Grounded (Up In The Air #3)

CHAPTER SIX

Mr. Romantic

I was looking through my contact list, hoping that someone had added Lana’s number, when my phone began to ring in my hand. It was a strange New York area code, so I thought it must be her.

I answered right away. “Hello,” I said with a smile. I was looking forward to our lunch date.

A definitely male, definitely unfamiliar voice answered back. “Bianca Karlsson?”

I didn’t answer right away, confused and leery of someone unfamiliar having my number. Was it a tabloid? Was it part of the Cavendish army of security guards?

“This is she,” I said finally, keeping my voice cool and polite.

The man cleared his throat on the other end. He was nervous. I was almost certain of it. Who was this?

“I’m sorry to bother you…I’m Sven. Sven Karlsson.”

My heart felt like it froze in my chest when I heard my father’s name. My ears just sort of filled with white noise, and for a long time I just stood there, silently stunned.

“I’m your, um, half-brother. Sven Jr., I guess.”

I still couldn’t find any words to speak. I needed to sit down, but couldn’t make myself turn to look for a chair.

Finally he spoke again, “Sorry to bother you. I probably shouldn’t have called.” His voice sounded so forlorn that I suddenly found I could speak again.

“No, no, don’t be sorry. I just heard about your mother. I’m so sorry for your loss. I didn’t even know that you both existed until a few days ago.”

“Oh,” he said. “Well, I know this is strange, but I’d heard that you spend a lot of time in Manhattan. I live here, and I was wondering if we could just meet up for coffee sometime. I don’t have any family, and to be honest, I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time.”

He had stunned me into silence again. This was the last thing I’d expected when I heard I had a half-brother. The thought of someone who was related to me by blood that would actually want to meet me was just so…foreign. I couldn’t say I loved the idea, but how could I refuse?

“Okay,” I agreed finally. “I’m not sure when I’ll be able to, though.”

“That’s fine. You can just get back to me on that. Whenever and wherever you’re comfortable with.”

He seemed so…nice. When I’d thought of my father’s son, I’d just automatically thought of my father, but this man did not sound like that.

“Okay,” I said with more certainty. I wanted this, wanted to see this man who was a strange missing piece of my broken family. “I’ll do that. Perhaps in a week or two, on a Friday around lunchtime?”

“Sounds great. Just let me know. I can take a few hours whenever I need to, so last minute plans are fine with me, as well.”

We said our awkward goodbyes, and I finally sprawled out on the studio’s white divan, trying to wrap my numb mind around the strange turn of events.

I was just starting to sit up, trying to do something other than just sit and think, when my phone rang in my hand.

It was another strange New York number, and I just answered, really hoping it was Lana this time.

“Ha! I found you,” Lana said without preamble. “Come meet me at the Cavendish property, at the Light Café. James said he’d loan you to me for lunch, but only if we ate at his hotel. Have you noticed that your boyfriend’s kind of bossy?”

I laughed. “I have noticed that,” I said, my mood instantly lifting. Lunch with a fun girlfriend was just what I needed.

We decided to meet at noon, ending the conversation quickly.

I showered quickly and dressed in a smart little gray pleated skirt paired with a high-necked light blue sleeveless silk blouse. Orange patent leather wedge sandals completed the ensemble. I used Jackie’s suggestion for the shoes, and again wasn’t sorry, though I never would have paired them together on my own.

I had noticed that the vanity now sported an entire section just for my jewelry. I’d been wary to even look at it, but knowing that I would probably be seeing James, since we were going to his hotel, and that not much would please him more, I peeked at what were obviously new additions to my jewelry collection.

I wore my collar, so I only looked at the earring selection. I noticed a small white box immediately, since it looked different from the rest. It was older, with more dated packaging, and a note on the top. I plucked that note up, feeling brave.

Bianca, my love,

These were my mother’s. Please take them. It will break my heart if you reject them.

James

My hand shook and my eyes filled with tears. With love and with guilt, because I would have rejected them, especially knowing that they were his mother’s, if it weren’t for that terribly romantic note. I opened the box with trembling hands.

Inside sat large, princess cut, diamond studs surrounded by small sapphire baguettes. Or rather, that’s what I guessed the gemstones were.

I didn’t let myself think about it—didn’t let myself doubt. I just put the lovely things on, knowing that they were so much more than ungodly expensive earrings.

I brushed my drying hair behind my shoulders. They sparkled even through my hair, but I decided to clip one side back to showcase them more clearly.

I took more time than usual with my makeup, knowing that Lana would look model perfect, and that I’d be seeing James.

I knocked on Stephan and Javier’s door when I was ready to go.

Stephan answered the door, wearing only his boxers and looking gorgeous. We smiled at each other. He pulled me into his chest in a warm hug, kissing the top of my head. I hugged him tightly back, burrowing into his chest. He smelled like family…and Javier, but I took that as a good sign.

