British Big Shot: A Hero Club Novel

by J. H. Croix

  “This.” Angling my head sideways, I paused for a millisecond as my lips hovered over hers. The seconds raced by and slowed to a crawl simultaneously. Sensation was moving so swiftly in my body that I couldn’t stop myself. The air around us was heavy and charged, containing us in a suspended space.

  The moment my lips met hers, lightning sizzled through my body. And then, I was flush against her and plundering her mouth as I slid my hand down her spine and cupped her sweet bottom. Our kiss was almost angry, both of us with our own reasons for hating our attraction to each other and the situation.

  Anna kissed with abandon. Her tongue dueled with mine. She gasped into my mouth with one hand pressing into the corded muscles of my spine as I savored the feel of her soft curves. We were hard to soft, the contrast like so many other contrasts. She was all country girl, and I was a city boy. She was an American girl who loved wine and flowers, and I was a British guy who loved scotch and a rainy day in the city.

  I lost all sense of time, only breaking free to lift my head and gulp in some air. It was then I realized I was rock hard with my cock nestled at the apex of her thighs. I’d cupped one of her breasts with my hand where I’d pushed the strap of her overalls out of the way and was teasing my thumb over her pebbled nipple.

  Anna’s round eyes met mine, hazed with passion and almost comically startled.

  Chapter Twelve

  Anna

  My breath was coming in sharp pants, and my pulse was skittering wildly. I stared into Jasper’s eyes. I couldn’t believe I’d just kissed him. More than that, I couldn’t believe how much I didn’t want it to stop.

  I took a shuddery breath and spun away quickly, curling my arms around my waist. “Good night,” I said, throwing the comment over my shoulder as I ran out of the room and up the stairs to the loft apartment.

  A moment later, I sank my hips on the end of my bed and tried to get my shit together. It was just a kiss. That was it. A moment of utter insanity.

  I was suddenly annoyed at what a good kisser he was. Of course, uptight, snooty Jasper would be a good kisser. Not just good, but masterful.

  Merely thinking about the feel of his palm sliding down my back and cupping my bottom sent heat spinning through me. Everything about the way that man touched me told me he had no expectation that I might not want him.

  Well, you did try to kiss him the other night when you were drunk, my snide, critical voice pointed out.

  Yeah, but I’m sure he’s totally used to women falling at his feet.

  My belly flipped over, feeling ticklish as heat bloomed over the surface of my skin again when I thought of the feel of his lips molding over mine and his tongue gliding confidently against mine.

  I wasn’t usually the kind of girl who melted like a warm stick of butter at nothing more than a kiss. I buried my face in my hands and took several breaths, trying to slow my pulse down.

  I heard the bathroom door open and close and waited in the quiet. It wasn’t even late, and here I was hiding in my bedroom because I was mortified.

  A few minutes later, after hearing the toilet flush and the water run, I decided I wasn’t going to hide in my room all night. I had intended to type up the menus for the wine tasting. We always did cute little things that listed the wines for the tasting and the hors d’oeuvres that paired well with them, along with suggestions for matching recipes at home.

  I took a long look at myself in the mirror mounted over my dresser. My cheeks were still flushed and my lips a little swollen from his devouring kiss. God, I’d turned into a wanton girl. All over Jasper.

  Smoothing my hand over my hair, I left my room. Jasper was sitting on the couch with a laptop. He’d changed out of his jeans and into a pair of sweatpants.

  He looked up, his piercing gaze sweeping over me before returning to my face. I hated how comfortable he was with eye contact. I didn’t even give him a second to speak and barreled ahead. “I need to work on the menus for the tasting. What are you working on?” My words came out rushed and breathy, and I silently cursed at myself.

  “Dealing with email. It’s never-ending.”

  “Oh.” Striding across the room, I lifted my laptop off the desk and took it over to the kitchen counter.

  As I settled in with my handwritten notes to type, he remained quiet, yet I felt his presence the entire time I was working. I also couldn’t help but think he was far more suave and experienced than I was at dealing with this whole situation. His kisses had left me feeling unsettled and all melty inside, and it was difficult to focus.

  Checking my email, I ignored several from suppliers for overdue payments. I felt so helpless about the bills. I knew how to manage the winery and the flower business, and I was also pretty good with numbers, but I didn’t know how to fix the pile of debt Gram had left behind.

  I sensed Jasper approaching and practically every hair on my body stood with awareness. He leaned his hands on the counter at an angle across from me. “Do you usually have the same schedule every week?” he asked.

  “Yeah. I’ve just stuck with what Gram did before. Until I can sort out the finances, it seems easiest.”

  He nodded. “Do you happen to know how your grandmother knew my grandfather?”

  I tapped save on the last document I’d been working on and closed my laptop. “Not really. I do know she spent a semester abroad in London when she was in college. I’m assuming that might be when they met. When things got tight financially after the recession, I knew he helped out, and she made a bunch of improvements after that, like fixing up the barn where the winery is and all kinds of things. I didn’t realize he owned half of the business. What do you know about them?”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jasper

  “About as much as you do. I suppose I have suspicions but no confirmed facts,” I explained to Anna as she looked at me expectantly.

