Reckless Hearts: A Billionaire Romance Read Online Free PDF

that was all. He couldn't possibly mean anything. Of course he couldn't. Not about me, anyway.
    I mean, I did my best to keep looking all right. Pizza and fast food only occasionally, at least some exercise every week. But he could have thrown a rock into that crowd at the amphitheater and hit a girl prettier than I am. One more willing and interested, too.
    I listened to the message again, jotting down the number he gave at the end on a scrap of paper.
    I picked up the receiver, then realized what I was about to do.
    It was crazy, though, wasn't it? I could delete the message, throw away the number, and never think about it or him again. Besides, I needed to get that new essay written.
    I also needed to get back to Jenn before she realized how awful a person and friend I was.
    Have you ever not finished an assignment early? Jennifer's voice echoed. It was due in three weeks. I had plans to finish it in one. Plenty early.
    Early enough that I could afford to take a day and go prove to myself that "Mr. X" was just another rich jerk who I shouldn't spend any more mental energy on.
    So I dialed the number.

Chapter 3
    "H ello. Is this Miss Chambers?" a woman on the other end asked.
    "Y-yes..." I said. That buzzing in my chest started again. And it started moving, sinking down into my stomach. This is ridiculous. Just hang up the phone and write your paper.
    I tried, but my fingers didn't listen. They kept that receiver pressed against my ear. They pressed it to my ear so hard I could hear the background noise of the line itself.
    "Have you decided on when you would like to come in?" the woman asked. Faint tapping came through the line as she typed something.
    I thought about it, knowing that I should have done that before making the call and not during. However, the secretary never said anything, never tried to hurry me along. Instead she typed, the tapping of the keys becoming clearer in the relative silence of the call.
    I wish that she had said something, told me to hurry up, made a huffing sound. Anything. Anything that would give me an excuse to hang up and forget about all this.
    It reminded me of those moments of silence before I asked my questions earlier that day. When Mr. X had also waited.
    "How about tomorrow afternoon?" I hazarded. I didn't have any classes, and I convinced myself that it would also be good to get away from the campus. If only for an afternoon.
    "He will expect you tomorrow afternoon at 1:30. Have a nice day, Miss Chambers." She gave me the address and then a click came from the other end of the call, telling me that she hung up.
    I lowered the receiver slowly, dropping it down onto the stand. The touchscreen glowed, telling me that the call had lasted two minutes and 33 seconds before dimming.
    Sensing that I was going to be useless for the rest of the day, I went over to the window and looked out across the campus. The Art Deco buildings seemed to rise up from amid the treetops.
    Far away on the horizon, in the general direction of New York City, I realized, a line of dark clouds brooded.
    If I'd been superstitious, I might have been worried. As it was, a sort of aching excitement settled low in my gut, tickling with nervous fingers at the bottom of my heart.
    This was a secret, I realized. And I couldn't remember the last time I possessed a good secret.
    I decided to text Jennifer and see if maybe we could go grab some food or watch a movie. Anything to stop thinking about all this.
    ***
    I stood in the elevator, watching the display over the doors count upwards. 34, 35, 36... . Utopia Incorporated owned this entire building, located just off Wall Street. Mr. X kept his office on the 40th floor. I think I left my stomach back on the first.
    It had been an agonizing morning. Mostly over clothes. And then mostly whether to dress up or come in roughly the same outfit as the day before.
    I'd taken both the skirts I owned out of the closet, as well as a couple blouses. Even a dark dress for more formal