Chapter Two
You can be burned even when you don’t see the fire coming.
Rezi
Heading to the airport,I grew more and more excited. This would be my first time in Colombia, and although the details of the investment agreement were still unknown, I looked forward to the time away. Throughout my life, trips remained a constant stress reliever. An element I liked to believe stemmed from my parents dragging me to every campsite they found when I was kid. They used to tell me that there was something cathartic about spending time away from the city, together as a family, and although the woods weren’t exactly my sanctuary, traveling was.
“We’re here,” the driver stated, pulling up to a private airport.
I’d arrived in Las Vegas two days ago in anticipation of today’s journey. I considered the destination an odd addition to my trip, given I was based in Dallas, Texas, which was closer to South America than Nevada. However, I’d come to learn over the years that clients, and airline routes, rarely handled planning as efficiently as I’d expect.
Upon landing in Vegas, I was prepared to get straight to work. Information on our South American client was still unknown, which was strange given the request for such an extensive trip. I anticipated an overflow of meetings in Sin City, yet instead, I was informed upon arrival that my Uncle Titan had booked me an entire vacation itinerary as a bonus for the recent deal I’d closed. Spending the day relaxing at the spa, seeing a concert, and lounging by the pool was indeed fun, but I was anxious for the business part of my trip to begin.
My uncle owned a private venture capitalist firm, which handled all different types of investments. I’d come on full time over a year ago and was recently tasked with our technology investments. The world of AI and cybersecurity were constantly growing. Competition for those spaces were extreme. Therefore, as an investor, it was important to fully understand the company’s business plans in order to ensure our investment with the right business. Unfortunately, equally critical in the technology industry was confidentiality. Meaning it wasn’t unusual for me not to receive abundant details of potential clients prior to our first meeting, but rarely were those first meetings physical trips.
“Right this way, ma’am,” the handling agent stated, after checking me in.
The airport was fancy and quaint. Clearly the client had money, implying they’d most likely be looking for several investors for an addition or risky undertaking. They were clearly not a startup though.
“Just follow the carpet out these doors, and have a nice flight, ma’am.”
“Thank you,” I stated, exiting the building.
Oh, this is bougie, I thought, walking down the red carpet as directed. This client had a flare for the dramatics if this was his directive, but I was here for it. At the end of the runner sat a small plane, the stairs extending to the ground.
Taking out my phone, I called Krystal.
“Look at this, girl.” I turned the camera to face the private jet I was about to board. “Isn’t it gorgeous?” I gleamed.
I moved the phone around, showing the carpet leading up into the steps and exterior.
“So, you just called to make me even more jealous?” she snapped when I turned the camera back to face me. “You got a fully paid forty-eight hours of Vegas luxury, and now you’re going on the fanciest private plane I’ve seen.” Her voice dripped of disdain.
Making funny poses in the camera, pretending like I was taking a picture, had her threatening to hang up our FaceTime call.
“Ha, ha, don’t hate.” I blew a kiss through the phone, earning me another glaring eye roll.
“Umm, Rezi,” she interrupted.
“I know, I know, you want to see the interior, right?”
“No, hun,” she stated plainly. “I think you should turn around.”
Oh, crap, I thought, lowering my phone. Drooling over a client’s private jet probably wasn’t the best first impression. I assumed the customer would meet me in South America, not on the tarmac, but unmistakably someone was rustling around behind me.
Turning slowly, I dropped my phone as my eyes landed on the last person I expected to see.
“Oh, don’t let me stop you,” he said, a cocky smile sweeping over his annoyingly handsome face.
“Sh-Shawn?” I stuttered. “What in the hell are you doing here?”
After stepping off the airplane, he made his way over to me. My heartbeat quickened with each step he took.
“I’ve got an assignment in Colombia.” He bent down, picking up my phone. “What about yourself?”
The smug grin still plastered on his face had my fingers tingling, ready to slap it off.
