I sat in the den where we set up my room so Carmen could move in with us. All of her family lived in Northern California, her two sons grown and living near their wives’ families. It was sort of meant to be for the three of us, I guess. Carmen quickly became part of our family, and oddly, I think a lot of it had to do with her and Dad’s relationship. Those two thought they were sly, but it was just the other day when I spotted their conversation leading to Carmen kissing Dad on his lips before beating me to the kitchen to make dinner.
With those two in the living room, bickering about something on the news, I was left to paint the views from the bluffs where Jake had taken me. My eyes were crossing with this painting that I couldn’t get right. All I could think about, if I was honest with myself, was Jake. Seeing him today ignited some fire of energy in me, and I just wanted to be with the man. I was going to get burned if I allowed myself to do this.
My phone chimed, alerting me to a text that just came through.
Jake: Can I swing by for a few?
Ash: Sure.
I chewed on the end of my paintbrush, shocked that I’d responded so quickly and that Jake asked to come over. Did he want a piece of ass? That wasn’t going to happen in this make-shift room in a twelve-hundred-or-less square-foot home.
Jake: Need your address
I texted Jake the address while I walked out to where Dad and Carmen sat in the living room. “Your doctor is stopping by, Dad,” I said with sarcasm.
He smirked at me. “I can guarantee it’s because he was once again captivated by my daughter today. Do we have leftovers from dinner? He might be hungry.”
“I have no idea why he’s stopping by, but I might be taking off with him again this weekend.” I chewed the tip of my nail, a horrible habit I needed to get rid of. “Wait, he might be coming over to cancel on that one. Never mind.”
Carmen laughed. “Mija, that man is taking you away for the weekend and probably for the night too. Hope work wasn’t too strenuous on you today.”
She giggled over at Dad while Dad smiled.
“All right, you two.” I stood and arched my brow at them. “You will not embarrass him or me when he gets here.”
“Never!” my dad said.
“Right.” I eyed my dad with a smile. “I’m sure Ashley Jane was just you being cute this afternoon in his office too.”
Dad shrugged. “I love your name! I gave you the name. Am I not allowed to say the name I gave my precious child?”
“I’m going back to painting,” I said with a roll of my eyes.
Two hours after Jake had texted me, there was a knock on the front door. I was dozing on the couch, Dad was in bed, and Carmen was in her room when Jake finally arrived.
I opened the door, and any exhaustion I had in my body dissipated. “You’re late,” I said.
“You live an hour from the hospital, and that’s if there’s no traffic.” He arched that sexy eyebrow at me. “Although I have no idea how anyone ever knows how long the drive takes without traffic because there is always traffic, and tonight there was more than usual.”
I looked out to see his sleek black car parked on the curb in the front of the house. “Um, that car might not fare well in this neighborhood.”
“I have insurance.” He smirked. “May I come in?”
I stepped out. “Everyone’s sleeping,” I said. “I mean, you can hang out if you want, but the place is kind of cramped.”
He took my hand and pulled me into his chest, “I had to see you outside of that office. I almost texted you to meet me at the hotel or pack your bags to head back to my place tonight.”
I smiled against his hug. “You’re insane.”
“I know.” He pulled back and brushed his lips over mine. “This neighborhood seems safe, and I need to get some energy out of my system. Would you care to take a walk?”
I took his hand, and in my yoga pants, hoodie, and flip-flops, I joined the guy I was slowly deeming had lost his mind on a walk.
“So,” I said as we turned down the sidewalk. “Shall we take walks like this every night?”
His face seemed concerned, and I had no idea what the hell was going on with him.
“Jake?” I asked, holding his hand and watching the many expressions play on his face as he took note of kids playing out in the street under the streetlights and smiled at them.
He stopped and turned to face me. “I have to know something before I ask anything of you. I believe I was abrupt and rude earlier by begging you to join me this weekend.”
“Okay.” I had no idea what the hell was going on with this guy.
“Ash,” he sighed, “I’m fairly sure you’ve seen me and the history I’ve had with women all over the internet and whatever news that has strangely decided to peel my personal life open like a goddamn banana.”
“Don’t insult my second-favorite fruit,” I teased.
It caught him off guard, and his lips pulled up on one side as he shook his head. “She hates tomatoes but loves bananas.”
“And you insulted them. What an ass.”
