Do Marry Your Billionaire Boss (Jewel Family Romance Book 1) Read online

  Jesse easily caught her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and twirled her in against him. Jade’s hands ended up on his chest, and she relished the feel of being close to him, almost forgetting that she was annoyed with him. “Forgive me again,” Jesse said in a low growl. “I seem to be apologizing to you a lot tonight.”

  “Well then, stop messing up.”

  Jesse chuckled and that dimple appeared in his cheek, visible even through his short beard. “You are a feisty and extremely beautiful woman.”

  Jade let out a sigh and ran her hands up around his neck. “Good thing you included ‘beautiful,’ or I might have ripped your head off.”

  Jesse laughed again. He turned, wrapping one arm around her waist and exerting just the right amount of pressure on her hip. “Walk on the beach with me?” he asked softly.

  “Yes.” She had little power to resist him.

  They strolled through the gorgeous resort, past water fountains, statutes, and vases that were dozens of feet tall. They made it outside and wandered past the numerous pools, the blue water glowing in the night.

  When they stepped onto the sand, Jade stopped, slid out of her heels, and picked them up. There were a few couples walking or sitting in lounge chairs, but it was pretty quiet.

  Jesse took her free hand, and they strolled along the beach. As they walked away from the music coming from the resort’s swimming areas and patios, the only sounds were the waves breaking along the shore. It was dark out, with only the sliver of the moon reflecting on the water and the distant lights from the resort. They walked for a while, saying nothing, but Jade liked being with him and the warm pressure of his hand gripping hers.

  As they hit the north end of the beach, they turned and headed back. Before they got too close to the resort, lights, people, and soft music, Jesse tugged her to a stop. Jade turned to face him, hoping he’d express … something. What he’d express, she didn’t know, but she’d never felt connected to and intrigued by someone like this.

  “Jade.” His voice was a low murmur. “I would like to see you again.”

  Well, it was something. “When?” she questioned.

  He smiled, his dimple deepening. “What time do you fly home next Sunday?”

  “Eleven a.m.” Disappointment sliced through her. “I have to go straight from the ship to the airport to make my flight.”

  He paused, then said huskily, “Would you be willing to miss that flight?”

  Jade’s heart thumped, and she found herself trying to catch her breath. He wanted her to miss her flight … for him. “I guess I could,” she managed. “It’s not like I have a job to rush home to.”

  Jesse eased in closer and tenderly tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’ll reserve a room for you here. Could you stay the week?”

  “Th-thank you. Sure.” The way he said that struck her as a bit odd. Did he have an in to make certain she got a room? Was he paying for her room, or simply reserving it and expecting her to pay? Did he expect her to share a room? But he’d said a room for her, right?

  Jesse bent down low and brushed his lips across hers. An ache rose within her at his tender touch and the pressure of his mouth on hers. Jade dropped her shoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and tugged him down to her. Their mouths met, and the connection Jade had felt to him earlier only grew. The kiss grew warmer and hungrier. Jade didn’t know who Jesse James truly was, and she didn’t know if they had any future, at least not until he took the hat and sunglasses off, but she knew one thing for certain: he sure could kiss, and it felt like their mouths were meant to be tangled up with each other.

  Jade pulled back, gasping for air. Jesse ran his palms along her shoulders, and the delicious tingles that had been overtaking her mouth erupted on her skin as well. Tantalizingly working his hands down to her lower back, he pulled her up onto tiptoes and claimed her mouth again. Time meant nothing; to Jade, all that mattered was Jesse’s strong body and his mouth and hands making her tingle from head to toe.

  When a crowd of teenagers came by, whistling and laughing at them, they finally pulled their mouths apart, but Jesse kept her cuddled close to his chest. She ran her hands up his neck and touched the soft curls at the nape, touching the bottom of his hat. “Can I … take these off?” she asked.

  Jesse pulled back with a groan. “I need some time, Jade. After your cruise.”

  Jade wanted to groan herself. She wanted to see him, all of him. “After the cruise, you promise?”

