by Nia Arthurs
Joon had a million other ideas. Even without spending a dime on traditional advertising, he planned on seeing Sweet Treats rise.
And then, he’d focus on his own store.
A tap on the side door grabbed his attention.
Sky glanced down at her watch. “Jo must be early.”
“I’ll go.” He held a hand out to keep her in place. “You stay here and finish up.”
“Thanks.” She sent him a sweet smile before returning to the counter and the fried jack dough.
Joon strode to the door, expecting to see Joana’s curly brown hair and exotic eyes peering at him through the mesh. Instead, he found a chubby kid in a vest and jersey shorts.
Assuming he was a beggar, Joon Gi frowned and turned around. “Sorry. The store isn’t open.”
“Hey, mister. Wait. Can I please—?”
“Sir, there’s a shelter a few blocks over. You should check with them if you’re hungry.”
“No, you’ve got it wrong. I’m Sky’s cousin, Phillip. Can I speak to her please?”
“What?”
The boy flung himself against the door. “I’m not homeless.”
Joon flushed with embarrassment and quickly let him in. “Sorry about that.”
“No prob, man.” Phillip puffed out his chest so his already sizeable stomach expanded.
Footsteps approached a moment later, Sky appeared. “Phillip? What are you doing here?” She cut Joon a quick look before hissing, “It’s not a good time.”
“I’m not here to beg for money,” Phillip said. “I swear. I’m just here for breakfast.”
Joon looked at the young man. Dark brown skin. Huge eyes. Plump lips. He could smell the laziness on him and—from their brief conversation—Joon deduced that Sky had catered to Phillip’s bad habits before.
But there was a new guy in town and he’d made it his mission to keep Sky from being bamboozled by anyone else.
Joon folded his arms over his chest. “You came for breakfast?”
“Yeah.” Phillip shot him a strange look. “Who are you?”
“He’s…” Sky opened her mouth. Shut it. Sent him a worried gaze. “We’re… I mean, this is…”
Joon held out a hand. “I’m your cousin’s boyfriend. Joon Gi Kim.”
Phillip’s jaw dropped. He ignored Joon Gi’s handshake and leaned forward to whisper, “Cuz, he’s Asian.”
“Yup.” Sky squirmed.
“Okay then.” Phillip shrugged. “Everyone has their own thing, I guess.”
Joon narrowed his eyes, unsure of what that meant.
“Phillip, be nice. I’m going to finish up the stuffed jacks.”
Sky left them in the room alone.
Phillip sent him a skittish look. “So you like my cousin?”
“Yes, I do. Very much.”
“Why?”
“Why?” Joon cocked his head. “Because she’s a good person and I can’t imagine my life without her.”
“I see.” Phillip nodded.
“My turn.” Joon lifted his chin and jutted it toward the young man. “What do you do for a living?”
Phillip tugged on his ear. “This and that.”
“How often do you eat breakfast at Sky’s?”
“Whenever I can.” He twined his fingers together. “We’re very close.”
“How much money have you borrowed from her?”
“I’ve—” Phillip froze. “Hey! How’s that any of your business?”
Joon walked over and bent down at the waist to get on Phillip’s eyelevel. “I think you and I should have a talk.”
Ten minutes later, Joon and Phillip walked into the kitchen.
Sky turned around, her gaze darting between them. “What’s going on?”
“Phillip just had a wonderful idea.” Joon glanced down at the boy.
“It wasn’t my idea,” Phillip mumbled. Joon tapped him on the back. The kid jumped in fear and blurted, “Sky, it was very irresponsible of me to take advantage of your kindness and keep borrowing money without paying you back.”
The pastry fork in Sky’s hands clattered to the ground.
Joon pulled his lips in to keep from chuckling and simply stood close by Phillip’s side to encourage him along.
“I want to help out in order to pay back my debts so I’ve decided…” Phillp shot Joon a quick look. “I mean, I can do some deliveries in the morning. If you want.”
“Deliveries?”
Joon spoke up then. “He can act as an errand boy for a few hours in the morning. I thought it was a good idea. What do you think, babe?”
“Me?” Sky blinked rapidly. “That’s amazing. I would love that, Phillip. Thank you.”
“Whatever.” Phillip grabbed a hot fried jack and went to sulk in the corner.
Sky glided closer to Joon and whispered. “What was that about?”
“I have no idea.”
She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You threatened him, didn’t you?”
“I just helped Phillip mature a little.” He put his hand on her shoulder and steered her around, marching her back to the stove. Before releasing her, Joon dropped a kiss on her cheek. “All I want to do is make you happy.”
Sky sighed. “I am.”
Joon settled his head tenderly against hers. If Sky was happy, then so was he.
31
NETFLIX BINGEING WAS the glue that held their relationship together. After a long day at the bakery, Sky loved nothing more than to cuddle into Joon’s side and watch an unhealthy amount of television.
