Chapter 12
chapter twelve
A week after Jules went back to Oahu, Alek was still obsessing about her. Well, not obsessing. He just checked out her social media and did some internet sleuthing. He also might have reached out to a friend he had in London who knew who she was.
Okay, he’d turned into a total creeper, but he couldn’t help it. There was something in her that called to him, that made him want to be near her. Not just sexual either. It had been a long time since he had fixated on one woman. He wasn’t a man who slept around. His work had kept him from doing that, but he had never seen the lure of being a slave to his libido. He had brothers in arms who engaged in it as a stress reliever. And that was fun—at times—but it wasn’t his first choice as a stress reliever. That would be running and tai chi.
But now…now he wanted to use sex as a stress reliever, every damned day. As long as Jules was the woman who helped him with that relief, he was okay.
And that worried him more than anything else.
Even without seeing her, he thought of her, dreamed of her…got off to her. He could still remember the way she sounded moaning his name, how it felt to have her pussy grip his dick so hard, pulling him deep within her warm body…
He closed his eyes and tried to get his body back under control. It would be embarrassing if he had to get off in his private bathroom. Again.
There was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” he said hoping for a distraction.
The door opened and Mary, the receptionist, gave him an apologetic look. He was confused until he saw who followed her into the office.
Shelley Lancaster had been the woman of his dreams once upon a time. Rich, dark hair dripped over her shoulders in an artful arrangement, as she sauntered into the office as if she had a right to be there. She was wearing fuck me heels —no thank you—and a tight Hawaiian print dress. Her face was caked with makeup, which stood out to him. He’d never really seen her wear that much makeup, but it had been years since he had seen her.
“Sorry, Aleka, but she insisted on seeing you.”
And more than likely threw a fit when Mary wanted to ask Alek’s permission before she was announced.
“No worries, Mary.”
She hesitated and he nodded to her. He’d known Mary most of his life, and she knew his history with Shelley. Hell, everyone knew, since they’d been the reigning king and queen of their school. First loves and all that nonsense. It was actually first lust because he paid no attention to all the issues with her personality because he had been so hot for her body. But he had been a seventeen-year-old idiot when they first started dating, who like all men at that age, tended to think with his dick.
Shelley hurried over to the desk as if to embrace Alek, but he remained seated. There was no reason to make nice with a woman who had dumped him.
“What are you doing here?”
She pouted and Alek resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The same plays would not work on him now.
“I’ve been trying to get hold of you, but it seems my calls aren’t getting through to you.”
“Yeah, they are. I just didn’t want to see you.”
She stood there, her eyes widening in shock. It wasn’t that he said anything particularly mean to her. She’d said much worse when she broke up with him over a decade ago.
“I didn’t sign on to be some Army wife traipsing around after you, living on an enlisted salary. You’re not worth it.”
Her annoying voice cut into his memories. “Why would you say that?”
Alek sighed, trying to come up with something to say that would make her go away.
“I had a feeling you wanted to go over our good times together.”
“Yes. I thought we could have dinner some night this week.”
“With your husband?”
“I’m divorced.”
And there you have it. She wouldn’t be interested in Alek if her husband had kept her, but she’s not that good at hiding her motives. He’d been so naive back in the day, but as an adult, he knew he would never fall for her act.
“And what does that have to do with me now?”
She smiled and fluttered her eyes at him. If he wasn’t so irritated with her, he would have laughed in her face. It was comical looking, but he knew that she thought it was seductive. Jesus, his dick really had made him stupid when he was in high school.
“Now that you’re back in your rightful role with the family, things could change between us.”
Any humor he had dissolved in that moment. She had always been calculating, but this had moved into the totally a bitch column.
“Rightful role?”
Her smile broadened as she leaned forward, a move that always got him when he was dating her. She would flash him a little tit and he would do whatever she wanted. It was embarrassing to admit, but he had been young, and stupid, and, well, the hormones were not his friend.