  He paused, and she waited impatiently. A horrible thought struck her. What if he was missing an eye, or deformed, or burned? Yet as soon as the possibility occurred to her, she dismissed it from mattering to her at all. Jesse was incredibly handsome from the nose and cheeks down. If the parts she hadn’t seen weren’t whole she didn’t care.

  “Yes,” he finally said.

  “Thank you.”

  Jesse nodded and took her hand. He walked her into the resort and up to her room. Giving her a tender kiss outside the door, he whispered, “I’ll see you in a week.” Then he stepped back.

  Jade forced a smile and opened the door with a key card. She lifted a hand in farewell before slipping inside. Shutting the door, she leaned against it. A week. She was going to miss him. If only he could come with her. If only she could know everything about him. Suddenly, this cruise she’d dreamed about seemed a very lonely prospect indeed.

  Joshua strode to the elevator and went down to the first floor, then walked across the resort and behind the Italian restaurant to his private elevator. As he reached his suite, he made a decision. Pulling out his phone, he called one of his assistants. “Laney?”

  “Yes, sir,” she chirped.

  “I need you to put in a call to Royal Caribbean.”

  “And?”

  “We booked a room for a Jade Jardine as part of the Miami group. I want you to upgrade her to a suite, and I want my suite to be next door. So I can … talk to her on our balconies.” The ships he’d been on had adjoining balconies with a separator. He and his brothers had often talked to their neighbors without ever seeing them. Maybe if she was chatting with her next-door neighbor, she’d share something that would help him get to the bottom of these embezzling accusations. He didn’t like second-guessing everything she said.

  “But sir, your current suite is a four-bedroom two-story luxury suite. I don’t think it has adjoining balconies.”

  “Well, downgrade me and upgrade her. Thanks, Laney.”

  “You got it, sir.”

  “And I need you to send me the names of the top private investigator in Miami.”

  “Okay.” She was so professional, she didn’t even let the questions show in her voice, though he knew she probably had them.

  “Thanks,” he said again before hanging up. Maybe he should feel bad for putting his assistant out. Neither request would be an easy task, but he knew Laney could make both happen. He already had internal investigators trying to find the perpetrator, but he wanted to have an outside source look into it as well.

  He’d get to know Jade even better as her elusive next-door balcony guest. He could avoid her on a ship with over four thousand people, but maybe he’d allow himself to get to know her a little bit as Joshua Jewel, when he wasn’t looking closely at Curtis, Trevor, Peter, and Gabe. Already, he felt like Jade was his first priority. His brothers might tell him that it had been too long since he’d had a decent kiss. They’d be right, but kissing Jade had blown him out of the water. He had to find a way to trust her, and prove she wasn’t the embezzler. It could be any of the four men coming on the cruise, or someone else in the company they weren’t suspecting. He prayed it wasn’t Curtis, but more importantly, he prayed it couldn’t be Jade. There was really no other option, as he was already losing his heart to her.

  Chapter Five

  Jade was certain her jaw hadn’t hinged properly since she’d seen the cruise ship up close from the dock and then boarded and started walking the decks. It was massive, gargantuan, a beautiful,
unreal floating city. She wished she had somebody to share this with. She wished Teal or Jesse was with her, but she was going to enjoy this week, and somehow she would get Joshua Jewel alone. She wasn’t certain what motivated her anymore. She’d checked in with HR, and they’d assured her that the investigation was ongoing and they would get to the bottom of the matter. Her lawyer also reassured her that there was no case yet and everything would turn out just fine. Yet she’d quit her job in anger over the accusation and she’d enjoyed her job and worked hard to be where she was at. She hated the worry of it all hanging over her head. Would it help to go straight to the big boss man?

  The incurable desire she’d had to meet Joshua Jewel, for reasons she hadn’t even admitted to Teal, had waned. With Jesse on her mind, she really had no empty head space to daydream about the elusive, possibly handsome billionaire. Jesse was enough of a mystery and a draw for her, and any man who could kiss her like that deserved the allegiance of her brain and her body.

