NINE
The pilot lifted down her bag and set it on the paving beside the helipad. "If you need me, get Reception to give me a call. They know how to reach me."
Gaia stared at him. "You mean you're not staying here? What happened to being at my disposal? I expressly asked – "
"My baby and I are at your service during your stay here, but I live on the mainland. At the pearl farm. You need us, just call, and I'll be here within a half-hour. You're on Broome time now, Ms Vasse. Welcome to the Kimberleys." With a jaunty wave, he jumped back into his helicopter and slammed the door.
Gaia backed away from the spinning blades, looking from her bags to the helicopter and back again. "What about my things? Aren't you going to carry them inside for me?"
He evidently hadn't heard her over the engine, as he continued grinning as he lifted off the ground, taking his aircraft out of sight over the palm trees. The man had no respect whatsoever. She wished she'd gotten his name so she could report him to his superiors.
A blonde girl came flying around the corner, breathless with excitement. Or from running, Gaia decided, though there was definite excitement. "Oh, Miss Vasse, welcome to Romance Island Resort! It's such an honour to have you here." When Gaia didn't respond, the girl continued, "I'm Philomena, but you can call my Philly. I can't believe it. I've barely been here a week and I get to meet you. Let me take your bags." She struggled with them, but still managed to lift them off the ground before staggering off the way she'd come.
After a moment's hesitation, Gaia decided to follow her. A large building became visible through the palm trees – all two storeys of it. Presumably, this was the hotel proper, where she planned on putting her staff. It probably wasn't as compact as the standard camp accommodation they were used to, but if the luxury fittings were part of the price she paid for the resort, at least it would save her the cost of a renovation for a few years until the miners wore everything out. Then she could replace everything with more utilitarian facilities, and use the resort as the labour camp for all the nearby islands.
"How many rooms does the hotel have?" Gaia demanded.
"Um...around fifty, I think," Philomena said. "Plus the villas, of course."
Fifty wasn't enough for the number of staff she needed to house. With such luxury accommodation, they could share, she decided. A place like this would have king sized beds, which were easy to separate into two singles. Once those reached the end of their useful life, she'd replace them with bunk beds. A temporary measure, the staff would be told, until they no longer asked about it and accepted their working conditions. After all, most other mines were laying off staff. They'd consider themselves lucky to have a job here.
"Of course, you're in the jewel of the Pearls, as you'd expect. Villa Maxima." The girl beamed as if the names should mean something to Gaia.
"When is my meeting with the manager?" Gaia asked, bringing the conversation back to business. At least, business she understood. Pearls were a business for some people, after all.
"Which manager?"
"The manager of the hotel!" Gaia snapped.
"Oh. I'll have to check." Philomena propped open a door with one of Gaia's bags, then followed her into the hotel foyer. "Let me get you checked in, with your ID and everything, and then I'll page the manager."
Ten minutes later, with an uncomfortable band clipped to her wrist that Philomena assured her she had to wear as her access pass to the resort facilities, as well as its being the key to her room, Gaia settled in one of the foyer couches, refusing to leave until the manager came to greet her.
TEN
After five minutes of waiting, Gaia was furious. After fifteen, she was livid. By thirty-seven, she wasn't entirely sure what she was any more, but a strange slapping sound distracted her.
A bloke wearing nothing but soaking wet board shorts, water cascading down his ripped body like he'd just stepped from the ocean, ambled up to the reception desk. His wet feet slapped on the tiles with every step. He pointed at his wristband, which looked just like the one Gaia now wore. "What's the emergency?" he asked Philomena. "I don't see the building on fire. The cyclone season is almost over, and Shou can't have crashed his helicopter again because I saw it take off while I was having my afternoon swim."
"No, it's...um..." Philomena began in a carrying whisper, before pointing at Gaia. "She asked to see the manager."
The man shrugged, sending a fresh trickle down his back muscles. "So get Xan."
"Ms Lane left for Perth this morning. She won't be back for a week and she said if anyone wanted to see the manager, to get you. So, I got you."
