“Tell me you’ll stay, Jasmine,” his voice was gentle, and he was stroking the skin between her neck and her shoulders.
***
Jasmine’s mother sat at the head of the table. She had showered, changed into a different suit and combed her neat bob back, as usual. Despite her manners, she couldn’t keep the look of shock and confusion from her face as she watched in silence as Jasmine and Marvin sat beside each other on one side of the table.
“So you’re telling me that you both had a meeting last evening after I went to sleep?” she finally spoke and consciously cleared her throat. She was in complete denial of her own drunken state and Jasmine couldn’t help but smirk.
“Yes, Mom, and we realized that there has been a huge misunderstanding,” Jasmine replied, looking over to Marvin for support.
“Mrs. Kiberd, I want to assure you that the fault was entirely mine. I’m afraid I wasn’t on my best behavior last evening and it might have come across as disinterest in your property,” Marvin said, his voice smooth and reassuring as he spoke to her mother, looking her directly in the eye.
“Please don’t apologize, Mr. Byrne. If there is anybody who understands, it is me. This house has that effect on us does it not?” Camilla said and looked around the dining room, as if anticipating her father’s ghost to appear out of the dusty corners.
“It does indeed,” Marvin said and looked over to Jasmine and they exchanged smiles while her mother wasn’t looking.
“The fact is, Mrs. Kiberd, that I am interested in this house if you are interested in selling it to me,” Marvin said, and her mother gave a short sarcastic laugh.
“I’d do anything to be rid of it. What I don’t understand is why you would want to own it, Mr. Byrne. I cannot imagine that you feel sentimental towards it.”
Marvin cleared his throat and glanced at Jasmine again before looking back at her mother. He took in a deep breath.
“I want to destroy it. Burn it to the ground,” he said slowly and watched as Jasmine’s mother’s expression went from shock to satisfaction. She was smiling at him.
“I don’t know why I didn’t think of it,” she said, after a minute of silence.
“He wants to use this land to build a school here,” Jasmine spoke up and looked proudly over at him.
“That is brilliant news! This place will finally come to good use, and you, of course, have experience in it,” her mother said and a wave of relief visibly flooded her body.
“And I want your daughter to help me with it,” Marvin said and Camilla’s face betrayed renewed shock.
“I accepted the offer, Mom. What can be better than running my own school in an idyllic seaside location?” Jasmine giggled, and she felt Marvin reach over and squeeze her hand under the table.
“That’s rather surprising, you’re only a kindergarten teacher, Jasmine,” Camilla said and looked from Jasmine to Marvin.
“Yes, Marvin is aware of that, but he believes I might have insight he can use,” Jasmine’s voice had changed to desperation, she didn’t want to argue with her mother in front of Marvin; God knows he didn’t need more reminders of the gap in age between them.
“Now, Mrs. Kiberd, I’ll have my lawyer send over the paperwork to you in a few days if you don’t mind, and then we can get this over and done with,” Marvin said, changing the subject. He got up from his chair and so did the others. He stretched out his arm towards Jasmine’s mother and they shook hands. She couldn’t help but notice the broad smile on her mother’s face.
“Now, how about some of that promised whiskey?” Marvin asked and Jasmine looked at her wristwatch.
“It’s only five Marvin. Too early for whiskey is it not?” she asked him while her mother happily walked out of the room and towards the drawing room.
“I thought you were on a holiday?” Marvin teased her and raised an eyebrow. Jasmine shook her head and giggled just as he reached and grabbed her by the waist and pulled her towards him. She placed her hands on his shoulders and they rested their foreheads against each other’s.
“Your mother didn’t sound too pleased by the idea of your moving here,” Marvin said softly while they smiled at each other.
“She’s just taken aback by it, but we can’t help it can we? Undeniable attraction,” Jasmine said and closed her eyes for a kiss.
Chapter 9
Jasmine heard her mother’s car long before she could see it drive through the wrought-iron, front gates.
