Alphas & Millionaires Starter Set (12 page)

The next morning, I woke up totally exhausted. I hardly slept. I knew what today was going to turn into. Although my peers at my internship had already seen the photos, it was nothing compared to the whole world seeing them. How would I explain this to my parents? To Stella some day? This was complete and total humiliation.

Last night was a blur. Drake came over and shared the horrific news, and after that, it was as if I blacked out. A flash of what happened appeared in my mind…

“Molly…please, believe me. If I could change this, I would. But there is no way my family is going to buy off some moron with photos of us. It just lets others think they can get away blackmailing us too.” Drake was begging me to respond, to say anything. I was numb. I just sat there staring into space. I wanted to go curl up in a ball in a dark cave where no one could find me. Unfortunately, I would have to get up and go to my internship tomorrow morning.
This fucking sucks.

“Drake, you should go. I need some time to myself please,” I finally said.

“Molly, please. Don’t push me away. Don’t be mad,” he begged. “I love you.”

“How did you not know there were surveillance cameras in the kitchen? How could you let us get naked right in front of them?” I demanded.

“I know, Molly…it was careless of me. I don’t know…I was in the moment. You were there…I was there…it was like my head was somewhere else. I wanted you. And it just happened,” he explained. He looked so distraught and weak. It made my heart hurt at this whole situation.

* * *

I finally got out of bed to begin my normal routine. Stella to school, me to internship. Drake ended up staying the night, holding and comforting me. When I walked out of my room, he was already in the kitchen making coffee and breakfast. He had his lawyer on standby in case the pictures were released. I tried not to think of what could happen if they were leaked. Like another celebrity scandal
.
I could see it all over E! as being the next big story. It wasn’t that Drake himself was famous or a celebrity, but his family name was as popular as Trump’s. It was a
big
deal.

We both went to work, and he promised to keep me updated as much as he could. By noon, I still hadn’t heard anything from Drake, so I assumed no news was good news.
Oh, how wrong could I be?
Heading out to the deli to grab a small sandwich, when a mob of paparazzi I was ambushed by a paparazzi mob.

“There she is! Ms. Woods! Ms. Woods! Over here!” They were like vultures ready to eat me alive at any moment. I could not believe the press was all over me already. I had not expected anything like this.

Luckily, the deli was just down the block, so I was able to escape from them quickly.
What did they want? Did they expect me to be like ‘oh, hey, what’s up, y’all?’

I hid as far in the deli as I could until they were out of sight. I decided now would be an appropriate time to call Drake and freak out!

“Babe, are you okay?” he asked panicked. Apparently, he heard the news.

“No, Drake I’m not! I am hiding in a deli from like twenty paparazzi. They won’t leave me alone. They followed me over here, and now they are out there waiting for me to leave. What do I do?”

“Oh my God, babe. I had no idea this would spin out of control so soon, otherwise I would have warned you. I just received the news that the photos were leaked to a local tabloid magazine,” he sighed. I could tell he was as frustrated as I was in that moment. Our relationship was no longer our own business. “Stay right there. I’m coming to get you,” he said, ending the call.

I waited for ten more minutes before I heard more commotion outside; sounds of cameras clicking, people yelling Drake’s name, and people hollering from the sidewalk.
This is crazy!
Drake pushed his way through the mass of people and walked into the deli, where he found me in the very back. He softly kissed my lips and grabbed my hand squeezing it tightly as we headed out of the deli. He pushed back through the crowds to where his white Escalade limo was waiting for us.

“That was insane!”

“I know. Pictures went viral only an hour ago. My lawyer is petitioning to get them removed ASAP, but until then we need to lay low,” he directed toward me. “Mark, take us to Ms. Woods apartment, please,” he commanded his driver. Apparently, going back to my internship was not an option for me today.
Fucking great.

At the entrance of my apartment building another herd of paparazzi gathered,  just for a change to get a shot  of Drake and me. We pushed through them, and hid out in my apartment the rest of the afternoon. I called Michael to fill him in on what was happening since I would not be able to go out and get Stella after school.
What would I say to her?

“So do you know who’s responsible for stealing Kendra’s files and the pictures?” I asked, hoping to get some answers on what we were going to do next.

“My security team has a few suspicions. They are working on it. Until then, don’t speak to the paparazzi or anyone else about the pictures of us. They will use anything you say and twist it around to make a better story,” he said, looking worried.

“What am I going to do about my internship? I can’t just not go. I need to be there to earn my credits for graduation.”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of it,” he answered sternly.

“What do you mean you’ll take care of it? I need to be there, Drake. I’m can’t do this with favors from you. I’m already on shaky ground because of the email. They’ve already seen the pictures anyway, what’s the big deal?”

“The big deal is that they’ll be getting swarmed by the paparazzi, too, just to get answers about you. Anything you say to anyone can be used against us.”

“I won’t say anything unless I have to… about the class and cooking only,” I pleaded. “Please, Drake. I have to go. I can’t let them keep me locked up inside. I need to go to my internship and classes.”

“Fine…but I’m having someone go with you. You aren’t safe by yourself. The paparazzi can be dangerous, Mols, and I don’t want them anywhere near you,” he stated flatly.

“Okay, deal. I won’t say a word unless I have to. Promise.” I gave him a half-smile so he would know I was happy we were able to compromise.

He scooped me up off the chair and swung me in his arms, kissing my lips hard. With all this craziness going on, we had forgotten the real reason we were in this mess: we were completely, madly in love with each other.

