Mr. Naughty And Mrs. Nice

Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Jemma

“ T ry sprinkling a bit more flour on the counter so the dough doesn’t stick,” Quinn’s mom, Linda, says as I make a mess of the sugar cookie dough while trying to roll it out. Quinn is at their neighbors’ house with his dad repairing a fence, so I’m all alone with the girls making sugar cookies and listening to Christmas songs. I’m trying to make a good impression, but this damn sticky dough is not cooperating.

“Is this your first time making cookies?” Willow asks with a bit of a smirk.

“First time that’s not out of the box,” I say as I sprinkle some flour onto the counter, making an even bigger mess.

Linda comes to help, so I step back and watch the master do her thing. She cleans up my mess by getting the unruly dough back under control. “Like this,” she says as she flattens it with the powdery rolling pin. “It’s easier when the dough is chilled. It’s been out too long.”

“We can finish up if you want to go in the living room and relax,” Willow says, standing beside her mom.

“Baking is relaxing,” Linda says, shaking her head. “Jemma is right where she needs to be.”

Nothing with Willow is relaxing. This girl is stressing me out. I thought Hawaiians were chill and cool, but this girl has been giving me nasty looks the entire time she’s been here. I can’t believe I was actually excited to meet her. I feel like a fool.

She was staring daggers at me all throughout dinner last night, and this morning at breakfast, she offered everyone at the table scrambled eggs except for me.

Quinn says she’s always been a bit standoffish when she meets someone, but I think it’s more than that. I know when someone doesn’t like me and this chick hates my guts.

Linda heads to the garage to get some more flour and I suck in a breath, building up my courage to face Willow head-on. I don’t like letting things stir under the surface. I’m the kind of person who likes to know where they stand with people.

“Did I do something to offend you?” I ask her when we’re alone. “You don’t seem to like me.”

She tosses the dirty spatula into the sink and shuts off Mariah Carey’s screeching. I swallow hard as she turns around, glaring at me while crossing her arms.

“How long have you known my brother?”

“Not too long…”

“How long?”

“We met… two days ago.”

Her face drops. “You’re kidding me.”

“It was love at first sight.”

She rolls her eyes. “Love at first sight?”

I nod, still not quite believing it myself. It was such a magical night. I still get shivers whenever I think about it.

“And the fact that he’s a billionaire had nothing to do with it?”

I jerk my head back in shock. “What? Quinn is a… billionaire? ”

My head is spinning as I try to make sense of everything. I knew he sold a company that he owned and has a nice car, but I figured that… I don’t know what I figured. I didn’t really think about it.

I guess I knew he had to be a millionaire, but I was thinking maybe one or two million. I didn’t really think about it that much, I was too lovestruck to consider it. When I think of Quinn, I think of the muscles under his shirt, his devastatingly sexy smile, the way his hands feel on me… I think of what’s hidden in his pants, not what’s hidden in his wallet.

“Like a billionaire billionaire?” I ask, still stunned. “With a b?”

She nods. “With a capital B.”

I swallow hard, not knowing how to react. Does this change things? It shouldn’t change things, but does it?

“I… had no idea.”

“You didn’t Google him?”

“No, but that would have been a good idea.”

“You’re telling me you went away with a man for a week and didn’t even bother to do a little bit of research? Weren’t you scared of being murdered?”

“I told you, it was love at first sight. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

She just stares at me trying to figure out if I’m a money-hungry scam artist or just an idiot. Unfortunately, it’s the latter.

The back door opens and Quinn comes into the kitchen with his father who’s talking about drill bits. Quinn’s face drops when he feels the tension hovering in the air. “What’s going on?”

“You’re a billionaire ?” I ask, almost accusingly.

He steps back and puts his hands up. “I wasn’t aware that was a crime.”

“You could have told me!”

“Would it have made a difference in how you feel?”

“No… maybe… I don’t know.”

Willow is watching this whole interaction with interest. Mitch and Linda leave the room to give us some privacy, but Willow stays right where she is to watch this play out.

“You really didn’t know?” she says when she sees the range of emotions cycling through my face. I’m feeling all sorts of things—confusion, admiration, intimidation, disbelief, anger for some reason.

“No idea,” I say as I look at the cookie dough on the counter. “No one in my family has money, so the concept of having this much didn’t even occur to me. Billionaires are people in movies and on the news, not people you meet at the mall. What do you even do with a billion dollars? Is it in your chequing account?”

He laughs. “Not quite. And it’s six billion.”

“ Six? ” I grab onto the counter, feeling like I might faint.

“It’s okay,” Quinn says as he rubs my back. “It’s just money. It doesn’t change anything.”

I turn to him with watery eyes. “I’m not with you for that. I promise.”

His smile is so beautiful it makes me feel like I’m going to faint again. “I know.”

He kisses me and all those swirling emotions are replaced with euphoria. It doesn’t matter what’s in this man’s bank account, it’s what’s in his heart that I care about.

And what’s in his pants too if we’re being honest…

“I’m sorry,” Willow says, her face softening for the first time. “I was just being protective of my younger brother.”

“I understand. But I really didn’t know.”

“I believe you,” she says as Mitch and Linda return.

“Back to work,” Mitch says, pulling the trigger on his drill.

Quinn smiles warmly at me and then follows him out.

“I’ll help you with the dough,” Willow says, rolling her sleeves as she comes over. “Let’s put it in the fridge for a minute. It will make it easier to roll out.”

I take a breath of relief as the sister of the man I love helps me pick up the dough, wrap it in plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge. Her steely skeptical eyes have turned warm and she’s all smiles now.

I’m full of relief.

I don’t care about Quinn’s money. I just want his family to like me.