Queen of His Daydreams: Billionaire Breakfast Club #1.5 (Camp Firefly Falls Book 23)

by Lisa Hughey

  “What’s got you in such a good mood?” An edge invaded his voice.

  She nudged him hard. “Someone’s a grumpy puss this morning.”

  “So?”

  “You’ll be happy in a bit.”

  “After I cook myself breakfast?” RJ asked. “Not sure what I was thinking, this is supposed to be like a weekend vacation along with the meetings. I don’t even cook my breakfast at home.”

  “Just wait.” She shot him another big “I’ve got a secret” smile, which suddenly had his suspicion meter going haywire.

  What had she done? RJ had worked hard to get the agenda perfect. Any deviations in his master plan would throw off his expectations for what he wanted to accomplish this weekend. But before he could grill her, she scampered away.

  The mood in the large room was muted. His employees sat around in small groups, looking, for the most part, slightly hungover. In the background, the camp staff set up the round tables for dining. Sherry stayed in the back, as far away from RJ as she could possibly get and he didn’t think it was an accident. Which just contributed to his hideous mood.

  Diego and Penny sauntered in hand in hand, looking so happy it was disgusting. He admitted to himself that he was just envious.

  “Good morning, everyone!” Zinnia waved to the crowd.

  “Jesus, she’s way too cheerful this morning,” someone grumped.

  “I heard that, Chad.”

  The crowd laughed.

  “Apologies, Zinnia.”

  “So this morning’s activity is a cook-off.” Zin’s eyes sparkled with some emotion RJ couldn’t quite identify, but something was definitely up.

  She quickly called out names, changing up the groups from yesterday. “Best breakfast wins $50 Shaw’s gift cards for everyone in that group.”

  “I’m thinking a killer Bloody Mary.”

  “Eggs benedict.”

  “Pancakes.”

  “All of the above,” RJ said over the growing murmurs, trying to summon up some enthusiasm. Lead by example. Wasn’t that what he told Sherry?

  Diego raised his hand. “Before we start, I’ve got something to say.”

  He curved his hands around Penny’s waist and lifted her onto the countertop. She yelped, and then laughed.

  “Oh no, not again,” Alma muttered.

  “Last year, in this very room…” Diego gestured expansively but he didn’t take his gaze from Penny. And the love and devotion there caused a lump in RJ’s throat. Fuck, he wanted that. His gaze automatically tracked to Sherry. She was riveted to the floor, watching the exchange between his cousin and Penny. “Penny agreed to give me a second chance.”

  Another in the crowd said, “Well he can’t quit, since he already did that.”

  “So it’s only fitting that back at Camp Firefly Falls, the place I found the love of my life, that we continue our journey.”

  Wait, was he…?

  Diego dropped to one knee. “Penelope Hastings, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

  She tugged him to his feet and leaned in to him. “Yes.”

  Diego kissed her passionately, and everyone in the room clapped enthusiastically. Then Diego whispered in her ear.

  “What!” She drew back, the shock on her face evident.

  He whispered something else in her ear and she threw her arms around his neck. “Yes!”

  Zin was bouncing on her toes.

  Diego turned around and addressed the room. “You are all cordially invited to our wedding…at five o’clock this afternoon.”

  This afternoon.

  But they had plans. Round tables. Serious discussions about the future of Ramos CAR. This would throw everything off.

  The executive in him was frustrated beyond belief. Even though he was thrilled for Diego, his cousin had just thrown a major wrench into all his plans.

  Then it hit him. His cousin was getting married. This afternoon. Suddenly Zinnia’s stress about the weekend made so much more sense.

  The room erupted into pandemonium, with employees clapping and cheering. Everyone circled around the couple to offer their congratulations. And the love on Diego and Penny’s faces caused something to twist in his heart, that ache from earlier intensifying. He wanted that.

  RJ couldn’t help but seek out Sherry again, but she was gone.

