Royally Flushed: Tech Billionaires

by Ainsley St Claire

  I drain what’s left of my glass and look out across the bay. Jim sits back and listens.

  “You know she’s nothing like any of the women I date. She’s naturally beautiful. Did you know she calls the women I’ve been out with Barbies and flotation devices?”

  He smirks.

  “I didn’t see Corrine until all this mess with someone tormenting her started. But now I can’t unsee her. She’s amazing. I need her in my life.”

  Jim nods. “I understand. I’ve been there. I thought I’d die a bachelor. Now I’m getting married to an amazing woman.”

  “But I fucked up. Valerie, a woman I was involved with briefly, and mostly for work purposes, asked to see me. She wanted to meet for dinner, and I pushed back because I already had plans with Corrine. But she insisted—said her boss had put her brother up to something that led to him being arrested and jailed. So, I agreed to meet her for drinks. And I didn’t tell Corrine why I had to change my plans with her. Once I got to the bar, I quickly realized this woman had not been honest when she set up our meeting, but of course, as I’m trying to escape, Corrine walks in.”

  “Did she follow you?”

  “No, she was truly shocked to see me. Did you know there are over eight hundred establishments that sell liquor in the City? I looked it up. How could we possibly have ended up at the same one? I immediately went to her. She was upset, but I only knew because her hand trembled. We were already struggling to sort out our relationship after the trip, and in that moment, everything that had happened between us was gone. A wall went up. Then this shit happened.”

  “Tell me more about Valerie,” Jim said. “We checked her out, but maybe we missed something.”

  “She works for an environmental startup called Organic Energy. She’s in marketing, and we met at a trade show in Las Vegas. We’ve been out a few times, but it was more professional than personal.”

  “What did she want to talk to you about?” Jim probes.

  “She said her boss had information on Soleil from her brother, so I was going to meet her to find out what she had. He would have met with me, but he was in jail, and she thought I needed to know as soon as possible, hinting that maybe I could use the information to get him out of jail. The bar we went to was close to her office. I forgot I’d run into Corrine there before.”

  “With Valerie?”

  I nod. “I don’t deny I was a total shit for not telling Corrine why I was breaking our dinner plans, but fuck! It was supposed to be business. Only it looked like a date, mostly because Valerie wanted a date and used that story as a ploy to meet me.”

  “Send me her contact information. We’ll run a background check on her again and maybe do a face-to-face interview.”

  I nod.

  Jim stands. “We need to figure out our next steps. I don’t think Corrine should go back to Houston, but that may not be our call. For now, though, she can’t be in San Francisco.”

  That’s not what I wanted to hear. I wanted to hear that Corrine should remain under my roof—even if it was my guest room. But who am I kidding? I can’t force my way into working this out with Corrine.

  “When do you want to meet tomorrow?” I ask Jim.

  “Since it’s Saturday, I’ve promised to take a quick trip to the farmers market with my fiancée.” He thinks a moment. “Let’s meet at my place for lunch. Corrine can hang out with Kate, and we can make it a little less formal. If we have to put her into deep hiding, we can do that, but I don’t think it’s necessary.”

  “I agree.” After I show him out, I send him Valerie’s information, return to the living room, and pour myself another glass of bourbon. I have several ideas that may work for Corrine, but nothing I come up with has her working in the office, and she refuses to stay here—except when she has to. That leaves a gaping hole both at work and in my heart.

  ***

  At some point, I went to bed last night. I didn’t sleep well. I’m worried about Corrine, and that doesn’t seem to work for me.

  When I wake, though, I smell bacon and coffee. I walk out in pajama bottoms, a T-shirt in my hands, and find Gabby and Corrine in the kitchen, talking in hushed tones.

  They stop talking when I come in. Gabby’s jaw drops, and Corrine stares. I admit that my desire to lure Corrine back into my bed has crossed my mind this morning, so I’m reminding her of my physical prowess, which she seems to like. I see her nipples pebble beneath her shirt, so my cheap shot worked. I put my shirt on, so things aren’t obscene.