“She’s here!” Jasmine turned away from the window to face Marvin who was sitting behind his desk, signing the papers that she had placed before him a few minutes ago. He grunted in response and then looked at her over the small rectangular glasses he sometimes remembered to wear. Jasmine had now bought three extra pairs which she placed around the house so that he always had a pair handy when he needed them.
“Best of luck,” he said and smiled. That smile never failed to reassure her.
“Darling!” Camilla threw her arms around Jasmine when she greeted her mother at the front door a few minutes later. “You look older.”
“It’s only been a year, Mom!” Jasmine shook her head, but she knew what her mother meant. She felt older herself, in a good and desirable way. She still hadn’t figured out what Marvin had seen in her a year ago, to give her the responsibility of starting a school from scratch.
“But look at you!” Her mother dramatically twirled her around and admired Jasmine’s knee length black skirt and the white blouse she had tucked into it.
“You look like a lady,” her mother said and walked over hurriedly to give Marvin a hug, who had only just emerged from his study.
“Percy will show you to your room, Mom,” Jasmine said as their newly appointed butler picked up the bags that Camilla had dropped to the floor, and she followed him. Marvin had insisted on hiring a butler and a cook after Jasmine moved in; she had no idea how he lived before that.
“The last thing I want is for my mother to think I’m well-dressed. I need to change my wardrobe entirely,” Jasmine whispered to Marvin as he joined her and placed a hand on the small of her back. He laughed at that.
“Don’t let her get to you my love,” he said and Jasmine couldn’t help but feel a shiver of delight run through her body. She was his love. She looked over at him admiringly, and he looked back with a smile.
Camilla’s voice from the upstairs guest room interrupted the moment they were having. “This is beautiful Marvin! What an absolutely gorgeous bedroom,” she said as she came down the stairs.
“It looked like a dump before Jasmine worked her magic on it,” Marvin said and kept his hand steady on Jasmine’s back. Camilla’s eyes flickered in disbelief.
“Who would have known,” she said and came to a halt before them. Jasmine tried her best to not roll her eyes.
“So when do I get a tour of this school I’ve been hearing so much about?” Camilla asked and turned her attention to admiring the layout of the vestibule.
“It’s still underway mom. At least six more months of construction, and then we’ll be good to go,” Jasmine said and exchanged happy looks with Marvin.
“Jasmine has been very helpful with marketing and getting the word out,” Marvin said just as Percy joined them to announce that he had served tea in the drawing room.
“I’m sure you didn’t need much marketing Marvin. Mornmouth House is enough marketing is it not?” Camilla said with a laugh and followed Percy. Jasmine could see her mother’s awe at the grandeur of the house. If she knew her mother at all, she was certain Camilla was wondering why Marvin’s mother would ever leave all of this and run away with a married man.
“It’s a very competitive world out there, Mrs. Kiberd. An old private school name isn’t good enough any longer. This one has to stand on its own merit,” Marvin said, a serious tone had entered his voice, and Jasmine immediately regretted inviting her mother. She didn’t want the next few days to be about Marvin defending Jasmine.
They drank their tea while making small
talk. Marvin and Jasmine sat very close together, her bare legs grazing Marvin’s pants. She could see Camilla notice the times Marvin reached out to squeeze her hand.
“I’m happy to see you both so well settled,” Camilla said after Percy had cleared the teacups away. Jasmine felt relieved instantly. The fact that her mother was saying this was enough.
“We are, Mrs. Kiberd,” Marvin said and stood up from the sofa. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some business to attend to.” He bent down to kiss Jasmine on the top of her head and then walked out of the room, whistling a tune softly under his breath.
Camilla turned to look at her daughter. “How has all this happened? You’ve given me no explanation over the telephone, Jasmine. You seem practically married”.
Jasmine laughed and stood up herself, “Relax, Mom, just be happy for us, like you said you were. Isn’t this exactly what you wanted for me?” she started walking towards the door.