"You summoned me from my swim for her, because she's an emergency?" He turned to stare at Gaia, as if he didn't care how rude he looked. "Not my kind of emergency. She's a four, maybe a five, tops. Give her the number of the escort service in town. It's the wet season. I'm sure they have a gigolo free for her."
A four? Maybe a five? Gaia had never been so insulted in her life. She jumped to her feet. "I asked to see the manager because I made an appointment."
He strode over so he stood a metre from her. "Not with me, lady. You're not my type."
"Are you gay, Mr Felix?" she asked coldly.
He didn't seem the slightest bit offended. "I haven't met a man yet who made me think so. But women...I love women. Like I said, though, you're not my type. I like my girls young and pretty."
"I'm only two years older than you!" she blurted out.
Jay laughed. "Still doesn't make you pretty." He strode out the door, whistling.
Gaia wasn't sure whether she wanted to run after him and tackle him to the ground or beat him over the head. She couldn't get the image of water trickling down his chest and abs, following that tempting V down into his pants, clinging to what she could see was a sizeable...
Dick. He was a complete dick. Making her wait, then insulting her. Jay Felix wasn't worth her time, no matter how perfect the man's body was.
Gaia marched up to the reception desk. "Get me the hotel manager on the phone. The real hotel manager, not that man. Now."
Philomena nodded and dialled.
ELEVEN
Gaia smiled as she sipped from her glass of well-chilled champagne, settling deeper into the couch of her villa as her gaze settled on the eastern horizon, where Lorikeet Island lay. The sunset set the cliffs aglow, making the horizon look like a wall of fire over the water. Her island and her mine – those very cliffs were the ones her grandfather had mined back in the fifties.
The hotel manager had been properly apologetic, promising to arrange a dinner meeting for her with the owner, after she'd spoken to him to make sure he understood not only who she was, but how important her offer was.
He. Typical. There were too many businessmen in the world, and not enough businesswomen. Of course, that did make her job easier sometimes. Men frequently underestimated her. Once they'd realised she wasn't an easy conquest, they became so lost that negotiations inevitably went her way. The world was her oyster – one that always gave her pearls. Not that she was particularly fond of an old lady's jewel – she preferred gold, unsullied by any sparkly, attention-seeking stone that drew the eye away from the valuable metal. Pearls weren't even truly stones.
She drained her glass, then poured another. She'd need a little extra alcohol to help her relax after this afternoon's irritation. Not to mention the disappointment that was Jay Felix. He mustn't have known who she was, Gaia consoled herself. When she saw him again, she'd be certain to tell him, so he knew who he'd insulted, and he could fully appreciate the opportunity he'd lost.
She checked her watch. Still a couple of hours to go. She might take a relaxing swim from her private beach before returning to dress for dinner. She certainly intended to make an impression on the owner. One he wouldn't soon forget.
TWELVE
Xan scowled at her phone. The chairman of Vasse Prospecting – in fact, the whole Vasse family – were an unpleasant lot. Snobbish and uppity at best; d
ownright litigious at worst. She'd preferred to deal with James Stewart on anything to do with Lorikeet Island. He wasn't any less mercenary – he wanted the mine to make money as much as the Vasse girl and her late mother – but he was a damn sight more pleasant and down-to-earth. The few minutes she'd spent on the phone to Gaia Vasse made her suspect the girl thought anyone less wealthy than the Queen would be beneath her notice.
That's why she'd left the girl to Jay. Jay irritated everybody and, sure enough, he'd offended her the moment he met her. He'd done such a good job that the girl had been livid, as opposed to just being annoyed enough to leave the island alone. She'd screeched about lawyers and finished up with a blistering lecture on professionalism, most of which seemed to be about kissing her well-polished arse.