“That I am.” He sighed and ran his hand through his coal-black hair. “I’m just going to come out and ask it.” I watched him chew on the inside of his cheek. “Ash, I want more with you. I know you see a complete piece of shit all over the media outlets, and I was, in fact, that guy outside of my work. I swear to God, though, that something changed in me when I met you. I know it’s fast and probably too soon, but I need you in my life. After the weekend we had—I hate going home and wishing you were there. Never before has my home felt empty until now.”
I covered my smile. Poor guy was asking me to be his girlfriend but had no idea what the hell he was doing in just straight-out asking that of me.
“Say something,” he said.
“Are you asking me to marry you?” I teased.
His face went ghost white, and I couldn’t help but laugh. “Jesus Christ,” he said, blue eyes wide and grabbing my hand. “No. Shit. I don’t know what the fuck I’m saying.”
“You need to relax.” I hugged him and stood on my toes to kiss his chin. “Are you asking me on a date or for us to become an item?” I held up my hand. “Wait; are you asking me—the girl outside of the gold diggers’ circle—to become the one lucky woman who Dr. Jacob Mitchell will—”
“Oh my God, stop.” He laughed. “I’m just asking you to take a chance with me. You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met. I want you, and only you. Exclusively. I’m not the dick that they’re talking about anymore. I want to ask if you’re willing to trust me and give me a chance to date you. To have you stay at my place whenever you want. Shit, I don’t fucking know. Maybe I am asking you to marry me.”
“Let’s keep it at asking me to take a chance with you.” I smiled at him, totally shocked he was acting like he was proposing. “I’ve seen all the stories, and I’ve sorta come to terms with the fact that I’d had sex with a guy who could’ve gotten any girl he wanted.”
“I hate that I was that guy.”
“Jake,” I started, “we can be more serious, yes. I’ll just have to brace myself for an intrusion into my life now. Are you willing to deal with any demons they dig up on me?”
He let out a breath. “That’s what I was getting at. I can’t and won’t let them come near you, but if you’re with me, there’ll be pictures, and more than likely, things will be said about you. I’m not sure I’m worth that at the moment. Any other time when I was unexpectedly falling for a woman, I would not have imagined it being like this.”
“I can handle myself,” I said. “I like you a lot, Jake, and it was quite shocking when I couldn’t paint because you were on my mind the entire time. That’s never happened before.”
Before I could blink, I was in Jake’s arms, him kissing me in a way that made me grateful that the teens playing in the street were now down by my house, checking out the million-dollar sports car.
I pulled away before we both forgot where we were. “So,” I said with a smile.
“So,” he repeated triumphantly, running his thumb along my bottom lip, “this weekend, we show everyone you’re mine?”
“I think it’s the other way around, but I guess so.” I smiled at the man I’d promised myself I wouldn’t fall for and knew hours earlier I already had. There was no stopping this collision course I was on. “I swear to God, I will kick your ass if my heart is the one you, Dr. Mitchell, actually hurts.”
He was somber for a moment, then smiled. “I can’t lose you, Ash. I promise that I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Then let’s go public in this relationship we’re trying to build.”
“Stay with me tonight,” he begged, putting his arm over my shoulder.
I wrapped my arm around his back. “Sorry, Doc,” I teased. “Both of us have to be at work tomorrow, and thanks to the never-ending traffic you mentioned earlier, it’s smarter if I stay home throughout the week.”
“I hate that woman you work for,” he said with annoyance. “It’s like she’s a splinter that I can’t get out of my life. First, it’s her and my brother, and now it’s her fucking gallery that’s too far from either one of my houses.”
“Why do you hate my boss so much?” I laughed.
“You’ve heard the rumors about my brother and me, I’m sure. The fucking Billionaires’ Club rumors?”
“Yes. That you four only screw rich bitches?”
He chuckled. “While that’s somewhat true, she’s the fucking idiot who spread the word about what one of the guys slipped and said while he was shit-faced drunk. Let’s just say she needed the money. My brother was sympathetic in more ways than one, and because of him and his bullshit charity, she managed to get her gallery and continues to play my brother for cash with her lies. I hate you working there.”
“Well, one day, I will have a gallery of my very own, and it’ll be close to your houses, and I’ll kick her ass in sales and steal all of her clients,” I said, seeing him all worked up over something I didn’t fully understand.
“I’ll buy the damn showroom,” he said with a smile. “We’ll give these assholes something to report on. My brother’s whore against my girl.”
“Easy, bud.” I squeezed his side I held. “Why don’t you come inside? We have leftover fajitas, beans, rice, and I finally impressed Carmen with my homemade tortillas too.”