  She was walking along one of the top decks, a running track that looked down into the open-air pool areas, when she spotted the very people she wanted to avoid: Curtis and several of his cronies from work, standing near one of the bars next to the sparkling blue waters of the center pool area. They were dressed in suits and ties, as if this was a power meeting instead of a cruise ship. Pompous jerks, anyway. No, that wasn’t fair. Curtis had ticked her off with his accusations, but the rest of the men had always been respectful and kind to her.

  In the middle of the knot stood a man taller than the rest, with short, slightly curly chestnut-brown hair and broad shoulders. She couldn’t see his face from this angle, but in the fitted T-shirt and board shorts, she could tell he had a very nice build. The confident way he stood with his head tilted slightly toward Peter as he talked reminded her of Jesse somehow. She rolled her eyes. Was she going to make it through this week without Jesse? Maybe she should walk off this cruise ship and go find him.

  No. She was going to enjoy this and find Joshua Jewel, clear her name, and maybe even get an interview for her blog. Could that man be her former boss? Maybe.

  She kept walking, mostly because she didn’t want Curtis or the other guys to spot her. Peter, Trevor, and Gabe were all decent men, but they were definitely Curtis supporters. Yet what choice did they have? They either licked his toe jam or they got demoted or fired.

  Quickening her pace, she made it around the track that overlooked the adults-only pool at the front of the boat, and then she hurried back to where she could get a glimpse of the group again before slowing down.

  The man in the middle of the group now had his face turned slightly her way. His eyes were squinted against the sun, but he glanced up, staring straight at her, and then his eyes widened. Even from up here, she was startled by his eyes. They were the most incredible blue she’d ever seen. The connection she felt as she looked into those eyes made her stomach drop like she’d been pitched off the deck twelve stories to the water below.

  It had to be Joshua Jewel. It just had to be. She didn’t have time to register more than that his face was incredibly handsome, clean-shaven, and somehow familiar to her, before she walked on and the group was under the deck and out of her sight.

  Her heart was thumping madly. Was it because she’d finally seen him, knew Joshua Jewel was here? Or was it because of the crazy way she’d felt when she’d met his gaze? It was almost as if they knew each other. He might know her name, or maybe he’d seen a picture of her as one of his former employees, but he didn’t truly know her and she had never seen that handsome face before in her life. She would remember a man that attractive. Maybe they’d been friends in a past life. Or lovers. She shut that voice down, hard. She’d kissed Jesse last night and could hardly wait to see him again next Sunday. Hopefully, she’d really see him eyes and all. Jesse was fun, intriguing, and successful, and his kiss had lit her up.

  Yet why was there this connection to Joshua Jewel? She blew out a breath and walked off the walking path and toward the rear of the boat. She came around past the mini-golf, basketball, and rock climbing sections and continued on to where she could watch people try to master the simulated surfing, or Flow Rider. She wanted to try all of it. If only she wasn’t alone. If only she could push Joshua Jewel’s incredible eyes, and the connection she’d felt to him, from her mind.

  Joshua watched as Jade disappeared from his view. She’d seen him. Really seen him. His heart was thumping fast, and all he wanted to do was chase after her. Would she recognize him as Jesse? He didn’t want her to. He honestly wasn’t sure what he wanted in any regards with Jade, besides more time with her. She had him so stirred up he couldn’t even think business.

  He smiled around at the group of men. “I’m going to go settle into my room. Great to see you, Curtis, and meet you all.” He shook each of their hands, and Curtis gave him a quick one-armed hug. It would’ve felt like a very natural gesture for Curtis to give to a Jewel family member, but for some reason, Joshua felt awkward knowing that Curtis was convinced Jade was the embezzler while Joshua couldn’t wrap his mind around that.

  “Will we see you before dinner?” Curtis asked, almost anxiously.

