A Los Angeles Passion

After an internal investigation that proved Reginald was guilty of trying to sabotage the Prescott George San Diego chapter to keep them from winning the annual award, Reginald had been kicked out of the organization.

Trey, along with his half brothers, was horrified by the accusations and embarrassed that their father would try to harm the chances of another chapter. All of Reginald’s sons were subjected to an internal investigation to make sure they hadn’t assisted Reginald in his activities. And even though all three of them were cleared, the damage to the Moore name had already been done.

“I never believed you could be guilty, Dad,” Max said. “I agree with you. I think you were framed.”

Trey huffed into the phone. Innocent? I doubt it.

“Max, thank you for believing me,” Reginald said. “Trey. Derek. I assume your silence means you don’t believe I’m innocent. Quite frankly, I didn’t expect either of you to believe me, but my innocence isn’t the only situation I need to discuss with my boys.”

The endearment Reginald voiced was probably the first Trey had ever heard. My boys? Max was close to Reginald, so it wasn’t strange to hear him refer to Max with affection. However, Trey couldn’t recall a time when his father had ever addressed him or Derek in any sort of way that indicated he was proud to be their father.

“Haven’t you involved us in your recent situations enough?” Trey asked, finally getting over the surprise of the call. “It wasn’t enough for our character to be questioned because of this investigation, but now you suddenly decide you want to have a heart-to-heart with all your sons when you’re at your lowest?”

“I agree,” Derek said. “Our lives were turned upside down from your mistakes. I think I’ve heard enough on this phone call.”

“Just hear me out.” Reginald cleared his throat again. “It’s a little over three months before Christmas, and although I know I’m decades too late, it’s time for me to make amends. When the investigation was going on this past spring, after a while, I became too weak and tired to continue to protest my innocence. But now I can’t imagine going into the New Year with this burden on my back.”

“What are you saying?” Max asked. “Why now, Dad?”

“Because now is all I’ve got, son.” Reginald sighed. “I’ve just been informed that I have stage four prostate cancer. The doctors don’t think I will live past the New Year, and although I know my sons don’t owe me anything, I’m innocent of these crimes I’ve been convicted of. Before I die, I’d love nothing more than to clear my name, and my hope is that my sons will help me do that and preserve the Moore legacy.”

Trey sat upright in his chair. What? He’s dying? In some ways, Trey had felt like Reginald Moore would live forever, if only to remind him that he hadn’t had the benefit of growing up with a father. Reginald didn’t make Trey’s top-one-hundred list of favorite people in the world, but even he’d admit that he’d always imagined Reginald lingering somewhere close by, hoping to appear on the list one day.

“Wow,” Trey whispered, unable to take the sudden silence that filled the line. It only took a few moments for him to feel like the breath had been sucked from his lungs. Being a screenplay writer, he loved several things about films, but one of his favorite parts of a movie was the element of surprise. It was a scene that was so perfectly written and directed you couldn’t predict what would happen next. When a surprise scene was written well, even the film crew applauded after it was acted out.

Since he was a screenwriter, he was often the one who wrote the surprises, not the one who was surprised. Even though Trey prided himself on always being able to see what would come next, he hadn’t been able to predict the direction of this phone call. Nor could he have foreseen the sudden ache he felt in his heart at the thought of losing a father he’d never even gotten the chance to truly know.

Chapter 2

“Please tell me that is not my old college roomie, because I haven’t seen her in so long I almost forgot what she looks like,” said twenty-eight-year-old Kiara Woods as she stood from the outdoor table at a chic restaurant to give her friend a hug.

Miranda Jensen Ellicott shook her head before returning her embrace. “Girl, stop. It hasn’t been that long.”

Kiara gave her the side-eye. “Yes, it has. I haven’t seen you since you got married to Vaughn.”

“I know,” Miranda said with a smile. “The newlywed life is keeping me pretty busy these days.”

“With a husband like that, I’m sure it is.”

Miranda smiled even wider. “If it were up to Vaughn, he’d have me pregnant and barefoot before the month is over. Luckily for me, he understands the importance of my work right now.”

Kiara nodded in agreement. “And how are things going with Vaughn?”

