Billionaire Quadruplet Alphas

Thursday 17th September, 2020

Star’s POV

“I’m really sorry, Star!” Said Toby, placing his hand on mine as we sat across from each other at a cafe near the Academy.

I sighed.

“It’s ok,” I said.

Toby had just broken the news to me that he wouldn’t be able to be my pretend-boyfriend because he was going abroad in a student exchange program for a few weeks. He was an avid language student and this was a great opportunity for him to practise his Italian.

“Eat lots of pasta and pizza for me,” I said half-heartedly, smiling faintly.

Toby frowned.

“I should have told you and Jillian I got accepted into the program sooner. I’ll be back in six weeks. Star, why exactly do you need a fake boyfriend? Are you trying to make the Quads jealous?” Toby asked.

I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about the curse and my brush with danger in the form of Georgianna’s vengeful spirit.

“Yeah,” I said weakly.

Toby smiled mischievously.

“Atta girl!” He said. “The way they act with you, especially Jonah is so rude!”

“Zaya and Eli are sweet though,” I said, feeling protective of them.

“But didn’t you tell me they almost made you cry at that party?” Said Toby.

“Yeah but as soon as they found out I was fated to them, they’ve been nothing but nice to me,” I said.

“And Jonah just wants to be with Angie?” Asked Toby.

I shrugged. I was trying not to reveal myself and the whole messy confusing backstory.

“You’re worth a thousand Angies, Star! I hope you know that!” Said Toby.

“You know what?!” Said Toby with a determined glint in his eyes.

“What?” I asked.

“I’m gonna help you,” said Toby.

“How?” I asked.

“Please, please, let me do this for you! You have to say yes before you hear what it is!” Said Toby.

“I can’t do that!” I chuckled. “What if it’s something crazy?”

“Don’t you trust me?” Said Toby indignantly.

“I do,” I said. I meant that.

“Ok? So?” Prompted Toby.

“Ok, I agree, I’ll let you help me,” I said.

“Great! We’re holding auditions then!” Said Toby.

“Auditions for what?” I asked, getting a sinking feeling already.

“Auditions for a new hot fake boyfriend!” Exclaimed Toby.

“I love that idea!” Squealed Jillian as she neared us, balancing our three frappes.

I smiled to myself. It would be nice to finally get a little revenge. Especially on Jonah. And Noah too.

“Let’s do it,” I said.

Jillian and Toby grinned.

“I’m paying for it ok and I don’t want to hear any protests!” Said Toby sternly.

“How and where are we gonna find this dream guy?” Asked Jillian.

“Easy. The drama club,” said Toby. “We’ll pretend we’re putting on some play and looking for our male lead. The play will be a romantic story and the lead actor gets paid even though it’s a school production. We only tell the guy we actually pick about the real plan. We let them think they’re auditioning for real,” said Toby.

“That’s brilliant!” Said Jillian, astounded.

“Thank you,” said Toby with a little shimmy.

I giggled.

*******

Friday 18th September, 2020

The auditions were held the very next day after Toby and Jillian spread the word about the “play” far and wide. Twenty-six guys showed up to addition. I was shocked. I didn’t even know that many people at this school acted. Toby was a member of the Drama Club but he didn’t act, he was usually the costume designer. We sat in the dark theatre at the Academy, looking at the brightly lit stage. A few members of the Drama Club had come to watch the auditions.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“How many people are in the Drama Club?” I whispered.

“About forty-five,” said Toby. “But some of these guys auditioning aren’t members,” said Toby.

“You think they’re in it for the money?” Asked Jillian, sipping her mocha frappe.

“It doesn’t matter,” said Toby.

Jillian nodded.

“All right! Who’s first?!” Called Toby, scanning the names on his clipboard.

A tall, dark haired boy went got up on stage and introduced himself. He then did a monologue. He was somewhat convincing but not exactly what I was looking for. He seemed too into himself to be a good fake boyfriend.

We went through the twenty-six guys auditioning pretty fast. Each was given only three minutes to impress us so we were done in just over an hour. We narrowed it down to three guys and thanked the others. I studied the three finalists: Dane Wallis, Harper Jogie and Evan Eagleton.

Dane Wallis was a jock, through and through. He played rugby, basketball and football. He was on the rowing team and he had a black-belt in karate. He was also a personal trainer on the side for extra income. His clients were mostly girls swooning over him. He didn’t need the extra income though because his father owned the gym franchise, Alpha Build, where Dane worked. Dane was muscular and tall with with pale skin, a light sprinkling of freckles, light brown eyes and light brown wavy hair. He had a chiseled face and was extremely energetic.

Harper Jogie was the Academy’s very own rockstar. He was the lead singer and lead guitarist for his rock band, Pariah. He was the least nervous out of everyone auditioning that day. He was clearly comfortable on stage. He had lean muscles. He was tall and broad-shouldered. He got his olive complexion from his father who was from Dubai and owned several luxury hotels over there. Harper’s eyes were hazel and there was something soulful about them. He had thick, glossy hair as dark as a raven’s wing that fell just past his shoulders. He smiled at us, showing off his dimples. He had auditioned with a guitar in hand, playing a melody while he performed his soliloquy.

