Rise of the Billionaire (7 page)

Reading
Jeisa’s comment as referring only to the topic at hand, Marie chuckled and whispered, “Would you like to try her biscuits so you can see what I mean?”

Jeisa shook her head with a smile. “My father taught me to never tease an armed housekeeper.”

Marie nodded. “Wise man, your father. Is he still in Brazil? He must miss you very much.”

“I guess. We talk every day.”
Whether I want to or not.

“What does he think of you working with Jeremy?”

Jeisa shrugged.

“You still haven’t told him?”

“To tell him about Jeremy, I’d have to tell him about Reese, and that story would have him on the first plane here to get me.”

“So, he thinks you’re still an
au pair?” Jeisa nodded. “Oh, hon, when he finds out that you’ve been lying to him it’ll only be worse.”

“I’m going to tell him. I just haven’t come across the right time to do it.”

“There is no wrong time for the truth.”

“You don’t understand. This was my chance to show him that he’s wrong about me
—that I do know what I’m doing. Telling him that I came here for a job that never existed will just prove everything he thinks about me is right.”

“How old are you, Jeisa?”

“Twenty-four.”

“
Jeisa, parents love their children. They may not love them the way the child wishes she was loved. They may have faults. They may disappoint their children again and again. But I have never met a parent who did not love his child. You are not the first person to feel misunderstood, or to fear that your father won’t be proud of the real you. But he’ll never have the chance to prove how much he loves you if you’re not honest with him.”

She made it sound so easy.

Marie lightened the mood again with a smile. “And there’s another topic I’m sure you didn’t come here to discuss. What did you want to speak to me about, Jeisa?”

Jeisa gratefully accepted a cup of tea from the housekeeper
, even though she normally preferred coffee. The saucer and cup would occupy her hands and give her something to look at while she broke the news to the older woman. “Mrs. Duhamel,” Jeisa began.

“Since when don’t you call me Marie? Mrs. Duhamel makes me sound so stuffy,” she added with
a warm smile.

“Marie,” Jeisa started again
, “it’s about my current position.”

Marie put her own cup to the side and folded her hands on her lap, her body language the polar opposite of what Jeisa knew about her. She might wait patiently for
an explanation, but that didn’t mean she would accept it. However, this time it was important that she did.

Jeisa hesitated.

I hate to disappoint her.

But I’m not. This is for the best
, and she’ll see that.

Jeisa
mentally reviewed what she’d planned to say one final time before speaking.

“Has something happened?” Marie asked, leaning forward with concern.

Yes.

No.

That’s half the problem.

“No,” Jeisa said hastily. “It’s just time for me to move on to another client.”

Marie’s eyes widened. “Do you already have one lined up?”

“No,” Jeisa admitted.

“Are you finding it difficult to live on your present pay?”

“The salary has been more than generous
,” Jeisa rushed to explain.

“So, it’s that you don’t enjoy the work?”

“No, these past few months have been amazing.” Jeisa sighed. None of this was coming out as eloquently as she’d planned. “Jeremy doesn’t need me anymore.”

“Oh,” Marie sat back and folded her hands on her lap once more. “I see.”

“You hired me to help him with his image. No one would think that he’s anything but a wealthy businessman. He can mingle at events without a problem. He is networking now with very powerful people, and his success will continue.”

“Did Jeremy suggest that you were no longer necessary?” Marie asked.

“No, we haven’t talked about any of this. I wanted to speak to you first. This was an incredible opportunity for me and I don’t want you to think for a moment that I don’t appreciate it. I do.”

“So, you’d like to leave the position, even though you don’t have another one lined up?” Marie asked
. She spoke softly, yet Jeisa still felt like she was at an inquisition.

“Yes?” Jeisa responded lamely
, wanting to kick herself.
No wavering.
I came here to tell her that I’m quitting. There is no clause in my contract about giving notice.
Jeremy doesn’t need me anymore. It’s that simple. Why am I having trouble saying that I’m done and I don’t want to work with Jeremy anymore?

Because it’s nearly impossible to look into those kind, wise eyes and lie
—even if it’s a lie that I’ve half-convinced myself is true.

“Did Jeremy make an unwelcome pass at you?” Marie asked.

Jeisa laughed a bit in a self-depreciative way.
I wish.
“Jeremy’s not like that. He’s a gentleman.”

Marie tapped
her index fingers together as she mulled Jeisa’s response. “Did he invite you to Thanksgiving with us?”

“Yes.”

“Good,” Marie said.

“But I’m not going,” Jeisa added in a rush. “Please understand that normally I would love to join you. You, Abby, Lil, the
Andrades . . . everyone has been so kind to me. I would love to say yes, but I don’t belong there.”

