MATCHMAKER (A Billionaire Bad Boy Romance) by Bella Grant Read Free Book Online Page A

face.”
    Sterling knew he was done with her and was giving her the business side of his personality. Tell her what she wanted to hear, and extract himself ASAP.
    “What’s your last name?”
    Damn. “I feel like—“
    “You’re Sterling Waters. I knew you were familiar. What are you doing here? Why didn’t I make you pay for my coffee? Oh, my God, you could, like, buy this whole place, couldn’t you?”
    “Probably with the cash I have in my wallet,” he joked.
    She just stared at him. “Do you want to come home with me tonight?”
    “To the house you share with the ex who doesn’t want you seeing other people? No thank you.”
    “He’s not an asshole. He wouldn’t be a dick about it. We could go back to your place. I bet it’s real nice.”
    “It’s been a pleasure, Helena. Something has come up, and I have to run.”
    “You’re leaving just because I realized you’re Sterling Waters?”
    People were looking at them. “Goodnight, Helena.”
    Sterling slipped out into the warm spring night. He told his phone to call Cherise as he walked back to his car. He couldn’t wait to tell her about Helena.
    “I thought I told you no crazy people,” he said to her hello.
    There was a heartbeat of silence while Cherise got on the same page as him. “Helena didn’t work out? Wait, you’re done already? What did she do?”
    “I’ll tell you when I get back. Can I come up? You’re going to love this.”
    She hesitated for a split second. “Sure.” They ended the call.
    He knew he shouldn’t go to her. She’d been distant since they slept together—or had she been distant since she’d broken up with Ricky? He couldn’t tell. Besides, she’d started it. He texted Jenna on the way back to his car.
     

CHERISE
    Cherise waited in the living room, anxious for Sterling to arrive. She paced in front of the big windows, wondering what on earth he could possibly be so fired up about, what had gone so wrong with Helena that he needed to tell her. She chewed her lip in anticipation of his arrival.
    She glanced at the clock. 8:45. She didn’t remember what time he’d met Helena, but she thought she remembered eight. It must have been a really rough date.
    Sterling knocked on her door—which seemed weird since he owned the place, though she figured it was the polite thing to do. She opened the door for him. His physical presence affected her, and she hoped he didn’t notice the flush on her cheeks.
    He came into the room like a tropical storm and poured out the whole story of the evening. The crazy ex she still lived with and took care of, plus, she’d recognized him. Cherise thought of the spread where she’d seen all the tattoos on his chest and back, and it didn’t seem all that strange.
    Once he was done, he flopped into a leather chair, draping his legs over one arm. Cherise sat primly on the edge of the sofa. She didn’t think she could relax in his presence.
    “So what are you going to do if she goes to the press or something? I wonder if she’s tweeting about it.”
    “I’m not on Twitter ,” he said.
    “I am.” Cherise pulled out the amazing new phone and opened the Twitter app. She tried #Waters, #SterlingWaters, #Sterling and got her hit. “Thonggrl69H?”
    “What?” Sterling looked at her like she’d sneezed.
    “Does that sound like it’s her Twitter handle?” He shrugged. “Well get this: ‘Just had drinks with #Sterling Waters. A millionaire afraid of a real woman!’”
    “Billionaire,” Sterling corrected. “And I wasn’t afraid of a real woman; I was afraid of a lunatic.”
    “One woman responded saying she thinks you’re really hot,” Cherise said. She scanned the other responses. One person accused Thonggrl69H of lying. Good… There are more like that. “I don’t think you’ve got too much to worry about.”
    “Did I look worried?”
    “Not especially. But if you had…” He had his phone out, and every few seconds, it would buzz. “Is that Jenna?”
    He