Determined: To Love: (Part 2 of the Determined Trilogy) (6 page)

She offered her hand, which we each shook.

“May we show you to the villa?”

Villa?
We followed the pair through the rustic atrium overlooking the ocean. Outside, we traversed a winding stone pathway through palms and ferns, and arrived at modern concrete building with an intricate carved wooden door. Conrad spoke as we passed through the threshold and into the foyer.

“The Presidential Villa. The largest and most luxurious unit on the entire island. Over five thousand square feet of space, not including your private beach.” We followed him as we walked through room after room. The space was breathtaking and seemed to go on forever. The living room overlooked an infinity pool that led out to a gorgeous ocean vista. Conrad was showing David how to control every function of the space via remote control when Leilani pulled me outside.

“And over here, you have your private lanai as well as an outdoor lava rock shower.”

“Wow. This place is gorgeous.” I said, leaning against the railing and looking out to the ocean.

“Is it your first time to Kona, Mrs. Keith?”

I didn’t bother correcting her this time, either. “Actually, yes, it is. David suggested it. It was kind of a last minute thing.”

“Well, if there is anything we can do to ensure your stay is enjoyable, please let me know.” I thanked her, and she disappeared back inside. I stayed outside, watching the sun as it started to dip into the ocean, filling the sky with swaths of electric pink and orange. A few moments later, I felt someone behind me. I knew it was David. He didn’t need to say anything; I could tell it was him. There was this kind of magnetic energy between the two of us, an energy that sent my pulse racing whenever he was close.

“This is incredible,” I said, knowing he could hear me. He pulled up next to me on the railing, mirroring my stance. He didn’t touch me in the slightest or even look at me. And the physical gap only served to build the charge between the two of us. His control and ability to resist drove me crazy, but I didn’t want to be the first to give in. Desire pulsed through me, threatening to rip me apart as we stood there, pretending to not look at each other.

Eventually, the sun dipped below the horizon and a blue glow took over the sky. David turned around and leaned back against the railing, his hands shoved casually in the pockets of his chinos. He was dressed for the location, in a loose white linen button down and brown leather flip-flops. The contrast of his relaxed clothing with his controlled countenance was appealing. He didn’t say anything. Instead, he just looked at me, his dark eyes surging with intensity. His eyes dipped down and traced the outline of my body, slowly, following my curves. It was incredibly erotic to feel him on me without any physical touch. The hair on the back of my neck prickled with anticipation.

“What are you thinking about?” I asked finally, breaking the silence.

He paused, thoughtfully, before answering. “You.”

It was my turn to pause. I looked up at him, and his eyes burned into mine. “What about me?”

“How incredibly attractive you are.”

I blushed hard and looked back out at the darkening ocean.

He continued. “I mean, here we are, in one of the most beautiful places on earth, and all I can look at is you. You’ve destroyed me, Samantha. When I’m with you I can’t concentrate on anything else. You have ruined me for everything else beautiful and wonderful in the world.”

I caught his eyes with mine. “So ruin me back,” I whispered. A bolt of lightning ripped through us.

“Mmm.” He grunted, pausing for a moment. I could see the gears cranking away, and then he scooped me up and over his shoulder, and slapped me hard on my ass. The delicious, erotic pain sent pleasure pulsing straight into me as he carried me off to the bedroom.

~

We spent most of Saturday lounging on the beach. It was a perfect, sunny eighty degree day, and I wore one of the swimsuits David had stocked in the suitcase. Normally I gravitate toward one-piece suits, but David’s selection didn’t give me much of a choice in the matter— they were all of the small and smaller variety. I guess the ‘lack of fabric’ was okay when he knew I’d be on a private beach. I chose a white bikini with an underwire because it offered the most support up top for the girls. We spent the day reading and napping and drinking things from coconuts that had little umbrellas. A couple of times, David retreated to the house for a phone call, but I understood—being the head of an empire meant always being on.

He came back from one of the calls as the sun was setting. Sitting down behind me on the chaise, he rubbed my back as we stared out at the ocean.