She knew he’d rather be working than ‘wasting time’ on TV. Is he a robot or something? He’s never tired of working. Thankfully, Joon always made the sacrifice for her and though he complained afterward about how the show had sucked all his time, she suspected that he secretly enjoyed it.
While they were in the middle of an episode, Sky’s phone buzzed.
Since Joon had his arm locked over her chest, she couldn’t move to reach it. Tapping him on the knee, she said, “Babe, can you get that?”
“Get what?” Joon asked, eyes glued to the screen.
“My phone.”
“Where is it?”
“On the coffee table.”
Joon stretched forward so the blanket covering them both slid slightly off her foot. Sky scrambled to pull it back up to her hips. Joon loved having the fan blasting on them, but she got cold easily. Sky shivered and hunkered into the blanket.
After handing the cell to her, Joon settled back into the chair, this time with his hand draping around her shoulders. Sky adjusted her head so she could see the phone screen and checked the messages.
An unknown number glared at her.
UNKNOWN: Sky, I’d like to invite you and Joon over for a get-together this Saturday. We’re meeting at the docks and taking a ride on my new yacht. Interested?
UNKNOWN: This is Sun Gi
Sky crinkled her nose in confusion. Why was Sun Gi reaching out to her all of a sudden? She thought of the last time they’d met. Sun Gi hadn’t seemed like the type to get in touch first.
Suddenly, the living room went silent.
Sky glanced up and saw that Joon had paused the show. He was staring intently at her. “You okay?”
“I just got a text from Sun Gi.” She showed it to him.
Joon gritted his teeth. “What is my brother up to?”
“Have you ever thought that, maybe, he’s just trying to find a way to connect with you?”
“Sun Gi?” Joon scoffed. “No way.”
“Why’d you guys get so frosty with each other anyway?”
“We were never that close growing up. We were too different.”
Sky thought that Joon was wrong. The brothers were both tall and handsome. Both charismatic and yet cutthroat when it came to business. But she decided not to voice any of that.
“Is that why you hate each other so much?”
“I don’t hate my brother. It’s just… hard to get along with him.” He sighed.
“Things didn’t get this bad until my dad passed.”
She saw his glistening eyes and took his hand, locking their fingers together.
His voice was thick with sorrow. “Dad and I had a special bond. When he got sick, I wasn’t in the country. Sun Gi was there, taking care of him, meeting his every need, but Dad kept asking for me.”
“I didn’t know.” Sky pictured a younger Sun Gi scrambling around a hospital room, struggling to receive acknowledgement from a father who’d always preferred his older brother.
I almost feel sorry for him.
She shook her head. Joon was finally opening up about his dad. She didn’t want to clam him up by saying anything about Sun Gi yet. “Where were you?”
“Stuck in Korea. My flights were cancelled. Everything that could go wrong was going wrong. I didn’t even make it to Dad’s side before he died. Sun Gi’s held it against me ever since.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
Sky knew it wasn’t. “The tattoo on your arm… is it your dad’s name?”
He went quiet.
Sky nudged him with her elbow. “We’re going on a yacht this weekend, which means you’ll have to take your shirt off. I can just ask Sun Gi for a translation then.”
“So you’ve already decided we’re going?”
Sky hadn’t, actually, but at least her mission was accomplished. She’d gotten Joon to smile a little even while discussing the painful topic of his father.
“I’m not going to force you, but I think you and Sun Gi should work this out. You’re brothers. Your father wouldn’t want you to fight.”
“Sun Gi’s right though. I wasn’t there for Dad when he needed me.”
“I can hear that you have regrets,” she said. “But that’s not your fault. What happened was out of your control. Sun Gi knows that. If you two would just talk it out—”
“I tried. He’s the one who flung Dad’s death in my face.”
“You’re the older brother, though. Maybe if you’d try again, things would be different.”
Joon went steely silent.
Sky sighed. “Look, I’m not taking up for Sun Gi. He isn’t a saint. I mean, who steals their brother’s fiancée just to make a point?”
Joon was still frowning but he admitted, “I don’t regret losing Hanna. It led me to you.”
“Don’t think your sappy words will distract me. What’s the tattoo?”
“You were right before. It’s his name.” Joon stared into her eyes. “It’s my dad.”
She sucked in a breath.
Joon pressed a kiss against her shoulder and tucked his head into her neck. Murmuring against her skin, he said, “I don’t want to fight about this. Sun Gi’s the last thing we should argue about. If you think we should go, I’ll go.”
“I think we should go.”
“Then it’s settled.” He nuzzled her neck. “Can we get back to the show?”
“Sure.” Sky tried to focus on the television, but Joon’s persistent lips found hers and distracted her from seeing another minute of the episode.
32
THE WHITE-CAPPED WAVES of the Caribbean Sea sparkled in the sunlight. A blue horizon spotted with fluffy white clothes filled the sky above them. A gentle breeze lifted a lock of her hair and carried in a frantic dance.
Sky tucked the curl behind her ear only to have it pop out again. She sighed in frustration and sat straight up to tug her clip free and readjust her ponytail.