“I’m going to lunch with Lana, this really nice lady, and a close friend of James’s that I met last week. You guys have a late night?” Clearly they had, since Javier was face down on the bed, out cold.

Stephan chuckled. “You could say that. We went a little nuts with the car and driver.”

Javier made a very sexual sound from the bed, moving against the covers in a suggestive way.

I blushed.

Stephan laughed. “He’s dreaming about me. Have fun, Bee. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” I said, beating a hasty retreat. The guys obviously needed their privacy.

Lana was already waiting inside of the Light Café in the Cavendish hotel when I got there. She was seated in one of the well-spaced center tables, next to a huge, but strangely quiet, stone fountain. It was a huge dining room, with the top and three sides lined with windows, letting in an almost blinding amount of light. I had to put my shades back on as I entered the café.

The decor was all gray stone and red detailing, as though little pieces of Red, which was next door, had bled into the restaurant.

She stood and gave me a warm hug when I approached the table. She wore an ivory pencil skirt, with a white men’s dress shirt. It would have been very business-like attire, if not for her swimsuit model figure and her peep-toe crimson stilettos. Her jewelry was simple and gold, with hoops at her ears, and a plain band at her neck and wrist. All of the wealthy women I’d been introduced to of late seemed to wear less extravagant jewelry than I did. It was an alarming thought.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my security positioning themselves around the room.

We sat.

“James is incorrigible. I swear he called the paparazzi on me! They were outside photographing me when I arrived. I usually don’t get paparazzi, unless of course I’m hanging out with James. I’m just too boring. But now they’re going to print a piece about how even the Middleton heiress prefers the Cavendish hotel, damn him.”

I laughed, because she was damning him with a genuinely fond smile on her face.

We both ordered plain tea and water. Lana smiled at me. “We really could be sisters. So tell me, how is it going with James? You know he’s hopelessly in love with you, right?”

I blushed and swallowed. “He’s wonderful, but so overwhelming. I’m not the type to rush into anything, even if it’s something small, but he just doesn’t get it. I love being with him, but it’s been a roller-coaster.”

“That’s why you needed time apart. I get it,” she said, her voice rich with understanding and sympathy. “He was so sad that month, so…bereft. I’d never seen him like that before. I’m glad he got you back. He needs you, Bianca. Everyone should get to experience a love like that. That kind of love makes us better people.”

Her words made me think of the man she’d referred to briefly the first time we’d met. I still remembered the name, since it had held such meaning to her just at its utterance.

The waitress returned just then to bring our drinks and take our orders. I got a turkey melt on wheat bread with sweet potato fries. I thought it was strange fair for such a posh café to have on the menu, but it sounded good to me.

“Tell me about Akira Kalua,” I said, because she’d promised me she would.


She gave me a mock glare. “I knew you wouldn’t forget about that.” She sighed heavily. “I’ve been in love with him since I was ten. Unfortunately, he was twenty when I was ten. That was fine. I was content to wait. I bided my time, enjoying his company, taking up as much of his time as I could manage. He taught me to surf. His family as good as adopted me when my parents left Maui. He made me laugh. God, did he make me laugh. My happiest memories are of playing jokes on him. I would torment him, but he never got mad, never lost his patience. He was so wonderful to me, and I thought he was the most beautiful creature on the planet.”

She looked down at her hands, and I knew that the story was about to take a turn for the worse. “When I was eighteen I seduced him. I was completely ruthless about it. I told him that if he didn’t take my virginity, and make it good for me, that I’d give it up to some drunk frat boy, and probably hate sex for life after that, and probably get an STD.”

I stifled a laugh, because it was such an outrageous thing to do.

She didn’t take offense. “Oh, yeah, I guilted him into it. There’s no other way to look at it. After that, I had to leave. I thought that sex would change everything for us, and it did. It ruined everything. I was in deeper than ever after that, and he saw me as a kid sister. He was still in love with his ex-girlfriend. He got back together with her the day after we were together. I overheard what he told her about me. He said I was a family friend with an inconvenient infatuation. He wasn’t wrong, but it still broke my heart. I left that day. God, I miss that rock.”

I studied her. I had a hard time believing that he’d only had sex with her out of pity. “He must have wanted you if he took you up on your offer. I’m no expert, but I don’t think men have sex with women they don’t want. And men always want women who look like you.”

She shrugged. “None of it matters now. It’s all in the past. I like being alone. Romantic entanglements just don’t interest me. I’m content with work. I keep busy.”

“You’re still in love with him,” I said, certain I was right.

She shrugged. “I can’t help it, other than to try to think about it as seldom as possible. Last I heard, he was engaged to his high school sweetheart.”

“You need to go back to Maui. You still think of it as home. Even if it’s just to get closure, you should go visit. How many years has it been since you left?”

“Eight.” She shrugged again. “Maybe I will, sometime. I do miss it. Your turn. Tell me about you and James.”

I glanced around, making sure we had privacy. I leaned towards her. “He’s into BDSM. Well, we are into it, actually.”