“This was a really good idea,” I murmured, enjoying his strong hands on my shoulders.

“Are you having a good time?”

“Uh-huh. Aren’t you?”

“I love being with you, Samantha. I could be happy anywhere with you. You know that.” The words were right, but his voice was different. It was missing the easy, flirtatious sensibility that characterized our relationship. I turned around to face him.

“Is everything all right? You seem distracted. Is everything okay at work?”

He was quiet for a moment and looked back at the house and then back down at me. “Everything is fine. I didn’t want you to be worried. It’s all under control.”

Now I
was
worried. I sat up straight and turned around, looking him in the eye. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing. It’s not a big deal. Just someone giving me some trouble back home.”

“Who is she? I’ll kill her,” I teased, trying to lighten the mood. His face remained serious and unchanged.

“
He
, Ms. Sharp, is my old college roommate, Brian. So no need to worry your sweet little head.” He kissed me on the forehead.

“Have I met Brian?” I asked.

“No. We had a falling out in college and went our separate ways. We see each other at business functions occasionally, but that’s it. He’s a computer whiz and works with some of the same companies I do.”

I was surprised to hear about this guy. David never seemed to have relationships outside of work, let alone a roommate and friend. I wanted to pepper him with questions, but resolved to ask him more about that later.

“So what’s going on?”

He hesitated. “My security team has been tracking several incidents of someone trying to impersonate me. Not in person, but online and across different accounts. And from what they can tell, the work has all the hallmarks of Brian.”

I cocked my head to the side, trying to figure out what he was saying.

“Someone is trying to hack and dismantle Keith Ventures from the inside out.”

“I don’t understand. Why would someone want to do that?”

“Being hacked would create such a frenzy with the press that it would scare away almost any current or potential client.”

Oh.
That
was
bad news.

“Can’t you hire someone to stop him?” Surely David had enough resources to thwart this. And he’d never seemed shy about throwing money at a problem.

“That’s just it. Normally he’d be the one you hire to stop something like this. He is the best, but they can’t locate him. It’s like he just disappeared.” His gaze returned to me. “But don’t worry, we’ll find him. He doesn’t pose a physical threat, just a financial one.” He said, forcing a smile. His phone buzzed and he glanced down at the screen and then back at me. “Enough about that. Dinner is ready. Will you do me the pleasure of joining me, Ms. Sharp?” He stood up and offered his hand.

I knew he wanted to let the issue go, so I took his hand and followed him back into the house. I could ask him more about this later, but for now, I was going to enjoy our tropical paradise.

~

By the time we landed back at SFO on Sunday night, we had only been gone less than seventy-two hours, but it felt like much longer. After the talk on the beach David finally relaxed, and we were able to take advantage of the private nature of the villa, christening almost everything, including the outdoor shower.

4

Getting back to work on Monday was hard. The relaxing weekend had really been too quick, and shuttling back and forth between time zones had confused my body. I slept in as late as I could, and miraculously managed to squeak into the gallery at only two minutes past opening.

I booted up my computer and started a pot of coffee. I decided to skip my morning dalliance around the shop in favor of catching up on my email. I logged on, and mug in hand, started to go through the emails that had come in since leaving early on Friday. Most of it was normal gallery stuff—artist inquiries, notes from Curtis with reminders about shipments, things of that nature.

As I was scrolling, the front door opened. It was rare that anyone would come into the gallery so early in the morning, especially on a Monday. I stood up, smoothed my navy pencil skirt, and walked into the main room.

A tall brunette was perusing the walls. She was dressed much more expensively than our normal clientele, outfitted in a white sheath dress and camel colored coat. She carried a purse that I recognized from fashion magazines. She heard my heels tap as I entered the room, and turned toward the sound.

“Hello. Can I help you find anything in particular?” I said, as she evaluated me with her eyes.

I think she was young, probably just barely thirty, but she wore a lot of make up so it was hard to tell.

“Yes, hello.” Her voice was softer than I expected, deep and velvety. “I’m looking for a gift, for a friend.” She looked around and gestured to the room. “He said this was one of his favorite galleries, so I thought I’d swing by.”

