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They were all fucked up. Maybe not Kenz, but the rest of them were all kinds of screwed up, and they needed her. This was her family. Her team.
Dare Nash was a magnificent man, but she had to focus on her team and the mission. She hopped into the back with Lou, letting Kala have the front. “I did many shameful things last night, brother, and I regret not a one. Now I was promised mimosas. How did you manage to get away without Kenzie?”
That girl loved a mimosa.
“Snuck out while she was sleeping,” Kala revealed. “A little like you. She’ll be pissed, but I’ll bring her waffles. They have waffles here? It’s not all kangaroo meat and Vegemite, right?”
So like their dad. “Dumbass. They have waffles. And Vegemite’s not bad. You put too much on. You need a thin layer.”
“I like their lollies.” Lou seemed to perk up. “That’s what they call candy.”
“I like everything,” Tristan announced as he pulled away from the hotel. “We’ve got sun and a beach, and the parents are either back at Langley or hanging out in Loa Mali about ten hours away. Freedom. I love it.”
She didn’t look back, though she’d lied about one thing. She did regret leaving him. Tasha worried she might regret that for the rest of her life.
* * * *
She was gone.
When he’d woken up, he’d thought she was in the bathroom or she’d slipped out of bed to watch the beach. It was kind of mesmerizing to watch the waves in the soft morning light. He’d gotten up and gone to join her, fully meaning to haul his wayward sub back to bed and give her a stern talking to about leaving her Dom all alone in the morning.
Except she hadn’t been standing by the windows. She hadn’t been in the suite at all, and that was when he’d realized her clothes and her purse were gone.
His cell phone buzzed, and it took him a moment to register the sound. Then he ran over to it like an eager puppy because it could totally be Tasha calling to explain why she’d had to leave.
Except she didn’t have his number.
Fuck. Had he been played again?
He groaned as he realized it was his father on the other end of the line. Dare knew to take the damn call or his father would send someone on the hotel staff up to “check on him,” i.e. force him to answer. He put the phone on speaker even though he knew his father hated that. “This is Dare.”
No happy hello, Dads for him. He knew exactly how to talk to his father if he didn’t want a lecture on how to be a real man.
“Dare, I know you’re only supposed to meet with some clients at this thing, but something else has come up. I’m going to need you to step in for Lance, which means I’ll need you circulating at the conference.” His father wasted no time. “He’s been cozying up to this doctor from Quebec. Runs a foundation. A couple of decades ago they were stationed in Toronto. He moved the whole operation to Montreal when he took over.”
He knew it well. Dare walked back into the bedroom and slipped into his jeans. “The Huisman Foundation. Yes, I certainly know who Emmanuel Huisman is.”
The man had become something of a celebrity in the last few years. The Huismans were ultra-wealthy, but Emmanuel was the last of his line and had a rather tragic backstory. His father had been killed while attempting to commit a crime, and Emmanuel had been brought up by his grandparents in the shadow of that shame.
Now that he thought about it, he and Huisman might have a lot in common.
“Then you should know how powerful they are in the field of medical technology. I want to be in business with the foundation,” his father stated bluntly. “He’s going to be honored at the conference, and then there’s going to be a big party for him hosted by some Aussie billionaire, and you’re going to go in Lance’s place. It’s a house party over a weekend, so you should be able to spend some real time with him. You’re going to figure out what Huisman needs and give it to him.”
“What happened with Lance? I’m supposed to be back home next week.” If he wasn’t there, no one would go to his sister’s school play. No one would make sure his brother had his shit together for class.
“I need you in Australia.” His father had his stubborn tone on full volume. “We need to get in good with Huisman, and honestly it should be you. Lance isn’t a Nash. He shouldn’t have been representing us in such a fashion. I know what you’re worried about. I’ll hire someone to help Johnny if you do this for me. Someone full time. Someone you approve of and who has the right credentials, and I’ll pay for a year up front.”
