Kisses From Jack: The Other Side of a Billionaire Love Story (Saltwater Kisses Book 2)
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Kisses From Jack: The Other Side of a Billionaire Love Story
Krista Lakes
Published by Zirconia Publishing, Inc., 2014.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
KISSES FROM JACK: THE OTHER SIDE OF A BILLIONAIRE LOVE STORY
First edition. October 9, 2014.
Copyright © 2014 Krista Lakes.
Written by Krista Lakes.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Kisses From Jack: The Other Side of a Billionaire Love Story
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 1
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 2
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 3
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 4
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 5
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 6
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 7
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 8
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 9
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 10
Thank you for reading Kisses From Jack!
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 1
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 2
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 3
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 4
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 5
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 6
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 7
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 8
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 9
Saltwater Kisses: Chapter 10
Thank you for reading the first ten chapters of Saltwater Kisses!
Owen
Rachel and Dean
Robbie
Noah and Izzy
Logan
Aiden
Check out my other works!
Further Reading: Barefoot Kisses: A Billionaire Love Story
About the Author
About the Publisher
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Kisses From Jack: Chapter 1
“They always do that, don't they?” Owen Parker had slurred as Jack Saunders half-carried him out of the bar and back toward the house. “They just want us for something, and it's never just us.”
“I hear ya, buddy,” Jack agreed, shifting Owen's weight more evenly across his shoulders. Jack was still slightly surprised that the girl had only been interested in drinks from Owen. As far as men went, most women thought Owen was beautiful. Tall, blonde, blue eyes and built like a viking, Owen never seemed to lack for feminine interest. Just goes to show, Jack thought, there's no accounting for taste.
Jack wasn't bad looking himself. Tall, with sandy hair that always seemed to be falling into his hazel eyes, he liked to run and kept himself in fighting shape. Every magazine article said he was a catch. He sometimes wondered if that was referring to his physique and handsome appearance, or to the fact that he owned a multi-billion dollar oil company. Either way, girls always seemed to flock to them, though they never seemed to stay.
“How you doing, Owen?” Jack asked. He didn't regret going out to the small local bar, but he was a little disappointed at just how drunk his friend had gotten. While Jack sipped on a simple jack and diet, Owen had found a pretty little blonde who had promptly drunk him under the table. The girl then went on to find another willing suitor to buy her drinks. Once Owen's desire to pay for her beverages stopped, so did her interest.
“Dude, I think Brandy's bad news,” Owen said, stopping in his tracks and nearly pulling Jack over. Owen's face was pale and the sweat on his forehead gleamed a little in the moonlight.
Brandy. Thinking about her made Jack's blood pressure rise to levels requiring a doctor. Bringing her on his “boys” trip had most certainly been a mistake, but he couldn't figure out where he had gone wrong. The sexual tension in the office had been palpable, but out on vacation all she did was grate on his nerves. He had been grateful when her headache had kept her in for the night.
“Come on, Owen,” Jack said. “I know you aren't the biggest fan of her, but give her a chance.”
Owen's lips thinned and his eyes went glassy. “I just don't think she has your best interests in mind. I don't like her.”
Jack took a deep breath. Owen wasn't the only one who didn't like his relationship with Brandy. Rachel, Jack's personal assistant and friend, had basically said the same thing. Only Rachel had used less nice words. He was beginning to think the relationship was doomed.
“Then again, there just doesn't seem to be any girl for us, is there? There will never be some girl that we can just hang out with without them just seeing our money, is there?” Owen sighed, then seemed to freeze up.
“I appreciate your concern, and-” Jack started, but Owen suddenly leaned to the side and started regurgitating all the alcohol in his stomach. Jack sighed. At least Owen had avoided hitting him with projectile vomit.
“The milk was a mistake,” Owen groaned, clutching his stomach. Jack rolled his eyes. He hadn't even seen Owen drink any milk, but knowing the lengths Owen would go to impress a girl, he wasn't surprised.
“Let's get you to bed.” Jack waited a moment before taking Owen's arm over his shoulder again to make sure he was finished. “I'm pretty sure Janet stocked the fridge with some Gatorade.”
Owen moaned in answer but started to shuffle his feet toward the beach house. Jack walked slowly, nearly dropping Owen whenever he started to make retching sounds. Luckily, Owen kept the rest of his stomach down for the remainder of the short walk back.
The beach house gleamed in the moonlight like a beacon of hope as the two men staggered forward. Jack had always liked the place. Technically, it was Owen's beach home, but Jack had stayed enough times that it felt like his own. The house was one of the few places that Jack actually felt comfortable in.
It was that feeling of comfort that had made him choose to have his “bachelor party” here. Jack wasn't getting married, at least not to a woman. The party was more symbolic of his job taking over his life completely. He knew that with the amount of work on his plate this next year, he'd be lucky to have enough time to shower, let alone meet a woman to marry.
