The Billionaires (#1)

27 || Suits & Aces

MJ had never responded well to alcohol. In fact, she rarely drank alcohol because she did not understand the purpose of drinking at all. Why would someone spend their precious time drowning themselves in alcohol? She did not know the answer to that until today, and her answer was Logan Parker.

She did not drink a lot; she just had a few half-filled glasses of the whiskey she found in Sonya’s cupboard. It turned out that her brother was in love with a drunkard. She chuckled at the thought. While she was calling Sonya a drunkard, she was tipsy and was starting to imagine crazy things and do crazy things. One moment, she thought she was crying, but she would not cry now, would she? She never cried.

Staring at the blue-covered room made her want to cry, if she had not done it already. MJ sat on top of the couch in Sonya’s apartment and did not fear that she would fall on her back if she was not careful enough.

A lot of things ran through her head as she thought about the next day.

She was still in her navy-blue dress that she had worn to work and her hair was tied in a messy bun. Tomorrow would mark as her last day at ‘work’ and in Cape Town, and at this point, she would miss Sonya’s apartment, which unlike her house filled with expensive furniture and marbles, was simple and homely.

Too bad, tomorrow would be her last day in Cape Town. Ha! She snorted, almost falling off the couch.

She knew very well that, that theory was too good to be true. Men like Logan Parker were not people who forgave things such as betrayal and humiliation so lightly; their reputation preceded them. The relationship between Logan and Sonya was not always like this; they were not the best of friends, but they got along. However, there seemed to be a great shift in their relationship; Logan hated Sonya with every born in his body, and there was no other explanation to this except for the fact that Sonya did something to provoke Logan.

Then there was her, ‘May Smith,’ the woman who emptied a bottle of champagne on him in public. Now that was something Logan Parker would never ever forgive in his life. Logan knew nothing about May and knew that the only way he could inflict his revenge on her was by keeping her in the company. He was planning something, and MJ knew all too well. What else would she expect from him after he met her supposedly sick grandmother in Australia yesterday? The answer to that was anything. Anything should be expected from Logan Parker, and MJ Billings was armed and ready for anything and everything coming her way. Logan Parker was smart, but she was smarter. After all, it takes two to tango.

MJ’s phone rang, snapping her out of her thoughts. She sighed and carefully sat back down on the couch, and placed her feet on the clear glass coffee table. She slowly pulled her phone from the table and placed it on her ear. “Hello?” She almost slurred, but was saved by the yawn that escaped her lips.

“Hey, May! It is me, Sonya.” Sonya said, and MJ sighed deeply. Finally, the call she had been expecting. “May, why have you been ignoring my calls?” She asked in a sad tone.

That was all the reassurance MJ needed to determine her fate at Parker’s Enterprises and South Africa for the next few days. “I’m fine, Sonya; how nice of you to think of me.” MJ answered sarcastically, with her one arm crossed over her chest and the other on the phone.

Sonya sighed on the other end. “May, there’s something I need to tell you.” MJ shrugged as if she could not care any less what Sonya had to say. “Please don’t get mad?” Sonya said questioningly, and MJ rolled her eyes in annoyance. Sonya was taking this whole sister act too seriously.

“I won’t get mad.” MJ said in a robotic voice.

“Promise?” Sonya asked in a low voice.

MJ rolled her eyes again at her enemy’s actions. “Sonya, I don’t have all day.” She gritted.

Sonya sighed from relief as if nothing in this world could be worse than MJ Billings’ wrath. On the contrary, she thought. “Do you remember the deal we had, that you had to work in my place for a week?”

“What about it?” MJ raised her eyebrow, getting the feeling that she was not going to like what was about to come out of the woman’s mouth. She rolled her eyes at her own ludicrousness; whom was she fooling? Of course, she was not going to like it.

“Nana’s condition is worse; she was admitted in hospital this morning.” Sonya said, her words hanging in the air.

MJ closed her eyes as she felt the anger rising inside of her. The witch even had the decency to lie again when she could just tell it like it was. ‘Hey there, MJ, I’m not coming back because let’s face it, you are my b***h and as of now; I own you and you have to do everything I tell you to, and right now am telling you to be a good girl and continue working as a PA.’ That would have been acceptable, and they would not even dare continue with this tiring conversation.

Seeing that MJ was not saying anything, Sonya continued, “I’m going to have to stay for the next three weeks until Nana gets back on her feet.” MJ waited for her to finish off her sentence before she hung up on her. “May? Sis, are you still there?”

