Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 62362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 249(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 249(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
“This is Jade’s booth,” Holly said, pausing.
The corner location had no long table blocking it off from the people walking by. Instead, the entire space was open and carpeted, allowing for meet-and-greet conversations and making it extremely welcoming. High-top tables were strategically placed with brochures and bottles of water on each, providing a place for visitors to rest, and a young girl was busy replacing drinks and pamphlets on the tables after people left. Knox couldn’t help but be impressed. Jade obviously had good business sense.
“I love the tulle backdrop with the fairy lights,” Holly said, her brown eyes sparkling.
“It’s beautiful.” And so was the woman talking to clients.
Her pale blond hair was pulled into a loose braid that hung down her back, and the delicate features he remembered drew him in. As she talked, her hands waved expressively in the air, causing him to grin. Whatever they were discussing, it was obvious she loved her job.
Holly nudged his side. “It’s good to see you smile.”
He’d been thinking the same thing about Jade. She looked good. Happy. And he was glad.
“I told you that you liked her.”
He rolled his eyes. “What are you, ten?”
Holly perched her hands on her hips. “Is it so bad that I want to see you happy?”
“No, but I know that gleam in your eye. You want to matchmake and that’s where I draw the line.”
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say,” she muttered. But he knew nothing he said would deter Holly when she was on a mission.
He could handle his life, his choices, his women. If he decided to make a move on Jade, he didn’t need his sister arranging things to his advantage.
“Do you want to go talk to her?” he asked.
Holly shook her head. “Not yet. I’ll let her finish with those people first.”
Knox nodded. Having Jade’s full attention? He couldn’t argue with that.
* * *
Jade Dare wrapped up her conversation with a woman she felt sure would become a Bridezilla if she booked the Meridian’s services. Still, she’d managed to keep a forced smile pasted on her face until the woman walked away.
As soon as the woman and her meek fiancé were out of sight, Jade turned to Lauren Connelly, her personal assistant and best friend. “No, I will not work with her. One of the perks of my family owning this hotel is that I can turn down people I don’t want to deal with. Life’s too short. So, when she calls, say we’re booked. Forever if need be.”
Lauren tipped her head and laughed, her chic long bob swaying around her face. “Twenty bridesmaids and don’t worry about the budget. I’ll work on my father?” she said in a perfect imitation of the woman, even down to the hair flip. “Can’t say I blame you.” She shuddered just as Jade had. “And that poor man. He needs to grow a backbone or his life is going to be hell.”
“Amen,” Jade muttered. In her business, she met all kinds of people, male and female alike. “He’s never going to be happy.” That much she could confidently predict.
Lauren glanced around their assigned venue space with a quick and experienced eye, then spoke to the girl who was helping them out. “Layla, can you put some more water on the tables?” Stepping toward Jade, Lauren said under her breath, “I think Bridezilla’s friends snagged all the waters from every table.”
“No problem,” Layla said, putting down the book she’d been reading. Jade’s fourteen-year-old sister hopped off the stool she’d been sitting on and walked to the hidden area behind a curtain where they kept the extra supplies.
“Your sister is great. She’s been so helpful!” Lauren smiled as they then watched her set up each table just so.
“She is,” Jade murmured. Layla was technically Jade’s half sister. Layla’s mom, Serenity, had raised Jade and her four siblings and they were a close family.
“Wouldn’t she rather be with her friends?” Lauren asked.
“I think something is going on—teenage angst or boy drama. I’m not sure which. Maybe both.” Jade shrugged. “She asked if she could hang out with us today. I thought she’d enjoy keeping busy.”
“Aah. Poor kid. Teenage years suck. But she looks up to you and it’s so cute to see you two together.”
Jade smiled. “We’re thirteen years apart. You’d think it would be awkward, but because my family spends so much time together, there’s no real distance between any of us.”
That had been something her father and stepmother had made sure of. After Jade’s mother’s mental illness and death by suicide—not something Jade ever wanted to think about—the family had closed ranks. Her older brothers, Asher, Harrison, and Zach, had painful memories of their birth mother. But Jade and her twin, Nick, had only been two when she’d left. They had no memory of anyone but Serenity as their mother, so that was what Nick and Jade called her. But Jade still worried about what her biological mother had done and what that meant for her own mental health.