“Clearly, you already know,” I barked, snatching my phone back. “Otherwise, you’d be more surprised to see me.”
“Not to mention, what are the chances that we’d both be heading to Colombia on the same private jet?”
Ugh! Shaking my head, my mind worked to find the culprit who was to blame for this whole situation. The only answers I could fathom being Uncle Titan and his new wife, Solange. I loved Solange, but this set-up had her fingerprints all over it, and I’d kill her for it.
“Okay, I’m not playing this game,” I stated, raising my phone. “I’m calling Titan and getting this situation straightened out.”
Similar to a pissed off child, I only tended to drop my uncle’s title—with non-business associates—when I was really upset, and currently, I was fuming.
“Hell yeah, boo,” Krystal said as my phone reached my face and I realized her ass was still on the line.
“Girl, you didn’t hang up?” I questioned.
“And miss all this good drama?” She chuckled. “Have we met before?”
“Goodbye,” I grunted, irritated with both faces in front of me.
“Okay, but call me after,” she squeezed out prior to me hanging up on her.
I glanced at DeShawn in time to see him slightly laughing ahead of him leaping over, grabbing the phone in my hand.
“Now hold on. Before you call Titan and Solange, interrupting their honeymoon I might add, then maybe I can explain that this isn’t some set-up.”
My eyes drifted to our joined hands. Following my sight, he released my fingers, holding both arms surrendered into the air, before continuing.
“Alright, I did know you were going to be here,” he began, stating the obvious. “The client we’re scheduled to meet, though, is real. Titan and I connected with him through MJ, a mutual friend of ours.”
I tilted my head, waiting for him to get to the part where he framed me, landing us face-to-face in fucking Vegas, about to board a small plane together.
“Titan planned on investing in the client’s new cannabis festival, set to occur later this year. So, when his and Solange’s honeymoon interfered with the dates the client wished for us to travel to his estate, I may have suggested you replace him.”
“Okay,” I replied slowly. “But why would you be needed for an investment meeting?”
The mention of a marijuana festival sounded interesting, but I barely had time to focus on that, given DeShawn’s intentions were of greater concern.
“Wellll,” he cleared his throat, “I’m shooting footage for the Haze and Blaze Festival that I just mentioned. Therefore, I guess the client thought that since Titan and I have worked together in the past, he could kill two birds with one stone with this trip.”
Yech. I always hated that saying. Only a sadist would come up with a platitude about getting things done efficiently by killing multiple birds with the same stone. Furthermore, Shawn’s explanation seemed shaky. I knew Solange and DeShawn often worked together. After all, it was how he and I met when my uncle had hired her for a project. However, this all still seemed way too coincidental for my taste, especially given the last-minute request of this whole journey.
“I just finished gathering reels of the smoke fest grounds here in Nevada,” DeShawn added. “That’s why we’re flying from here instead of Dallas.”
I was positive the disbelief was spewing out of my pores. His voice was cracking under the pressure.
“But regardless of all of that, Rezi,” his hands once again raised as though he anticipated a fight, “this arrangement is only about a wealthy client and business. Surely you wouldn’t let our problems interfere with work.”
Damn it. He was undeniably baiting me. He knew how much I cared about my job and my reputation, meaning that even he wouldn’t stop me from completing an assignment.
“Ugh, fine,” I huffed. “Who’s this client?”
“Only one of the most fun people you’ll ever meet,” this man interposed, joining us from the airport doors.
“I came to see you both off.” He extended a hand in my direction. “You must be Rezi Stone. I’m Malcolm Jacobs, but my friends call me MJ.”
Accepting his handshake, I contemplated why everyone seemed to know more about this trip than me. Even this stranger, MJ.
“Nice to meet you,” I shakily responded.
“Well, you’re in for a treat. I’m sure Snake Eyes here will take good care of you, though.” He slapped DeShawn on the back, before the two shared a greeting.