  “We were just talking about what Corrine wants to do,” Gabby informs me. I can tell by her tone she isn’t crazy about the plan.

  “There’s a great energy company in Austin I might be able to work for as a project manager,” Corrine says.

  I know exactly where she’s talking about, and over my dead body will she go there. Not only do I know the founder, but he ran off to Austin after stealing information from another one of our competitors. He shopped their proprietary information to me, and I refused it.

  “I thought if you made the introduction, he might make room for me on their team,” she adds.

  I turn to Gabby. “Why don’t you like the idea?”

  “To start with, we went to school in Austin. It’s only two and a half hours from Houston and still within her father’s reach.” I can tell she’s making her case more for Corrine than me.

  “Even if I’m close, I won’t be living in his house. If I have a job, I can be free of him and his influence.”

  Gabby offers her a give-me-a-break look. Then she turns to me. “What do you think?”

  I take a deep breath because I don’t want this to sound like I’ll hate every idea she has—but anything away from me, I’m going to try my hardest to prevent from happening. “I know the founder. He used to work for Blue Energy, and he took some information with him when he was fired and offered it to several companies in the energy sector. I have no doubt he’d hire you without my recommendation—”

  “See? I told you. A good job will keep my dad away,” Corrine proudly tells Gabby.

  “But given that he took some information from Blue, I’d have to consider the noncompete you’ve signed for the energy sector.”

  Corrine’s shoulders fall.

  “I have an idea, and Jim has some ideas. He’s invited us over for lunch today.” I turn to Gabby. “You’re welcome to join us.”

  “Thanks, but Damien needs some of my love and attention.” She stands. “Let me know what you come up with.”

  “Are you leaving?” Corrine’s eyes grow large, and panic distorts her face.

  “Yup.” Gabby gathers her purse and heads for the door.

  Corrine follows her, and I can hear them whispering on the way to the elevator. I smile. It’s about me and my shirtless chest. I suddenly feel hot, so I take my shirt back off. I have no shame. I’m going to do whatever I need to do to get her back. I help myself to a plate of eggs and bacon and a cup of coffee.

  Corrine comes back into my kitchen and stops short. “Where’d your shirt go?’

  “I was hot.”

  “You don’t play fair.” She makes herself a plate of food and sits down at the bar, one stool away from me. “You could put your shirt on.”

  I look at her and know I’ve made my point, so I pull my shirt over my head. I want to hold her and assure her we’re going to get through this, but I know she needs to figure this out on her own. The harder I push, the harder she’ll resist.

  “I’ll check with Jim about what time they want to see us.” I type a text and send it off.

  She nods, and we eat in silence.

  Jim: How about 12:30? Can you both eat clams? Kate’s signature dish is linguine and clams. If that doesn’t sound appealing, we have lots of other options.

  I let Corrine know what he said.

  “Linguine and clams sounds great. Ask Kate what we can bring.”

  I text Jim, and he quickly replies. “Jim says we don’t need to bring anything, just be at his
place at twelve thirty.”

  She begins to clean up after breakfast. “We can’t show up empty-handed. We can stop for flowers and wine.”

  I’m not about to argue with her. “Okay, I’ll alert Ben to pick us up at eleven thirty.”

  “I’ll be ready.” She finishes cleaning up and leaves me in the living room. This shouldn’t be so hard. I swear that woman is going to break me.

  My phone rings and brings me out of my haze of lust. It’s my mother. There goes my erection.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “You don’t call or write…”

  I love mom guilt. “Sorry, it’s been beyond hectic. I was in Hawaii last week dealing with a new property.”

  “Ohhhh. Maybe that’s where I should do my birthday party. We can all fly in on your jet and spend a week enjoying Kauai.”

  I’m sure I told her about it. “The property is on Maui.”

  “Well, that works, too.”

  “Probably not this year—it’s in the middle of renovations.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad. What are we going to do for my birthday?”