“Need some help there?” a warm voice rumbled close to her ear.
Sky scooped the mass of black coils into one fist and stretched the clip with her teeth. “Nah, I’m good.”
She felt a hand clasp the back of her neck and knew that Joon was helping anyway. Sky relinquished the clip to him and closed her eyes as his deft fingers made quick work of her ponytail. When he was done, he dropped a kiss on the back of her neck.
These past few weeks, Sky had learned how much fondness Joon had for that particular body part.
“Mm,” Sky arched back to give him more room, “you’re way too good at that.”
“Necking?”
“Fixing my hair.”
Joon chuckled, the warmth of it sending goosebumps skittering over her skin. “I like your hair. But then, I like everything about you.”
“You’re such a smooth talker.” She turned in his lap so her legs were hanging off the pool chair. Joon’s dark brown eyes met her gaze. He looked unimaginably handsome in a baseball cap, orange tank top and swimming trunks.
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Your giant ego turns everything into a compliment, whether it is one or not.”
“So that’s it? We date for two months and you start bashing on me? Is this who you really are?”
Sky laughed and slid her fingers over the tattoo lining his forearm. Sobering slightly, she whispered, “I wish I could have met him.”
Joon’s smile dimmed. “He would have loved you. Dad was great at business and had a big heart. I never could be like him.”
“You’re closer than you think.” Sky held his gaze. “Thank you for opening up about the tattoo.”
“The story wasn’t as exciting as you thought it would be.”
She tilted her head. “I keep my mom’s store to have her close to me. You have a tattoo. I understand.”
“I know you do.” He leaned his forehead against hers. “You see me.”
And she did.
Joon Gi had his moments of gruffness and brooding, but with her, he always tore down his walls. She was honored every time and vowed to treasure his love the way she treasured Sweet Treats.
“Alright, love birds,” a voice broke their tender gaze, “this isn’t your honeymoon.”
Joon draped his arm over Sky’s waist and glanced at his brother. “Don’t piss me off, Sun Gi. I could toss you overboard and no one would say anything.”
Sky leaned back against Joon’s chest and pretended to cough so she could hide her laughter.
“I’d haunt you in your dreams, hyung.” Sun Gi promised.
Sky tapped Joon’s leg. “Babe, you’re applying for a business loan. You can’t have murder on your résumé.”
“It’d be worth it,” Joon grumbled.
Jo appeared next to Sun Gi, dressed in a red bikini over a see-through kimono. “Let’s get the keys to the food pantry before we throw him away. I’m starving.”
“Is that all I am to you?” Sun Gi turned to Jo. The wind battered his black hair and tore at his T-shirt. “A meal ticket?”
“Hey, I was promised shrimp. That’s the only reason I boarded your fancy little yacht.”
“This woman,” Sun Gi muttered as he turned and headed into the lower deck, “walks around with her belly in her hands.”
As soon as they were out of earshot, Sky and Joon burst out laughing.
Joon shook his head. “Sun Gi’s been hanging around Sweet Treats a lot lately. You think it’s for Jo?”
“Jo? Are you crazy? He’s getting married next year.”
“So?”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever the reason, I’m glad he’s been showing up so often. It gives you two an opportunity to make amends. Family is too important.” She lifted her chin and smiled at him. “You taught me that.”
“Guess I did.” He kissed her cheek.
Sky cuddled with Joon Gi and admired the beautiful day.
He’d changed her. For the better. And, even though he’d never admit it, Sky had changed Joon too.
They were two flawed, imperfect people who’d found a perfect love. Sky looked forward to seeing where the wind would take them next.
THE END
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A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR
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ALSO BY NIA ARTHURS
The Taming Series
Taming Mr. Jerkface
Taming Mr. Charming
Taming Mr. Know-it-all
Taming Mr. Darcy
The Richards Books
Call Me Torn
Call Me Broken
Call Me Lost
Standalones
Chasing Daniel
The Switch
Axle’s Secret
The Good Brother
Something New
Love In Many Shades Series
Cece & David
Cece & David 2
Cece & David 3
Cece & David 4
Lovesick Series
Play
Dance
Trust
SNEAK PEEK
Swipe on for a sample of the second book in the Sweet Treats series featuring Joana and Sun Gi.
CHAPTER 1
SUN GI HAD a meeting in twenty minutes—which he’d probably be late for since Belizean morning traffic was a huge pain in the behind.
He touched a finger to his forehead and hissed in pain, recalling the moment his alarm blared and he shot out of bed only to collide with the edge of the nightstand.
Huge possibility he’d given himself a concussion.
Good times.
The scent of coffee filled the air. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes and savoring the rich fragrance. Though he was surrounded on all sides, he could pretend—for just a little while—that he was alone.
Man, I wish I was alone. Maybe out on a beach somewhere. San Pedro? Caye Caulker? Or better yet, sailing on his yacht, nothing but Caribbean Sea and blue horizon for miles.