Miranda’s eyes lit up. “Wonderfully. He’s actually a couple of blocks away, taking care of some business. We drove into LA together, so I just walked here.”

“Aren’t you guys cute,” Kiara teased. “Even riding together for meetings and whatnot so that you don’t have to be away from each other for long.”

Kiara laughed when Miranda didn’t try to deny it. “Seriously, it’s great to see you so happy. How are things at your luxury B and B?”

“Everything is wonderful,” Miranda said as the waiter approached. “Fall and winter are always busy for the B and B, so I expect to be at full capacity throughout the rest of the year. I can’t complain.” They placed their lunch order before they resumed their conversation.

“What about you?” Miranda asked. “How are things?”

Kiara grinned as she thought about the preschool and day-care center that she owned. “I’m honestly so proud of how much LA Little Ones Daycare and Preschool has grown. It’s amazing to see my vision turn into a reality.”

“Kiara, it’s not just a preschool and day-care center,” Miranda said. “It’s the Hollywood preschool and day-care center. It’s the place where LA’s rich and famous want to take their children. Hell, I’m already hoping that I can get bumped up your waiting list when Vaughn and I start popping babies. We’d drive to LA for a great center like yours.”

Kiara laughed. “You already know I’d bump you up the list.”

“I’m just saying. Back in college, you always talked about owning your own day care, but I don’t even think that you considered it would grow this much. And after the few rough patches you had a couple of years ago, you needed your business to be a success.”

The waiter returned with two glasses of water and a plate of sliced lemons. “Thanks, girl.” Kiara squeezed a lemon slice into her water before taking a sip. She thought about the words that Miranda left unspoken. Kiara had accomplished a lot before the age of thirty, but one circumstance that she’d never wanted to be a part of her journey was becoming a divorcée.

Everything had been going so well for her during the early years of her marriage. She’d thought that her unlucky days in love were finally over when she’d met Jerry. Little had she known that after two short years of marriage, she’d be getting a divorce and saying farewell to the one man who had promised to love her forever.

Diving into work had been the perfect distraction, and as the articles about her in the media put it, Kiara and her day care had become an overnight success in the childcare business. She hadn’t had time for love, and quite frankly, she hadn’t felt like anything was really missing from her life at that time.

But you feel like it is now. She briefly sighed as that little voice crept inside her thoughts, reminding her that she had once been a happy newlywed, too. She’d once worn the same smile that Miranda was wearing right now. She had once seen her future bright and clear with the man she loved before it was all taken away when he suddenly asked for a divorce.

“When was the last time you went out?” Miranda asked, breaking her thoughts.

Kiara took another sip of her water. “I go out.”

Miranda pinned her with a hard stare. “Let me repeat my question. When was the last time you went out?”

“I can’t remember,” Kiara said with a shrug. “Maybe last month?”

“Are you sure?”

“Hmm.” Kiara thought about it some more. “Maybe two months ago. Or three. I can’t really remember.”

Miranda shook her head. “Friend, the last time you told me about you going out was when a couple of your employees convinced you to check out that new jazz lounge. And that was way more than three months ago.”

Kiara rapidly blinked. “Oh my God, I think you’re right! That’s the last time I remember going out just for the sake of going out.”

“That’s sad,” Miranda said with a laugh. “The Kiara I knew back in college would never miss a party or pass up an opportunity to go out.”

Kiara downed the rest of her water, wishing it was something stiffer. “Girl, that was before being an adult happened.”

Miranda shook her head. “More like it was before life happened. Being an adult doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. Trust me, I understand being all about the business, but you’ve got to have a little fun, too, or before you know it, your life would have passed you by and you’ll be wondering when was the last time you stopped to truly live in the moment.”

As their food arrived, Kiara contemplated her friend’s words, immediately realizing that Miranda was right. “I do need to learn to live a little more,” Kiara said after a few moments. “But I also plan on building a franchise, so my schedule is bound to get even crazier.”

“Building a franchise is a great idea,” Miranda said. “Just keep in mind that a busy schedule doesn’t mean you have to neglect your social life.”

“True,” Kiara said, nodding.

Miranda’s phone dinged, interrupting their conversation. She frowned as she read the text message.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.” Miranda shot a quick reply. “I’m just worried that Vaughn is taking on too much. You know how we always teased a couple of our girlfriends back in college who used to say their main goal was to marry a Millionaire Mogul?”