“You should unwind, Mom;, Percy will serve dinner in two hours, and we can talk more then.” Jasmine felt good telling her mother what to do for a change. The pieces seemed to all have fallen together.
***
She closed the door of his study softly behind her and found Marvin sitting on his shaggy, comfortable couch, sipping from a glass of whisky.
Jasmine giggled, “I’m glad you came up with the code, Marvin. You have business to attend to, seems natural enough,” she said and hopped on to his lap, straddling him. Marvin’s hands wound themselves around her waist as he pulled her closer to him. She could immediately feel his penis harden and begin to rise underneath her.
“Well, this is the business I have to attend to. So I wasn’t lying,” he said gruffly as she pulled his glasses off his face and placed them on the side table. She clutched his head between her hands and pressed it against her breasts. He started to nibble the fabric of her blouse and she bit down on her lip.
“Do you want to go outside, to that spot?” she asked him, and he stopped. He didn’t answer but when he picked her up and started walking towards the door, she knew they were going to scandalize her mother.
THE END
My Holid
ay Billionaire
Pamela Avery
Copyright ©2015 by Pamela Avery. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Thank you so much for your interest in my work!
Chapter One
Alexandra Jordan’s big blue eyes filled with unshed tears as the plane taxied down the runway, increasing its speed exponentially, before rising into the air, its powerful engines vibrating beneath her wings.
She tossed her head, deliberately hiding her face beneath her cloud of riotous blonde curls as she stared out at the rapidly diminishing landscape. Her seat mate, a batty old woman in her nineties chattered incessantly, trying to draw Alexandra into conversation. After several minutes engaged in what turned out to be a droning monologue, the woman took the hint and relaxed back against her seat.
I should be happy, Alexandra told herself. I should be ecstatic, over the moon; I should be the one talking the old woman’s ear off!
She had won a trip to freaking Hawaii and was flying first class for the first time in her entire life; plus she was going to spend two exotic weeks at a five-star resort; all expenses paid, and yet she could barely summon a smile.
She knew why, of course, her eyes filling anew as she ducked her head; she was mourning the death of her relationship of five years. It had ended just two days ago when she had borrowed Andrew’s phone to show him the email she had received about winning the trip. She had seen a text message that came in at that very second, “Hey Baby…remember, I’m serious…no more unprotected sex!. Pleeeease bring condoms! I miss you!”
Her mouth tightened now again as she recalled how her hand had shook as she looked up in shock, her disbelieving eyes zeroing in on where her fiancé was calmly sipping the bowl of soup she had made for him.
“Who is Cindy Jacobs?” she had asked in a shrill voice she barely recognized as her own.
Andrew had paused, his hand arrested half-way to his mouth and then he had blithely informed her, his eyes turning hard as he obviously braced himself and said, “She’s the woman I love.”
Alexandra shut her eyes now in remembered pain as she recalled the strange tunneling sound she had heard after that. A part of her had been afraid she might even be having a small stroke at the time.
Andrew had simply glared down at her as he rose to his feet and announced he had been dying to tell her that he had had enough, but now was as good a time as any. Then before her shell-shocked eyes, he had marched into the bedroom, grabbed a small duffel bag, and was heading towards the door before she could so much as sneeze.
The worst part was that whenever she remembered that encounter, what stood out most in her mind’s eyes was the apparent disgust etched onto his features as he looked at her. The pain was still there, but she wished she could believe it when she told herself that he didn’t deserve her. Her weight had always been a sore subject for her and he had known exactly what button to press. At the same time she knew her own self-worth and she wanted to be with a man who saw her as beautiful. She knew that she had to believe it first though. As he had left he had actually had the balls and gall to say “And lose some weight!” Thankfully, in this one instance she did not regret her temper. Before she had a chance to stop it, she had slammed her fist into his nose before shutting the door in his face. What a dick, she thought now.
