10x Cashback: Your Wealth Is Mine

37  Forbidden Fruit

"Just give up." Matt said from where he was pacing. He was even more worked up about this than I who had gone through the whole thing.

"Calm down." I said, chuckling.

"I don't know how you can be so calm right now." Matt said, not stopping his pacing.

"Because this is not the end."

He stopped his pacing to stare at me, his expression a funny mix of skepticism and resignation.

He took a moment to run his hand over his face as if he couldn't decide if he should yell at me or laugh.

"Look, man. No matter what progress you think you've made, it's gone. Simple as that." He said.

"At this point, Jenny has probably turned Quinn against you. Think about it. Whose words would she trust more? Yours or one of her closest friends?"

He shook his head as if he couldn't believe what he was about to say. "I get the whole mysterious billionaire vibe you're going for but it's pretty much ruined now."

"There's nothing mysterious or billionaire looking about being Logan Voss' abandoned son."

He stopped his rant with a sigh before flopping down to the chair beside me.

"At least, we can be happy that it doesn't matter." He said and I turned to look at him.

"We literally don't need Quinn." He explained. "You said your mother's clause only needed you to create a twenty million dollar company to open it."

"Just find another investor or shelve this project and create something else for twenty million dollars."

I sighed. Who knew my lie would come to later bite me in the arse?

Unfortunately, I needed Quinn to unlock that clause. There's no way I'm throwing away half a billion dollars.

If you were me, would you?

I stood up and looked at Matt. "I'm not giving up yet." n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Matt sighed like he had expected me to say that. "I know I sound like a broken tape but I have to ask again." He paused. "Are you crazy?"

"You can tell me honestly if you are. I won't judge." He said. "Because there's no other explanation for why you're fixating on a losing battle."

"Let me explain." I grinned at him. "If I can't stand and face Jenny now when there are little to no consequences of failing, how would I face the rest of my sisters?"

Matt frowned, thinking about it before standing up straight.

From all the lies I had told him, even if I failed, I could still find another investor.

But I know that I can't be allowed to fail. I must not fail or I'll be back to square one.

I needed the money that came from seducing Quinn.

"Do you remember why I chose Quinn in the first place?"

"Her connections."

"Exactly. She's friends with the daughter of the richest man on Antarctica. Her name brings the kind of credibility to our project that money can't buy."

I held Matt's gaze.

"I want that credibility and no one is going to stop me from getting it. Not even Jenny."

Matt sighed, rubbing his temples. "At this point, I have to ask myself if I'm crazy because what you're saying is starting to sound like a suspiciously good idea."

"This'll be like you riding a bike with training wheels. You get to fight a sister here on your own terms."

He stared at me, smiling reluctantly. "You're impossible. You know that, right?"

"Maybe." I shrugged, a spark of excitement already building inside me. "But that's why you're still here, isn't it?"

He laughed, shaking his head. "Alright, fine. So what's the plan, then? How are you going to get Quinn back on board after whatever Jenny's told her?"

"That's the thing, Matt. I'm not going to chase Quinn anymore. The more I chase her, the more I reinforce whatever Jenny has told her. Instead, I'm going to make her come to me." I could see his confusion growing and I leaned in, lowering my voice for effect. "It's time to become the forbidden fruit."

He sighed like he'd expected me to say something as stupid as what I just said. "Forbidden fruit? What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Have you forgotten Quinn's status in the Adams family?" I asked him.

"Just like I told you, I'm going to use the bitterness hiding inside our innocent princess."

"She has to have even a modicum of pride. And it's that same pride I'll be using against her."

I paused, watching as Matt stared at me until he couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed one of the throw pillows around and threw it at me. "Get on with it already."

I laughed, ducking under the thrown pillow.

"Luckily, I accounted for something like this and so, I have a plan B ready." I couldn't help but pause theatrically. "What do you think would happen if I took this boutique hotel idea to her brother, Oliver Adams?"

Matt blinked, slowly starting to understand. "Oliver Adams? The second son?"

"Exactly. Oliver's worth about a billion and he's always on the lookout for good investment opportunities."

"If I somehow take my project to him and he decides to jump in, it'll catch Quinn's attention."

"There's no way she'd be able to hide that bitterness of hers. Imagine how she'd feel if she hears that her brother's about to swoop in and steal something she was involved with first."

Matt whistled at my plan, impressed. "So you're planning to dangle the idea in front of Oliver, let Quinn hear about it, and watch her come crawling back?"

"Exactly." I grinned. "Think about it, Matt. Everyone wants what they're told they can't have. It's human nature."

"The more Jenny tries to convince her I'm trouble, and the more she sees Oliver sinking his teeth into the project, the more she'll want it for herself."

"And that is the essence of the forbidden fruit. Look how well that worked out in the Garden of Eden."

He laughed, shaking his head. "You're either brilliant or insane. Probably both."

"Probably." I smirked. "But why not just have Oliver invest instead? He has more funds to pour into his investment than Quinn."

"Remember why we're doing this, Matt." I told him. "It's me versus Jenny."

"True." He nodded. He didn't have to know that Quinn was the key to unlocking the clause in the will.

"Alright, Nico." Matt stood up in excitement. "Let's make it happen."