As much as he hated it, Jack accepted the fact that he was probably never going to get married. It was just a cold fact of life. He was marrying his business; DS Oil and Gas was his life partner now. Once he signed those papers next week, he would be as off the market as any married man. Thus, the decision to throw a blow out bachelor party.
“Okay, Owen, time to sleep,” Jack said gently as he laid Owen down in the first available bedroom. Owen mumbled something and buried his face in the pillow. “You can sleep until the party tomorrow.”
He had friends flying in from all over the world to come stay at Owen's lush beach house to celebrate one last time. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough. He couldn't wait to see the few people in the world that he didn't feel awkward and rich around. For at least a couple of hours, he would get to be “Jack” and not have to be the billionaire.
Jack went to the kitchen to find the Gatorade for Owen. Jack smiled when he opened the pantry to find his two favorite flavors neatly lining one of the shelves of the pantry and several cooling in the fridge. He would have to thank Janet, one of the housekeepers, for doing such a wonderful job. She always knew when Jack was coming to visit and stocked his favorites accordingly.
Owen was already snoring when Jack dropped the bottle off in his room. For a moment, Jack considered finding a sharpie or even some some shaving cream to prank his friend, but decided against it. It wasn't the threat of retaliation, but rather the bone-weary tiredness that decided him. The company's transition next week was already exhausting him.
Jack climbed the stairs to his room, stripping his shirt off as he entered. He didn't bother taking off his pants or even turning on the light before flopping into bed. All he wanted to do was sleep and not think about what he was doing. Nothing in his life felt right at the moment.
“Ooof!” A voice said in the darkness. “What are you doing? You reek.”
Brandy. Jack closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He had completely forgotten about Brandy.
“Sorry, baby,” he whispered, leaning over to kiss her cheek. “We just got back.”
“Well, you can go take a shower,” she said shortly. “You smell like a bar.”
Jack frowned. Of course he smelled like a bar, that's where he had been all night. “I'll take one in the morning, I'm just really tired and—”
“Then don't sleep in here with me,” she snapped. “Either stop smelling like crappy whiskey or find another place to sleep.”
Jack stared at the dark in disbelief for a moment before getting up and going to another room. He was exhausted. It shouldn't matter that he smelled like a distillery. That was his room too. This whole place was his.
He flopped down in the guest bedroom down the hall, annoyed. The pillow here wasn't the kind he liked and the bedspread in this room was too heavy. He wanted his room. He scrunched the pillow up under his head in an angry attempt to make it more comfortable.
Bringing Brandy was a mistake. Owen and Rachel both had tried to warn him but he hadn't listened. He had wanted to be in love. For the last week before his father's business took over everything, Jack had wanted to find some happiness.
On the surface, everything had been perfect. Brandy was beautiful with a body that made men's heads spin. She laughed at his jokes and she fawned over his gifts. She had made him feel powerful and wanted.
He shook his head, staring up at the ceiling. She had fluttered her eyelashes and taken him in. Every time he closed the blinds to his office with her inside, he had gotten a rush. But, now that they were on vacation, all the spark from their clandestine meetings in the office was gone.
Jack sighed, holding the breath out for as long as he could, relishing the physical ache. After this trip, everything would be different and yet exactly the same. He knew was after his money, but at least she had made the effort to give him the illusion of having feelings for him.
She must still just have a headache, Jack thought to himself. Everything will be back to normal in the morning.
Kisses From Jack: Chapter 2
Everything was not back to normal in the morning. The first few times his phone buzzed, Jack didn't even bother getting up to answer it. He just prayed that it would stop before his hangover got worse.
When it started to vibrate non-stop, he finally reached out from under the blanket to look at who was calling. He had specifically requested that he only be bothered for emergencies, but one look at the Caller ID told him that he better pick it up.
“What's up, Dean?” he asked, his voice cracking halfway through the sentence.
“What's up? I've been trying to call you for a half hour now,” the angry man on the other end of the line said.
“I know, I just woke up.” I am on vacation, after all, Jack thought. But he knew his bodyguard was just looking after him.
“Just woke- oh. Oh.” Dean sounded like he understood. Jack could hear someone talking in the background, then he heard Dean say, “He said he just woke up.”
Jack looked at the clock. 9:30 AM. It wasn't even that late, but for the CEO of a company, that might as well be sleeping in until sunset. He knew he'd be pulling some hours before dawn as soon as he started.
“Listen, guys, is everything okay? Did you land? Are you here?”
“Yeah, we're here and we'll be there soon.”
“Did you bring it?” Jack asked, a smile creeping across his face.
“Bring what?” Dean asked.
“Don't be coy. Did you bring the shirt?”
There was a pause. Jack hoped that he wouldn't have to trek into town to buy one if he didn't. “Yes, I brought it,” Dean said with an exasperated sigh.
The thought of his stoic and incredibly reserved bodyguard wearing that ridiculous Hawaiian shirt almost made Jack's headache go away. Almost. “Good. I'll see you when you get here.”