“Ah, I see. Would I know your friend?” I said, hoping to learn more. Buying art for someone was so personal; I was a little intimidated by the request.

“I don’t think so,” she said, ending that line of inquiry. I tried another.

“Do you know what type of art he likes?”

She looked at me, as if she was trying to decode an encrypted message. “What do you mean?”

“Like, does he prefer photography or painting? Does he like abstract works or realism?”

“I really wouldn’t know,” she said, dismissively. I tried to ignore her offensiveness. “He likes… this…” She trailed off, gesturing around the room again.

“Well, this piece is one of my favorites.” I led her to the back wall of the room. It was an etching by a local artist. A small piece, but exuberant and full of color. “I feel like it radiates happiness and positivity.”

The woman leaned in, examining it closely for almost a minute in silence. I watched her face, wondering what she was thinking. Finally, she exhaled as she leaned back. “Full of life. Perfect for a birthday.” She smiled, contentedly.

“Exactly.” I was so pleased she understood.

“I’ll take it. Do you do gift wrap?” Her question was more like an order. She sure wasn’t wasting any time.

“Sure thing. Let me wrap it for you, and then I’ll ring you up. I’m Sam, by the way.” I took the frame in one hand and offered my other to her.

“Gina Moretti,” she said, meeting my hand.

“Good to meet you, Gina.” I took the framed piece into the back and sheathed it in cardboard before wrapping it carefully in brown craft paper. After I added a white silk bow, it looked perfectly elegant. Curtis was going to be pleased. We didn’t make many sales on Mondays. I brought it back out to the main room.

“That will be four-hundred and twenty-five dollars,” I said, writing out a sales ticket. The woman plunked her black card down on the counter without a peep. I ran it and gave her the receipt to sign.

As she handed it back to me, she cocked her head at me and then reached into her purse. She pulled out a business card in her delicate, manicured hand. “Sam. I hope this doesn’t seem too forward, but I just moved to the area and bought a new house up in Tiburon, and I’m furnishing it from scratch. I don’t know the first thing about art, and I’d be interested in having someone help me out.” She handed the card to me.

“Oh…” I didn’t know what to say.

“Think about it and let me know if you might be interested.” She took her package and headed toward the door. “And Sam, thanks again for your help.” She smiled over her shoulder as she left.

I walked back to my desk and plunked down in my chair. That was strange. A sale and a job offer in the same morning? I looked at the card. It was thick, cream-colored paper with deep engraving on it. It felt rich, just like Gina. It didn’t have a company name or anything on it, just an email address and phone number. On the back was an address in Tiburon, a small wealthy town tucked into the hills of the North Bay.
Bizarre.
I placed it on the desk next to my keyboard and went to grab a second cup of coffee.

The rest of the morning passed uneventfully. Curtis popped by around three in the afternoon to pick up a lithograph, or at least that was the excuse he gave. I think he actually came by to hear about how things went with David in Hawaii.

“Seriously, Sam? A villa? So chic! Oh, I wonder if any celebrities have stayed there.”

“I think they mentioned something about Brad Pitt,” I said, toying with him.

“Hmm. That’s odd. I don’t know why my boyfriend would stay there without me,” he said innocently as he wandered into the back room.

“You’re incorrigible, Curtis.” I turned my attention back to my computer screen. An icon flashed, alerting me to a new email. I clicked on it. It was from Gina Moretti.

From: Gina Moretti

To: Samantha Sharp

Subject: Job offer

Samantha,

Lovely to meet you this morning. Thank you again for helping me choose a gift for my friend. I am sure he is going to love it.

I wanted to follow up about the job offer. I’d love to have you over to discuss it in more detail. Are you free later this week?

Regards,

Gina

I flushed and looked up, worried someone might see. My nervousness was unfounded; Curtis was still in the back room. I turned back to the screen. How did she get my email address?
She must have taken my card when I was wrapping up the gift in the back
, I surmised. I glanced back at the email, embarrassed to be reading the contents at work. I fired back a quick response.