3. Jamie

Chapter 3

Jamie

“ H oly crap, this place is gorgeous!” Jamie pressed her face against the glass, taking in the sight of the purple sunlight descending behind the trees. A light snow blanketed the treetops. It didn’t stick to the ground, but the driver still slowed down. “Who did you say is letting us borrow this place?”

Etta, her girlfriend, put her cell phone away, finally freed from the dead zone they passed a mile back. “Jem Mercier. Someone I’ve been doing business with lately.”

Jamie nodded. She only recalled Jem because she came by the house one night for dinner, and Jamie had to be on her best hostess behavior. While Jem and her girlfriend Gwenyth were an exceptionally laid-back couple, Jamie always fretted about her manners and not embarrassing her CEO girlfriend. Lots of well-to-do people did business with Etta Coleman. Having a girlfriend who could be as uncouth as Jamie was sometimes a liability.

Thankfully, she was a patient woman. She had to be because Etta dragged her work with her wherever they went.

“Put that away,” Jamie scolded, smacking Etta’s phone out of her hand. “You said that it would be all about us this weekend.”

Etta cleared her throat and looked at the seat across from them.

“Uh, don’t mind me,” said Natasha, Etta’s receptionist-turned-temporary assistant, accepted Etta’s phone and finished typing a message on her boss’s behalf. “It’s all relaxation for you two. I’m here for the sights, the booze, and my overtime.”

Jamie sighed dramatically and sprawled across the seat, landing in Etta’s lap. “You really brought all that work?” She shot Natasha an apologetic look. “No offense!”

“None taken.”

Etta smoothed Jamie’s hair. “I told you, it’s the busiest time of the year. We’ve got to wrap everything before Christmas, or we won’t get a moment’s peace over the holidays. But if all goes well, I’ll take the whole week off between Christmas and New Year’s.” She kissed Jamie’s forehead. “No calls, no emails, just us.”

“That sounds about as rare as a solar eclipse,” Jamie teased, making a face. “You taking a whole week off? Happens so rarely that I’ve gone blind.”

Etta flashed perfectly white teeth at her girlfriend. “I thought you were blinded by my dazzling good looks, not my schedule.”

“Ha, ha.”

“Incoming call from Hong Kong,” Natasha said, holding out the phone.

Jamie shot a look of betrayal at her friend.

True, Jamie and Natasha were friends, going back to when Jamie started working for Etta. Usually, Natasha was the 9-5 receptionist in Etta’s executive office, but she was currently between personal assistants and desperately needed someone to fill in this weekend. I don’t want Etta working while we’re on vacation… but this is how it is. Etta only stopped working when she was too tired to keep going… or when Jamie convinced her with feminine wiles. She was only human, though, and couldn’t be on call for sex 24/7. As much as I want to be…

Jamie reached into her bag, fingering the sapphire-studded collar inside its container. Maybe this weekend, Etta would want to take her frustrations out the old-fashioned way…

The car came to a halt, twilight already casting the landscape into darkness. Jamie couldn’t see much of the villa through the falling snow, but she was sure it looked as gorgeous as Jem’s photos had promised.

Not that they needed to borrow a villa. Etta owned a penthouse in the city if they wanted privacy. They also had a house in the hills. Hell, they could go anywhere they wanted. But they both knew this weekend wasn’t about luxury—it was about them. Their first Thanksgiving together had gone sideways, with Etta missing half the meal due to work. Jamie had sat at the table with a cooling turkey and mashed potatoes, the cats curled around her feet. She loved Etta, but she wanted— needed —more than apologies for the holidays.

Etta helped Jamie and Natasha out of the car, handing their luggage to a waiting housekeeper. She turned to the driver to relay instructions about coming to pick them up Sunday while a butler greeted them at the front door. Inside, Jamie heard voices.

They hadn’t taken two steps into the foyer when a familiar group of faces appeared.

Jamie’s stomach dropped. What the fuck?

There stood her friends, Monique and Helen, along with Helen’s sister Eve, who looked sharp as ever in a three-piece suit and flawless makeup. Kathleen Allen, the elegant philanthropist, waved from across the room. Jamie knew her well—Kathleen had even adopted a kitten from the litter Jamie discovered on her property. And then there was Kathleen’s partner, Ira Mathison, standing beside her with an easy smile.

“You didn’t tell me there would be others here.” Jamie accepted a kiss on the cheek from Monique. “What is going on, Etta?”

Etta’s sharp gaze took in the scene. Dressed in her immaculate business suit, she looked much more formal than the others. Helen wore a beige sweater dress and winter leggings while Ira had opted for thick trousers and a turtleneck. Etta’s expression darkened. “I thought this was supposed to be a private weekend.”

A murmur of agreement rippled through the room.

Etta turned to the butler. “Care to explain this?”

The butler gave an apologetic shrug. “Ms. Mercier only told me that there would be guests this weekend. I didn’t find out how many until a few hours ago. I believe you are the bulk of it.”

“Eight of us,” Ira muttered. “Looks like we’re having a fucking party.” They poured more drinks for the newcomers.

Natasha, who had been trailing behind Jamie and Etta, stopped dead in her tracks.

Eve’s eyes lit up at the sight of Natasha. “Well, well, well,” she said, swirling her drink. “Look who showed up.”

Natasha’s cheeks turned the pinkest hue Jamie had ever seen. Those two go back . Eve was notorious for flirting with Natasha whenever in the office, and though Natasha always turned her down, Jamie knew her friend had a soft spot for Evelyn Warner.

She’s single, so what’s stopping her?

Jamie slumped into a loveseat by the fireplace, glancing at the mismatched gathering. It was clear now that everyone had been fed the same story: Jem Mercier had promised them a private weekend at the villa. Except privacy was the last thing any of them were getting.

Etta threw off her jacket and slouched beside Jamie. “I’m going to wring Jem’s neck.” She took the glass of brandy Ira offered and downed it in one gulp.

After taking the glass back, Ira said, “I had a double as well. By the way, did you know that we’re having roast for dinner?”

“Hopefully nobody’s a vegetarian,” Kathleen quipped.

“Nobody here is a vegetarian.”

Everyone looked at Monique, sitting by herself next to the fireplace. She shrugged. It was her business to know the preferences of every elite person in the area. Especially those into kink.

Which every last one of them was into.

Jamie sighed as her stomach growled. Whatever game Jem was playing, she didn’t care anymore. She just wanted to eat!