“Of course,” Kiara said with a laugh. “And then you go ahead and marry a Prescott George member despite how much we teased them.”

Kiara knew all about the Prescott George organization, also called the Millionaire Moguls. She respected what they did for the community, but she never did understand why some women made it their main goal to land an elite member. Her ex-husband had even wanted to be a member, but Prescott George was exclusive with their membership, so he hadn’t stood a chance.

Miranda grinned. “I know. I still can’t believe it, either.” She took another bite of her fruit salad before speaking again. “Well, Vaughn has been really busy with his San Diego chapter, but now he’s also helping the LA chapter get back on their feet.”

“Why? What happened?”

Miranda sighed. “I really shouldn’t be saying anything, but they were suspended for six months when one of the LA board members tried to sabotage San Diego being chosen as chapter of the year. The person responsible orchestrated several break-ins, hacking of computers and files, and even the vandalism of some of the property. It got pretty bad, but finally, they figured out the man behind everything was Reginald Moore, a high-ranking board member.”

“Wow,” Kiara said, shaking her head. “I didn’t hear anything about this.”

“That’s not surprising. Prescott George didn’t want the bad press, so the board and the national organization declined to press charges and instead expelled Reginald Moore and placed the LA chapter on a six-month suspension. And apparently, he put up quite a fuss about everything.”

“Of course he did.” Kiara rolled her eyes. “There’s nothing more annoying than a person who does something wrong, yet feels entitled and above the law. I’m sure he got what he deserved, and if you ask me, it even sounds like he got off easy. So, how was Vaughn looped into helping the LA chapter?”

Miranda opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off.

“We’re a brotherhood,” a voice said behind Kiara. “I’d never turn down helping out another chapter.” She turned to see Vaughn Ellicott approaching their outdoor table.

“Well, if it isn’t Miranda’s new husband...in the flesh.” Kiara stood to hug Vaughn before he hugged his wife and sat in an empty seat.

“It’s good to see you again, Kiara,” Vaughn said with a handsome smile. “And I can answer your question more fully, since I’m sure my wife was dying to give you all the dirty details.” To this, Miranda gave Vaughn a Chuck E. Cheese grin.

“I’m just helping them by supporting some of their charity initiatives and community involvement. One man’s mistake doesn’t mean the entire chapter has to suffer.”

“That’s nice of you,” Kiara said.

Vaughn shrugged. “It’s what I do.” He looked toward his wife. “Are you ready to go shopping, baby?”

“I think so.” Miranda pulled cash out of her purse to pay for her portion of the meal.

Kiara lifted an eyebrow. “Vaughn, what in the world made you agree to go shopping with Miranda? She takes forever to make up her mind.”

Miranda rolled her eyes. “I don’t take as long as a certain brown-eyed friend of mine. Besides, I can’t believe I forgot to tell you... Vaughn is jet-setting us away for a while to Dubai for a long and much-needed vacation, so there are a few things we have to pick up first.”

Kiara smiled. “That’s wonderful, you guys. I’m sure you’ll have so much fun.” Goodness, I’d love for a man to take me away on a romantic vacation. Her eyes widened. Where did that thought come from? Kiara fidgeted in her chair. It was official. Being around Miranda and Vaughn was making her long for things she’d given up on over a year ago. She didn’t need to date. She didn’t love. All she needed was her business, and if there was anything she’d learned from her ex-husband and the man she fell for after her divorce, it was that love wasn’t forever. She had to remember that.

“I have an idea,” Vaughn said, breaking her thoughts. “You should come with Miranda and me tonight to the party we’re having to celebrate the LA chapter being back on their feet.”

Miranda clapped her hands together. “That’s a great idea, Vaughn!”

“I don’t know,” Kiara said, shaking her head. “Isn’t it an exclusive party? I’ll probably feel out of place.”

Miranda rolled her eyes. “Right, because you don’t own one of the most exclusive day cares in the city.”

“Your sarcasm isn’t needed,” Kiara said with a laugh.

“It will be fine,” Vaughn said. “There will be plenty of friends, family and supporters of the organization there. I consider you a friend and Miranda considers you family.”

