Chapter 2
Two
D read inched down Lani’s spine as she parked the car in front of her brother’s house. She used to live here. It had long been a family compound their grandparents had built, but once Royal had moved in, Lani hadn’t felt welcome. And she hated the other woman for making her avoid Ben. They had been close at one time, but in the last year, he had distanced himself from her. Worse, he had been taking advice from Royal, who didn’t know squat about running any business, let alone a surfing giant like Kingston Surfing.
“You’re sighing more than Jules did when she was a teenager.”
She glanced at Jakob. When had he gotten so damned observant? Most of the time, he acted like she didn’t exist.
“Royal is…a lot.”
“That’s a nice way of putting it.”
Lani tilted her head. “Have you met her?”
“No. But I’ve seen her social media.”
So, he didn’t see how mean she was.
“And I smell mean girl.”
She blinked. “You do?”
“No. Not at first. I talked to Nic and Jules about her.”
Lani knew that other than his mother, the two women were the most important women in his life. Nic had been his brother’s sober companion before stepping into her role as executive assistant for the whole company. She was now also Jensen’s wife. Jules was the sweetest woman Lani had ever met, so she understood why Jakob loved his sister so much.
“And?”
“Nic said she heard things. You know how she is. She knows everyone in PR and social media, and she said Royal had a reputation for being rude.”
She nodded. Rude wasn’t a big thing. “Let’s go before Ben comes out here complaining.”
Another frown from Jakob. How did he look so crazy hot frowning? Of course, he looked crazy hot doing anything.
She opened her door, but Jakob was already rushing around the front of the vehicle. “Let me help you down.”
“What? Why?”
His mouth twitched.
“Stop.”
He cocked his head and studied her for a moment. It was an odd situation having him standing there looking up at her.
“Stop what?”
“Laughing at me.”
“You think I’m laughing at you?”
“You’re always laughing at me.”
The moment she said it, she regretted the words. Or, actually, the tone. It sounded so sad, so pathetic. It had been a bad few months. That’s all.
“I’m not laughing at you. You just make me happy.”
“Say what now?”
His mouth twitched once more. “You don’t treat me any different than you treat your brother. It’s hard to find people—especially women—who don’t try to gain my favor.”
“Oh. It must be tough fending off all of the attention.”
“And you just proved my point.”
He went to take her by the waist, but she stopped him.
“What is with you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Listen, I get that I don’t drool over you like other women.”
“I should be so lucky. How is Rick, by the way?”
She swallowed her irritation. Or at least, she tried. Jakob could always get on her last nerve.
“I have no idea.”
“And why is that? I thought he would be here for the wedding.”
Unfortunately, Rick Bellows would be at the wedding as their top surfer. Nothing like seeing your recent ex at your brother’s wedding.
“I assume he will be, but that has nothing to do with me.”
“Well, his loss.”
With that pronouncement, he plucked her off the seat and set her down on the driveway.
“Not sure he sees it that way,” she muttered as she tried to step around Jakob, but he stopped her.
“Then he’s an idiot. You were the catch in that relationship, and any man who doesn’t realize that is an ass.”
Warmth filled her even as she warned herself not to get all goo-goo over a man who pretended to be other people for a living.
“Thank you. But I suggest we head inside before Ben storms out here to ask why I’m monopolizing your time.”
As if on cue, her brother’s voice rang out across the driveway. “What is taking you so long?”
“You do know him well.”
She used to, but she just nodded. They stepped away from the SUV and shut the door. As Jakob waved for her to proceed him—always with pretty manners—her phone buzzed. When she saw the number, she knew she had to be discreet about this call.
“You go ahead. I have to take this.”
He took off his aviators, his gaze roaming over her. She knew he wanted to say something, but her brother opened his stupid mouth again. At least, this time, he was helping her. Jakob nodded, but his expression warned he was going to dig more.
As soon as she was alone, she moved away from the vehicle.
