The Billionaires Too (#2)

33 || Frustrations

Lola did not know what was worse. Her younger sister's depression, her husband's disappearance, Logan Parker's ignorance, or Sonya's unnerving calls and voicemails. It felt as if she carried the weight of the earth on her shoulders.

Shannon was always locked up in her room, and when Lola got the chance to see her; all Shannon did was ramble on about how she shouldn't have been there. On the other hand, her husband was yet to show up after they called him to inform him about his cousin's accident; and as for the said cousin, she did not want anyone to see her at the hospital, and now her entire family was here, demanding for answers.

Then there was Sonya who kept calling in a frenzy. After Logan fired her, she seemed to be on edge; her messages were either filled with threats or desperate cries. She was overly sensitive and emotional, and Lola had enough problems dealing with her own husband's dysfunctional family. Although she considered Sonya her best friend, they were anything but; their friendship was built on lies and deceit. They were not the type of friends to look out for each other unless it benefited one of them, and over the years, they became so distant that they could not depend on each other for comfort. Lola had grown tired of Sonya's threats; she was considering calling it quits with her.

But that was the least of her worries now. Logan Parker was her biggest concern. Lola could go on for weeks and even months without speaking to someone, but not Logan. He was mad at her for keeping MJ a secret, but there was nothing she could do; even if she told him beforehand, nothing would have changed, because he already knew who she was.

Lola had no business in their relationship. She had a business in many of his relationships except for that one; MJ was a sensitive case, and she out of everyone, knew that. After all, she watched their relationship collapse because of her; she just did not know how much of a role she played in it. Was MJ that hurt she had to run away? Or did something bad happen? That was what she wanted to know.

She inhaled sharply and climbed out of the elevator, and then headed to his office. It was late at night, all the employees had left the building, except for Logan. Over the past few days since his return, he had turned to work in order to shut the rest of the world out, unfortunately, including herself.

The tension at the office was palpable, it was almost suffocating. He did not speak to her and had Natalia and Mosetsana mediate between the two of them; the worst being a written warning that was sent by Natalia. It was her last warning, and should she mess up again, then she was done with; Logan would fire her without second thought. That was how he was; if there was anything he was brilliant at, it was mixing business with pleasure, whether he was sleeping with his employees or taking out his frustrations at some of them for personal reasons; that was something everyone tried hard to get used to.

She stood outside his office door and fixed her dress; she was wearing a knee-length, body-hugging, royal blue dress with a low neck, clearly showing her cleavage. Her usually bouncy curls were straightened and styled to the side, while her lips were adorned in red lipstick.

She took one last breath before raising her fist to knock when Logan's voice surprised her from behind. "Looking for someone?" He asked, and she whirled around in fright.

She stumbled back and placed her hand in her thudding heart. "Logan, you scared me!"

"That's funny, you are the one that snuck into my building at this time of the night." Logan said nonchalantly. "It is not my fault that I felt a little uncomfortable watching from over there." He pointed behind his back before slipping his hands into his pockets. "So, what are you doing here, Lola? 'Cause trust me; if you are here to change my mind about that written warning, then you are wasting your time."

"I like your hair." She said.

Logan rolled his eyes and walked past her, into his office. She followed him and dropped off her purse on the couch, took off her heels before she strode to his glass stand and poured herself a drink.

Logan sat on the couch and watched her like a hawk as she poured and gulped down the whiskey in three consecutive glasses before she moved and leaned against his table, her eyes fixated on him.

"What do you want, Lola?" He asked with a heavy sigh.

"I just don't think it is fair for you to treat me like this when you already knew who she was." Lola finally said, and Logan remained quiet. "I honestly thought you were happy to have her back." She shrugged.

Logan laughed dryly. "Happy to have her back?" He repeated. "That woman is not the MJ Billings I met years ago; she's the devil reincarnated." He said coldly.

