He let out a laugh and followed me over, stepping into the hallway. “I’m glad that we could have this conversation, Hayden.”

“The exit awaits you.”

“One last thing,” he said. “I hope you won’t take any of what I said personally. You seem like a good and mature best friend that knows his place, right?”

I slammed the door in his face.

Twenty-Three

Present Day

Hayden

* * *

 

The following morning

I couldn’t sleep.

Simon’s unwelcome visit to my office had left me on edge, and the envy I felt before was intensifying by the second. So, like the “good and mature best friend” that he asked me to be, I decided to do some research on him.

Via stalking.

I pulled across the street from Penelope’s brownstone in a tinted silver Prius.

I made sure that my baseball cap was secure, and then I waited for Mr. Prince Charming to arrive.

From the recent unanswered texts Penelope sent me, he’d started a brand-new morning routine: Bringing her a fresh cup of Starbucks coffee—along with a fresh flower bouquet at exactly seven forty-five.

He was “always on time,” but unless my watch my wrong, he was about to be late.

Five … four … Three …

Simon’s red Ferrari suddenly roared down the center lane, right past me. As if he owned the street, he swung into the ‘No Parking’ spot right in front of Penelope’s place.

He stepped out with a coffee cup and a bouquet of red roses in hand. Dressed down in jeans and a black blazer, he looked more like an insurance salesman than a “billionaire in the making.”

He knocked on her door, and she opened it within seconds. Kissing her on the forehead, he said something that made her smile and handed over his gifts.

I waited for him to kiss her on the lips—to be unable to resist her sexy mouth, but that didn’t happen. Instead, he grabbed her hand like a hero from a Disney movie and placed three soft kisses against it.

Wow.

I cranked my engine as he blew her an air kiss and returned to his car. When he pulled away, I trailed him from afar, keeping four cars between us at all times.

Half an hour later, I followed him into the parking lot of a private elementary school.

Tapping my steering wheel, I watched as he popped the trunk and grabbed a handful of bright blue balloons and a huge white box. Then he walked through the school’s front doors.

As my mind spun with theories, I noticed the flashing billboard on the side of the building.

Thank you to the Simon G. Fund for sponsoring the fourth-grade ballet recital!

Love,

Elm School for the Gifted

Hmmm. It’s probably a tax write-off.

Simon returned empty-handed minutes later and sped off onto the street.

I trailed him once more, and for the next five hours, I watched him like a seasoned chess player, committed his every move to memory.

He treated his entire team to breakfast at The Four Seasons and awarded them the next few days off as appreciation. He drove along the outskirts of the Wall Street to make deposits at his clients’ banks. Anytime someone waved or complimented his car, he smiled and handed them a hundred-dollar bill.

After lunch, he stopped by Tiffany & Co. and purchased a charm bracelet that featured a diamond-encrusted “P” and a “You’re so beautiful” necklace.

By mid-evening, when he was parking in front of Audemars Piguet, I was convinced that he pissed sunshine.

I was also convinced that day one of my mission was a complete and absolute failure.

Feeling defeated, I waited for him to leave before walking inside.

“Good afternoon, sir.” A grey-haired man smiled as I approached. “How can I help you today?”

“I need a new watch.” I couldn’t help but still feel a pinch of envy about Simon knowing the designer. “The same one my friend just came in here and bought actually.”

“Oh, you’re one of those guys.” He scoffed. “Follow me.”

“What the hell do you mean, one of those guys?”

He didn’t answer. He motioned for me to follow him into a side room.

“Please be sure to tell the others in your group that this arrangement will not renew at the end of the month,” he said. “This hasn’t been mutually beneficial in the slightest, and I can’t believe my boss ever fell for it.”

“I could follow this conversation a lot better if I knew what arrangement you were talking about.”

“Don’t play dumb with me, sir.” He waved his hand. “You and your buddies lease our watches for days at a time because you can’t afford to buy them. Then you have the audacity to request models of the more refined and exclusive collections, just because someone on this company’s board went to business school with one of you.”

I raised my eyebrow. “What?”

“Come on, you know the drill.” He pointed to my wrist. “I don’t know why the hell I ever let you rent that one, but you won’t be able to borrow it again. That’s in a collection far above your rental grade.”

“I didn’t rent this at all.” I unclasped the band, flipping it onto its back. “My name is engraved onto it. And for the record, I don’t plan on ever renting a watch.”

“Hayden Hunter?” His eyes widened. “I didn’t—Oh, I didn’t recognize you, sir.” He put on a pair of glasses. “I’m so sorry I ever engaged you in that conversation. How can I really serve you today?”

“I want to know everything about that arrangement, and anything you know about the guy who was in here before me.”

“Well, I—” He stepped back, looking confused. “As one of our most esteemed customers, you know that I can’t share private information about another client.”

“Real clients don’t rent.”

He smiled, looking as if he was happy to oblige, but then it faded away.

“I’m sorry, sir,” he said. “I’m not allowed to do that.”

“I’ll buy ten watches from the signature collection at a minimum of one hundred thousand dollars each.”

“Have a seat, and I’ll be with you in two minutes.”

Twenty-Four

Present Day

Hayden

* * *

 

Later that evening

I caught up with Simon at Citi Field. While the Mets were fighting the Dodgers at the bottom of the ninth, he chatted with a security guard at the Will-Call window.

I’d intended to continue my stalking tomorrow, but the watch seller’s parting words wouldn’t stop running through my mind.

“He always pays with someone else’s credit card, sir. And I know he’s always flying in and out of Colorado, but I find it odd that he doesn’t purchase the additional weather insurance. Any man who knows watches wouldn’t dare wear these in the elements.”