“Where are you going?” Ben called out. Interesting that he seemed to see that she was in the area. Lately, the brother who had always been one of her best friends had not only been ignoring her, but it felt as if aliens had taken over his body. His personality had changed so much in the last year.
“Got a call I have to take from the caterers.”
He nodded as if she worked for him. Granted, she worked for Kingston and had planned to take over the entire legal department when Auntie Mae retired, but lately, she had been having second thoughts. Hence the phone call.
She clicked on her phone to answer the call.
“Lani,” Conner Dillon said. He owned one of the best-known security companies on the island. They had made a name for themselves since Conner moved to Oahu a few years ago. They were headquartered in Miami, but Hawai’i was uniquely positioned worldwide.
“Conner. How are you doing?”
“Doing well. I wanted to touch base with you about my offer.”
Yes, the offer. The last few months had been difficult. Her brother had become a stranger, and things at the business seemed off. She and Mae had talked about it, but neither could find anything. Add in her cheating ex, Rick, and she had been through a lot. When Conner had popped up and told her they were looking for someone to handle all their legal issues in the Pacific Rim, she had played with the idea.
“I have been thinking about it.”
“Look, I’m not calling to pressure you, especially with everything happening.” Everyone on the islands and beyond knew about her brother’s upcoming wedding. “I just wanted to let you know the offer still stands. We want someone from the islands to handle the legal issues, and with your background, I think you will fit right in.”
She would. She had contacts in surfing, but it went beyond that. She had dealt with sponsors worldwide. Auntie Mae had been training her for years to take over. Lani might be the head of PR, but Mae was adamant that Lani would take her spot.
“Can I have another few days? Ben’s wedding is this weekend.”
“Yes, I know. I saw your interview.”
She sighed.
“That reporter is a dick.” She heard a murmur in the background, and she figured it was Conner’s wife, Jillian. “Sorry. He was a jerk.”
“You were right the first time.”
He chuckled. “How about we meet up next Wednesday for lunch? That will give you some time to regroup after the wedding, which I’m sure will be exhausting.”
It was. If she ever got married, Lani would only want her family and her groom’s family there. Maybe a few close friends.
“That sounds great, Conner.”
“I’ll text you Tuesday and set up a time.”
After signing off with him, she stood there for a long moment, letting the idea of not working for Kingston fill her. It was heartbreaking, in a way. Their family, as had she, had been part of the surfing community for decades. Even when she had gone to the mainland, she had spent her time off in Hawai’i helping out in the legal department.
But something else joined that pain…freedom and excitement. She had never even had a part-time job unless it had something to do with Kingston. Even when she interned, it had been with a subsidiary of their company on the mainland. This would be the first time she’d ever stepped out on her own.
Maybe it was time to do just that.
“You’re looking great,” Ben said as they settled on the leather sectional. It was buttery soft, and situated so he could see the waves crashing into the beach.
“Thanks.”
“I guess working less is good for you.”
He noted the comment and filed it away. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was different about his best friend. It had been months since they had been together. Dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and shorts, he looked the same as usual. There was something off about him, though.
“Been keeping busy.” He had his family business, but he had also stepped into producing. It was one of the things he had always wanted to do. That and direct. One of the reasons he had taken a chance on the new series was that they’d agreed to let him direct one episode of the first season.
“Sure, sure.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about the brake issue with Lani’s car?”
His friend waved Jakob’s worry away. “Oh, it’s no big deal. She knows how to drive well, so she was safe.”
And the alarm was now hitting him again. He was starting to understand why Lani had been so weird talking about her brother. There was something definitely off about Ben. Their parents had died in an accident a few years earlier, so Ben had always been a bear about Lani’s safety.
Before Jakob could question his friend, Royal Jones entered the room. She was dressed in a Hawaiian print dress. However, from the look of it, it was what some non-Hawaiian designers thought a Hawaiian dress should look like. He blinked at the amount of makeup the woman was wearing. Most people probably wouldn’t see it, but Jakob did. As an actor, he knew more than he ever wanted to admit about makeup. It was just odd seeing a woman who was already pretty slather on so much makeup in Hawai’i.
