The Brazen Billionaire

by Elana Johnson

  “Noted.” He slid the syrup toward her and joined her at the bar. “Do you like surprises?”

  “Who doesn’t like surprises?”

  He laughed and cut the curve off the top of his first hearted pancake. “I’m sure there are people.” He ate for a minute, and then asked, “Do you even wear jewelry?” He hadn’t seen her wear rings or bracelets. Earrings, from time to time, when they went out. But at The Straw, she was bare from wrist to lobe.

  “Not a lot,” she said. “My hands get so dirty at work, and I’d hate to lose a valuable gemstone or something.”

  So a necklace would probably work. Jasper nodded and ended the questions in favor of feeding bits of egg to Frankie.

  Later that day, while Sasha was at work and he’d slept as much as he was going to, he entered his jewelry shop on the island. He had very little to do with the day-to-day operations of the Rosequist retail arm of the company, but he did deal with the regional manager at the store. She took care of the hiring, the scheduling, the payroll, all of that.

  And he did expect to be noticed and recognized in the shop he owned. It seemed busier today than any other time he’d come in, which was to be expected.

  Three salespeople were helping customers, and there were two others browsing cases on their own.

  GloraJean looked up from the case where she stood with a man and said, “I’ll be right with you, sir. Oh. Jasper. Hello.” She made to move toward him, but he held up his hand as if to say, It’s fine. Take care of him first, and she nodded.

  Her customer turned out to be painfully indecisive, because both of the other sales associates finished before her, assisted the other customers, and had just turned toward him before she’d even completed the sale.

  “Jasper,” the man said. His name tag read Malachi. “How are you?” He shook hands with Jasper and added, “What are you looking for?”

  “A sapphire,” Jasper said, deciding on the spot. The brilliant blue stone would look great on a silver chain, around Sasha’s neck…. “On a necklace.” He’d looked through the cases and only seen sapphires in ring settings. “What can we do to make that happen?”

  Malachi smiled and gestured with his head toward the back of the store. “Well, you may or may not know that we just had a shipment of gemstones come in. Some of them might be intriguing as pendants.”

  Jasper’s eyebrows went up. “Intriguing. I like the sound of that.” He followed Malachi to the back of the shop, where he pulled out a case that had several loose pieces. GloraJean joined them and said, “It’s good to see you, Jasper.”

  “Busy today.”

  “Valentine’s Day.” She peered at the case and the blue gem Malachi selected. “Are we doing a pendant?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Malachi was polished from his crisp haircut to the perfectly straight tie around his throat. “This one would look nice on a slimmer chain. Let me show you.”

  Jasper let Malachi do his job, and sure enough, the sapphire was exactly what he wanted. While the piece was cleaned and boxed for him, Jasper wondered if he could be cheesy that night and tell her he hoped she’d wear it close to her heart and think of him whenever she did.

  Was he that brazen? She claimed him to say whatever he wanted, but he wasn’t sure he could say such things without uttering three more words that seemed little but that totally weren’t.

  Deciding to play it by ear, he took his gift and left the shop. His phone buzzed, and surprise bolted through him when he saw Brighton’s name on the screen. It was barely four o’clock in Hawaii, which meant it was four a.m. in Paris.

  Her text read How was Mom when you saw her?

  Fine, he tapped out, frowning at his phone. Obsessed with setting me up with a Swiss banker. But other than that, fine. Why?

  It took too long for Brighton to reply, but Jasper employed his patience. After all, it probably took a few seconds to send words so far.

  Dad just called and said he’s taking her to the hospital.

  Jasper’s heart stalled, first at the thought of something being wrong with his mother and secondly, it was way too soon for him to get back on another airplane.

  I’m sure she’s fine. A little flu or something. I’ll keep you updated.

  Day or night, Jasper said. Honestly, he didn’t sleep much, even with the blackout curtains and the best ocean wave sound machine money could buy.