Kiara glanced from Vaughn to Miranda, who both awaited her response. Oh, come on, girl. You know you need a night out. “Okay,” Kiara said. “I’ll come. If I’m being honest, I’ll admit that I’ve been dying to get dressed up.”

“So glad you’re coming.” Miranda winked at Kiara. “And you may even land a Millionaire Mogul of your own.”

“Ha! You wish.” Kiara planned on keeping the promise she made to herself to refrain from dating to focus on building her business and franchise. Besides, she was done with rich men. Been there. Done that. She doubted she’d even find a man who remotely kept her interest tonight.

Chapter 3

“Okay, so even I have to admit that this is pretty lavish for an all-male organization,” Kiara whispered to Miranda. Kiara never considered herself someone who was easily impressed, but she was in awe of the luxurious twelfth-floor penthouse suite in the downtown Los Angeles Fine Arts Building that served as the home for the LA chapter of Prescott George. The place was huge and easily accommodated a few hundred people. Given that even some of the most upscale penthouse suites in LA were smaller than the norm in other cities, this was impressive.

“The Moguls never go cheap,” Miranda whispered back. “Every party I attend with Vaughn is grander than the last.”

The Moguls’ motto, written on the wall, caught her eye. From generation to generation, lifting each other up. She’d heard their motto before, but for some reason, seeing it written in an official Prescott George chapter location felt different.

Kiara followed close behind Miranda and Vaughn as they made their rounds and greeted other Moguls and their families, respectfully introducing her as a close family friend. Kiara wore her most professional smile and tried her best not to fidget under the stare of some of the Moguls.

“Could you pretend to be a little more comfortable?” Miranda teased.

Kiara frowned. “I can’t help it. I almost feel as if I’m on display here.”

“Well, you do look fabulous, my friend. But I’m sure it’s because of the type of party this is, too. Some of the Moguls are trying to figure out if you’re going to rent them.”

Kiara lifted an eyebrow. “Rent them? Exactly what type of party is this?”

“Funny you should ask,” Miranda said with a sneaky smile. Before Miranda could explain, Kiara was tapped on her shoulder.

“Well, if it isn’t Kiara Woods of LA Little Ones.” Kiara turned to glance over her shoulder and was pleasantly surprised to see a good friend.

“Tell me it isn’t Kyra Reed of Bare Sophistication Lingerie Boutique,” Kiara said with a smile. The two women hugged before Kiara introduced Kyra to Miranda.

“Kyra, this is my friend and old college roommate, Miranda. Miranda, this is Kyra. We were on a couple of the same panels together at the women empowerment conference I was telling you about a few months ago.” Both women greeted each other.

“I’ve been dying to check out that boutique,” Miranda said. “And I know a couple women who took photos at your boudoir studio and they loved how the pictures turned out.”

“Thanks,” Kyra said with a smile. “We’re really excited about how well LA has received the boutique. We’re headquartered out of Chicago with a store in Miami as well, so we’re hoping to open more locations soon.”

“I’m looking at expanding my locations, too,” Kiara said. “And I’d love for us to get together and share business ideas, but first, Miranda was just going to explain to me what type of party this was since she knows that I’ve sworn off men right now. Yet I could have sworn that she mentioned something about renting men.”

Kyra’s mouth formed a perfect O as she looked from Kiara to Miranda.

Miranda giggled. “About that. I may or may not have left out the part about this party being the first Rent-a-Bachelor silent auction in which a woman can rent a Prescott George bachelor of her choice for up to a week or just a few days.”

Kiara’s jaw dropped. “You can’t be serious! Rent-a-Bachelor? This can’t be a real thing.”

“Oh, it is,” Kyra said. “Girlfriend, why do you think I’m here? My friend and her husband were invited by one of the Moguls, but of course, I’m the single friend, so they brought me along to support the cause. I have no problem with finding a date, but who can pass up the opportunity to rent a sexy piece of chocolate.”

Kiara shook her head as she and Miranda laughed at Kyra’s candor. She’d only hung out with Kyra a few times, but the girl was nothing if not honest.

Kiara glanced around, noticing for the first time just how many good-looking men filled the room. “I must admit,” she said, “there’s definitely some good eye candy here.”