She smiled wryly, not looking in the least surprised.

“You knew?”

“Not firsthand, but Jules tried to tell me about that once, when she thought he and I were dating. She was trying to scare me off. Have you noticed that all of the really pretty men always have a thing? Women are just too easy for them, I think, so they always seem to develop…quirks, yanno?”

I laughed, because I loved her take on it, and the fact that it didn’t faze her a bit. “No, I don’t know. I only know James, and he and I share…quirks.”

She shrugged. “I have a thing for giant Hawaiian men who look like ripped pro-wrestlers, and are covered in tattoos.”

“Men? So this is a pattern for you?” I asked, genuinely curious.

She wrinkled her nose, those violet eyes sparkling. “Just Akira.”

She looked at something behind my shoulder. “Oh, lord, here comes Jackie.” She caught my expression. “You don’t like her?”

I gave my little shrug. “Not so far.”

Lana waved an elegant hand towards the woman. “It’s a fact that she’s more than half-crazy. Did you know that she actually thinks that shopping is a legitimate job? But she’s very funny when you get to know her. She’s just rough around the edges, that’s all.”

I would have taken nice over funny any day, but I held my tongue.

Jackie approached us with her no-nonsense little walk, wearing smartly tailored, cuffed shorts, and an almost severely modest collared shirt. The whole ensemble was pea-green, a color that worked with her complexion, but that I didn’t think would work for many. Her cute legs, and her nude stilettos with red soles, kept the outfit from being too conservative.

Jackie was looking at my lap as though I had something disgusting growing there.

I looked down at the cream bag she had picked out the day before.

“Twice in a row with the same bag, Bianca? You have a closet full of bags! Are you trying to embarrass me?”

Lana tutted at her rather affectionately. “Looks like you’re doing that all on your own, Jackie. Chill out. It’s a bag. A lovely bag. Go away if you aren’t here to be nice.”

Jackie looked surprised but not at all offended. “You aren’t going to invite me to join you for lunch?”

Lana shook her head. “Nope. What are you up to?”

Jackie shrugged. “I come here all the time. It’s a good place to be seen. I wanted to discuss some things with Bianca.”

“Nope. Are you stalking her?”

“Noooo. I just need a minute.”

“Then make an appointment,” Lana said with a sweet smile.

“What do you want, Jackie?” I asked, trying to make my tone bland rather than hostile.

She reached into her own monstrosity of a bag. It was pea-green leather with a big red stripe down the side. She pulled out a small piece of paper, brandishing it like a weapon. “I have a list of functions that you need to attend. Mostly luncheons.”

I sighed, waving at one of the empty chairs at our table. “Sit down and tell me what you’re talking about, Jackie.”

She sat and started in, as if she had rehearsed the whole spiel. “As the significant other of a powerful and influential man in this town, you have some new obligations. You’ll be expected to attend lunches and brunches, and tea parties, nearly every day of the week.”

I felt my face stiffening the more she spoke.

”Being with James is a full-time job. I’m willing to show you the ropes, since you can’t possibly understand what all of this entails—“

“I have a job,” I interrupted her. “I’m not looking for another one. I have no wish to go to functions with a bunch of strange women every day.”

She let out a very put-upon sigh. “I was afraid you’d say that. You can’t possibly comprehend the kind of responsibilities that James and I have had to own since our childhoods—“

I laughed in her face, my extremely rare temper rearing its very ugly head, the words she’d chosen setting me off. “Responsibility? You are going to lecture me about responsibility? I have had to care for myself since I was a child. You probably still live off your parents’ wealth,” I guessed. I saw by her expression that I was right. “Don’t you dare speak a word to me about responsibility!”

I instantly regretted losing my cool, but I didn’t take anything I’d said back. It was nothing but the truth, if an indelicate one.

“I didn’t mean to upset you again,” she said carefully. “I know you don’t like me. And I know you think I don’t like you, but that’s a nonissue to me. I’m trying to help you.”

I raised a hand. “Don’t. Don’t try to help me. Don’t try to tell me what I need to do with my time.”

She sighed that put-upon sigh of hers. “Fine, I’ll go, but let me know if you reconsider.”

I looked at Lana after she’d left. “What’s with her?”

Lana shook her head. “She’s an odd one, so I can’t say for sure, but I’m guessing it’s half self-promotion, since she could claim to dress you for all of the functions she’s plotting. The other half would be that she actually thinks she’s trying to help you, in her own misguided way. My advice would be to challenge her. Her personality demands it. Give her some arbitrary conditions to being your dresser.” She snapped her fingers as though an idea had struck her. “I know. Tell her you only want to wear clothes from up-and-coming fashion designers. Insist that you won’t wear anything else. That will drive her crazy, but she’s perverse enough that she’ll enjoy it.”

I wrinkled my nose at her. “I’ll try it, though I don’t understand it.”

She just shrugged. “Jackie takes time to understand, but I guarantee she’ll grow on you.”