Secret Billionaire (The Carolina Series Book 2)
Page 23
“Darling Faye, you deserve everything good that comes your way. I’m an excellent judge of character, and so is my son. If I’d have handpicked his mate, it would have been you. Hank feels the same. I never want to hear another word about deservin’ from you again. Ya hear me?” Faye wiped her tears and smiled shyly.
“I hear.”
“Jesse tells me they caught those guys that clunked you over the head.”
“Yes, and it was all over drugs. Turns out that our statue was stuffed with about fifty pounds of meth…street value over half a million dollars. They’d been smuggling drugs and using my bar as a place to store them until they could be distributed. Me buying that building really messed it up for them. They hadn’t been able to get their hands on Sasquatch before I had him shipped off to be painted. Imagine their panic when they couldn’t find him during the break in.”
“Jesse said that photograph of you three tipped them off.”
“Yes. The night that guy was killed at my bar, he said he’d come back to check out Ty, but we’re pretty sure it was really about the statue. What Ty owed was small potatoes compared to all that meth they’d misplaced. I’m sure their hide was on the line.”
“Oh my! You’re lucky you weren’t killed over it.”
“Someone up above is looking out for me,” Faye agreed.
Much later, they all sprawled around the campfire, bellies full, but not so full that there wasn’t room for smores. By this time Matilda was acting like a bossy big sister to Finn, who was eating it up. They were in charge of roasting the marshmallows and Matilda ran a tight ship.
Griffin and Maddy had left earlier, Maddy had to work the next day and Griffin supposedly had a hot date waiting. The couples were now paired up, much teasing and laughter being shared. It was a hot summer night and the sky was star-filled, the ocean breeze and sound of the surf a perfect backdrop to a perfect gathering. The kids had excitedly called out when they saw a shooting star and made a big deal out of making a wish, just as Faye had done as a child…and still did.
“Did you see the falling star?” she asked, looking up at Jesse through her lashes.
“Yeah.”
“What was your wish?”
“Not telling.”
“You’re allowed to tell. That’s only a superstition that it will jinx the wish.”
Jesse laughed, “And the wish itself isn’t superstitious at all, right?”
She smiled, “Course not. Have you lost your magic Jesse Carlisle?”
“At one time I had, but then I ran into a sexy secret billionaire and the magic returned. Which is why, I’m not telling you my wish. Our family believes it goes against the spell to tell anyone your wish.” Jesse squinted. “What about you? Did you make a wish?”
Her dimples appeared as she flashed a wide smile. “Not telling. Just in case.”
“Maddening,” he said, kissing the top of her head.
She was sandwiched between his legs, leaning against his chest and his arms were wrapped around her. She became lost in thought, thinking about a conversation she’d had earlier when Kyle had pulled her aside. It was some pretty big news and it still had her reeling.
With a little arm-twisting from Kyle, their father had agreed to put a ten-million-dollar trust fund, originally intended for Marcus, in Tyler’s name, to be transferred to him on his twenty-first birthday. Since Kyle was the family attorney, he’d been the one to draw up the documents. Her father had also offered up an apology of sorts by inviting her and Jesse to come visit them in Palm Springs after tourist season died down.
She was beyond gobsmacked. Just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes. Everything seemed make her teary these days. Kyle had also convinced him to pay for Tyler to go to college if he was interested. Faye was going to make sure that he was.
“Everything all right?” Jesse whispered in her ear.
It amazed her… how he got her. He always knew. “Yeah, why?”
“You got so quiet.”
“Just taking it all in. I’ve got some big news I’ll share later. Has to be kept on the downlow. For now.”
“Good or bad?” He nuzzled her neck.
“Real good.”
“That’s all I need to know.”
Tyler got up pulling Addison with him, then he brushed the sand from her back side, and she returned the favor. “We’ve got to go.”
“Thanks for everything. This was the best party I’ve ever been too!” Addison said.
“Yeah, what she said,” Ty agreed.
“I’ll see you guys Tuesday when we re-open,” Faye said.
“Yep, back to the grind.”
“Be prepared, we’ll probably have loads of extra business, the looky-loos wanting to visit the scene of the crime. Just like a Dateline episode.” Faye said.
“Sick.” Ty grumbled.