Jack hung up the phone and wandered out of the room. He nearly forgot why he wasn't sleeping in his own bed, but he remembered as soon as he got to the kitchen for breakfast. There was Brandy, looking unhappy as ever. Clearly she thought that Jack had slept too late as well.
“Hey there,” Jack said, sauntering up to her. He leaned into kiss her.
“Ugh, you still reek,” she said, pushing him away. A flash of anger washed over Jack, but he managed to keep it in check. “When are you going to shower?”
He moved away from her with a sigh and went to get a toaster pastry. They weren't usually on his menu, but this was vacation after all. “Right after breakfast,” Jack said.
“Well, after you smell better, I was thinking we might go into town. I was thinking that you might get me some of that island jewelry,” she said, her eyes sparkling a little bit. “The island is renowned for their diamond and tanzanite pieces.”
Jack froze. “Honey, you know that my party is today. I'll be preparing all day for it.”
Brandy sighed. “Oh, is that tonight? Well, we'll just have to make it quick.”
“I literally don't have any time to take you shopping today.” Jack sighed. He wanted her to have fun on this trip, too. “Can it wait until tomorrow?”
Brandy pouted. “Well... Don't you want me to look good at your little party tonight?”
Is she for real? Jack thought. He was sure he had already explained this to her. “Brandy, we've been over this. Tonight's party is for guys only. You're going to have to find something else to do tonight.”
Her mouth dropped a little bit. “I thought you were just fooling around.” Jack shook his head. “Fine,” she continued. “If you don't want me here, then I won't be here. Enjoy your little boy's party tonight.” She stomped out of the room.
Jack just stood there, eating his Pop Tart. She had been so different at the office, flirting and giggling. Even out at restaurants she shined. The few moments that they had managed to be alone that didn't involve sex at the office, had been high points in his days. They were always full of excited whispers and giddy anticipation. Now that they really were alone out here, the anticipation and excitement was gone.
Jack munched on the last piece of toaster pastry. He would have to find Brandy something sparkly tomorrow. When she had talked about the jewelry, her eyes had finally lit up like they did at the office. Maybe that would buy him some peace.
***
Krista's note: This scene is told from Izzy's pont of view in Sandcastle Kisses.
Jack came and sat down next to Owen at the bar of the Man Cave. The Man Cave was probably Jack's favorite part of the beach house. A tattered but extremely comfortable old couch sat in front of a big screened TV attached to every game console ever invented. There was an old pinball machine from Owen's college days and a bar along the wall that was Owen's pride and joy.
Everything for the party was coming together nicely. The DJ was setting up in the next room while the food and beverages arrived. Rachel was upstairs directing traffic and running the show and while Dean managed the security. Guests would be arriving any moment.
“Nice shirt, Dean,” a man with jet black hair and an easy smile said, coming down the stairs. Dean scowled at him, but let him pass. Jack hoped everyone commented on Dean's obnoxious shirt.
“Hey, Noah,” Jack greeted the new
comer. “Glad you could make it.”
“Wouldn't miss it for the world,” Noah replied. “I still get to work the bar tonight, right?”
“Why do you think he invited you?” Owen quipped. “No one makes the drinks like you.”
Noah laughed, going around behind the back of the bar. “So, what'll it be, gents?” Noah asked, pulling out glasses and prepping the area. He moved easily, always on his toes. Jack still remembered that the man could pack quite a punch.
“Do you know a Naughty Shirley?” Jack asked with a wink. Noah grinned and pulled out a rounded glass. This was how the two of them had met: at a college bar with those same words. Unfortunately, Noah had been dating a girl named Shirley at the time. The two men's first meeting hadn't ended so well, with Jack learning just why the new bartender was at college on a partial boxing scholarship, but it had started their friendship.
“And for you, Owen?” Noah asked, setting the glass down.
Owen narrowed his eyes. “Nothing for me. I'm good.” At the original fight, Owen had sucker punched Noah once Jack went down. Despite years of protests to the contrary, Owen was certain Noah was going to try and get him back someday for the unclean hit. Noah swore that he had let Owen hit him and as such, felt no need to ever do anything in return. It had now turned into a form of game for the three of them.
“Um, I'm the bartender?” a quiet female voice squeaked by the stairs. All three men looked over at the girl standing on the bottom step shrinking quickly under Dean's impressive glare. “The woman upstairs told me to tell the guy wearing the Hawaiian shirt...”
“Quit scaring the poor girl,” Jack said, jumping up and putting his hand on Dean's shoulder. He knew Dean was just messing with her. In a dark vest and white shirt, it was obvious who she was. “Don't mind Dean. He's just mad that we made him dress up for the occasion.”
The girl smiled in relief. She was pretty, with strawberry blonde hair and green eyes and a smattering of freckles across her cheeks. Not really Jack's type, but definitely cute enough that he would enjoy her bar-tending for the evening.