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I could go round…hell, what number were we on now? Seven? It had been a very busy night.
I rolled out of bed and to the sliding door that led to the balcony. The sun was shining on Carwyn City, and it was another beautiful day. Too beautiful to waste swimming when Josephine could be spending her time back in bed. My bed. That thought warmed me.
When I let myself outside, my erection led the way, but I stopped short when I saw my pool.
Fucking Jackson again.
He glanced up. “Whoa, dude! Put that thing away! You’ll have someone’s eye out!” He howled out a laugh, then broke to coughing when he swallowed a mouthful of water.
“And you leave my water in the pool. It’s not for drinking.” But I turned away and strode back into my room to grab my robe.
For fuck’s sake. I gritted my teeth. Jackson? Again?
And had he met Josephine? Where was she? Sudden fear gripped me. Last night’s thoughts that he might attempt to flirt with her himself were running rampant through my head again. I pulled my jealousy back into check as I returned to stand by my pool.
“So…” Jackson widened his eyes. “Anything you want to tell me?”
I pressed my lips together and shook my head. “Nope.” Nothing at all I wanted to share.
Last night belonged solely to me.
“Okay.” He shrugged and started to swim away again, continuing his lap around my pool. Then he stopped. “Oh, but whoever was here definitely had something to tellyou. She’s left you the most killer breakfast and a note saying thank you for the best night she’s ever had.”
I watched him for a moment, unsure what to say.
“Hubba, hubba.” Jason swirled his hips, swishing the water.
“Okay. Firstly, never do that shimmy thing you just did ever again. It’s disturbing. Secondly, yes, I had a guest. Thirdly, no one sayshubba, hubba, anymore.” I crossed my arms over my chest, deliberately making myself look as big as possible. “And who died and made you pack joker?”
When Jackson didn’t think of a quick enough answer, I carried right on talking.
“Anyway, it’s a new day, and speaking of death, I still need to go and pay my respects to the Everly family.” I allowed myself a moment to grin at why I hadn’t been the previous day. “I was otherwise engaged, in case you didn’t notice.”
“Oh, I’ve noticed.” Jackson was still a moment longer. “But Patrick?”
“Yeah?”
He sounded more serious than usual. I was used to Jackson giving me shit rather than asking about anything that mattered, especially when he had an actual reason to roast me over something.
“Do you think not going to see the Everly family yesterday and introducing yourself respectfully might hurt the negotiations? Wouldn’t it have been better than just landing yourself on the family today? Kind of a…soft introduction?”
“You know what? I don’t know.”
I couldn’t bring myself to regret the previous night, and I wouldn’t change it.
“But I guess I’m just going in hard.”
Jackson nodded. “Okay.”
It wasn’t like me not to care, but I’d be able to bring everything back around. “We need to get going if we’re going to be there by nine.”
“Sure thing.” He looked like he was about to launch back into the water, but instead he launched a parting shot at me. “Don’t forget your breakfast.”
* * *
I drewinto a parking spot at Gold Moon Inc. It looked the same as many of the other companies we’d taken. It was mid-level everything, and especially not in the most upmarket section of the city.
“The genius of this company,” I said to Jackson in case he’d overlooked it in the file, “is that they’re strictly the middle-man. They make the connections between companies with products to distribute and shipping companies to take care of the distribution. They essentially make a finder’s fee.”
