Fate

by Tia Wylder

  Jack blinked. “Oh, god,” he said, shaking his head. “Look, Adele, don’t go – we can work on Franchot today, I promise.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Yeah, and then what? One of your shareholders calls, and you get so excited that you run to the bar and get blackout drunk and forget all about it?”

  “That’s not fair,” Jack groaned. “I didn’t go to the bar to celebrate, I went because…” He trailed off, looking sheepish.

  I glared at him. “Because of what?”

  “Because I was embarrassed,” Jack said. He looked at me, and I shivered at the intensity of his gaze. Suddenly, I hated him. It was like no matter what happened between us, no matter how angry I was at Jack, I couldn’t turn off the powerful chemistry that flowed between our bodies. I couldn’t look at Jack without wanting to kiss him, to wrap my arms around his neck and pull him close and moan against his hard, muscular body.

  “Oh?” I winced – I knew I sounded like an idiot, but it was all I could say after such a confession.

  “Yeah,” Jack said lamely. He sighed. “Look, I know I probably shouldn’t have run to you and expected that you’d want to celebrate with me. But this is a big deal.”

  “I know,” I said angrily. “I’m well aware of that, Jack. You don’t have to—“

  Jack held a hand up in the air, effectively silencing me. “And it’s a big deal to my company. But Adele, I made you a promise. And I swear, I won’t let you down. We’ll take down Franchot as soon as we can.”

  I sighed. Part of me wanted to believe him. Hell, part of me wanted to do a lot more than that. Part of me wanted to throw myself against him, make out passionately, and drag him back into my hotel room. To hell with the flight, to hell with Jack’s stupid hotel plan, to hell with everything.

  I shrugged. I felt lame, awkward, like Jack could see right through me.

  “You promise?” I raised an eyebrow.

  “Yeah,” Jack said. He cleared his throat and stepped closer. A ripple of arousal went soaring through my body.

  Is he going to kiss me? I really want him to kiss me, I thought as I bit my lip and stared.

  Jack smirked. “Or, we could do something else,” he said, tossing his head and raising his eyebrows.

  I groaned. “I need to leave,” I said icily. “Or I’ll miss my flight.”

  Jack reached for my hand and twined his fingers with mine. He pulled me close and pressed me against the wall. Even though he smelled like sweat and scotch, I still found him irresistible. But as always, when we were together or about to be together, I found myself wondering about Jack’s true motives. What was he doing with someone like me?

  He could have anyone in the world.

  When our lips met, I couldn’t stop myself from swooning in his arms. I moaned softly as Jack slipped his tongue into my mouth and pressed me against the wall, pushing one of his muscular thighs between my legs until I cried out with arousal and pleasure. My belly felt hot and tight with lust, and my nipples were stiff peaks inside my bra. Our kiss grew deeper. Jack put his hands on my waist and slipped them under my shirt, brushing against my bare skin. I wanted him so badly that I was ready to take him right here, in the hallway, where anyone could see.

  Jack broke the kiss and stepped away. There was a devilish grin on his face, and he winked at me.

  “So,” Jack said casually, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms. “Feel like taking me back into that room? I can show you how sorry I am,” he added with a smirk.

  “What about Franchot?” My blood was pumping hot and thick through my veins in a torment of arousal. “What are we going to do about him?”

  “Adele, let’s worry about him later,” Jack said in a soothing voice.

  My lust disappeared, replaced by hot, tangible anger. It felt like molten lava in my belly, and for a moment, I felt like I was seeing red.

  “You don’t care about Franchot,” I spat, reaching down for my suitcase. “You just want to sleep with me!”

  Jack’s face fell. “Adele, come on,” he whined. “I was trying to lighten the mood!”

  “Yeah, well,” I growled. “You just made things worse. See you never, Jack Nathan.”

  Whirling around, I stormed down the hall and out of the hotel. I was halfway to the airport by the time I realized I’d forgotten to check out. For a moment, I almost told the driver to turn around. But then a smug, unpleasant smile stretched across my face.

  Fuck Jack, I thought. Let him be the one who checks me out – he’s already paying for my room! An extra day won’t kill him!

  The plane to Miami was packed, and I was barely able to squish into my seat. It was an uncomfortable flight, too, and I shifted and twitched the whole way. Now that I was away from Jack, my anger was starting to fade. But as soon as I pulled out my laptop and started scrolling through the news, it came rushing right back. There, on the front page of a national newspaper, was Franchot’s fat, smug face. The headline read: “Mega Developer Reaps Mega Benefits With New Project.”

  “Fuck you,” I muttered under my breath, slamming my laptop closed and stowing it in my bag.

  By the time I got back to Boston, it was late. I caught a cab from the airport even though I knew I shouldn’t spare the expense. I was exhausted, and the home was calling my name.

  Thankfully, Lisa was still awake. She was sitting on the couch. When she saw me, she raised an eyebrow.