Well, I don’t like the sound of that.“Why would Shawn need to take care of me?” I probed. “And did you call him Snake Eyes? Like the dice?”
“See, I knew I’d like you,” he flirted. “Any woman who knows about dice is my kind of woman.”
Honestly, it was mainly a good guess. We were currently in Las Vegas after all.
Malcolm stepped closer, with DeShawn matching his proximity. He appeared old enough to be my father, and I doubted he was hitting on me. However, I could also tell that MJ was a flirt by nature. A detail that seemed to aggravate Shawn as he placed his hand on my lower back, knowing he had no right.
“Yeah, MJ throws some epic dice games,” DeShawn explained, his palm remaining fixed on my backside. “We’ll have to check one out next time we’re in town.”
After I slyly slipped out of Shawn’s reach, not wanting to embarrass him in front of his friend by making my retreat obvious, he added, “Well thanks again, man, for helping me check out the locale for the Haze and Blaze Festival.”
The guys continued to share pleasantries, until DeShawn mentioned Malcolm’s Blunt Minded Joint Club, which he implied we’d visit the next time we were in town. Shawn seemed intent on speaking for me and adding we to everything. The fact that hearing him refer to us as a unit still sounded nice to my ears was even more annoying than him talking for me in the first place.
Despite me continuously being present for the conversations, the men seemed to be in a world of their own. The convo jumped from topic to topic like old friends might, notwithstanding MJ and DeShawn’s obvious age gap. MJ was bald with a little gray and white in his black beard, while Shawn’s hair—although tapered on both sides—was full of kinky curls on the top.
Shawn’s thick but somehow naturally groomed eyebrows were always something I envied given he never actually attended to them. They simply grew that way. While his beard, on the other hand, was something he prided himself on upkeeping. The full, yet cleanly trimmed way he wore it pulled attention to his nicely shaped, thick lips.
I’d removed all the pictures of him throughout my apartment, but seeing him in front of me now, I was unable to deny how handsome he was. Shawn was a nice guy, which was partially the reason I fell for him so effortlessly.
He exuded warmth and kindness, his eyes crinkling at the corners with genuine smiles every time he spoke. He was quick witted too and so playful. It got on my nerves at times, but in a good way. His approachable demeanor effortlessly drew people in, making them feel at ease in his presence. Physically, he possessed a magnetic charm that was impossible to ignore.
When I met Shawn, it didn’t take long to figure out that he was the type of guy who went out of his way to help others, whether it was holding the door open for a stranger or lending a listening ear to a friend in need. Before him, my last boyfriend was the type to be the first to leave if an apartment building was on fire, not giving a damn to slow-down and check if I was okay or anyone else.
Until I experienced being with an empathetic and compassionate person like Shawn, I hadn’t known I was missing those qualities in a partner. He was easy to trust and loyal, and to put the icing on the cake, he was sexy as hell.
His full, shaped facial hair and piercing eyes were only a prelude to his muscular, toned body. In truth, the combination made it so obvious that I should have known better.
Sexy and sweet didn’t mix, no matter how irresistible.
DeShawn taught me that.
I was relieved when the pilot appeared, dragging me out of my memories and observations. It was officially time for our flight, and with any luck I could just go to sleep without having to utter a word.
“Well, y’all enjoy the trip,” MJ stated before turning and heading back into the airport.
Once I was settled in my seat, ensuring it was the farthest from DeShawn, I peered out the plane’s window in time to see them securing the luggage and rolling back the carpet. I may have been ready to escape the conversation between DeShawn and MJ, given how strange it was to hear DeShawn speak about us like nothing had changed. However, I now realized how ill prepared I was to actually spend the next six hours alone on a private flight with only my ex.
I was peeved at Solange and Uncle Titan for putting me in this situation. I had been happy about this trip, until I somehow got burned without it even sparking off. As the plane left the ground swifter than any flight I’d previously been on, I had no option but to accept my current circumstances and make the best of the situation.
Lord help me.