  Chapter 11

  Sherry was helping set up the boathouse for the reception. Fairy lights were draped along the rafters. The tables were dressed with centerpieces of birch bark, evergreen swaths, ferns, and blousy pale pink peonies and a single large votive in a beaded glass that would shimmer when the candle was lit.

  The staff tied napkins with sparkly organza white ribbon and a sprig of Queen Anne’s lace and placed one on top of each white ceramic plate. A rectangular table was placed up on a dais, for the bridal party, near the front of the room. In the back corners, two bars made from reclaimed wood from the forest were stocked with all kinds of liquor.

  Another long table along one wall was laden with white glossy gift bags, decorated with shimmery organza ribbon and more Queen Anne’s lace, and stamped Diego and Penny in gold.

  Along the far wall, a string of banquet tables was set up for a buffet line. And just outside the tent the grills were set up for a burger bar.

  The room was elegant yet simple.

  And while the decorations didn’t take long to lay out, the expense to get this all done last minute was pretty crazy. But as Sherry went around the room checking each table for all the elements, the money wasn’t what was sticking in her head.

  It was the joy on Diego Ramos’s face when Penny Hastings had agreed to marry him in an impromptu ceremony. Penny hadn’t been upset or shocked. She’d been thrilled. She agreed to get married within hours without any kind of input. What kind of bride does that?

  Weren’t women supposed to dream of their fantasy wedding ever since they were little girls? Not that Sherry had. Love and marriage hadn’t been on her list since her mother sat her down and gave her the facts of life.

  Except lately, as she’d been thinking about what she wanted to do with her life, she realized that she wanted a relationship. A real relationship. Like RJ had described his parents’.

  “Hey.”

  Sherry jumped and whirled around. Her heart thudded against her breastbone, hard. “You startled me.”

  “Yeah, sorry,” RJ said. “Haven’t seen you around.”

  “I’ve been busy.” She asked what had been on her mind all day. “Why would you want all your coworkers at your wedding?”

  Because if she ever got married, she couldn’t imagine inviting work people.

  “We’re not just a company, we’re a family.”

  Sherry rolled her eyes. “Yeah, heard that BS before.” Usually right before someone got fired. Her last boss had fired his brother for overusing the company credit card.

  “Seriously. Here’s an example: Diego isn’t just Alma’s boss, he’s also godfather to her granddaughter. Her daughter and son-in-law also work for the company.”

  “That’s very unusual.”

  He shrugged. “It works for us.”

  “Don’t they resent how much money he has…you have?”

  “First off, Diego is the wealthy one. And secondly, he worked twenty-hour days for years to get the company to where we are today.”

  “I know that. I read the information on Ramos Classic Auto Restoration last year when London Automotive was planning to merge with you.” So she could brief Jeffrey on the merger. “And you managed to survive even without combining companies.”

  “After the merger fell through last year, we debuted a software app that pushed the company over the billion-dollar mark.”

  “Which is great…for you and Diego.”

  “When the company does well, everyone wins.”

  “Okay.” But she must have still sounded skeptical.

  “In the past year, we’ve started several programs to make sure our employees are happy and satis
fied, like Penny’s corporate farm initiative. And we instituted monthly round table discussions about how to improve profitability.”

  “So your changes have resulted in better working conditions?”

  He looked affronted. “Not that they were bad to begin to with. But of course.”

  “And every single employee loves working there?”

  His mouth tightened. A telling sign. “There are one or two who might not be over-the-moon happy. But overall our employee morale is in the ninety percent range.”

  That sounded pretty good to her. “Then why do you worry that people will think you didn’t earn your spot?”

  RJ blinked. Smiled. Reached for her.

  She pranced away from him and glanced around furtively. “What are you doing?” she hissed.

  “Trying to get a kiss. Not very successfully though.” He curled his palms around her biceps. Just the touch of his rough hands on her skin made her shiver.

  “I’m working, RJ.” But her voice came out husky as her body reacted to him. How could that simple touch cause goose bumps and her nipples to pebble in response to his heated murmur?