“Yes. Now that you gave up playing soldier, you are definitely on the market.”
“Playing soldier? You think what I did for the last fifteen years was playing?”
Her smile dimmed, and she blinked. The tone in his voice was finally getting through to her. She’d never been that smart and apparently all the Botox she’d injected into her face had made her even more stupid.
“What I mean is that being a soldier isn’t as important as running the family resort. This is what matters.”
Jesus, he was going to have a long talk with his dick and how idiotic they had been over this woman. The only thing that was pretty about her was her appearance, and that had turned brittle over the last decade.
“Glad to know that risking my life for God and country didn’t matter.”
She stared at him, her smile dissolving. “I didn’t mean that.”
“You meant that, exactly. I’m the same man I was in the military, and that man doesn’t have time for shallow women. I have a meeting and I don’t have time for you.”
Anger and embarrassment vibrated off her as she stood, her nostrils flaring. “You always found time for me.”
“That was before you told me I was useless to you without my family money. Please leave before I have to call security.”
Normally he would stand and show her out. He had been raised properly, and his years in the military had solidified the tendency to show women respect.
She didn’t say a word to him as she slunk out of the room, the door shutting with a definitive click.
A second later, there was a knock at the door and Mary came in. “So sorry about that.”
“No worries. I would have her banned from the premises, but her father would cause issues for us. But, from now on, I’m not in the office when she shows up.”
Mary’s eyebrows rose to her hairline. “She didn’t look like she would be able to recover from whatever happened in here.”
“There’s one thing I know about that viper and that is she doesn’t give up easily.”
***
After work, Alek drove straight home. He’d had a hell of a day of meetings and with Shelley showing up, it had turned to crap soon after that. He’d argued with his uncle about expenditures, and his grandfather had been upset that he hadn’t shown Shelley around the resort. He wouldn’t ban her from the resort, but he would not whore himself out for the family.
Alek stepped out on his lanai, a ritual he’d started the day he returned to Maui. He’d been sent all over the world, some good and some bad, but none of them compared to the sunsets in Hawaii. He knew part of it was his heritage, of the generations of his family who had fought and survived here on the islands. Their blood, their sacrifice, from the warriors to his tutu , breathed through him.
He shook his head and smiled as he settled into one of the two chairs he had there. He was still furnishing the house. It had been his father’s, who had deeded it over to Alek years ago when his parents moved to a condo. Since then, it had been rented. Tutu had it gutted about a year ago and redone in anticipation of Alek moving back, but he had insisted that Tutu not pick out any furniture. Of course, now it gave him a reason to call a certain interior designer he knew.
He’d been craving for a taste of her since the moment she left. His stupid agreement to never sleep together again hung over his head. Why did he agree to it? Probably because she could have asked him anything and he would have said yes. It was something he wasn’t entirely comfortable with. The last time he acted like this, he had been a senior in high school and Shelley had held his balls in a tight grip. Over a decade later and he was still embarrassed about that. But she’d had a hidden agenda that had come up as soon as he signed onto the military. She didn’t mind slumming with a true Hawaiian—being a rich, white girl—but only if he had worked for the family. She had no interest in him otherwise. She had proven that today. He pulled up Jules’ name on his phone and called her. She answered, her voice breathless.
“Good afternoon.”
He just couldn’t get enough of her voice. That British accent in her smokey voice drove him insane. “Good afternoon. So formal.”
She chuckled and he rolled his eyes. The woman had no idea exactly what she did to him. She still saw the attraction as fleeting, but each time he mentioned it, she talked as if he was done with her on that level. Truth was, every moment they spent on the phone talking or texting had increased his hunger for her. She wasn’t just sexy. She was smart, sweet, and funny. He didn’t know if he had ever met a woman who fit him on so many levels.
“How was your day?” she asked.
“Long.”
She sighed. “Same here. Although, it was absolutely boring. I’ve been wondering if I need to go back to England.”