“We may as well get something good out of it,” Jesse said.
“Tyler, tell your mom we’re sorry she couldn’t make it. One of these days we’re going to convince her to join us.” Faye said.
“I’ll tell her you said that.”
After they left, everyone else began making moves to go. Jesse and Faye were the last to leave, staying behind to help with the cleanup.
Faye hugged Ruby extra tight as she said goodbye. “Bye Ruby, Hank, you guys are the very best!”
Ruby whispered in her ear, “You remember what I said.”
“Cross my heart,” Faye replied.
Jesse picked his mom up in a big bear hug while she giggled and demanded he put her down. Hank smiled, wearing his big heart on his sleeve, as he stared adoringly at his wife of forty years.
As they pulled away on Jesse’s motorcycle, his parents stood in the driveway waving them off.
53
They had made passionate love almost the minute they got inside the door. Later as they lay snuggled together in bed, Faye said, “This is one of my favorite parts.”
“What’s that?”
“Pillow talk.”
“Mine too.”
“You’ll never guess what my father did.”
“Probably not,” Jesse agreed.
“He had started to set up a trust for Ty’s dad when all hell broke loose last year. He made the decision to set it up for Ty…when he turns twenty-one, he’ll receive the trust. Isn’t that amazing?” Faye’s eyes sparkled with joy.
“Yeah, that’s really something. Redemption for real.”
“My brother Kyle strong armed him but I still have to give him credit for doing it. I’ve been assigned the task of telling Ty. I’m just not sure when or how. Should I wait? Do I tell him now? What’s best for him? If I wait, it gives him a little more time to mature. If I tell him now, he gets time to get used to the idea of becoming a millionaire. Father is also paying for his college, if we can convince him to go.”
“My advice…let the dust settle. You’ll know when the time is right.”
“Kyle kept his promise and literally paid for the ticket and escorted Julian to the airport. He didn’t leave until the plane took off. He said Julian was ready to go. It’s just so sad,” Faye said.
“After all is said and done, he did the right thing. That’s a better note to end things on.”
Jesse laid back against the pillows and Faye climbed on top of him. She propped her arms on either side of his head, her hands cradling his face, her face only inches from his. She stared into his warm pools of amber and felt like she was in a freefall. She kissed the tip of his nose, then his eyelids, then his soft lips.
“Jess…I…”
His eyebrows rose, “Yes?”
Suddenly overwhelmed she hesitated, then said, “Are you hungry?”
He bit back a laugh, “Really? Is that all you have to say?”
She kissed him again and started to roll off. He held her tight, stopping her.
“I love you,” Jesse said.
Her body stilled. “What?”
“I love you Faye Bennett. I belong to yo
u. I’m all yours…that is…if you want me.”
She began to plant tiny kisses all over his face. “Yes, yes, I want you. Every sexy inch of you.”
“Move in with me…for good. Marry me. Let’s have a half dozen little munchkins together.”
Faye raised an eyebrow, “Only six?”
“Give or take.”
“Jesse Carlisle, I want it all with you. I love you, with all my heart.” His earnest expression and twinkling eyes tugged at her heart. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Jess asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“For seeing me, really seeing me…” She softly kissed his lips. “For showing me what love really looks like...” She licked his neck. “For knowing just how to touch me...” She moved lower to his chest, her tongue flicking his nipple. “for being decent...” Lower still she tongued his navel. “And for being kind and brave.” She followed the triangle of hair, then took him into her mouth. He groaned.
The End for Now….
Thanks for reading Secret Billionaire, Book Two of The Carolina Series. I so loved these characters and hope you did too! If you haven’t read Book One, Seduced by a Billionaire, click on the first link below. Book Three, Playboy Billionaire, will be out this fall.
Happy Reading!
Here’s the universal link to Book One, Seduced by a Billionaire:
mybook.to/SeducedbyaBillionaire
Here’s the universal link to The Heartland Series complete box set:
mybook.to/BoxSetHeartlandSeries
Please join my Facebook readers group, where I have giveaways, teasers and pre-release excerpts:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/179183050062278/
Books by Jill Downey
The Heartland Series:
More Than A Boss
More Than A Memory
More Than A Fling
The Carolina Series:
Seduced by a Billionaire
Secret Billionaire
Playboy Billionaire