The following morning, Drake had his driver pick me up for another day at the restaurant. There were more paparazzi than the day before. The story about Drake Stagliano hooking up with an intern in his restaurant had spread like wildfire overnight. Now,
everyone
knew.
That was not a pleasant phone call I had to make to my mother and father…

The tone in my father’s voice still rang in my head. I could tell he was disappointed, but I think at the same time he was relieved I had finally moved on. My mother was just as upset as I was, but was slightly happier to know that I was moving on, as well.
Was it that obvious that I had hung on for so long?

His driver walked me into the restaurant where I had about fifty eyes -staring at me.
Well, this is awkward.
I nodded to his driver that I was fine now, so he would leave. I didn’t want a chauffeur following me, and adding more attention than was necessary. Blakely sneered at me as I walked past her. I could tell she loved this— complete and utter embarrassment on my part. I knew if anyone approached her, she would be thrilled to bring up the being-half-naked-in-the-freezer-with-Travis story.
How would I explain that one to Drake?
Crap.

Travis gave me a sympathetic look as I stood by him. He was like my big brother/bodyguard. I felt safe around him. I drew a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for the day.
Let’s just get this over with.

Mr. Cooper assigned us in pairs today instead of groups.
Thank God!
I got paired with a girl who had short, frizzy, dark blonde hair and huge glasses.
Was this girl for real? Did she own a mirror?
I wasn’t the type to judge or ridicule, especially given my own situation, but this girl looked like she needed some serious guidance.

“Hi, I’m Phoebe. What’s your name?” she asked, clearly oblivious as to who I was.

“I’m Molly,” I answered, grateful she didn’t have a clue.

We were to plan and implement a five-course meal. We had to write up a menu plan with appetizers, entrees, soups/salads, and desserts. Mr. Cooper also decided to add a wine menu to our project. A nice, long project would take my mind off things.
Hopefully.

“So, Phoebe, where do you think we should start?” I asked, trying to get her involved.

The morning dragged on as Phoebe and I worked together on our assignment. She was an odd character, talking about her pet ferret and her five cats. It was quite refreshing, however, to be around someone who didn’t know anything about me, or who pretended she knew me because of what she had heard.

“Wanna grab some lunch?” Travis asked as we were released to go on break.

“I’d love to, but I’m afraid I can’t really go anywhere,” I sighed.

“Hmmm….Maybe we can disguise you?” Travis looked around. I gave him a puzzled look as he started grabbing aprons and chef’s hats out of the storage closet.

He told me to put my hair in a top bun, leaving no strands. I obliged and watched him put the hat on my head, trying to tuck in any loose hairs. He grabbed an executive chef’s jacket that was at least two sizes too big for me, and placed a red apron over it.

I looked in the little mirror and decided I needed to rub my eye make-up off. I didn’t want to look too feminine. As long as I kept my head low enough while walking out, I was sure I wouldn’t be recognized.

“Perfect!” he beamed, examining his finished work. “I think we can sneak you out.”

He grabbed a baseball cap and a chef’s jacket, and took my hand, leading me out the door. A handful of paparazzi were still out waiting on the sidewalk, but didn’t even glance up as Travis and I walked out.
It worked!

We decided to walk to Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse since it would have dim lighting and be crowded enough to blend in. We casually took off our “disguises” and sat down.

Lunch with Travis was a great break from reality. He was funny and genuine and kept everything strictly platonic. I was starting to really feel lucky to have Travis as a friend. He knew I was with Drake and never tried anything with me. It was nice to enjoy a meal with a friend, and for a short time have no worries. “Oh my God!” I just about spit my soda out. I covered my mouth and continued laughing as Travis did an impression of Blakely. “That is spot on!”

We continued laughing and cracking jokes. We finished our lunch, donned our disguises were able to sneak back into the Riverside Restaurant without being detected. We were giggling like teenagers who had just snuck back into our house without our parents catching us. It was such a rush.

Travis and I were still laughing and goofing off when we walked into the storage closet. Blakely stood in the doorway glaring at us.
What’s her problem now?

“Your little sex kitten was here,” she said.
Drake?

“Oh…when?” I asked, trying to remain cool.

“About fifteen minutes ago. He was pissed when he couldn’t find you. Then someone told him you left with another guy. Then he was really pissed.” She flashed a smile.
Crap.

After the day was finished, I checked my phone and had three messages from Drake.
Uh-oh.
I finished listening to them, which said to call him or see him ASAP.
Something must be wrong.

It was still early, and I assumed Drake was still in his office, so I decided to go up and see him. I was hoping it wasn’t more bad news.
I can’t take any more bad news.

I walked into his office to see everything a complete mess. Drake wasn’t anywhere in sight, but his television was on, his couch cushions were piled on the floor, and his shirt was ripped and discarded on the floor.
What the fuck…

“Drake?” I called out, hoping he was near.

“Molly?” he responded, startled.

“What the hell happened in here?” I asked, looking around.

He took a deep breath. “Nothing…business meeting.”

Meeting?
This looked like a brawl took place. I was distracted as Drake walking toward me, putting on a clean shirt. He looked heated.
And fucking hot.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, now that I know where you are,” he answered sternly.

“What do you mean? I was at my internship.”

“I told you to lay low. That doesn’t include going out to lunch with your little friend.”

“I did lay low. No one even noticed me. I don’t need your permission to have lunch with a friend, Drake,” I snarled back. I didn’t take orders from anyone, and I wasn’t about to start.