Still, the girl did have one ace up her sleeve – the massive media pull that came from owning shares in a lot of the news companies. A few words in the right ears and Little Miss Vasse could make the media tide turn against the resort. Xan's whole advertising campaign would fall flat, drowned out by whatever dirt Vasse's paid reporters could dig up. All she'd have to say was that her mine was expanding and the resort would be in the middle of a major shipping channel. Lies, of course, but by the time anyone printed anything else, the damage would be done.
So, against her better judgement, Xan did what she'd promised Gaia: she rang Jay to set up a dinner meeting so the two could discuss Gaia's plans.
Jay didn't answer his phone, so she asked Philly to page him. Less than five minutes later, Xan's phone rang.
"Hel – "
Jay cut her off. "This better not be about that rich bitch in the foyer."
Xan tried not to laugh. For once, she agreed with him. "I'm calling about Gaia Vasse. She's the chairman of Vasse Prospecting, the owner of Lorikeet Island Mine next door to the resort, and she has a business proposition for you."
"Bullshit. She wants me in her bed. She looked me up and down like a piece of meat."
This time, she couldn't stifle her laughter. "Were you wearing anything at the time?"
"My board shorts. They covered all the essentials. I was swimming when Reception paged me. They said it was urgent, so I didn't stop to put on a bloody suit." Jay laughed. "Oh, it was urgent all right. She was panting like a bitch in heat. I told her to get a gigolo in town, because she was too old and ugly for me."
No wonder the girl had been angry. Xan probably would have felt insulted, too, if she hadn't known that his type seemed to mostly include girls who fell at his feet for the opportunity for a night with him. Flavia and Phuong had been exceptions to that, of course, but Gaia definitely wasn't his type.
"I promised her she'd get to meet with the owner and discuss her business proposal at seven this evening. Over dinner. I've already booked a private dining room, so it'll just be the two of you." It already sounded more like a date than a business meeting. "All I ask is that you hear her out, possibly get a copy of what she's proposing, and don't agree to anything. Not verbally, and definitely not in writing. Even if nothing's binding without Jo or my signature, she'll still try to hold you to whatever it is. She's got more lawyers than you do."
"And if she tries to rip my clothes off?" Jay grumbled.
Xan grinned. "I imagine you're used to that, rock star. Do whatever you usually do. But if you end up doing her on the dining table, I don't want to hear about it."
"I can name fifty women I'd rather do on the dining table instead of her."
Xan sighed. She didn't want to know that, either. "Just remember that she has a lot of clout with the media. If you annoy her enough, she might make trouble with the press."
Jay laughed. "That's the last thing I'd worry about. I have no secrets from the media – they have everything from naked photos from when I was arrested for lewd conduct in Sydney through to...fuck, I dunno. What's another picture of my bare arse in the entertainment news? Old news."
Before Xan could give him any more advice, Jay ended the call.
She sighed. It was his resort, after all. She just managed the place. Somehow, she wasn't sure he had the full measure of Gaia Vasse just yet. She prayed that he did before anything bad happened.
THIRTEEN
Dinner was scheduled for seven, so at precisely eleven minutes past, Gaia swept into the private dining room wearing a dress from the resort collection some Australian designer had begged to give her. She hadn't found an occasion to wear it to yet, as the white linen and lace seemed too casual for a formal occasion, yet too pretty for work. Tonight, it was perfect.
She produced a gracious smile for her host, only to discover that she was alone. So much for being fashionably late in order to make an entrance. The rude owner wasn't anywhere to be seen.
Mentally, she dropped the price she was willing to pay for his resort. How dare he keep her waiting. He was worse than that rude rock star, whose rippled muscles could rot off before she'd ever think of...
"You again." Jay strolled in, grabbed the bottle of champagne from the ice bucket and sloshed some into a glass before offering her the bottle. "Drink?"
Gaia shook her head irritably. "Get out. This is a private meeting and you're not invited."
Jay yanked out the owner's chair and slouched on it. He gulped from his glass, then grinned. "You mean there really are gigolos in town, and you booked one this fast? You must be really gagging for it. No wonder you couldn't take your eyes off me in Reception this afternoon. I know I'm hot, but you looked like you wanted to eat me alive. Not my kind of kink, if you know what I mean." He winked and drank some more.
