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“The owner, Jonathan, has carried his nephews for years.,” Peter explained as he cut into his steak. “Jonathan’s brother and sister-in-law were killed in a car accident when the brothers were twenty and twenty-one. They were a little wild and out of control. They partied a lot, got into a mess of trouble, and brought a lot of stress on the rest of the family. Jonathan had the resort, so he sent them there to run it. It’s never been entirely clear to me why he thought that would be a good idea. They’re not the brightest guys and I think they’re pretty damn lazy. I’m fairly sure the brothers let the managers run the place and they just party and live off their uncle,” Peter said with a shrug.
“Why is he looking to sell it now?” Jack asked.
“He’s getting older. He also owns Master Blend Winery so his focus has been on wine for years. He doesn’t get out to the resort at all anymore. Seems like he wants it out of his hair. Wants the brothers closer to home. I’m pretty sure he’ll set them up with a cushy job here. But, if I’m right about them not actually doing any work, despite drawing a salary, and living on the property, then the investment would be a good one. For anyone buying the property, the brothers’ salaries would become instant profit. If the general manager wanted to live on the property, she could take over the villa the brothers share,” Peter said.
Andrew took a sip of his drink before speaking. “And you want us to look into it for you. See if it’s the great buy it looks like it’ll be?”
Peter nodded. “If you can. I don’t expect you to send anyone out there like you do for your own investments. I was hoping you could look over the paperwork Jonathan sent over. See what you think.”
Jack grinned at Andrew and there was a hint of something in his eyes.
“What are you thinking?” Andrew asked Jack.
“That Chad and Jennie could use a vacation,” Jack answered before turning to Peter. “You said this resort is mostly for honeymooners and young couples? Can you give us a couple weeks to position ourselves and get back to you?”
Peter looked back and forth between the two of them. “What are you guys plotting?”
“We know a couple that could use a fake honeymoon. I think we’ll send two of our team members over there after all. Give us time to have our people take a look. We’ll get back to you. In the meantime, can you send me all the financials Jonathan gave you? I can fax a nondisclosure over to you this afternoon,” Jack said.
The men shared a few more drinks and caught up over the rest of their meal, but Jack was already scheming in the back of his mind.
He’d watched Jennie and Chad dance around each other for almost a year now. Even though they seemed happy on the outside, he knew they were both missing something in their lives. If he and Andrew could give them the push they needed, to see if there might be more between them than great chemistry, he’d do it. An undercover assignment as honeymooners for two weeks might be just the thing to push those two over the edge.
Chapter 5
“Getting too old for this, Jack?” Chad asked his cousin as he, Jack, and Andrew walked off the basketball court after three hours of pickup play.
“You do seem to be limping a little there, Jack,” said Andrew, earning a scowl.
“Shut it.” Jack lowered himself onto the bleachers beside the court. All three men pulled sweatshirts over damp T-shirts and began exchanging sweaty socks and gym sneakers for dry socks and clean shoes.
Despite the fact they could afford fancy club memberships, all three preferred the pickup games at the local community center gym. They were a lot more fun than the games at the fancy fitness center they’d tried years ago.
“Grab lunch?” Chad asked.
Jack and Andrew both shook their heads.
“I can’t. I’m meeting Jill for lunch in an hour. I need to run home and shower,” Andrew said.
“I promised Kelly I’d bring her chicken noodle soup from the Daily Grill. She’s been craving nothing but chicken noodle soup for a month now.” Kelly’s pregnancy had been uneventful, with the exception of the cravings that had plagued her—and consequently Jack—since early on.
Jack laughed at Chad’s frown. “Hey, get yourself a wife and you won’t miss us so much.”
“Funny.” Chad scowled as the men picked up their bags and started toward the exit.
Jack and Andrew got quiet and Chad groaned inside. He knew what was coming.
Can’t everyone drop the whole Jennie and Chad thing?
After picking Jennie up at the park, he had barely managed to get the image of her in a T-shirt with no bra out of his head, and now they had put it front and center again without even mentioning her name.
“Maybe it’s time you saw where this thing with Jennie might go. Have you even been on a date with anyone else since you met her?” Jack asked.
They crossed the parking lot toward their cars, but it was clear Jack and Andrew were going to stay until he gave them an answer. Chad didn’t want to tell Jack the answer to that question and he didn’t want to have this conversation again. As far as they knew, he didn’t want to date Jennie because he was her boss at Sutton Capital. And, that was part of it, but Chad hadn't actually told anyone the whole truth.
He opened the door to his truck and threw his gym bag on the passenger seat before turning to face his two best friends. The parking lot was almost empty now and no one was within hearing distance of them. He ran a hand over his jaw and tried to loosen the clenched muscles that had him grinding his teeth together. He didn’t succeed.
“Listen guys, I know you mean well, but it’s not gonna happen with me and Jennie. It’s not just the work thing.”
