A Forbidden Love (Eligible Billionaires Book 9) Read Free

review the lease, but the hourly rate had been so high—
    Felicia shook her head. “Right.” A sad little smile came over her face, creasing fans of fine lines into the skin that was stretched tighter than saran wrap. “I get it. First-time business owner. So here’s the thing. The owners of the building want you out.”
    “Out?” Ilana whispered. The tiny droplets of perspiration springing up all over her body turned into flop sweat. “I just spent a lot of money turning the building into the right place for the children and—”
    Again Felicia nodded. She held up her hand to stop the flow of Ilana’s words and smiled. “I understand, sweetie, truly I do, but the market value for rent for that building is a whole lot more than what you’re paying, right?”
    Ilana nodded. She knew she’d gotten a great deal on the property. That great deal and the location were the very reasons that she’d agreed to take over Mrs. Luskey’s lease.
    “Mrs. Luskey said that the assignment was legit, that I could take over the rent payments and keep the space.”
    “And where is Mrs. Luskey again?”
    Ilana swallowed and took a long breath. “Belize.”
    “Right. I’m guessing with your money, too.”
    Ilana said nothing. Yes, she’d given Mrs. Luskey some money to buy the lease from her, but Mrs. Luskey wasn’t the type of woman to cheat or steal or lie to get money to move to Belize…was she?
    “Here’s the thing, sweetheart”—Felicia pressed her hand to her chest as a shark’s smile played over her lips—“I know how much time and energy you’ve put into that tiny little dump of a building, so I convinced the owners to give you six months before you have to leave or start paying full market value for the unit.”
    “Six months?”
    Felicia nodded. “Let you earn back some of your investment.”
    “Do you know what I’d have to charge in the next six months to earn back what I’ve already spent?”
    “Well, that’s why they call it capitalism. Charge what the market will bear. With all these young families that make gobs of money moving into Venice, I’d think you could charge a whole lot more than sixty dollars a month for four art classes. My God, you’ve got Amelia DeLoitte teaching an art class to kids. Every hipster in L.A. knows that name. Who wouldn’t want their precious little darling taught art by the Amelia DeLoitte?”
    “That’s not the intent of The Children’s Enrichment Center,” Ilana said. “The idea is to provide a space for all children to explore their creativity, kind of like an artistic co-op, and—”
    “That’s sweet.” Felicia’s sharkish smile ratcheted up another notch. “Precious, really. But darling,”—Felicia leaned forward and lifted a brow—“does it pay the rent? Because while I understand what you’re saying and what you want to do, you’ve got six months before the lease price goes up to market value.”
    Ilana swallowed. “Market value?”
    Felicia exuded the predatory air of a great white circling a sinking boat as she waited for Ilana to ask the obvious follow-up question.
    “How much is”—Ilana licked her lips, she could barely ask—“market value for the location?”
    “You know what you’re paying?”
    Ilana nodded.
    “Just multiply by twenty.”
    Ilana’s heart stopped. No. Blood drained from her face and a roar sounded in her ears. There was no way…no matter what she charged, she could never make that kind of money on enrichment classes for children. No. Way.
    “You have six months.” Felicia dismissed her with a smile and a wave. “Enjoy!”
    Ilana stumbled from the building and into the street. She stared at the Ballerina Clown sculpture that adorned the CVS at the corner of Rose and Main. How could she come up with twenty times her monthly rent? She exhaled through her mouth and closed her eyes.
    Venice had changed. This wasn’t the Venice she and Mama had moved to from the Bronx when Ilana was six years old. That Venice