“Oh! My! Gawwwwwd!” Annette’s immediate words made Charli snicker. “Who was that?”
“That was Jack. He’s my new partner in Key West. Long story short, we inherited my aunt’s old resort together and have to renovate it,” Charli replied lightly, knowing it would be information overload.
Annette gasped. “You’re shitting me. Wow...wow, that’s incredible, Charli! This really changes things for you.”
Charli scrunched her nose. “How would it change things?”
“Well, the firm just handed you a massive shit sandwich and then you fly down there and inherit an estate. It sounds to me like you can tell the firm’sboard to jump off a cliff now,” Annette remarked, a decided edge to her voice.
Charli’s lips twisted to the side. “You know, I hadn’t thought about it like that. Everything is still a little fresh. But the fact is that I still have to make a living. I’ll be down here for a while, but my job and life is in Boston.”
Annette scoffed. “You mean it was...as in, the past tense. Your job and your life could be in Key West now...permanently.”
Charli sighed. “Annette, please. I can’t think about that right now.”
“Okay, okay. Just tell me that mister hottypants is even sexier than his voice.”
Charli glanced up and nearly choked when she met Jack’s curious, dark gaze. A hot blush moved up her chest and into her cheeks. “Totally is.”
“I knew it!” Annette crowed, and Charli could imagine her fist pumping the air victoriously.
Charli cleared her throat. “As much as I love to hear from you, was there something you needed?”
“Oh, yeah,” Annette answered, absently. “In all the excitement, I almost forgot to tell you.” She paused for a moment. “So, you know that two-week Caribbean cruise my sister and I have wanted to take for years?” Annette continued, her voice impish.
“Yeah.”
“Well, we board tomorrow!” Annette squealed and Charli could hear her clapping her hands on the other end. “And guess what?”
“It’s full of hot, eligible men who are dying to meet you and let you take advantage of them?” Charli answered, knowing exactly where Annette’s priorities were.
“Well, there will be that,” she answered confidently. “But that’s not the best part.” Annette was quiet for a moment. “One of our stops next week is Key West.” She enunciated the last two words as if she were dropping a bomb.
Charli’s brows shot up and she couldn’t keep the beaming smile from her face. “What? Really? That’s fantastic!” She glanced over and met Jack’s confused expression as he tried to follow their conversation, and she grinned even wider. “Do you think you’ll be here for a while?”
“Well, it looks like we’re there only for a day, but we can totally hang out with you...and Jack, too, if he’s available.” Charli chuckled at the way Annette accentuated his name.
“That’s great! I can’t wait to see you and I have so much to tell you.”
“Uh, yeah, you do and a certain sexy someone to introduce me to.”
Charli giggled, her heart warming. It had only been a few days, but she had dearly missed her friend. “I think that can be arranged. What day are you arriving?” Jack’s brows rose and his head cocked to the side at her words.
“We’ll be there on Wednesday. The ship arrives in port early morning I think, and we pull out early Thursday morning. We’re heading down to the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico from there and then back home.”
“Okay. That sounds perfect. From what I’ve seen so far, you’re gonna love it here. The weather is incredible. And I have some things to show you.”
“Oh, I’m certain I will love it down there and I can’t wait to see what you have to, um, show me,” Annette practically purred. “Well, I gotta finish packing here. So, I’ll see you later. Bye!”
Charli rolled her eyes as she put her phone on the bar. She took a sip of the mojito Steve had placed in front of her and sighed. It was light and minty—perfect.
“Was that your best friend?” Jack asked cautiously, his face appropriately wary.
“You could say that. Annette’s one of my best friends, but she’s also my assistant. In fact, my entire life would probably fall completely apart without her.”
“Oh really?” he replied as he leaned toward her. “Did I understand correctly that she’s coming down here for a visit?”
Charli grunted. “After the firm played it’s little game of musical chairs the other day, I told her to take as much vacation as she wanted. So, she’s going on her dream cruise with her sister. One of their stops next week is Key West. They’ll be here for a day.”