“My love,” she said, her gaze moving from Ben to Jakob. “Please introduce us.”
“Royal,” Ben said, rising from his seat, “this is my best friend in the world, Jakob Wulf. Jake, this is the love of my life, Royal Jones.”
Jakob called on all his acting abilities and didn’t roll his eyes. The fact that both of them were acting so pretentious was a warning sign to him. Maybe it was because he had been surrounded by good relationships. Jensen and Nicola were so balanced, and you could never doubt their love for each other. He didn’t know Alek as well as Nicola since she had worked for their family for years, but Jakob knew his brother-in-law was devoted to Jules. This seemed fake.
Jakob rose as Royal made her way over to him. She kissed him on the cheek, and he tried not to gag. The woman was wearing so much perfume it made his eyes water.
“It’s so nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” was all he could say before she started grilling him.
“Where’s Lani? I thought she was bringing you here.”
Her tone had turned cooler. “She had a call she had to take.”
“What on earth could be more important than spending time with us. I have things about the wedding that we need to go over.”
He said nothing for a moment or two. He had grown up rich, so he recognized this kind of behavior. His mother would have boxed his ears if he had done it. His gaze moved over to Ben, who was frowning now. Jakob waited for his friend to blast his fiancée for being such an ass.
“I’ll find her for you,” he said, kissing her cheek. Before he could leave, though, Lani stepped into the living room.
“Sorry, I had a call. What’s up?”
“It was rude of you to waste time,” Royal said.
She was talking to Lani as if she were a peasant. Again, Jakob waited for his friend to correct his soon-to-be wife, but he just stood beside her, frowning at his sister.
“Sorry, but some of us have jobs with phone calls that require time. It was insane for me to do the job tied to Kingston Surfing in the middle of your wedding planning. But just so you know, it was a call with the caterer.”
Jakob didn’t miss the sarcasm, but apparently, Royal did. “Exactly. I was thinking that we need to change the flowers.”
Lani blinked. “Won’t happen.”
“Excuse me?”
“It won’t happen. It’s too late.”
He thought Lani would stick it to the woman. Jakob knew she had a temper. Royal opened her mouth to respond, but Lani forged ahead.
“If we were on the mainland, it might happen, but we are on Oahu, and they have limited supplies. Besides, it would mess up the bridesmaids’ dresses. You don’t want that because it would disrupt the wedding theme.”
Damn, her tone, everything…perfect. He had forgotten that she was a lawyer. He knew they were using her in PR right now, but he’d heard she was also working on contracts with the aunt, who ran the legal department.
“Oh,” Royal said as if that had not occurred to her. “You’re right.”
“I’m sorry. But you know, you could always have some kind of party when you returned from your honeymoon and use whatever idea you had there.”
Royal’s eyes widened, and a smile curved her lips. “That sounds fantastic. I will give you my ideas.”
Lani said nothing, but he watched her closely enough to see her right eye twitch.
“Well, this has been fun, but I need to get to my place and clean off the grime of traveling.”
The three of them looked at him with varying expressions. Royal looked irritated, but understanding lit Ben’s eyes.
What surprised him was the relief he witnessed in Lani’s eyes. She always liked to hang out with her brother, but he could understand that she wanted to get away from him right now. His behavior was odd, to say the least. He needed to grill her. Maybe it was just the upcoming wedding that had his friend acting like an empty-headed billionaire.
“I’ll drop you off. I need to head out to a meeting with the organizers of the Kingston Invitational.”
He nodded. “Sounds good.”
“Dinner tonight?” Ben asked.
“I’d like that.”
“We have reservations for seven tonight.”
“Great. I’ll meet you there.”
They headed out of the house. He waited until they were in the SUV before he said anything.
“How long has your brother been acting like a dumbass?”