Justice: A Billionaire Romance Read Online Free PDF Page B

was in junior high school."
    I laughed despite myself. “Tabby’s just like any other person in the world. She has her share of quirks and weird stuff about her just like you do. And my Mom is no different.”
    I dug into my suit pocket and pulled out my phone, quickly flipping through the files. I'd downloaded one specifically for Janet, after getting Mom's permission, of course. "Take a look."
    Janet took my phone and looked. "Who . . . wait, this is your mother?"
    "Yep," I said with a laugh. It was one of the only photos of Mom before she became Joanna Smith then Joanna Bylur that I could use, since it didn't have any identifying marks. Since according to her official biography, she hadn't met Tabby until after her and Dad were married, pics of the two of them enjoying the single life in the city as undergrads were verboten. "That was taken exactly two months before she met Dad. Look like anyone you know?"
    The resemblances were striking. Janet's hair was nearly exactly the same as Mom's natural color. Sure, some wise-ass could make a few Oedipus complex comments, but I really didn't give a shit. I liked Janet for who she was, not her resemblance to my mother.
    "Okay, point taken," Janet said, handing me back my phone. “Riley, do me a favor. Pinch me if I say or act stupid tonight, at least?"
    "Just be yourself, and there won't be any problems about that," I said with a laugh. Taking Janet's hand, I kissed the back of it, looking her in her beautiful brown eyes. “I know we've taken things slow, probably against my reputation, but don't doubt that I'm not interested in more.”
    Janet blushed again. "Uhm, Riley, I guess I should say something about that now. When we have a private moment before we get to your house."
    "What?" I asked.
    "I . . . I’ve never been with anyone before," Janet said quietly.
    I blinked, surprised. I mean, I'd lost my virginity in high school. I figured everyone did. I knew for sure I wasn't the first in my class either, considering one of my classmates in freshman Spanish had to take four weeks off to have a baby. "Okay then. I guess what I just said comes off as a bit pervy."
    Janet shook her head, then smiled that smile that I had come to look forward to. It was her smile that told me she was genuinely pleased, but at the same time she was pushing past her shyness. "No. To be honest, I've been thinking a lot about it too. Can I tell you something that might come off a bit crazy?"
    "Considering the household I grew up in, I doubt there's anything you could say that I'd really think of as crazy," I said. "So go ahead."
    "I've kind of had a few fantasies since you started asking me out," she said, her blush deepening. "The kind I wouldn't feel comfortable telling my parents about."
    I smiled and kissed her hand again. "We can talk about them later if you like." My car made the turn into the Mount Zion driveway, dominated by the view of the Bell Tower. "Just remember, you might think of them as celebrities or something, but they're really just normal people."
    My car parked, and I went around to the passenger side to help her out. I saw the front door to Zion open as I did, and Andrea was there, holding the door open for the two of us. "Hey Riley, glad you made it. Dad's got the chops on, he was worried he'd have to pull them off before you two got back."
    "Chops?" Janet asked, looking at me questioningly. "Pork chops?"
    I shook my head. "Knowing my father, lamb or veal. He likes to show off the culinary skills he's picked up over the years. He's no great chef, but he can put together a pretty mean meat and three veg plate. He knew you weren't vegetarian or vegan, but he didn't know if you were Jewish or Muslim or anything that doesn't allow pork. By the way, are you?"
    Janet laughed and shook her head. "Nope, maybe a healthy dose of lapsed Methodist I think, but that’s it."
    I noticed out of the corner of my vision that Andrea was covering her smile with her hand, a knowing look on her