Prologue
"I'm bored."
A simple phrase, really. Two words, two- or, three? - syllables. They had no idea, with this commonly used phrase, that their lives would change forever. Okay, that's a bit dramatic, but it would start the beginning of a very, very interesting point of their lives.
The words came from a young blonde man, just recently turned twenty-five. He sat on a stark white couch, his dark jeans clashing in contrast. A few down stuffed pillows leaned against the white leather, more of decoration than for comfort. The man had his feet propped up on a glass coffee table, his Salvatore Ferragamo shoes reflecting on the crystal clear top. Green eyes flashed as he looked up at the ceiling, where a chandelier hung overhead, glistening against the light in the center. He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment and grinding his teeth together.
"Then find yourself something to do." Echoed a voice from the next room.
Across the white shag carpet that covered the marble floor, a tall archway was cut into the wall of the next room. The man could see the sixty-five inch, ultra 4K HD screen - a description that was engraved in his mind. He'd shared the details of his television to enough guests to know them by heart. He remembered the thrill of hanging over six thousand dollars for that television, a thrill that had been short lived. It seemed all his thrills were short lived recently. Everything seemed to be the same. He'd buy something new, admire it for a few days, and then it would become something so customary that he barely thought about it anymore.
The voice belonged to his friend - or more accurately described as his business partner - who stood arranging things on a table that was obscured from the man's vision. Pulling himself up off the couch, he lumbered across the room and through the archway. The blare of the television was louder in here, and the man took a moment to appreciate the resolution before turning to see the person who spoke. It was another man, shorter than him but not by much, with raven black hair. He was rearranging a bouquet that stood on a mahogany table that stood against a far wall.
The bouquet was a gift from an actress, or maybe it was a musician. The man vaguely remembered the phone call from her publicist, who thanked him ten times over for the investment in his client. She was an up and coming star, and he'd shelled over fifty thousands dollars to help her get started in her career. Now she was on every billboard, every tv station and radio. Now that he thought about it, she might be an actress and a musician. Not that he cared much - as long as he continued to make money off of her success.
"There's nothing to do." The blonde man sighed, padding over to help his friend. The vase was some kind of marble or other, with diamonds lining the rim. Billowing, fragrant flowers careened out of the top, though they seemed as though they were stuffed inside by a florist that was in a hurry.
"Kendall, I don't know how I can help you." The other man mumbled with annoyance, "Here, hold this."
Kendall grunted as his friend handed him a load of flowers, trying not to sneeze as they bounced against his nose. "I don't mean, like, I need something to entertain me just for the day. I want to work again."
His friend froze, glancing over at him with confusion in his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything, another man walked into the room. He was taller than Kendall, with chestnut brown hair and sun-kissed skin. His hazel eyes danced with mischief as he loped towards the other two, "You thinking about getting back in the game, huh Ken?"
"Yes, James." Kendall furrowed his brow, not linking the teasing tone of the other man's voice.
James ran a hand through his hair, brushing the locks with his fingers. He wore a black polo shirt and dark, gray-blue jeans over a pair of expensive looking boots, though Kendall couldn't tell what brand they were. The way he looked at Kendall, his lips pulled back in a smirk, made the blonde feel a twinge of annoyance. "What?" He asked accusingly.
"Oh, nothing," James said nonchalantly, "It's just you haven't been on the field in a long time. The game's changed."
"Oh, so you think I'll fail?" Kendall snorted, placing the bundle of flowers on the table and squaring up to James.
"I said no such thing." James said, turning to the raven-haired man, "Logan, what do you think?"
Logan turned away from the bouquet, appearing to finally give up trying to salvage it, and flicked his gaze from the two men quizzically. "It's always been a dangerous business."
James snorted and turned away, walking to the other other end of the room, where the far wall was covered in picture frames. He scanned the wall for a moment before picking a single frame from the cluster, laughing to himself as he eyed the people in the photograph. He made his way back, dodging around a couch similar to the one Kendall had sat on in the other room, and handed the photograph to the blonde. "Look at that."
In the picture, James stood in a black tuxedo next to a short, red headed woman. She wore a long, white dress with a lace veil that framed her hair. She leaned against James, who had his arm around her waist. The two of them looked happy and for a moment, one would believe they were happily married. But Kendall knew the truth. "What are you implying?" He asked.
"A few years ago, I would never have had to marry to get what I want. I used to be able to… dine and dash, as I like to call it." James explained, "Now you can't get money from anyone unless you make them fall in love with you."
Kendall studied the picture closer, and realized that the two faces smiling at him were happy for very different reasons. The woman was smiling because she was in love, ready to spend the rest of her life with the man next to her. While the groom was smirking because he knew he'd be rich within a few months.