  “So, you want me to order that pizza?”

  I collapsed on the couch and nodded blearily. “Yes, please.”

  “You look like hell,” Lisa said cheerfully as she reached for her laptop. “Olives and pineapple?”

  I nodded again, too exhausted to answer.

  After Lisa had ordered, she put her computer away and folded her long legs underneath of her body. “How was it?”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Not great, considering I’m back at home,” I muttered. “I can’t believe Jack. He’s such a complete asshole. You know he actually spent the night camped out in front of my hotel room?”

  “Aw,” Lisa said. “That’s…actually kind of sweet.”

  I groaned. “It’s not sweet,” I replied. “It’s creepy and weird. He was drunk, you know. Totally plastered.”

  “Still kind of cute,” Lisa said.

  “I was so mad at him,” I said, leaning back on the couch and raking a hand through my hair. “And now it all seems pointless. He apologized, too.”

  “Then why did you come home?”

  The doorbell rang before I could answer. Lisa got up and paid the pizza guy, then carried a delicious, steaming box over to the coffee table. I opened it and grabbed a slice, chewing greedily.

  “For pizza,” I said with a smirk after I’d swallowed. “I came home for pizza.”

  “I’m pretty sure they have pizza in Nassau,” Lisa said, narrowing her eyes.

  “Yeah, but nothing beats this.” I took another bite, savoring the chewy, salty, cheesy goodness that was melting in my mouth.

  Lisa gave me an annoyed look. “Seriously, Adele. Why did you come home if he apologized and everything?”

  I sighed. “Because he came onto me right after that,” I said.

  Lisa’s eyes widened. “He didn’t!”

  “He did,” I said. A memory of Jack’s passionate kisses came rushing back to the front of my mind, and I pushed it away, but it wouldn’t quite fade.

  “So, that’s why you left? Because you don’t like him?”

  I sighed. “I…I don’t know.”

  “How can you not? He’s gorgeous and rich, and he’s obviously interested in you. And hell, sure he may be a developer jerk, but he at least cares about the environment a little bit. I don’t think you could do better,” Lisa said pragmatically.

  I frowned. “That’s just it,” I said slowly. “I can’t believe that Jack seriously wants anything to do with me. I’m a nobody, a nothing – I’m a grad student, for fuck’s sake! And he’s this billionaire playboy who gets everything he wants.”

&nb
sp; Lisa bit her lip. “If he keeps coming on to you, he must like you,” she said. “And honey, you’re not giving yourself enough credit. You know you’re pretty.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “I don’t care about being pretty,” I said. “I care about defeating Franchot and exposing him for the criminal that he really is.”

  “Then I’d let Jack help you,” Lisa said archly as she reached for a piece of pizza. “Because I don’t think you’ll be able to do it without him.”

  As I nibbled at a bite of pizza crust, deep down I knew that Lisa was right.

  Chapter Ten

  Jack

  As I watched Adele lugging her suitcase down the hallway of the Hotel St. Charles, I groaned and leaned against the wall. What the fuck was I doing, mooning after her like some stupid teenager?

  But I couldn’t help it. I was starting to realize that Adele was the perfect woman for me…if only she could keep that damned temper in check.

  Without Adele around, there wasn’t much I could do about Franchot. I’d sworn to find out as much as I could, so I went back to my room and called Barnes.

  “Hello?”

  “It’s me,” I said shortly. “I need you to work faster on Franchot – we need some hard evidence.”

  To my annoyance, Barnes snickered. “And why would we do that?”

  Because Adele is getting annoyed, I thought. But there was no way I could tell Barnes that without hearing him accuse me of being pussy-whipped.

  “Because I need to start work on my own development at the moment,” I said. “And the sooner we can get Franchot behind us and move on, the better.”

  “I see, I see, so industrious of you,” Barnes replied lazily. “Well, I’ll call in a team of paralegals and have them get to work. I can start this afternoon. I’m not doing anything better.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Ah, the life of a lawyer,” I said sarcastically. “I should’ve gone to law school, instead.”

  “Yeah, but then who would’ve helped out your old man?”

  I groaned. “I was kidding, jerk,” I said. “Look, put some kids on Franchot today and then circle back to me later. I want to make sure this is being handled.”

  “Okay, okay,” Barnes said. “Sheesh, you’re getting so demanding!”

  We said our goodbyes and hung up. I stretched – I was still feeling miserable and hungover – but I was starting to realize that I should make the most of my time in Nassau. Sure, Adele had gone home because she didn’t think there was anything here still worth doing…but she was wrong, and I knew it.

  I took a hot shower and changed into a clean pair of jeans and a button-down shirt. The sun was bright and sunny without a single cloud, and I was tempted to shirk my duties and go down to the beach. But I knew I had to go meet with the builders – when I’d been in the shower, I’d gotten an email from the building crew – they were already starting in the wilds of Nassau. With a reluctant last gaze out my penthouse suite window, I left my hotel room with a pair of sunglasses perched on my head and a huge bottle of water in my hand.