  “Just to tide me over.” He pulled her toward him and wrapped his arms around her. He brushed his lips over hers. “Until round three.”

  “This is a bad idea,” she said against his mouth, but the lure of a moment in his arms was hard to resist.

  “Yet oh, so good.”

  He made her laugh as she pulled away from the stealthy embrace.

  He rubbed his fingers over his brow.

  “What’s wrong?”

  He glanced around at the wedding setup. “The wedding has cut into my plans for this retreat.”

  He’d surprised her. For all his talk of family, that wasn’t what she expected. “Aren’t you happy for them?”

  “Of course. But I was supposed to be cementing my position and making sure our employees have confidence in me to get the job done.”

  “And now everyone’s focused on the wedding.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you…need any help?”

  He paused, looked at her with a warmth that spread through her like honey.

  “You know, adjusting the schedule or anything like that. I used to do all the company programming and I frequently had to adjust on the fly.” Because her boss was a pain in the ass.

  “You’d do that?”

  “Sure. If you give me the agenda with each session numbered and prioritized, I can help you figure out how to condense it so that you still touch on the important parts.”

  “I’m actually good. Already figured out what to shift to tomorrow.” He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her into the air. “But thanks for letting me vent. You’re the best.”

  Sherry’s heart expanded, filled like a balloon with helium. She just hoped it didn’t burst.

  He planted a big smacking kiss on her as he lowered her to the ground. Then he pressed her back against the bar, angled his head and gave her a smoking hot kiss that left her aroused and flustered. “What was that for?” she asked breathlessly.

  “A reminder that I appreciate your willingness to help. That will have to do until I can express my gratitude in more detail.”

  She flushed.

  “Okay, you goof. Back off.” She shoved out of his arms. “I’ve got work to do.”

  Someone cleared their throat.

  Sherry jumped away from RJ and smoothed her hair. Then she turned around. Penny Hastings stood there looking…bemused.

  “Hi.” Penny’s eyes sparkled.

  Please let the ground open up and swallow her whole. Couldn’t the Camp Gods give her a break?

  “I’ve…got to get going.” Embarrassment flooded her face. She went to rush out of the boathouse.

  “Wait,” Penny said. “Are you going to see Heather?”

  She kept her head down. “Yes.”

  “Great. Can you take one of the gift bags to her? I promised her she could have one.”

  “Sure.” Sherry took the bag and headed out of the boathouse. She barreled toward the main lodge. Sure, Penny had said she didn’t mind Sherry being here but that was clearly before she knew she was getting married. Between that and RJ’s kiss, Sherry was completely out of sorts.

  Intent on getting away from the embarrassment of the past few minutes, Sherry was so distracted she ran straight into someone.

  “Oh.” She shook her head. “Sorry.”

  Great. It was Zinnia.

  “You.” It was amazing how much venom could be conveyed with one word.

  “Yep.” Sherry smiled, determined to be polite.

  Zinnia narrowed her eyes and frowned. “What are you doing with that gift bag?”

  “I—”

  “It’s not enough that you’re here, potentially ruining Penny and Diego’s special day.” Zinnia tossed her long curls, hands on her hips, her fingernails digging into her hips. “Now you’re stealing from them?”

  “Excuse me?” That was too much; her tone was frosty.

  “Zinnia Ramos, at ease.” An older white woman with light brown hair and an easy smile, lips quirked at one corner, held out her hand. “Hello, I’m Lori Ramos.”

  RJ’s mother. He had his mother’s smile. Okay, not that she’d ever even thought about meeting his parents but if she had, it wouldn’t have been when she was accused of stealing.

  “Sherry Washington.” She shook his mother’s hand and then gave Zinnia a tight smile.

  Sherry handled her cargo carefully, not wanting to crinkle the pretty bag.

  “I’m sure there’s a good reason for Ms. Washington to have a gift bag.”

  RJ came up to their group. “Mami.” He kissed both her cheeks. Then looked uncomfortable when he realized the tension in the air.

