Page 6 of Billionaire Hunt

“Huh?” he said, looking at me funny.

I sighed. “I was just thinking that you did such a great job during my teenage years scaring off all the boys, but somehow you let Wyatt slip through the cracks.”

“He was always a pansy. I knew the moment I met him that he was bad news,” Uncle Niko said. “You should have married that Kenny fella. He was a nice kid.”

“He’s gay,” I said, knowing exactly who he was referring to. Kenny had been my high school crush. He also took me to prom...which is when I found out he was gay. I caught him making out with the quarterback and figured prom night wasn’t working out in my favor. I guess I had a history of being involved with men who didn’t want to be involved with me.

“No! Seriously?!” His eyes were round in surprise. “But he has a family!”

“Yeah, I heard he came out to his wife a few years ago and now he’s married to his divorce lawyer. I heard they’re very happy together; even Kenny’s ex-wife is remarried. So, it all worked out. They all even still go to the same church.”

“No kidding...” Uncle Niko said and then he looked at me with pity. “Did Wyatt leave you for another man too?”

“I’m pretty sure he left me for a woman, given that she’s pregnant and all,” I said, annoyed that Uncle Niko was bringing it up.

“You sure?”

I tossed a pillow at him and he easily dodged it, a big smile spreading across his face. “Still too slow---”

His smile disappeared as another one of my pillows caught him in the face.

“Now care to tell me what you’re doing here?”

Here, I was embarrassed to say, was my grandmother’s condo where I was hiding out from life. I wasn’t taking any calls...I had even shut out my best friends, Lacey and Emmaline. They’d heard the whole sordid story from Grandma. Besides Grandma, Uncle Niko was the only person I’d spoken to since Wyatt sprung the news of his affair on me.

“Mom’s concerned. She said you’ve been holed up in here for weeks. She’s worried about you.”

I frowned and slowly sat up. “She should have said something to me. Why did she call you?”

“Well, she figured you wouldn’t speak to your parents and you refused to talk to Lacey and Emmaline…”

I shrugged it off. I didn’t exactly get along with my parents. We never saw eye to eye on anything and that was why I had practically lived with my grandma in Brooklyn since I was a teen. I was named after my father actually. His name was Misha, a popular Russian male name which Mom thought would be a great fit for me. I wasn’t bitter. I liked my name. It made me stand out. And I looked just like my dad.

He was petite for a man, not quite 5’5 with light blonde hair and green eyes. I was the same. I was only 5’1 and had the same pale complexion as my father. The same light hair. The same green eyes. The only thing I had inherited from my mom it seemed was her temper and demeanor. The difference was --- she was unapologetically mean. I at least tried to be nice.

My dad was a postman and my mom was a homemaker. She watched a lot of tv and shopped. Dad was pretty much a dictator and did what he wanted. He never spared anyone’s feelings. They were perfect for each other and, in my opinion, they should never have had kids. I seemed to make them as miserable as they made me. It only took one fight, when my mom yelled out that she wished she had never had me, to make me realize that living with Granny was best for me. So, at 13, I had made the move and a few years after that, with a few court visits I had become an emancipated adult, legally free of my parents. Granny had been happy to have me. I think she had been lonely without me. I hadn’t seen my parents in a few years, but I spoke to my mom every now and then when she called to check on Granny. She never checked on me. I figured she knew I would always be fine. She used to say that I had nine lives.

My Uncle Niko was my mom’s brother. Growing up he had been like my replacement father; he filled in for my dad who expressed zero interest in me, unless it was to criticize me. Uncle Niko had been like my surrogate father figure for my formative years as well. I had him and Granny to thank for the fact that I had turned out so well. Well, at least, I kind of turned out well.

I mean, Wyatt’s infidelity wasn’t a reflection on me, right? I shook my head as if to shake the thought away. I wasn’t going to be one of those women who blamed herself for her husband’s infidelity.

“I’m okay. This is just my version of alone time. You shouldn’t have come. I’m fine.”

He looked over his shoulder and leaned toward me, whispering, “There’s something else.”

I sat up and said, “What? What’s wrong?” I was concerned because Uncle Niko looked concerned. He never looked concerned.

“Wyatt called your grandmother today. I overheard them talking. Apparently, he’s selling the condo.”

“What?” I practically roared, jumping up from the bed. “That ass--”

“Hold it down. Hold it down,” Uncle Niko said, looking over his shoulder again, but it was too late.

I could hear Grandma making her way to the guest bedroom. A few seconds later, she peeked in.

“What’s with all the yelling?” she asked. Her blonde hair was completely white now and she wore glasses. She had a prominent nose and normally wore a serious expression. She didn’t smile a lot, but she wasn’t a bitter, humorless person. She just rarely smiled, so when she did smile it meant a lot. And besides that, she had a wicked sense of humor. She was my rock, always strong. Her expression never gave away what she was thinking. I was quick to anger and quick to speak, but she was always thoughtful and in control of her emotions. I envied her that.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” were the first words out of my mouth before I could even think.