  Outside it was hotter than hell. As soon as I stepped away from the sea air, it felt twenty degrees hotter and more humid than I could have possibly imagined. By the time I made my way into the jungle, sweat was pouring down my face. My formerly-crisp shirt was sticking to my back, and I was fanning myself. I gulped water, chugging almost the whole bottle in a matter of seconds.

  Thankfully, I didn’t have long to walk. The construction site was located about two miles from the edge of the Hotel St. Charles property, and I could see that bulldozers and men were already hard at work, clearing the worst of the trees and brush away.

  “Hey there!” I called loudly.

  One of the men glanced up from a clipboard. When he saw me, his tanned face split into a broad grin.

  “Mr. Nathan! Hello! So good of you to stop by,” he said in a crisp British accent before making his way over to me. He was wearing a yellow hard-hat and black boots that were soaked with mud and grime.

  “How’s it going?” I shielded my eyes from the sun and looked into his face. “Making progress, I see.”

  The man nodded. “Yes,” he said. “I’m the foreman, you can call me Bruce.”

  We shook hands. He had a strong, intense grip that made me smile.

  “Everything looks perfect.” I looked over his shoulder and stole a glance at the clipboard. “Are those projections.”

  “Yes, sir,” Bruce replied. “Why don’t you come with me, I’ll show you around the building site.”

  I nodded. Bruce led me through a densely forested area that abruptly led to a small cliff overlooking the sea.

  “This is where we’ll start,” Bruce said, pointing out at the horizon. “We’ll have a small runway for a private plane to land – don’t worry, that won’t be in the view of the suites – and build a large harbor and dock right here, so ships can dock and passengers can disembark. Then we’re going to build a magnificent staircase, all out of local wood, that leads to the center of the property.”

  I could practically see it now – my property in Nassau was going to be my biggest achievement yet.

  “Wow,” I said. “Bruce, I have to say, this is all very impressive.”

  Bruce smiled modestly. “Just working with your plans, sir,” he said. “I studied architecture extensively, and I want to assure you that everything about this property will be completely natural. There will be a blend of wildlife and nature that will make your clients feel both isolated and secluded in nature. It will be a perfect romantic spot for honeymooners or any couple that wants to take a special trip to the most beautiful part of the world.”

  I grinned. “This is all perfect,” I said. “Tell me about your plans for the small bungalows.”

  Bruce led me away from the cliff and back into the sweltering heat of the trees.

  “Each bungalow will be roughly two thousand square feet,” Bruce said. “With a master bedroom suite and a luxury bathroom including a tropical waterfall shower and a large soaking tub made of copper. There will be a smaller bathroom included, and the living room can be rearranged to accommodate additional guests.”

  “That all sounds perfect,” I said. “And I want a lot of glass – glass windows from floor to ceiling in each bungalow.”

  Bruce narrowed his eyes. “That might be difficult considering the hurricane season,” he said. “But I’m sure we’ll find a way to make it work.”

  “Good,” I said. I clapped him on the shoulder. “I trust you.”

  Bruce nodded. “Good,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll love what we’re going to make.”

  “And what about pools?”

  “The resort complex will have four pools – three cascading pools, and one small private pool facing the other side of the island.”

  “I want a bar in that pool,” I said. “As well as a bar in the main complex of the resort, and twenty-four-hour room service.”

  “Very good, sir,” Bruce replied. He glanced down at the clipboard. “We won’t be handling such small details for a long time, but I’ll keep your notes at the front of my mind.”

  I smiled. “Perfect.” Talking with Bruce had almost made me forget the blistering heat.

  “I’m sure this is going to be a well-loved property,” Bruce said. “May I show you the tiered plans we have for the bungalows?”

  “Of course.”

  I followed Bruce back into the clearing, and he pulled a large binder from a dusty crate on the ground. He handed it over to me, and I started flipping through. Immediately, a grin spread across my face. The plans were fantastic – even better than I’d imagined. Each bungalow opened to a private small pool as well as access to the gorgeous sea. It was more than luxury – it was an entirely new way of living. My development wasn’t just going to attract affluent couples on honeymoon. It was going to attract every wealthy person in the world, every person who wanted to have an unforgettable experience that they’d never forget.

  “Well? Sir?
” Bruce glanced up at me. “What do you think of the plans?”

  “They’re wonderful,” I said honestly, handing the binder back to him. “And I think we should keep this relatively small – we don’t want our guests to feel overwhelmed. I want to make sure they have our attentions every hour of the day, that their every need is anticipated.”

  “Of course, sir,” Bruce said. “I can arrange that.”

  “Perfect,” I said. I had to admit, I was already thinking about bringing Adele here when everything was done. Surely she’d want to spend time with me, even after Franchot had been vanquished.