This was James' game. He would find the richest, most desperate for love, people - and reel them in. He'd been conning people for years, and gotten away with four spouses, and several million dollars. It wasn't very hard to guess how he'd done it. He was charming, had good looks, and knew how to sway anyone into marrying him. The woman in the photo was very wealthy heiress from a family empire who built their fortune off drilling oil, and controlling most of the country's oil supply. Just a few months before James got to her, she had inherited her family's entire fortune. Not long after, she got married and James walked away three months later with divorce papers and seventy percent of her net worth.
The same had happened with his other three unlucky spouses. Two socialites with more money than they knew how to spend, and a british superstar who lost his entire life savings to James' charm. The man had bought more wedding rings than most people ever will, and had a lawyer who could convince a judge that a mouse was a rabbit if he put his mind to it.
Kendall also knew along with James' redeeming qualities, he had a few weaknesses. He was far too confident, for one thing. He'd missed a chance with an actual princess from Austria by putting off the wedding too long - and several million dollars with her. Not that James would ever admit that he'd failed - he would just say that he wasn't interested in the fortune of royalty anyway. Leave the old money with the aristocrats, he'd say, so he could have the satisfaction of passing them up on the "world's richest people" statistics when the census came around.
James was an honorable con man, he had to admit, but he definitely wasn't the best.
"You don't think I'll be able to do it, do you?" Kendall challenged him.
"Listen, Ken, I have more faith in you than most people would give me credit for, but you'll need to do some catching up." James explained with a warning in his voice, "You haven't conned in over a year. The world has changed and the old tricks won't work anymore."
Logan cleared his throat and spoke up before Kendall could rebuke, "I hate to agree with him, but he's right. People are getting smarter and more protective over their money. It's a hard game."
Kendall rolled his eyes, but Logan continued, "Although, James' could be wrong. His method is a bit amateur."
"Excuse me?!" James exclaimed, his eyes wide and hurt, "Have you ever tried being married four times? It's tough work! It takes skill - and I certainly wouldn't call it amateur."
Logan snorted, "Marrying for money is the oldest trick in the book. It takes brains to trick people into giving you money without stealing their heart first."
"Are you calling me stupid?"
Kendall didn't hear Logan's rebuttal, but instead turned his attention to the television behind them. A breaking news story had flashed across the screen, and the headline had caught his eye. Pushing past the two arguing boys, he walked towards the television, staring intently at the story.
"The founder and CEO of the critically acclaimed production company, Platinum Edition Studios, Armando Garcia has died. Platinum Edition Studios has produced several academy award winning films, as well as launching hundreds of award winning television shows and funding documentaries, charities, and organizations all over the world. Armando Garcia's cause of death is currently unknown, but a spokesperson for the family has released a statement saying that the company will be inherited by Garcia's son, Carlos Garcia. Carlos is known for working with his father on the company for the past five years and has quickly assumed a net worth of almost 500 million dollars. A funeral service for the family will be held in Las Vegas, where Garcia lived, at an undisclosed location…"
"That's it." Kendall said, loud enough to be heard by his arguing friends.
"What?" James and Logan said at the same time, turning to look at the blonde with identical confused expressions.
"That's it," Kendall repeated, turning around with an excited glint in his eye, "You both think you have the best method for conning people, and you both think I won't be good enough for the job. This is our chance to prove ourselves."
The two men still looked confused, and Kendall pointed at the television as he continued, "This kid just inherited the most popular production company in the country."
"And what do you want us to do?" James narrowed his eyes, "You can't just walk up to someone we know nothing about and expect the con to go well."
"Are you scared?" Kendall teased, feeling his heart race at the aspect of conning again. It had been some time since he'd been in the field, and he felt it calling to him. This was what he'd been waiting for - something to add thrill to his life again."
James and Logan exchanged a glance, the taller man furrowing his eyebrows together as he pondered the suggestion. "We could make it a competition - to see who can get to him first."
Logan was nodding, his eyes lighting up as the plan unraveled in his mind. "Let's make a bet. Whoever can get a certain amount of money out of his first, wins."
"But how much?" Kendall asked, glancing back at the television. "He just inherited an entire fortune."
"One million dollars," James said, a glint of mischief in his eyes, "Don't want to make it too difficult for you two."
Kendall rolled his eyes but extended his hand, "One million dollars."
The other two placed their hands over his and nodded, "One million dollars."
Hello, everyone!
If this story sounds familiar, it's because it is a rewrite of a story I began but never finished a while back! I recently got inspired to write this story again and I felt such a connection to these characters that I decided to post it here! I really hope that people like this story and I'm looking forward to seeing how it unravels!
It would really help me a lot if you would leave a review once you read this story! Reviews keep me inspired and even if it's just a few words or an entire page, they all make me really happy and motivate me to keep writing!