"I know." She shook her head. "I just don't understand though; I've been trying to make sense of this, but something just feels amiss." She said and plopped down next to him. "Did you break up because of me? Did MJ run away because of me?"

Logan ran his hands down his face and sighed. He also did not know the answer to that himself, and to top it off; no one would tell him anything. Every time he asked Jorge about what happened, he always said it was not his place to tell, until eventually, MJ disappeared. He had been helpful in trying to find her, even went as far as asking David to help; but he was told that there was no sign of MJ.

However, Jorge seemed to know something, and over the years, he made sure that Logan forgot about MJ. He introduced him to jumping from one woman to another, and much more extreme things that were too painful to think about.

He gingerly took off his shoes and lied down on the couch, then scooped Lola up, causing her to yelp at the unexpected move.

She sighed and nestled her head on his chest, listening to his slow heartbeat while Logan played with her hair and stared at the ceiling in deep thought.

"The Billings ruined me." He finally spoke up, and this was the time where Lola usually felt uncomfortable since both Logan and Jorge were her best friends, although she had grown closer to Logan over the years. "They ruined my life. I honestly don't understand how I survived for so long without killing Jorge."

"Don't say that; he is your best friend." Logan laughed hollowly and looked down at her, shaking his head.

"Friends don't put each other through what Jorge put me through, Lola. He literally channelled my life in the direction he wanted so that I could forget about his sister, and then he continued to lie to me."

Lola remained quiet and pondered over his words. Logan was never open about his feelings for MJ; he always seemed confused when it came to her. "Did you love her?" She asked before she could stop herself, and she regretted it when she felt Logan go brittle below her.

Logan stared at the ceiling with a pained expression. "More than I've ever loved anyone before." He whispered, and this time, it was Lola who tensed.

"Where does that leave me then?" She asked.

"I love you, and I'll always love you. Just not as much as I love her. You have to understand where we come from; you and I were best friends before thoughts of dating lingered, and that's what makes our love so different." He said, smoothing his fingers through her hair.

"And your love for her?"

"The love I share with her is eternal, indistinguishable, and it is somewhat toxic. No matter how much she hurts me; I just can't get over my love for her. Have you ever loved and hated a person at the same time? Her presence irks and soothes me at the same time, and as much as she throws stones at me when she is around; her absence makes my heart ache. I don't know, Lola." He whispered.

A shudder of silence settled between the two of them, and Lola distractedly made circles on his chest.

She opened and closed her mouth like a fish, thinking of a better way to word her thoughts. "Are you sure it is love?" She asked, and Logan tensed.

"Are you sure it is not?" He retorted.

She lifted her head from his chest and stared down at him. "I think it's an obsession."

"Like you are obsessed with me?" Logan retorted, pushing her off so that he sat up straight. "I mean; Lord knows why you are not at home waiting for your husband to return."

"I'm not obsessed with you!" She stood up and faced away from him.

"Oh, you just love me so much, you can't find it in your heart to let me go then?" He mocked.

Lola spun around and scowled at him, her eyes narrowing to slits. "You slept with her, didn't you?" She laughed bitterly. "That's why you don't want to touch me anymore; you had s*x with her."

Logan's eyes flashed with burning anger and he stalled towards her, but he stopped himself before he could touch her or say anything to her. He dropped his hands on his sides, his mind drifting off to all the times he had been with MJ under pretence; he remembered how she did not like to be touched. Whenever someone touched her, whether they were being warm or just forward, she would either tense or j******f.

He would never forget the terrified look on her face when he kissed her at the harbour; it was as if the thought of intimacy scared the lights out of her. It was as though she was taken back in time, to a memory that scarred her for life. As much as he wanted her; he did not want to be the reason for her fear.

He shook his head and walked away from her, to his desk. "Go home, Lola." He said without sparing her a second glance.

Lola gaped at him and shook her head. "You are chasing me away?" She asked, unable to hide the disbelief in her voice. When Logan plopped down on his seat without an answer, she picked up her shoes and purse, and then left.