If Sonya Smith was expecting MJ to burst out in anger, then she was going to be highly disappointed. Why would MJ shout at her and curse her when she could simply numb the anger out with a glass of whiskey? She dropped her feet from the table and removed her hair tie, letting her curls bounce on her shoulders. Her phone rang again but she ignored it. It rang for the second time and she hung up. When it rang for the third time, she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. She sat up straight and took in deep breaths, and then she answered the phone. “Yes?” She answered as calmly as possible.

“May, look…” Sonya took a deep breath and continued, “I understand that you are mad, but please try to understand that-”

“Understand?” MJ interrupted angrily and walked to the cupboard. “I should try to understand? Trust me, sister, I understand.” She said calmly, then harshly placed a bottle of whiskey on the kitchen counter and took out a glass.

Silence followed as Sonya tried to process her words; she was obviously not expecting that from MJ. “Y-you do?” She stuttered. MJ rolled her eyes; fighting the urge to snap and ruin everything.

“Of course! We are sisters, what else did you expect? That I was going to snap and tell you about how much of a b***h you are?” She poured the whiskey and finished in one gulp. “This won’t do it!” She said to herself, putting the glass away, and then she took the bottle back with her to the couch.

“Of course not! You are my sister.” Sonya exclaimed way too enthusiastic for MJ’s liking.

“Exactly! That’s exactly why.” MJ said as she sat down, and then she swung the bottle of whiskey to her lips. “Forgive me, dear sister, and here I was thinking that you had no brain cells, but it looks like God spared us a bit of disappointment. I mean, we are sisters…” She took another swing.

“May, I knew you would come through for me. Thank you.” Sonya said, and MJ snorted.

“What are you saying? Of course, I would come through for you. We are sisters and we always have to have each other’s backs against villains; even the ones who wear power suits.” MJ said, drowning herself in alcohol while Sonya was fighting the urge to hang up on her. “Do you still remember the arrogant, selfish, self-centred, heartless, rude, unapologetic, egoistic, emotionless, ruthless, and manipulative? The Billionaires?” MJ asked, reminding her of her own words a few months back.

“Y-yes.” Sonya stuttered, and MJ smirked. She wished Sonya were here so that she could see her face when she admitted that.

MJ laughed humourlessly and continued drowning herself in alcohol. “Of course you do, after all, you are surrounded by them.” She said bitterly, “But don’t worry, sister, I’ll continue working until our grandmother gets better. So, you can call your boss and tell him not to throw me a farewell party yet, and tell him that I look forward to working with him.” MJ said and hung up before she let the phone fall off from her hand. The alcohol had taken its toll on her; she could feel herself getting drowsy. She was quite surprised that she was still able to produce coherent sentences. She placed the half-empty bottle of whiskey on the coffee table and laid down on the couch, immediately drifting off to ‘Lalaland.’

Back in Durban, Sonya swallowed hard as her guest’s icy glare penetrated through her bones. She placed her phone on the coffee table and took in a shaky breath. “She’s agreed.” She said, and Logan slammed a cheque on the table, causing Sonya to jump. Sonya wore a white robe and a white towel wrapped nicely around her head, and her face covered in white. Although she had planned to relax, she was anything but.

Logan stood up and fixed his suit while at the same time fixing Sonya with a cold look. “Good. Stay far away from my company if you still want to keep your job. And just dare say a single word to your sister or anyone else about this, and your boyfriend will be hearing a lot about what you did with the money he sent you for your grandmother’s hospital bills.” Logan threatened, and Sonya swallowed hard, her face as pale as hard cement. “I have to warn you though, Jorge Billings doesn’t respond too well to deceit. I’m sure you are aware of that.” He said coolly, and Sonya flinched at the impact of his words.

“Y-yes.” Sonya stuttered and nodded eagerly. Logan looked her up and down in disgust and shook his head. He gave her one last glance, turned around and walked to the door where Thuso stood. He nodded and Thuso opened the door for him, and before he stepped out, he gave Sonya was last cold blow.

“Your grandmother says hi, by the way; and she told me to ask you when you would visit her because she hasn’t seen you in three years.” Logan’s voice rang throughout her suite as the door closed with a click, leaving her cold in her own fear and guilt. She picked up the cheque with shaky hands and stared at the signature on it with dread. She had just sold her soul to the devil for a two months’ worth salary.