“Impressive, and that sounds delicious. Maybe if I get some food in my system, my brain will function better.” He smiled at me. “Carmen’s cooking is out of this fucking world. She used to bring food for the doctors when she worked the night shifts with us.”
“Then, you’ll be fat, happy, and fully satiated after I heat up a plate for you.”
He kissed my temple. “Let me get my bag out of the car, and I’ll be up in a second.”
I went through the rest of the week without bringing up the yacht party that I’d committed to attending. I would like to blame it all on being blindsided by Jake, but the truth was that I wanted this. I was doing a swan dive into life again, and I was fearlessly embracing everything I wanted. Being with Jake made me feel amazing inside and out. His expressions, the way we connected without even trying. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, and I think the daring part of all of this is what drove me toward being fearless and open to dating Jake.
I was dressed in one of the three silk cocktail dresses that Clay had picked out and had delivered with three sets of heels to match—all black. Each one had a deep V to accentuate my cleavage and a note saying, “If you’re going to do this, Hollywood, do it right, baby girl!”
I’d already called and thanked Clay for everything. I hadn’t seen my best guy since after Dad got home and then one time at the gallery when he and Joe showed up to become my first clients to buy a five-hundred-thousand-dollar portrait. I missed them and definitely couldn’t get so lost in Jake that I left the best part of my life behind.
With Jake’s text from earlier, I was instructed to bring along a swimsuit, sundresses, and whatever would keep me comfortable on the yacht until Sunday. I was packed and ready to go, and Jake must’ve rushed through his rounds tonight because he was already in the living room, chatting it up like old friends with Dad.
“You enjoy yourself,” Carmen said as I brushed the last of my mascara along my lashes. “I still can’t believe it, you and Jacob.” She gripped my shoulders, and her bright red lips were on my cheek. “It’s like my own kids are falling in sweet, sweet love.”
“That’s disgusting, Carm!” I said with a laugh. “You’re too much, sometimes.”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “I know this is true. Go. Enjoy.”
After farewells to everyone, I was in the back seat of an SUV with Jake. He sat in the middle while I gazed out of the window, praying this wasn’t a mistake.
He took my hand in his. “You are quiet tonight,” he said.
I looked over at his gorgeous face, him still wearing his suit from work. “You’re brave. I guess I lost my edge.” I laughed.
“We could go sky diving?” He smirked. “It appears you enjoy adrenaline running through your system.”
I let out a nervous exhale. “If I get sick, you know this weekend is over, right?”
He kissed my cheek. “You won’t get sick. Quit putting that nonsense in your mind.”
“How was work?”
Jake surprisingly laughed at that. “Who’s the one acting like this was all a proposal of marriage now?”
“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked with a grin.
“Well, instead of being thrilled to spend the weekend with a bunch of obnoxious, drunk, and overly wealthy people, you’re asking how my day was at work.”
“Ugh.” I leaned my head back against the headrest. “Maybe I just need to get on this boat and get it all started.”
He twisted to face me. “Ash. The last thing I want in the world is you upset or nervous about this in any way. Can you trust me on this? If you get sick, I will hire someone to bring a rowboat out, and I’ll row your cute little ass to shore.”
“Very funny.”
It was all small talk, and the closer we got to where his fancy yacht was, the more Jake seemed to be annoyed about this whole thing.
“Yeah, we’re right down this way,” Jake ordered the driver as he pulled his phone out. “Jim, we’re pulling in now. All asses on board within the hour. The captain already has orders to leave at ten…” he paused and then nodded. “Sir,” he tapped the driver on the shoulder, “I’m going to need you to make a right here. Thanks. To that car,” he pointed out toward some white sedan. “Are you serious, man? How did they find out about us leaving tonight? I’m about to cancel this shit. It’s not worth it.” He paused and exhaled while the driver stopped the SUV, and I stepped out.
God dang, we were surrounded by thousands of docked boats that screamed money, and I had a feeling the white car was taking us to the one boat that most likely was anchored out in a world of its own. What the hell was I getting myself into?
“What the hell are we getting into?” Jake snarled the exact words that ran through my mind. “Then use the boat to pick us up here. I’m not taking a fucking car over there if there’s a goddamn press mob. This is a fucking mess.” Jake exhaled, livid, “Bring the boat here, or I leave.”
He ended the call and walked over to the man waiting in the white car. “Change of plans. We’re going to get picked up here and brought out to the yacht,” he said, slipping the guy some cash. “Thanks for understanding.”
“Everything okay?” I asked.