Evan Eagleton was an overachiever. He would probably get into politics someday. He was class president and the leader of the debate team. He was a bit preppy so he played tennis and did equestrian sports. He was a bit shorter than the others with a slight build, greyish-green eyes, dark brown hair and a chin cleft. He gave a speech instead of acting but the speech was actually really well written and with great delivery.

“Let’s ask some more personal questions!” Suggested Jillian quietly. “To see if they’d be good at the job.”

Toby nodded.

“What do you guys look for in a girl?” Asked Toby, his voice echoing in the almost empty large theatre.

“I like a girl who’s not afraid to kick it with the guys. She pregames. She can outdrink me. She’s sporty, athletic, cares about her health, outgoing…” said Dane.

I nudged Toby. That definitely was not me.

“Evan?” Prompted Toby.

“I like a girl with big dreams. She’s involved. She has school spirit and a thirst for change. She loves a good debate. She well-rounded. She does extra-curricular activities. She can speak up and stand up for what she believes in!” Said Evan.

That sounded wonderful. I was academic but I wasn’t a go-getter and I hated extra-curricular activities. As soon as the bell rang, I would rush back to my dorm. Why would I spend extra time at school?

“Ok, thank you,” said Jillian. “How about you, Harper?”

Harper was quiet for a moment. “I’m looking for someone genuine. She would be kind, smart and fun to be around whether we’re at a concert or in front of a television,” said Harper. “I want us to be comfortable with each other.”

I smiled. I could manage that.

“How do you guys feel about PDA?” Asked Toby.

“Hate it! It’s so juvenile!” Said Evan immediately although Dane was supposed to go first.

“Dane?” Asked Toby.

“I learnt my lesson when it comes to PDA. My main girl’s best friend snapped a pic of me at the mall with my side chick,” said Dane with a laugh.

Ok, next.

“I think it’s fine. You shouldn’t hide your affection for your person but you also don’t need to overdo it. Either extreme is usually not a good sign,” said Harper, stroking his chin with a faraway expression on his face.

Toby glanced at me. I nodded.

“Ok, we’ll be in touch with you guys via phone later today,” said Toby.

As soon as all the guys left. Toby called Harper and had him meet us at the cafe near the Academy where we first discussed the fake boyfriend idea.

“You kept me in suspense for a whole five minutes,” joked Harper.

“Harper’s actually a member of the Drama Club! We usually release the cast list a week after the audition,” said Toby.

“You guys must be crunched for time. How soon will the play be?” Asked Harper.

“There is no play,” said Toby, cutting right to the chase.

“What?” Asked Harper, furrowing his brow.

“The play was just a front!” Said Jillian.

“Should I be scared?” Chuckled Harper. “You want my organs don’t you?”

Harper had an offbeat dark sense of humour but I liked it.

“Please allow our darling Star to explain!” Said Toby with a flourish of his hand, gesturing to me. I sat in the corner of the booth, facing Harper.

Toby and Jillian had insisted that I be the one to explain it to him as an ice-breaker.

“You will be acting!” I said.

“Ok,” said Harper slowly.

“But not in a play. You’ll be acting in real life,” I said.

“Improv?” Asked Harper.

“No,” I said quickly. “I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend.

Harper raised his eyebrows.

“Why?” He asked.

“To make her mates, the Quads, jealous!” Said Jillian.

“The Quads are your mates?” Asked Harper.

“Yeah,” I mumbled.

“Look, I’m not looking to get my face rearranged by four jealous alphas,” said Harper.

“You won’t,” I said quickly. “Jonah has Angie. Noah is indifferent. Zaya and Eli are cool with whatever. None of them are territorial over me,” I lied.

“And you want them to be so you’re fanning the flames of jealousy?” Asked Harper.

Yeah, sure why not. This lie was more believable than the accursed truth. I nodded.

“How much does this pay?” Asked Harper.

“A thousand dollars a week!” Said Toby.

I yelped. What?

“The threat of death is very real. How many weeks are we talking?” Asked Harper.

“I can’t say and it’s not like you need the money anyway,” said Toby. “Your father is a movie producer and director in addition to owning hotels.”

“I do actually. He cut my spending off for the rest of the year because he found out how much money I was spending on…recreational items,” said Harper with a sly smile.

“How much money do you spend on recreational items?” Asked Toby quickly.

“I can make do with fifteen hundred a week,” said Harper.

“Done,” said Toby.

“Did I say fifteen hundred, I meant two thousand,” said Harper.

“Nice try,” said Toby. “Fourteen hundred it is!”

“Fifteen!” Said Harper, shocked.

Toby laughed. “Ok, you drive a hard bargain!” Chuckled Toby.

Harper laughed. He shook Jillian’s hand enthusiastically. Then he gave Toby a firm handshake. Lastly, he took my hand in his huge warm palm and brought it his lips. He brushed his lips across my knuckles. I bit my l*p, a bit nervous about the whole prospect yet excited at the same time.