  Brighton didn’t respond, and Jasper wasn’t sure what to do with the information. Call his parents? His father wouldn’t answer if he was at the hospital. He’d probably left his device at home, though he claimed to take it with him everywhere. In the few days Jasper had visited them, he’d seen the phone lying on the end table more often than not. Once, he’d picked it up and it was dead.

  So a call would be fruitless.

  He made his way over to The Straw, where Sasha worked the window, wearing a cute purple visor and fabric hearts pinned to her apron as she passed two drinks to a man and his significant other.

  Jasper hung back and watched her work, the look of happiness on her face clear even from a distance. She exuded charm for her customers, and she worked with quick, precise movements, her smile never far behind her words.

  She worked through the line and leaned her hip into the counter as a sigh escaped her lips. He couldn’t hear it, but he’d seen that face before. The one rimmed with exhaustion and yet still so hopeful, so beautiful.

  He pushed away from the tree where he’d been standing in the shade, and his movement caught her eye. A grin split her face and she turned to the woman she worked with and spoke to her. She untied her apron and then came through the door on the side of the stand.

  “Hey.” She practically skipped over to him, and he kept his hands in his pockets so he wouldn’t grab onto her and swing her around.

  “Hey, yourself. Happy Valentine’s Day.” He leaned over and kissed her, a quick peck.

  “We’ve already had breakfast together. Or have you forgotten?”

  He simply smiled and nodded down the beach. The sun went behind a cloud, and he wondered if it would rain. He actually hoped so—way down deep so Sasha wouldn’t know—because then she might close her drink stand early and he’d get her undivided attention for a bit longer.

  “Do you have a minute to walk?”

  “Yeah, we’re not too busy today,” she said. “Maybe once school gets out, the teenagers will come over.” She put her hand in his and they stepped through the sand.

  “You seem quiet,” she said after several paces. “Everything okay?”

  “My sister called,” he said as the sky darkened further. “My father’s taken my mom to the hospital.”

  “Oh, no.” She paused and squeezed his hand. “Is she okay? What happened?”

  Jasper really liked her concern, and he once again had a flash of what his life might be like if Sasha was in it permanently.

  “I’m not really sure. I’m waiting for more information.” He took a deep breath and pushed it out. “When can you get off? I’m dying for our alone time.” He swept his arm around her waist and brought her close to him.

  She giggled. “I have to stay and see how things go with the after-school crowd. If things aren’t too bad, I can take off once Macey comes.”

  “You sure? I don’t want to rush you, and our dinner reservation isn’t until eight-thirty.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “It’s a surprise. You said you liked surprises.” He laughed at the put-out look on her face and tugged her further down the beach, something gnawing at his gut that he hoped would disappear before he sat down at Turf’s Up, the best steak and seafood restaurant on the Big Island.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Sasha got slammed after school with teenage couples who seemed like they’d figured out more about love and romance at age sixteen than she had at age thirty-two. At their age, she’d painted The Straw a bright, cheery yellow and rented her first six blenders with her mother’s credit card.

  Nevertheless,
she served everyone who came through the line with a smile, telling them about the bowling alley and movie theater at Sweet Breeze. Several of them took the coupon cards Fisher had given her, and she saw a decent number of her own half-price flyers come in as well.

  Then the pre-dinner crowd arrived. And as reservations surely had to be staggered tonight, it seemed like the number of people lined up outside The Straw would never end.

  Jasper had stopped texting about six, and a twinge of guilt and worry needled her. She’d promised Macey she’d be off by eight, and with only fifteen minutes until closing, it seemed impossible that they’d be finished in time.

  Especially when two more couples joined the line.

  “Never gonna happen,” Macey muttered as she stuck another ticket in front of Sasha. “Better cancel your big date.”

  “It’s not a big date,” Sasha said over her shoulder as the girl moved back to the counter. And she wasn’t going to cancel it. She was going to work like mad and get through this rush and then close as fast as possible.