  My mom is great, and as an only child, I don’t spend nearly enough time with her. “What do you want to do?”

  “Actually, I’d like to spend time with you.”

  That makes me smile. My mom gave me the best years of her life and never complained. “Well, that’s a given. What about with your girlfriends?”

  “Let them come up with something. I’m fine with that.”

  “Well, have them send me the bill.”

  “We’ll see. I did want to find out if I could set you up with my friend Susan’s daughter. She’s probably a bit young and most likely too brunette for you, but she went to Yale, and I understand she’s a total delight.”

  Mom’s so not subtle when it comes to her desire to have grandbabies.

  “I’m seeing someone, Mom. I think she may be the one.” I smile, knowing I’ve just made Mom’s day, week, month, and year. Now to get Corrine on this same train.

  “What? When do I get to meet this woman?”

  “Soon. Right now, we’re dealing with some crazy stuff at work. But I promise soon.”

  “Okay, sweetheart. I’ll call the office on Monday and let Corrine know to schedule dinner with you for my birthday.”

  “Sounds good. And Mom, I know I don’t say it enough, but I love you. Thank you for all you do.”

  “Oh, baby, I love you, too. You just made me so happy. I can’t wait to see you.”

  “Me too.”

  Chapter 23

  Corrine

  Leaving Jackson in the kitchen took more will power than I thought I had. When I walked Gabby out, she suggested I fuck him to get him out of my system. But that will never happen. I think my addiction to him could only get worse.

  I spend the morning getting ready. I have to convince Jim to go along with my idea of moving to Austin. I’m not strong enough to remain under Jackson’s roof, particularly if he’s going to walk around without a shirt.

  Nope. I’ve got to make a change, and Austin may be the right place.

  Just before eleven thirty, I’m dressed in white jeans, cute flats, and a blouse that Tiffany insisted on, which shows a little more cleavage than I usually would. But I love the classic lines, soft colors, and abstract pattern. It exudes money, but at least it’s comfortable.

  I walk out to the living room to wait for Jackson, and he and Ben are there waiting for me. “I’m sorry. Am I late?”

  Jackson’s eyes immediately go to my cleavage. He breaks a smile, and I know he likes what I’m wearing.

  “Not at all. Ben just arrived early. We’re mapping where you want to stop.”

  I put my purse down and walk over. “What’s the plan?”

  He points to his phone. “The best flowers on a Saturday are at the farmer’s market. Ben can drop us at this entrance. They’re in the middle, so we’ll have to do some walking. Is that okay?”

  “Sure. No problem. No stilettos today.”

  Jackson nods. “And there’s a liquor store not too far from Jim’s office.”

  “Are we meeting at his office for lunch?”

  “No, but he lives on the top floor of the same building. It makes it easier for him to be accessible.”

  “Okay. That works.”

  I follow Ben out the door, and Jackson follows. We get in the car and drive to our first stop at the farmer’s market. Once we exit the car, Ben walks slightly behind us. Jackson has his hand on the small of my back. His touch is electric, and it is wearing down my walls.

  “Jackson?” I hear a woman say.

  My radar is instantly on high alert.

  “Mia! Hey, great to see you.”

  Mia’s a petite woman with beautiful, shiny dark hair and big brown eyes. She’s stunning, and I fight the green monster of jealousy.

  Jackson turns to me. “Corrine, this is Mia Couture. She’s the CEO of Reconnaissance. She’s also a big winner when we play poker.”

  I extend my hand. “So nice to meet you. I’m Corrine Woods. He won the Halona Moana Estate from someone else, right?”

  She chuckles. “Yes, that was Viviana Prentis. That was a fun hand to watch. She was sure she had him, so she went all in. When he beat her, the room lit up.”

  “I’m sorry I missed it.” I look at him and smile. “Sounds like a fun night.”

  “Have him bring you next time,” Mia says. “We’re due for a get-together soon.”

