny draped his arm around me and we followed Lamar toward the entrance, where a large man in a suit, with an obvious earpiece, opened the door and spoke with Lamar.
I elbowed my boyfriend’s ribs. He still hadn’t answered me.
“Oh, is this not Brody’s place?” he said casually, as if he didn’t fucking know. He’d been to Brody’s plenty of times.
I actually caught the scent of ocean air as we followed Lamar in through the door, which the doorman was now holding open for us. I craned my neck to see what I thought was a slice of water through the windows on one side. “Are we on the waterfront?”Which waterfront?
“We’re in West Vancouver, sweetheart.”
I tried to calculate how long we’d been driving. “Wait… We’re in West Bay? How did I not notice that we turned the wrong way after the bridge?” Honestly, I couldn’t even remember driving over the Lions Gate bridge. I was probably orgasming.
“I guess that’s what happens when you fuck a guy instead of paying attention to where he’s taking you.”
“And I’d do it again…” I glanced around the lobby. There was a massive chandelier over a grand piano that no one was currently playing. We were the only guests here. “So, what is this place?”
“Condos,” he said. “For the uber-wealthy. Dane’s friend owns this tower.”
“Oh, like one of his billionaire friends?”
“Yes.”
Lamar came back and handed Johnny an envelope and a key card. “Keys and welcome package. Take the last elevator.”
“Thanks. We’ll see you in a bit.”
“Uh… bye!” I waved goodbye at Lamar, who obviously wasn’t coming in with us, as Johnny took my hand, leading me toward the elevator bank.
As we stepped into the last elevator in the row, Johnny swiped his key card over the sensor. There was only one button to push. It saidPHin scripted gold letters.
“Oooh the penthouse,” I marveled as the door shut and we started to rise. “Did you know West Bay has the most billionaires per capita in all of the Greater Vancouver area? I mean, Vancouver only has like a dozen billionaires. But still.”
“Yes,” he said dryly, “and most of them are too old, hideous and married for you to date, so don’t even think about it.”
“Wow, Iwasreally thinking about it, but old, hideousandmarried? I guess that’s three strikes,” I teased him.
He gave me a warning look. It was a look he usually reserved for when I’d been a brat and he was about to fuck the ever-loving hell out of me as a consequence.
I grinned and licked my lip gratuitously, egging him on. “I just think it’s cool. Imagine being so rich you can buy whole buildings and do whatever you want.”
“Money doesn’t buy everything, Angeline.” Johnny gazed at me with affection, and this certain wondrous look I sometimes glimpsed in his eyes… like he just saw me in a certain light and couldn’t believe I was his.
“I love you,” I said simply. “Money didn’t buy that.”
“No, it didn’t.”
The elevator door slid open and we stepped out into a grand foyer. A man in a suit was waiting for us inside the expansive penthouse suite; the elevator had opened right into it. “Mr. O’Reilly,” he greeted Johnny. “Everything is as you requested. If you need anything at all, just pick up the gold phone.” He indicated an old-school gold phone sitting on an elegant console table in the foyer.
“Thank you.”
The man nodded, gave me a polite smile, then departed by way of the elevator.
When he was gone, I pretended to pick up the gold phone and hold it to my ear. “Hello? Three shirtless waiters, two hookers with hearts of gold, and one pound of blow, please?” I hung up my invisible phone receiver and Johnny’s eyebrow crept up.