At the time, she had promptly dissolved into tears but he didn’t know that, so that was alright.
She had been so devastated that she had actually considered not going on the trip at all. Her best friend and partner, Claire Davies had practically shoved her out the door insisting that Beautiful Designs, their Interior design company, could survive without her for two weeks. Beautiful Designs was her pride and joy; through sheer grit and determination, the company had risen from being a tiny corner shop to a corporation responsible for at least two hundred employees with branches in three states. The best part was, they were still growing and if she had anything to say about it in the next ten years, it would become a mega-corporation. She was the CEO but sometimes, like today, she felt about as clueless as the janitor.
In hindsight, she realized he had actually been gradually moving out on her for a while which explained why he had needed no more than a second to stroll out with just one little duffel bag containing all his belongings.
Raw pain shredded her heart anew and she leaned her head against the headrest of her seat and let the tears flow freely, unchecked as the powerful plane continued to burst through the sky. With every second she was getting further away from what was, and closer to what could be, she realized. Maybe the trip would be good for her.
***
“Sí Señor,” the hotel Manager crooned, bowing so low it was a wonder his head didn’t touch his knees as he smiled up with sycophantic worship at the tall, powerfully built man in front of him.
Alexandra tried not to roll her eyes as she watched the pair. The tall man murmured something in what was obviously meant to be a low tone. Given his very deep baritone voice, however, it carried right to her. She noted disinterestedly that he was speaking Spanish and tried not to start tapping her foot in impatience as the Manager started opening drawers and flipping ledgers in a flurry of urgent movements.
Unable to bear the wait any longer, she said waspishly, “If you two are done with your bromance moment perhaps you would be so kind as to point me in the direction of a bar. Watching the pair of you is so painful I could certainly use a big, strong ─” her voice trailed off into silence as the large man turned to look at her.
All thoughts fled as she locked eyes with what had to be one of the most amazin
g specimens of human being she had ever laid eyes on. He had a tawny mane of windswept hair that scattered around his head in a most becoming and arresting manner. He also had the most captivating pair of dark, dark eyes she had ever seen. They were so dark they were almost black and so intense she could have sworn she could fall into them. His features were finely chiseled with a granite jaw, a long aristocratic nose, and a firm upper lip. His lower lip was surprisingly full. His shoulders had to be at least a mile wide. There was a quality about him, something that reminded her of a big jungle cat about to spring. His tuxedo spelled class and money and was so impeccably tailored and well-fitted on his large, slim frame that she knew it had to have been custom-made. Expertly, her eyes picked out the unique Dormeuil Vanquish II cut of his tux. The man was the last word in gorgeous and very wealthy by the look of things. That tux had to have cost something in the neighborhood of a hundred thousand dollars!
Alexandra tried not to grind her teeth as it occurred to her that sometimes God did give with both hands.
The man grinned lazily, his dark eyes gleaming down at her as he said, “Big, strong what? Cup of coffee, I hope. Not much chance of you getting much else here miss.”
Alexandra bristled at that. At twenty-eight, she was curvy and voluptuous with large breasts and broad hips, a smooth, unlined face and in her opinion, healthy strong arms. She’d always resented it though, and now was no exception, especially when he made it sound like she had been going to say ‘big strong man’. So she was not the most attractive woman in the world. That did not give a total stranger the right to comment on her looks.
“I’m not sure what you mean,” she began in a low, dark, warning tone “But I don’t like the insinuation.”
Amusement glinted in his eyes as he deliberately raked his eyes down her pretty gamine features. She had wide blue eyes; full blonde curls that made him think of his little nephews and their favorite cartoon character Goldilocks; she had full, pouty lips that invited a man to lean down and taste them, a pair of delectable-looking boobs the size of small throw-pillows, and delectable hips that just made him want to wrap his hands around them. She was a complete knockout in his eyes.
Shifter Romance: BODHI (LOST CREEK SHIFTERS NOVELLAS Book 4) Page 55
