Chapter Four
Joshua thought Jade was amazing, and the only duplicity he sensed in her was when she’d lied about not being afraid to jump off the small cliff at the waterfall. Her hand had been trembling in his and he’d seen the terror in her eyes, but she’d still jumped, not once but three times. She was impressive, fun, smart, and beautiful.
He was even more conflicted about the accusations against her. They’d spent almost an hour in the lower and upper pool of the falls, and then they’d found a roadside shack for lunch before making their way through a few different sea caves that were nearby the falls. She took everything in with a sense of awe and innocence he found refreshing. His family was impressive and he loved them all, but they’d grown up with money, traveling and seeing the wonders of the world. They all would’ve enjoyed the waterfall and sea caves, but none of them besides Paisley would’ve been very impressed with today, because they’d seen the same sites numerous times. His sisters would claim that today had been enjoyable because Jade was a gorgeous member of the opposite sex. He might just be lonely. Yet he thought Jade could be very special—if she wasn’t the one stealing money from his company.
He and Jade were planning to meet for dinner at the Japanese restaurant at his resort tonight. He was half tempted to take off his hat and sunglasses and kiss Jade good night, but when he got back to his room and read his emails, all the doubts and worries crept back in.
He now had numerous questions that would make it hard for him to trust her. All the basic reports on Jade were great. There were no issues, and she was well-liked and hard-working. He was finding more and more that he wanted Jade to be genuine. The problem was that none of the other people who worked closely with Curtis had any bad reports either. He was supposed to spend the next week on a cruise with Curtis and his closest staff; hopefully, he’d find out the truth then.
The other, just as worrisome item was that he’d asked his personal assistant to look into Jade Jardine. He hated himself for being paranoid, but that was him, and he didn’t know how to change it until someone proved they could be trusted. Before he’d even showered from the day’s adventures, he’d read his assistant’s email response, which showed that everything Jade had revealed about herself was the truth. She’d gotten an MBA from Stanford, had grown up in Colorado with only one sister, and worked up in his company until she was Curtis’s assistant. She’d simply forgotten to share one huge part of her life: a blog and related social media calledCream the Celebrity.
Joshua recognized the hypocrisy in being upset that she’d hidden her side job from him when he was lying about who he was, but the name of her site alone worried him enough that he wasn’t sure if he’d turn up for dinner. He took a long shower and then let himself open up his laptop and read through her blog, watching a few snippets of the videos. She was adorable and completely herself as she interviewed well-known and obscure celebrities. Her “about me” on the site explained that at Stanford, she’d made several close friends who came from celebrity families or who themselves went on to be celebrities. They all wanted their true stories shared with the world. That led to other contacts and other interviews. She only posted about one a month, and it looked like it had been going for several years.
Jade was professional and honestly rarely “creamed” anyone, but it all had his gut and neck feeling tight. Did she know who he was and was flirting with him and being so adorable so she could reveal to the world who he was? He loved his anonymity and his privacy. Oddly enough, she hadn’t tried to take even a selfie with him. He was much too enthralled with this woman he’d only spent two days with. He should walk away now, before either of them got invested.
The other thing he’d seen on the blog was that she donated most of her money to Health for All, a worldwide children’s charity. Curtis had explained earlier that Jade Jardine was passionate about Health for All, and she’d asked that they donate the proceeds of their last charity auction to it. Nobody had thought much about it, until the embezzlement came to light and they’d found that part of the money had been donated to Health for All. Here was another indicator that all was not what he hoped with Jade. Unless she was being set up.
Pacing his suite, he glanced at the time. Five minutes after seven. He was supposed to meet her at seven. He headed to the balcony and rubbed at his neck. Should he reveal who he was, keep his hat and sunglasses on, or simply stay away? Jade was a smart girl. If he didn’t turn up, she’d get the message. She’d survive. His stomach went from tight to squeamish. Would he?
* * *
Jade got more dolled up than she probably should’ve for dinner that night, wearing a black fitted dress that she’d brought for the formal night of the cruise. She added some color with a jade pendant necklace, a bracelet, and earrings to match, and she took extra care with her makeup and hair. She got to the restaurant at five to seven and told the maître d’ she was waiting for someone. He escorted her to the bar, and the young, flirtatious bartender immediately started teasing her about looking so beautiful but being alone and only wanting a water with lemon.
“Somebody as gorgeous as you should let her hair down. Try my Mai Tai. It’s almost as delicious as you.”
Jade simply grinned and let him tease, casting her eyes toward the opening to the restaurant every twenty seconds or so. She finished her water but declined more. She crossed and uncrossed her legs several times, then took to twisting the bracelet on her wrist.
At ten minutes past seven, the bartender leaned across the bar and said, “I either need to give you a Mai Tai or drink one myself so I don’t level this guy for showing up late.”
Jade’s smile was forced. “Unfortunately, I don’t drink, so you might have to drink it for me.”
His smile looked equally stilted. “If he stands you up, I’ll take a break, okay?”
“Thank you.” She appreciated the kindness behind his offer.
Movement at the entryway caught her eye, and she turned quickly. Jesse strode into the restaurant, looking powerful, confident, and in charge of the whole world. He wore a tailored navy-blue suit that fit his body perfectly with a crisp, white shirt underneath open at the collar with no tie. And as she’d grown accustomed to, he was wearing sunglasses and a gray fedora that looked great with his suit. At least it wasn’t a baseball cap, but dang, she’d been hoping for no hat tonight, and she was moments from ripping off those sunglasses.
Jesse’s head turned toward her, and Jade stood, noting the appreciative smile on his lips and hating that she couldn’t see his eyes. He started her direction.
The bartender cursed behind her and then muttered, “That’swho you were waiting for?”
“Yes.” Jade couldn’t tear her eyes from Jesse, but she managed to ask, “Why?”
“Have a good night, ma’am,” was all she got before he disappeared behind the bar.
Jesse reached her, and behind the glasses, he seemed to be carefully looking her over. “You look amazing,” he finally murmured in a husky voice.
“You look amazing, and hilarious,” she shot back. “Sunglasses inside at night, really?”
Jesse gave her a slight grin, but it seemed tight, definitely not his natural smile. “It’s a new fashion statement I’m working on. Shall I start singing, ‘I wear my sunglasses at night’?”
“Oh, please don’t. Let’s try the outfit without the hat and sunglasses and I might find you completely irresistible,” she suggested.
Instead of laughing, his lips pressed thinner and he offered his hand. “Dinner?”
“I’m starving. Waiting on some guy.”
“Forgive me,” he apologized. “Catching up on work.”