  “Suspicions about what?”

  She caught one of her loose curls, spinning it around her fingers. I’d been behaving myself, working quietly on the couch and relieved she had her back to me as she worked on the menus. Now, like a fool, my curiosity got the best of me after I finished plowing through my emails.

  If I thought my surprising and rather inconvenient attraction to Anna was bad before, it was disastrous now that I’d kissed her. My eyes landed on her plump pink lips, and I thought maybe I should kiss her again. Only a few feet separated us.

  Hell, bloody hell, no. Be sensible. You can’t seduce her into agreeing to sign off on selling your half of the business.

  My angel in my brain was doing her best to slay the devil in my body. I wasn’t as cold as I sensed Anna considered me. Even though I didn’t know Anna well, I couldn’t imagine she would take it well to feel used.

  “Apparently, there’s a letter waiting for me, only to be turned over after I spend a month here, according to my grandfather’s barrister. My suspicions are they were in love.”

  “Do you think?” Her whiskey eyes went wide, and a sizzle snaked through me.

  I wanted her eyes to look all hazy and surprised again. Hell, I just plain wanted her.

  I kept my focus. “I do. My grandfather had a hard-core sentimental streak. I know he had a long-lost love once upon a time because he mentioned it here and there, but I never knew her name.”

  She stared back at me, still twirling that lock of hair. She dropped it, and her hand fell to the counter, idly tracing along the square tile edges. “Well, I suppose that would explain a lot. I never knew how they knew each other. I didn’t even know his name until after she had passed away.”

  “Did she ever talk to you about when he became involved in the business?”

  “I knew about when it happened, but not much else about it.” Anna wrinkled her nose. “After my grandfather died when I was twelve, it was just Gram and me. We got by, but we weren’t wealthy. During the recession, she lost a bunch of money and took out some loans to do some improvements. It was just a mess. Somewhere along the way, she see
med less stressed out and told me your grandfather had invested. She described him as an old friend, and that’s it. I’m sorry you’re stuck in this weird situation.”

  I felt a twinge of empathy for her. As annoyed as I was with the circumstances, I was getting closer and closer to keeping my half of the business. I wasn’t ready to say it yet, though. If I did that, though, there was no way I couldn’t get involved. It meant helping get this business back on solid financial footing. Not a single part of me was comfortable letting it float as it was.

  “No need to apologize,” I said, more sharply than I intended.

  Anna held my gaze for a moment before nodding.

  Hours later, I lay in bed wide-awake. I was awake because of an unsuspecting girl who was just a few walls away. I’d gotten up to use the loo during the night, only to see her walking through her bedroom door in nothing but a tank top and a pair of bright blue panties. I didn’t think she heard me, and her back was to me. Which didn’t help matters one bit because I could see her curvy, delectable bottom and her hips sway with each sleepy step.

  I was irritated and annoyed and unable to slake my body’s reaction to her. Giving in by early morning, I threw back the covers and went into the bathroom, taking matters into my own hands in the shower. I could imagine Anna’s pink lips parting with surprise if she knew what I was doing in here with her only one room over.

  “Theo,” I said into my phone, “just send over the financials for that year.”

  “Which year?” my grandfather’s accountant and old family friend queried.

  “The year he dumped all this money into this place. What other year would I be talking about?”

  Theo chuckled. “My, my. Cranky, aren’t we, this afternoon?”

  “It’s morning here, and I haven’t had my coffee yet.”

  “Ah, right. You’re on Pacific Standard Time. Do tell me how the weather is in California. Is it as sunny as they say?”

  I chuckled. “Actually, yes. It’s been sunny every single day. Lovely area. Did my grandfather ever visit here?”

  “Why, yes. On two occasions. Once several decades prior, a few years after your grandmother passed away. Then he visited the year he invested. Because that’s what he did, you know?”

  “I’m not clear on what you mean.”

  “He took care of all the debts she had at the time. He didn’t demand it, but she insisted on giving him half ownership. The only thing he insisted on were the guidelines about how you handled it after he passed,” Theo explained.

  “Do you happen to know when he put those in place?”

  “When he updated his will the year before he died. He thought you were too ruthless when it came to money. He didn’t want you to leave her granddaughter blowing in the wind, as he put it. I have another call coming in. Shall I email you the information?” he asked.

  “Yes, please.”

  Ending the call, I set my phone down beside my laptop in the bedroom. Anna had been showering when I started the call, but the shower had turned off a few minutes ago. I waited until I heard her go into her bedroom before I ventured back out into the kitchen. I didn’t need to accidentally encounter her half-dressed again. My libido could only take so much torture.

  As soon as I heard her bedroom door close, I went out to get coffee. I was feeling irritable. I didn’t particularly want to contemplate the reason, but I knew what it was. This situation was getting under my skin. I’d wanted to come out here, badger her into signing the agreement to sell, and then return to London. Now, that didn’t feel right.

  I wasn’t particularly accustomed to being accused of having a conscience when it came to business. Oh, I was no ruthless business nightmare, but I prided myself on efficiency and making smart, strategic decisions. Nothing about holding onto half ownership of a winery and floral business drowning in debt was strategic or smart.