“Welcome to my fucking life,” he said, pissed.
“We can leave,” I offered, chickening out.
Jake smiled. “Get over here.” He brought me into his side. “Let me tell the driver who has our luggage that my idiot brother is bringing the smaller boat over here. You’re not getting out of this.”
“Are you dodging the cameras, Dr. Mitchell?”
“Hopefully,” he answered, walking toward the car we rode in. “But if the driver of that boat picking us up doesn’t floor it, trust me, they’ll beat him here.”
Within ten minutes, we were walking toward another loading dock, and then bright flashes of camera lights came from our left.
“Well, let’s play, shall we?” Jake said in an annoyed voice.
We ran down the dock. The driver and another assistant—who’d come from out of nowhere—trailed us, and I started laughing at the entire scene. Poor Jake. He was being treated like some super celebrity, and I knew he’d been dealing with this every day since I’d last saw him. Crazy enough, even though he was pissed, he managed to smile and be courteous toward them. You would never think it was anything like this with the way he appeared on social media and television.
Once we were in the speed boat, and the luggage taken and thrown in by Jake, we were racing out on the dark sea toward a vessel that seemed too big for a guy like Jake to own. It was grand and beautiful. The lights coming from the yacht flicked and danced along the ocean.
The boat we rode on was pulling up, and men were working on lining us up to board Jake’s yacht easily.
“This is yours?” I asked with a laugh.
“Yeah, ignore her name, though. I was drunk when I came up with the damn thing,” he said, helping me up to the massive yacht.
“Sex Sea?” I laughed, holding his hand. “You named your beautiful yacht that? That’s almost as good as my coffee-cup name.”
“Any position?” He chuckled. “And you weren’t even drunk.”
“Shut up,” I said as we walked through a side entrance and up an elegant staircase.
As soon as we walked through a back-lit glass entrance, we were greeted by a crowd of people.
“Happy Birthday, Dr. Sexy!” they screamed in unison, and then the music erupted to where I could only smile in response to Jake and I having drinks shoved into our hands.
“Happy Birthday, brother,” the man I remembered as Jim said, greeting us in a sharp suit. “Ashley.” He nodded toward me. “Nice to have you with us on Jake’s big birthday. Goddamn, thirty-five years old.”
Jake was somber, quiet, and more confused than I was. “I forgot about my own birthday party,” he said, looking at Jim as if he should probably get checked into a mental hospital. He looked back at me. “Holy shit.” He half-smiled and looked back as if he were ready to jump off the boat himself. “I’m so sorry. I completely forgot about this.” He looked at Jim, “I’m not putting Ash through this. You guys do your thing and celebrate my life. We’re out.”
Jim grabbed Jake. “The fuck you are,” Jim said. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Jake.” I smiled. “You look like you might be going into cardiac arrest.”
“I know you assholes, and this party is not going to happen with me present. Like I said, enjoy it.”
“Oh, stop acting like a baby,” Jim said with a sigh. “There’s enough here, and we had a meeting earlier anyway. It’s primarily agents and people we entertained for an acquisition of a company. You don’t have to entertain anyone. That’s what the staff is for, and we’re heading to the privacy of the upper deck.”
“Your tax write-offs are going to bite you in the ass one day. Fine. Ash and I need to drop our shit in our room, and I need a shot or two before I can entertain this idea—that I actually came up with and completely forgot about.”
“Nice to see you, Ashley,” Jim said after Jake chilled out. “We’ll meet you guys on the upper deck. I need to finish up here anyway.”
“I’m so sorry about this,” Jake said to me.
“Hey.” I took his hand and stopped him from walking. “Happy birthday.” I ran my hand on his cheek, and he seemed to react as if he had a shot or two with just that.
“Thank you.” He smiled.
“Good thing that I know what you like, and maybe I can loosen you up for the night once we get into the room?”
Jake smiled that greedy smile I loved about him. “It’s the only thing I’d ask for—that and my boat off-loaded.” He laughed. “Let’s get out of the light, and I’ll give you a short tour.”
This night would be interesting, but at the moment, my concern was for Jake. He seemed certainly annoyed that he was on the boat with me—and this was going to be some crazy birthday party. I didn’t feel like he was pissed I was there, but more that he was worried about how this might run me over with how my nerves were already acting in the car. We were sort of out at sea already, and I’d done the sea-sick research, and there were numerous remedies for it. I would be perfectly fine. Knowing it was Jake’s birthday, I would do my best to make him feel relaxed.