Kyra nodded. “There truly is. Women are renting bachelors left and right.” Kiara and Miranda followed Kyra’s outstretched hand that pointed to a corner of the penthouse, where a herd of women stood in front of a row of Apple computers.

“I don’t see any men wearing name tags or anything, so I wonder how the women are renting the bachelors,” Kiara said.

“Right by the computers, they have an impressive black double-stitched booklet that contains a photo and bio of all single, divorced or widowed eligible Moguls who have agreed to participate,” Kyra said. She snagged a glass of wine off the tray of a waiter who passed by, before continuing.

“If you register, you can also see all their info online. Their bio includes their occupation and age, as well as other hobbies that women may want to know. Tonight is the event kickoff, so they have bid assistants to help if you don’t want to do the online registration. But going forward, online registration will be the most prominent way to rent bachelors. Since it’s a silent auction—and in true Millionaire Mogul fashion—once you make it to the front of the table, one of the bid assistants takes your written bid and contact info. I assume the bachelors predetermine how much time they can give, because some of them are only allowed to be rented for up to two weeks out of a month, while others claim to have the entire month open. Some of the bachelors are so sought-after that they have an open and close bidding time to ensure they aren’t double-booked. After you place your bid to rent your guy, for an extra fee, you can receive a small gold pamphlet on the bachelor you rented, as a keepsake. The entire process is really quite nice, because every woman who is willing to lay down some bucks feels like she’s won.” By the time Kyra was finished talking, Kiara and Miranda were looking at her with blank stares.

“What?” Kyra asked. “I thought you both wanted to know.”

Kiara laughed. “How do you know all this? Is it safe to say you rented a bachelor?”

“Girl, please.” Kyra reached into her clutch. “I promised one of the bid assistants our newest lingerie set so she could give me the inside scoop. Then I rented two bachelors and brought these sexy gold pamphlets along with them.”

“Two dates, huh,” Miranda said with a laugh. “Go big, or go home.”

Kyra shook her head. “Nope, not dates. I already have my flavor of the month. These hot cakes I just rented will be some great eye candy for a masquerade lingerie event that Bare Sophistication is planning for a women-only eightieth birthday party.”

Kyra waved the pamphlets in the air. “Our client was a famous actress back in the 1950s and 1960s and came into our shop a couple months ago saying that she heard about our parties and wanted us to plan one for her. But she didn’t just want us to showcase our women’s lingerie like we typically do at our masquerade parties. She wanted us to showcase our men’s line, equipped with enough eye candy to give her senior citizen friends whiplash. There was no way I was going to turn down this party and my only hope is that I follow in her footsteps when I’m her age. So, I plan to pimp these men out for the one day that I rented them.”

Kiara and Miranda were laughing so hard, they didn’t hear Vaughn approach. Kiara was grateful that Vaughn introduced himself to Kyra because she still hadn’t stopped laughing a few minutes later.

“I must have missed something really funny,” Vaughn said, placing a kiss on Miranda’s forehead. Kyra just smiled up at him while Kiara and Miranda’s laughter finally started to die down. Kiara had been so caught up in Kyra’s story, she hadn’t noticed the commotion happening near the entrance.

“I wonder what all the fuss is about,” Miranda said as they all glanced around the room.

Kiara rose on her tiptoes to try to see over the women in front of her. “Whatever it is, it’s clearly the object of some gossip.”

“Well, damn,” Kyra said as she lightly tapped Kiara on the arm. “I think I see what all the fuss is about.”

Kiara glanced toward the direction that Kyra was looking at and froze. Standing toward the front of the penthouse, directly under one of the crystal chandeliers, had to be one of the sexiest men she’d ever seen.

“Oh, wow,” she whispered as she soaked in the six-foot-two milk-chocolate-colored man wearing a tailored, deep gray suit with a navy blue BabyBjorn strapped to him and a baby bag hanging off his shoulder.

“You don’t see that every day,” Miranda said.

“No, you don’t.” Kiara couldn’t take her eyes off him even though he obviously had enough admirers to last a lifetime. His dark hair was closely cropped and his face was clear of any facial hair. Kiara had always been a fan of facial hair, but she had to admit that the clean-shaven look was doing crazy things to her insides.