  Well, that settled that. RJ had to have heard his sister accuse her of stealing and he hadn’t felt the need to defend her.

  “You need to put that back.”

  A swell of tiredness broke over her. She was tired. Tired of other people’s scorn. Tired of being judged for things she didn’t even do. Tired of always having to defend herself.

  “Jesu Christos, Zin. Give it a rest,” RJ said.

  And for a moment, Sherry’s hopes rose. Perhaps RJ would publicly defend her. Claim her.

  “Ms. Washington wouldn’t steal from the wedding.”

  Ms. As if they barely knew each other. What she should have expected, but not in her heart of hearts what she wanted. Although at least RJ had stuck up for her. Sort of.

  She lifted her chin, tossed her shoulders back. Pride was about all she had left.

  Zinnia narrowed her gaze at RJ. “You say that but based on her track record—"

  “If you’ll excuse me, I promised Penny I would deliver this gift bag to Heather.” Sherry hustled away from the Ramos family. Refusing to acknowledge that pain beneath her breastbone was her heart. She hadn’t expected to like him so much. To feel this longing for intimacy. She’d resisted RJ until he wore her down. She’d finally caved because she really thought he liked her.

  But she should have realized he liked everyone.

  Wasn’t that what had drawn her to him last year? She wasn’t anyone special. Just a woman he could bang for the weekend.

  RJ watched Sherry walk away. He’d seen the flash of hurt before she masked the emotion, but announcing to his family he was sleeping with her would bring down a rash of shit he didn’t want to deal with right now, and it would disrupt Diego’s wedding.

  “Why are you sticking up for her?” Zin had her hands propped on her hips. She tossed her head angrily.

  “Well, Zin, since you scheduled a wedding without telling me, and you disappeared yesterday, Sherry helped me out.”

  “Sherry?” Zin stepped into his space. “What happened to Ms. Washington? And what do you mean she’s helped you?”

  “She retyped the agenda for me while you were at the florist.”

  “She knows our agenda?” Zin waved her hands in the air.
“Have you forgotten about Tanya?”

  “I haven’t forgotten. And Sherry’s not a spy.”

  “She could be. Don’t you think it’s odd she’s here at the same time as our retreat?”

  RJ clenched his fists. Sometimes his sister drove him to insanity. “Jesus, Zin. Do you even know why she’s here?”

  His mami stepped between them, stopping the fight. “Knock it off, you two.”

  “Yes, Mami,” they said in unison.

  His mother turned and gave RJ a long hug. “It’s nice to see you.”

  He wrapped his arms around his mother and squeezed. “You too.”

  “You’ve been working hard.” The rebuke was there. We haven’t seen enough of you.

  Running the company, caring for all the employees was keeping him up at night and driving him out of bed early. The only real respite he’d gotten in the last few months was his interactions with Sherry. She didn’t judge. Didn’t ask anything of him. “I’ve got a lot of people depending on me.”

  “Papi and I are proud of you.”

  Papi and I. They were a unit. United and strong. “Thanks, Mami.”

  “Do you have time to spend with Papi and me?”

  RJ looked at his watch. He planned on going through the changes so he could prep for tomorrow while everyone from the company was on a nature hike and picnic. He needed to go over his agenda and prioritize his talking points. But he hadn’t seen his parents in a couple of weeks.

  “I can spare half an hour.”

  “I’ve got some more wedding things to take care of.” His sister hustled away, calling over her shoulder, “I’ll catch you later.”

  His mami hooked her arm through his. “Excellent. Let’s go.”

  Chapter 12

  The camp was bustling with an excited energy. Everyone loved a wedding apparently. The kitchen and wait staff were prepping for the reception.

  Sherry was helping get the catering chafing dishes ready when Heather Tully came rushing in to the kitchen. “We’ve got a problem.”

  Heather was one of the most unruffled people Sherry had ever met. She was so absolutely secure in who she was and what she was doing. To see her rattled was surprising.