  She had four blenders going, and she felt like she had the arms of an octopus as she made drinks and handed them out.

  Miraculously, twenty-five minutes later, the line was gone. “Quick,” she said before the last customer had even taken two steps. “Close the window. I’ll clean up. You can go.”

  Macey had a boyfriend of her own, as evidenced by the twenty-something who emerged from the shadows and helped her lower the window opening and lock it into place.

  Sasha took one moment to look around the interior of The Straw and decided to do only the bare essentials to get the place closed. She ran all the blender containers under water and put all the fruit in the fridge.

  A quick wipe-down, and she hurried to untie her apron and hang it by the door. So she smelled like citrus and coconut milk. Jasper had once said that he liked the way she smelled, and she called him as she hurried across the sand toward her car.

  “I’m done,” she said. “Only fifteen minutes late. Where are you?”

  “I’m at your place,” he said.

  “I’m five minutes away, and I just need to change.”

  “I’ve already called the restaurant.”

  Relief rushed through her. “I’m really sorry,” she said.

  “No need to apologize.”

  She couldn’t tell if he was cool or simply unruffled. He had a way of coming off a little wooden, a result of his multi-million dollar diamond deals, no doubt. But she sometimes had a hard time deciphering his reaction when she was with him in person. On the phone, it was impossible.

  She waved to him, sitting in his silver sports car, and ran inside to change. Five minutes—she gave herself major kudos for how fast she could brush her teeth and put on a dress, heels, and earrings—later, she hurried across the parking lot and slid into the passenger seat.

  “I’m so sorry.” She felt put together too quickly and sure had some piece that was out of place. Still, she flashed a smile, glad when he returned it.

  “You’re ready?” he asked.

  “Yes.” She noted that he didn’t say her tardiness was fine this time. She straightened her skirt and leaned toward him, further relieved when Jasper closed the distance between them and kissed her.

  “Mm,” he said against her lips. “Worth the wait.”

  Warmth filled her from head to toe, and she straightened in her seat. Jasper extended a black velvet box toward her that was too big to hold a ring.

  She gave him a coy smile as she took it. “I can’t wait to see what this is.” Her heart flopped around in her chest like it wasn’t anchored properly. She took a quick breath through her nose to center herself, noting that Jasper hadn’t started driving yet. So her lateness didn’t seem to matter.

  The lid creaked as she cracked it, and the brilliant blue stone winking back at her stole her breath. Before she could touch it, Jasper took the box gingerly, saying, “It’s a sapphire. I thought a necklace might be something you could wear to work.”

  He lifted the silver chain from the silky folds of fabric inside the box, and she leaned forward, holding her hair back so he could put it on her. Their close proximity and the intimate nature of his fingertips along her neck made the moment heated and charged.

  “I was thinking….” He ducked his head, and he was the most adorable man she’d ever met. Her heart throbbed in her chest, the sapphire hot against her skin.

  He lifted his eyes back to hers. “I was thinking that you’d wear it close to your heart and think of me.”

  Sasha couldn’t think of anything to say to such perfect words. So she pressed her lips to Jasper’s, this Valentine’s Day better than any other she’d ever had.

  And the night only got better when he pulled up in front of Turf’s Up and went inside with her hand securely held in his.

  A few days later, Sasha was absently wiping down the counter while a slow drizzle fell beyond the window. It had been her slowest day since meeting with Fisher, and the rain wasn’t helping matters.

  Or maybe it was.

  Because she couldn’t stop thinking about Jaasper. About the careful, adoring way he’d kissed her on Valentine’s Day. Or the passionate, heated way he held her when he’d kissed her good-night.

  Her hand drifted to her mouth, and she yanked it back at the smell of wet rag mixed with pineapple. “Ugh.” She put the washcloth in the sink and washed her hands, though she’d already done so about five times.

  Part of her wanted to close up for the day, though it was only three p.m. She’d sent Maddy home, and Macey wasn’t due to arrive for another two hours. But if she closed now, maybe she could sit beside Jasper’s pool, despite the rain, and relax.