Gaia felt furious heat rising in her body. Of course it was anger. Not attraction to this awful man. "I said get out. I'm here to meet with the owner of this resort, not some – "
"Rich rock star who just bought the place?" he supplied. She wanted to wipe the lazy grin off his face. "Who do you think owns the fucking resort? This is my piece of paradise, Gaia. Even a rock star needs a retreat, in between touring and recording and shit."
She fought to hide her shock. "There's no need to swear," she managed to say.
He set his glass down and leaned across the table. "Yeah, there fucking is. This is my island. My home. And I don't take kindly to some nosy neighbour coming to my place and ordering me around. Summoning me from my swim. Telling me to get out of my own dining room. Or telling me I can't say whatever I fucking want in my own fucking home. So what if you own the island next door? I've seen what you've done with the place, and it looks fucked up. We had to help the miners get off the island, so they came here by jet boat because by the time the evacuation order came, the wind was too strong for anything to fly. Fifty blokes in my pub who had a lot to say about you and yours, none of it good. Most dangerous mine in Australia, they said, placing bets on whether the sea wall would come down in this storm or the next. They were glad to be gone because they considered themselves lucky to be alive. So how about you tell me how a hard-hearted bitch like you gets to play with men's lives just to make more money, while the rest of us have to obey the safety laws?"
Gaia stared. "I didn't know," she whispered.
Jay cupped his hand around his ear. "I didn't hear that. And from what I do hear, it's no fucking excuse. It's called negligence."
"I didn't know," she repeated, moistening her dry mouth. Now she wanted that drink. "I only inherited the mine from my mother last week. I wasn't managing it before then. She...she killed people?"
Jay snorted. "Nah, she didn't kill anyone, but not for lack of trying. The safety standards over there were shit. I'm surprised the sea wall held that long. I watched it crumble from here. The sea reclaimed her own."
Gaia didn't know what to say.
Jay didn't seem to mind. "And now you're here, trying to order me around like you own the place. My hotel manager tells me you have a business proposition for me. One I should hear. Now, I take her advice because that's what I pay her for, but even she's not stupid enough to order me around. You haven't said anything that interests me
yet. So, what's this proposition that's so important?"
A waiter brought in their entrées, giving Gaia a chance to collect her thoughts. She glanced at her plate. Artistic swirls of something with a small, caviar-topped mound in the middle. Properly presented food, whatever it was, so she dipped her fork and sampled it. Deeming the food acceptable, she shrugged her shoulders and took a little more.
Jay hadn't touched his. He sat there expectantly, his eyes not leaving her. "Why are you here?"
Because she'd seen a panty-melting picture of him in the paper. Gaia tried to swallow but choked instead. She grabbed her glass of wine and used it to calm her coughing.
"I want your island," she said hoarsely.
Jay burst out laughing, slapping his hand so hard against the table that the glasses shook. "You're joking, right?"
She shook her head.
"You're not mining my island, turning it into a sandpit beside a toxic waste dump while you work men to death here. No fucking way."
Gaia wanted to shrink away from his anger, but she couldn't. Her fortune depended on her courage. She summoned a sneer. "Of course not. There's nothing on this sand cay worth mining. It's the buildings I want. I need somewhere for my staff to stay while they rebuild Lorikeet Island." She avoided his eyes and turned her attention to finishing her food.
"Then you can book them in like any other guests. You don't need to meet with me for that. My hotel manager can discuss rates with you. Maybe even give you a bulk discount." He threw his fork down with a clatter on his empty plate.
The sound summoned a waiter, who cleared away the dishes while Gaia waited. Finally, they were alone again.
"That's not acceptable. I'm not paying for common miners to stay in luxury accommodation. We'll convert the rooms to camp style rooms and bring in our own cooks..."
The Rock Star and the Billionaire Page 3