Panic filled him but he kept his voice steady. “Why?”
“Well, I checked out the rags and I’ve fallen off the radar. Probably because no one knows where I am.”
“Then you should keep it that way.”
She chuckled again, but there wasn’t as much humor in it this time. “I’m bored though. I don’t see the reason for being in such a wonderful place and only sitting at home. Going out is impossible because I don’t have a car, and last time I tried to drive in America, I almost had a wreck. Truth be told, I’m not that good of a driver in England either.”
“So, you’re just bored?”
“Yes.”
He wanted to see her, to see how she felt about the idea that had formed in his head. “How about I come over this weekend?”
There was a long pause before she said, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
If she had immediately said no, he would have definitely backed off. That hesitation had spoken volumes. It was stupid, yes, and he knew it was a better idea that they kept their friendship on the phone. But the need to see her overrode all of his better instincts, which had kept him alive for fifteen years in the military.
“Tell you what…think about it. I can just pop over there on Friday, get a room, and we can have dinner together. Have you even been out of the house since David left?”
He knew she was trying to keep a low profile, but there was no reason to hide in the house. Not in Hawaii. They had their problems with the paparazzi, but the truth was that most people didn’t notice celebrities right off if they didn’t show up in limos or with an entourage.
“No, Marta has been cooking my meals, and I’ve been working.”
He was aware. Sammie had been going on and on about Jules’ ideas and suggestions, but she said she was worried about Jules. She said all she seemed to be doing was working. “So, I can take you out, take you to a real local place.”
“I don’t know.” Her tone told him she was wavering.
“Locals aren’t going to pay any attention to you. We can grab some loco moco or a plate lunch somewhere. Drive around a little bit.”
She didn’t say anything right at first, and he didn’t know if that was a good or bad sign. “Just a meal and going out?”
“Hands off. I promise.”
He hated that he was lying to her. Oh, he was going to keep his hands to himself, unless she asked him to touch her. It was just that he would do everything in his power to convince her to change her mind.
“Okay. But you can stay here.”
He knew the smile on his face was probably downright evil. “Whatever you want. I have no problem getting a room for the weekend.”
“This is a massive house with lots of rooms. I also have a cook slash housekeeper, and she’s bored cooking for me I think.”
He chuckled. “Okay. I have a slew of meetings earlier in the day, but I should be able to break away in the early afternoon, if that sounds good.”
“Yes. I’ll admit it’s been a little lonely here.”
He heard it in her voice every day he’d talked to her. He knew that she traveled for business, but that she rarely went this long without spending time with her family. And while his drove him crazy, he knew that she was particularly close to hers.
“I also wanted to ask you about some design issues.”
“At the resort? I sent everything to Sammie, although, you’re lucky she doesn’t want to leave Hawaii. I would love to snap her up for Wulf Industries. She’s brilliant.”
It was something else he noticed about Jules. She was always ready to heap praise on people while never expecting any for herself. Sammie had also told him that Jules had given her some great suggestions that had pushed her to work harder. Alek knew that Jules didn’t realize how great of a motivator she was.
“No, this is more personal. I have a house that needs a lot of help. A lot.”
When she spoke, he heard the smile in her voice. “Oh, so you’re planning on using me for my design skills?”
The playful tone sent a wave of need through him. She truly had no idea how insanely sexy she was.
“No. But, I do need some pointers. Thought maybe we could talk about it when I’m there.”
“Oh,” she said, and there was something in her tone that caught his attention.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Why don’t you take pictures of all areas of the house you need help with, then I can have some suggestions when you come to visit?”
“Sounds great,” he said. “Now, how is your sister-in-law and the rest of your family?”
Then, as he watched the sun dip down in the sky, he listened to her talk about her family, her voice a balm to his soul. He could envision spending every night hearing her talk about her day.
He was just going to have to figure out a way to convince her.