  After a few swallows of coffee, I felt slightly better. Good timing because Anna came out of her bedroom. The second our eyes locked, that now familiar sizzle zipped through my body.

  She looked fresh and lovely. The red of her hair stood out since it was damp, and her cheeks were pink. She wore a gauzy skirt with a T-shirt. And, bloody hell, why couldn’t she wear baggy T-shirts? Today her T-shirt was another V-neck that hugged her breasts with a row of tiny buttons. My eyes dipped immediately down to the lush curves outlining the V between her breasts.

  My early morning attempt to relieve my seemingly endless desire for her turned out to be fleeting. I took a breath. “Good morning, Anna.”

  She looked at me for a second before crossing the room silently to get a cup of coffee. Only after she filled her mug and took a swallow did she look over at me again where I stood beside the kitchen island.

  “I couldn’t help but overhear your call this morning. Why don’t you just ask me for the paperwork? I’m sure I can find it,” she said sharply, defensiveness and sheer contrariness coming off her in waves.

  Damn. This woman knew how to get under my skin. As she stared at me, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed.

  “I was wondering what my grandfather had on record. I’m just trying to sort out what the financial situation is here and how my grandfather came to own half of the business.”

  “What did you find out?”

  “The timing and that your grandmother was the one who insisted he own half the business when he loaned her the money to help and paid off the debts she had at the time.”

  Anna looked dismayed. “And? If he paid off her debts, why is there so much now?”

  Good Lord. I thought she was about to cry. I felt that uncomfortable twinge. Again.

  “I can’t answer the questions about your grandmother’s decisions, but perhaps you can. Did she use an accountant or an attorney?”

  She took a gulp of her coffee, straightening her shoulders slightly. “No. She did everything herself. Even before things got all screwed up. Look, I know how to make wine and handle the flowers and do all those things. I’m excellent at math, but I’m not an accountant, and it seems she tangled everything up. I don’t want to ask for help, but I need it. Maybe you can help me figure out exactly how bad things are.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Anna

  My heart was pounding in an unsteady beat—a combination of my body’s near constant reaction to Jasper, which was only getting worse with every passing day that he was here, and anxiety about asking for help.

  My rather flighty early childhood had left me craving only two things—stability and the ability to control my own circumstances. My grandmother had represented that for me after I finally got to stay with her when my parents moved on to travel for a few years. It hurt to feel a little angry with her for leaving me the business in such bad shape without telling me.

  I’d known things weren’t great after the recession. They weren’t for anyone, but here we were now, years later after that, and I was trying to pull everything together. I was afraid I wasn’t going to succeed. I hated, absolutely hated, not being able to figure it all out myself. I was sure I could. But the one thing I couldn’t conjure up was more time, and that was in desperately short supply.

  Jasper was quiet, long enough that I began to berate myself for even asking, but then he dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “Of course, I’ll help. No matter what happens, we own this place together. Maybe we didn’t plan it that way, but it’s the situation in which we find ourselves.”

  My relief was so immense I didn’t even hide my shuddering sigh. “Thank you.”

  “What other records did your grandmother leave behind?”

  “Do you mean aside from her spreadsheets?” At his nod, I looked across the room and gestured to the file cabinet. “Those.”

  Jasper eyed the innocuous beige file cabinet, looking thoughtful. “That’s it?” he asked as his eyes swung back to me.

  “That I know of. Before she updated this building, she used to keep everything out at their house.”

  “And where is
that?”

  “Just down the street.” Jasper looked confused, so I explained, “She did a reverse mortgage, so she owed a bunch of money. Right now, the house is just sitting there. She had enough sense not to leave it to me because then I would be stuck with the reverse mortgage. I don’t know what’s going on with the bank, but the house is empty.”

  “Have you been in there?” he pressed.

  I chewed on my bottom lip before shaking my head. “No. Technically, it’s not mine, so I didn’t think it was smart to go in there.”

  “I will,” he said flatly in his snooty British accent. “We might as well see what else she left behind. I know enough to know the finances aren’t looking good, but we might as well be working with a full hand.”

  “Hand?”

  “A hand of cards. From what I’ve seen, she only has the past five years in her spreadsheets. I would like to see what else there is.” He paused, looking at me carefully. “If you don’t mind me asking, did your grandmother experience any cognitive decline?”

  My throat felt tight. I knew he might eventually wonder about that. “Yes. That’s what has me worried. Things could be even worse than I know.”

  Jasper nodded slowly. “Maybe not. Maybe she lost track of some things that would make the situation better.”

  “How do you propose we get into the house?”

  “When’s the last time you were in the house?”

  “About five years ago. That was after your grandfather got involved. She had the money to fix things up here. When the bank moved to foreclose on her home, she just moved out. I’d been away in college and came home then. I’m guessing she chose not to tell your grandfather about the mortgage problems.”

  “I say we just drive down there.”

  I opened my mouth to argue, but there was no reason not to try.

  “Okay. I need to do the morning feeding, but then we can go.”