  Jackson nods. “We are due for a get-together. I was thinking about hosting out at the estate. Do you think people would travel to Hawaii to play?”

  “I’m up for a few days in Hawaii. Plus, I think we’re more likely to get Nate to join us there. I’m sure he’s in no hurry to return to Las Vegas.”

  They talk for a few minutes more, and I really like Mia. The green monsters of jealousy quickly evaporate.

  When we walk away, Jackson chuckles. “Don’t be fooled. That woman is a pure card shark. She’s won a ranch up in Montana and interest in a web company.”

  “You guys have too much money if you’re throwing businesses and property around like that.”

  “Probably, but Mia, along with several others, has gifted a big chunk of her fortune to the Lancaster Foundation.”

  “That’s pretty amazing.” We arrive at the flower seller in the market, and it’s enormous.

  A woman in overalls approaches us. “Can I help you find something?”

  “Do you have any premade bouquets? We’re heading to a friend’s for lunch, and I thought we could bring some flowers.”

  “I don’t, but we can easily put one together for you. Do you have a color preference?”

  “Just bright colors.” I turn to Jackson. “Right? Or should we go subtle?”

  He shakes his head. “You’re in charge of flowers.”

  Our florist smiles. “Let’s see what I have. How about a mix of lavender, pink buttercups, daisies, and yellow forget-me-nots?” I look at what she’s pulled together, and it’s stunning.

  “It’s beautiful. That’s perfect.”

  “Do you deliver?” Jackson asks.

  “We do.”

  Jackson writes down an address. “This is my mother. Any chance I can have a similar bouquet sent to her today?”

  She looks down and nods. “We can make that happen.”

  “What’s the occasion?” I ask.

  “I realized how lucky I am.”

  That makes me smile. Jackson’s mother, while often a pain in the ass, is really a sweet woman. I like that he’s thinking about her.

  When we get back to the car, Ben heads toward the SOMA neighborhood.

  “I didn’t realize Clear Security was so close to the Giants’ stadium,” I say to Ben as I stare out the window.

  “In the summer, when the windows are open, we hear the crowds and the crack of the bat,” he says proudly.

  “I’m impressed.”

  We pull up in front of a corner liquor store, and
a man pops out and hands Ben a bottle through the window.

  “How did he know we were coming?” I ask.

  Jackson smiles. “I know Paul. I called him while you were looking at flowers and ordered a bottle of a nice pinot gris. I thought that would go well with the clams.”

  “I guess we’re ready to determine my future.”

  Jackson watches me. “It’s not your forever future. It’s just for your safety until things get figured out.”

  Ben pulls into an underground garage and stops at a door. We get out and take the elevator to the PH level.

  We step out of the elevator just off the kitchen of a substantial loft-like space with floor-to-ceiling windows. Despite the gray outside, it’s quite bright. The apartment is nothing like I expected. It’s full of warm colors and doesn’t seem like it’s above what I suspect are high-tech offices on the building’s other floors.

  Kate is standing next to the stove, stirring a pot. “Welcome to Casa Adelson.”

  Jim steps forward. “Welcome.”

  Kate walks over and opens her arms. “Hi. It’s great to see you again, and under much better circumstances than Cecelia Lancaster’s funeral. Welcome to our apartment.” Her smile is warm.”

  I hand her the bouquet. “Thank you for inviting us and going to so much trouble.”

  Jackson hands her the bottle of wine. “We thought you might like this. You’re welcome to open it now or save it for another time.”

  Jim looks at the bottle. “I think this is perfect with lunch.”

  “Lunch will be a few minutes,” Kate says. “Jackson, I think Jim wants to show you the new spy toys he got for his collection.”

  “Thanks.” Jackson disappears.

  “Jim collects spy toys?” I ask, trying to discern what a spy toy might be.

  Kate laughs. “He kept it from me when we were dating, but he collects old-time spy gadgets. Stuff like you would have seen on Get Smart or James Bond—cool toys that do hidden spy things.”