Ivorie's Surprise [Golden Dolphin] (Siren Publishing Classic) Read Free Page A

see you at seven in the lounge. We can have a drink before dinner, maybe watch the sun go down.” He ducked back out of the doorway and closed the door behind him.
    Ivorie collapsed back into her chair and took a few deep breaths. When she thought her legs would hold her, she returned to her cabin through the connecting door, changed into a pair of shorts and a halter top, and went outside. Even though her cabin was far smaller than even the smallest suites, it was still really quite large and comfortable. It boasted a cozy sitting area, a very luxurious bathroom, and its own private deck. She intended to make use of the private deck as often as possible, starting right now. She sank down onto the double lounge, stretched her legs out, and breathed a deep sigh. The sun sparkling off the turquoise blue water was stunning. She thought about what to wear that evening and decided on a simple but flattering little black silk dress and strappy heels. It wasn’t too short or overly sexy, and she surely didn’t want to give off come-hither signals to Mr. Blessingame. Her choices were limited in any event. She had tried to pack for every eventuality, but with casual and beach clothes, office clothes, and evening clothes for over three weeks, she had had to draw the line somewhere. She hoped that she would be able to carry on an intelligent conversation and keep her dinner down at the same time. Ivorie was uncertain what her duties were to encompass and what her hours would be. She certainly hoped she would not be at his beck and call twenty-four-seven. This was looking like it could turn into a nightmare.
     
    * * * *
     
    Drew kicked his deck shoes off and stretched out on the king-size bed in the Master Suite. He certainly wasn’t accustomed to taking an afternoon nap, but maybe today would be an exception. It would be a good way to decompress and start to enjoy the first extended vacation he had taken in a couple of years. Even though he had gotten a good portion of his wealth the old-fashioned way—he inherited it—he had worked like a demon to quadruple his net worth since the death of his parents.
    His dad had been coasting for quite a while before the private plane that had been taking his parents to a skiing vacation in Vail crashed. The 9/11 tragedy had really taken the wind out of his Dad’s sails. Although their offices were on a lower floor in the North Tower of the World Trade Center and they had not lost any personnel, his father had never fully recovered from the tragedy. After the impact of the first plane into the North Tower, he had immediately told his employees to evacuate the building regardless of what the building security department was saying over the loudspeakers, and that proved to be a very fortunate decision. He had lost numerous friends, business associates, and acquaintances in the Twin Towers and had been a firsthand witness to the collapse. Drew had been in Japan on a business trip at the time and had been unable to get home for several days. He sometimes thought that the stress of the tragedy had been the catalyst that had started his change of attitude from twenty-five-year-old, happy-go-lucky son of a multimillionaire to hard-as-nails businessman. He had started taking over the family businesses literally as the dust had settled. Thank God all of their business records and computer files had been archived or backed-up off site. The loss of the paper records in the main office had been inconvenient, but not devastating, as the human losses in the buildings had been. But from then on a majority of the weight of the businesses had fallen on his shoulders, and he had taken the responsibility seriously. He’d felt responsible for the livelihoods of thousands of people. If the companies did not stay viable, would his employees be able to pay their mortgages? Since then, Drew had expanded their large software company, added to the real estate portfolios, and started several new businesses. He really