  Joshua kept his smile in place. This cruise was a bonus, not a business meeting, but Curtis was so close to his family that he’d probably assumed they would spend a lot of time together. He didn’t want to eat dinner with these men. Not that he minded their company, and he would need to spend some time with them to ascertain if one of them could be the perpetrator, but all he wanted right now was more time with Jade. “Probably not. I’ve got to deal with some issues. Have fun.” He clapped Peter on the shoulder. “And get rid of those suits. It’s eighty-five out here, and you’re on a cruise ship.”

  They all laughed and bade him goodbye. He knew Peter and Trevor had brought their wives with them, but Curtis and Gabe were alone.

  Joshua set his lemonade glass on the bar and hurried toward the rear of the ship and the closest staircase. Was Jade still walking the upper deck? The glimpse he’d seen of her had stirred something deep inside of him. It wasn’t just that she looked gorgeous in a striped blue dress that showed off her shoulders and legs. It was the power of his connection to her. He was afraid he’d fallen for her, in two days. That was insane.

  Should he be chasing her like this? What if she guessed he was Jesse? He was clean-shaven, had gotten his hair trimmed, and was not going to put on sunglasses or a hat this trip, no matter if he got a headache from squinting into the sun. He wasn’t ready for her to connect the dots. He wasn’t sure if he was ready for her.

  Jade got a glass of water from a server and sat under the shade on a sort-of tiered bench that surrounded the Flow Rider. There weren’t many spectators beyond parents taking pictures with their cell phones, but it was a fun atmosphere with the water rushing down the slick surface of the surfing track, some upbeat music playing, and a young crowd. She gazed over the railing along the back of the ship to the water far below. It was almost four, and they wouldn’t be setting sail until eight. She couldn’t wait to just stare at the endless water as the waves cut through it.

  She focused back on the Flow Rider. They were doing the body surfing this hour, and the instructors had explained that to participate in the stand-up surfing, you had to do the body surfing first. She was tempted to get a wrist band and get in line, but her heart still hadn’t calmed from seeing Joshua, and her mind was racing with ways to get him alone and see what he was like. He was probably a cocky rich guy who she’d be bored talking to within minutes. It wasn’t betraying Jesse to meet somebody she’d wanted to meet for a long time. Right?

  She shook her head. It wasn’t like she and Jesse even had a relationship. They’d obviously liked each other, and they’d kissed, but he probably wasn’t sitting around pining for her.

  Jade sipped her water and watched a teenage boy do a body roll with the board. She cheered along with everyone else, but her voice hitched when she saw a man stride determinedly from a
round the separator of the smoke stacks.

  Her mouth went dry. It was him. And from the way his eyes settled on her and his pace increased, she was certain he somehow knew who she was and was coming her way. The power of those blue eyes made her flush with heat stronger than the tropical sun. No wonder he stayed out of the public limelight. Women would stake out his home and businesses just praying for a glimpse of those eyes.

  Jade clung to her cool water glass as he approached her. She didn’t know what to expect, what to say. His gaze never left hers as he descended the steps next to the Flow Rider, then climbed the short steps of the bleachers and took a seat next to her.

  His shoulder brushed hers as he turned to her and extended his hand. “Joshua Jewel.” His voice was beautiful, husky, awe-inspiring, and familiar. She knew him. Somehow, someway, she knew this man.

  Carefully inspecting his face, she tried to think why she was so certain they had met before. She’d studied his siblings’ pictures and the older pictures of him. That was it. The family shared similarities, of course. They all had the same ocean-blue eyes and straight nose. Some of the brothers had his strong jawline, but most of them wore beards, so it was harder to tell. His sisters were more delicate and feminine, obviously, but the youngest one, Eve, shared his hair color, and the other, Rachel, shared his beautifully formed lips. Those lips were almost too pretty for a man, but they were the perfect softening factor on his manly face.

  Those lips. They reminded her of … Jesse. Her eyes narrowed and her brow furrowed. No. That was nuts. She was just missing Jesse, feeling guilty about her attraction to Joshua. They couldn’t be the same man. Jesse wouldn’t deceive her like that.