The Millionaire's Intriguing Offer

The Bachelor

Jonathon glanced in the mirror in the lobby of the law firm as he adjusted the bow tie on his tux, while his two partners smirked in the background.

"I can't believe I let you two talk me into this." It wasn't enough that the firm bought a premium table and wrote a substantial check to help underwrite the event. No. Sam and Ritchie had also volunteered him as one of the featured bachelors at the charity bachelor auction. So he was off to an evening of being paraded across the stage while giggling tipsy women placed bets to try to win "The Date of a Lifetime" with him.

"I'm sure you'll have a great time," Sam said. Jonathon turned and stared at him.

"Right," Ritchie piped in. "How bad could it be?"

Then they both started laughing. Probably remembering the time shortly after they opened their office when all three of them had been listed in a magazine among Miami's most eligible bachelors, and they'd all done the bachelor auction thing for another worthwhile charity. Ritchie had ended up at the opera with a society matron who kept putting her hand on his knee and talking about May-December romances, and Jonathon had endured a painfully awkward evening with a rebel debutante whose mother was trying to push her into a good match. The date went so well that the girl eloped later that evening with her "unsuitable" boyfriend, the lead singer in a local band. Sam had actually had a nice time and dated the woman who "bought" him at the auction a few times after that, then broke it off before things got serious.

Back then Sam had been a confirmed bachelor, just like Jonathon and Ritchie. But all that changed two years ago, when Sam found out he had a son. Now six-year-old JD was the pride of his life, he was reunited with Camilla, the woman he'd loved and lost, and they were happily married with a second child – one-year-old Sophia. Rounding out the family was Camilla's 17-year-old sister, Olivia, who had become a fixture here in the office working part-time after school and dreaming about the day she'd go to law school and follow in Sam's footsteps.

And last year Ritchie, who had been a prosecutor with the state attorney's office before the three of them started their successful personal injury law firm seven years ago, had fallen for Maria, a woman with a huge heart who volunteered at the soup kitchen at Ritchie's church, and was single-handedly raising her younger brother, Joey. As it turned out, Maria was also the twin sister of a man Ritchie had prosecuted and sent to prison for drug and gang related crimes almost a decade ago. But they'd worked through everything, and Maria's brother Tito, recently released from prison, was now working at the law firm doing new case intake, and had been instrumental in launching an organization that provided opportunities for a fresh start to juvenile offenders. The very same organization that was benefitting from the bachelor auction tonight. So really, how could Jonathon say no?

He just hoped whoever placed the winning bid tonight was up for a bit of adventure. Because what Jonathon had planned for their "Date of a Lifetime" was a lot different from the typical fancy dinner and night out on the town.

* * *

Bailey Reid smoothed the borrowed dress and glanced over at her friend Mitsy. "I still can't believe you talked me into attending this."

"Well, with Trip stuck working on some real estate deal, did you really expect me to come alone?"

"We could have stayed home and made caramel popcorn and binge-watched old Parks and Rec episodes." Which was exactly how Bailey had planned on spending the evening on her own, while Mitsy and Trip went to the fancy benefit.

"Hey," Mitsy said. "We paid $1500 a plate for this. You wanted me to let it go to waste?"

"Fifteen hundred . . ." Bailey shook her head.