  She felt like the only time she truly let her hair down and forgot about her worries was when she was with Jasper. She wondered what that meant, but the thoughts had swirled through her mind until late at night, and she needed all the sleep she could get.

  Making a snap decision, she hurried outside and closed the window, making sure to lock it tight. She didn’t need a CLOSED sign, but she did need to clean up a bit and send a few texts. Once that was done, she drove up into the hills to Jasper’s house. She hadn’t texted him, hoping he liked surprises as much as she did.

  She fiddled with the sapphire against her collarbone as she sat in his driveway. Sometimes he texted her this early in the day, especially on Fridays, as he didn’t work overnight from Friday to Saturday.

  After letting her fingers drop from the necklace, she gathered her courage and got out of the car. She knew the code to the front door, but she knocked anyway. Nothing stirred behind the huge, heavy wooden doors. She tried the doorbell next, but was met with the same silence.

  So she’d have to text him, ruining the surprise. Before she could, the garage door to her left started rumbling as it lifted.

  She went back down the steps to find Jasper behind the wheel of a big, boxy SUV, his phone at his ear.

  In the next moment, her phone rang, and she realized he was calling her. “Hey,” she said, moving to catch his eye so he’d stop. “I’m on your front porch.”

  He whipped his attention back toward the house, braking hard enough to make a squealing sound. She lifted her hand and lowered her phone. He got out, and she took one look at him and knew something was wrong.

  “Hey,” she said casually anyway.

  “Sasha.” He engulfed her in a hug, and his pulse beat like hummingbird wings against her cheek. “I’m flying back to Switzerland,” he whispered into her hair. “My mother is ill, and I need to go.”

  Sasha gripped him tighter, knowing how much he disliked flying. Her first inclination was to offer to come with him, but she had no money for the ticket and no one to run her stand while she was gone.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I was hoping to see you before my flight.” He stepped back, seemingly undisturbed by the drizzling rain. “Why aren’t you at work?”

  “I decided to close for the day.” She
indicated the bad weather. “Come surprise you and see if you wanted to eat pizza beside your pool.”

  A fond smile adorned his face, but it wasn’t strong enough to push out the anxiety. “That sounds nice. But my flight is in ninety minutes.”

  “You go,” she said. “I know how to get into the house.” She put on a smile, hoping it would be enough to take with him across the ocean.

  He kissed her, this one with an edge she’d never felt before. Desperation, maybe. Worry. Fear.

  She tried to soothe him without words, but he looked just as tense when he finally waved and got behind the wheel of his SUV again. She watched him go, her arms wrapped around herself and not only because of the chill in the air.

  “Keep him safe,” she whispered to the banyan trees in his front yard. She didn’t really believe the plane would go down as it flew across the ocean, but Jasper did, and he was the one who mattered.

  She turned back to the house, because his place was more comfortable than hers and she was already here. He didn’t mind, and he did have that swimming pool….

  Sasha couldn’t remember the last time she’d taken a few hours and done nothing with them. Probably when Newt convinced her to let Amber run the stand alone while they hopped on a plane and went to the island of Lanai for the day.

  The wind had been calm and the sun perfect. Sasha had thought there wasn’t a more perfect man in the world, and she’d started dreaming in diamonds after that date.

  Too bad she found out that Amber had stolen half of the day’s profits while Sasha was out of the stand. And then that she’d slept with Newt while Sasha made sure everything was ready for the following day.

  Or maybe it was good she’d found out before too many commitments had been made, more money lost, and last names changed.

  No matter what, when she woke up from her poolside nap, Sasha felt relaxed and refreshed in a way she hadn’t since discovering Newt and Amber’s deception. She started flipping through her social media accounts, double-tapping to like Stacey’s beautiful banquet spread for the beach wedding she’d had at Aloha Hideaway on Valentine’s Day.