Marie merely met her eyes and waited.

Waited for the truth.

When Jeisa could hold it back no longer, she blurted, “Jeremy is meeting up with Alethea on this business trip. He’s going to show her the new him and I can’t imagine that she’ll turn him down. He’s brilliant, handsome, funny, loyal to a fault
. . .” Jeisa stopped when she realized how much of her own feelings she was revealing in her description.

“Sounds like a man any woman could fall in love with,” Marie added.

“No woman with any sense,” Jeisa grumbled to herself. “He has his heart set on Alethea.”

Marie asked
, “Tell me, do you think she’s a good choice for Jeremy?”

If you can’t say something nice, it’s best to say something vague
. Jeisa hedged, “It’s not my place to say.”

Marie stood and said, “Well, then let it be mine.” She crossed
to stand over Jeisa. “Alethea is a self-centered, self-absorbed, adrenaline-seeking junky who prioritizes her addiction to excitement over the safety of the friends she claims to care for.”

Well, Marie, how do you really
feel about Alethea?
Jeisa choked back a surprised laugh. “I haven’t met her,” Jeisa said.

Marie turned away and settled herself back in her chair. “I have,” she said with a tone of contempt. “She has been using Jeremy since they were in their teens. She came from money but
had been thrown out of every private school of any standing. So she attended public school and did her best to make a mockery of her time there as well. When Jeremy needed her most, she did nothing for him. She’d be the first one to tell you he’s an easy mark to manipulate. Do you really want him to end up with someone like her?”

“It’s his choice to make, not mine.”

“Are you certain about that? I’ve seen you and Jeremy together. He obviously cares for you. With a little encouragement, he might just forget about his ridiculous childhood obsession.”

Or he could break my heart.

“I came to the United States to find myself, not a man.”

“Find yourself?”
Marie gave a delicate snort. “No one ever found themselves by running away from what they want. It’s when you decide to fight for something you believe in that you discover what you’re really made of. What do
you
believe in, Jeisa?”

The directness of the question brought a
spontaneous confession out of Jeisa.
Besides Jeremy?
“I’ve always wanted to work on the next generation of toilet design and distribution.”

“Excuse me?”
Marie’s eyebrows pinched into a small line of confusion on her forehead.

“Back when I was at university, I read an article about an American billionaire who was hosting global contests for design
ing the perfect waste-disposal system. He saw it as a way to bring safe water, possibly even an energy source, to isolated areas in third world
countries. It was such a basic goal that I couldn’t stop thinking about it. How is it that in this day and age there are still people who cannot access clean water or sanitary means of disposing of waste? We talk about diseases, but we don’t like to talk about what contributes to them. I’d like to be part of a movement to change that.”

Here it comes.
In the silence that followed, Jeisa had just enough time to regret her decision to share that particular aspiration.
Just like my father, she’s not going to see past the unpopularity of the topic to the seriousness of the need.

Jeisa remembered the one and only
other time she’d made this admission aloud. Her father’s response had been, “You are not linking your name publicly with waste disposal. Not while you’re my daughter.” She still wasn’t entirely sure what that meant, but she’d been wise enough not to push the issue further with him.

When
Marie spoke, Jeisa almost dropped her cup and saucer. “Jeisa, I like you more every time we speak. I can see why you don’t want to spend the rest of your life as an image consultant. You have more important projects waiting for you.” Another woman might have said those words in a snarky tone, but Marie meant them. “Now, my only question is: What is stopping you from doing it?”

Normally I would have said
, “Father,” but she’s right. He dismissed it as a silly idea, but how would he know how important it is to me when I haven’t done anything toward that goal? I’ve been so busy thinking about the ways he disappointed me that I didn’t consider that I may have let myself down. I need to stop focusing on why I can’t do something, and start making things happen.

Like Jeremy does.

Suddenly the boxing trainer made sense to Jeisa.

Just like me
—he needs to prove something to himself.

“Wait,” Jeisa said, “I thought you were trying to talk me into going after Jeremy.”

“One should never be exclusive of the other. If you have to choose between your dreams or your man . . . always choose your dreams. The right man will love your strength and your passion. He’ll join your cause or cheer you from the sidelines. The man who leaves would have probably left you anyway—he just would have picked another reason.”

Fear shot through her as she considered Jeremy
as a serious possibility. It was one thing to moon over a man you know you’ll never have. It was an entirely different thing to decide to go after him.

No. He’s already made his choice.

And it’s not me.

Jeisa put down her cup, sighed
, and stood. “I appreciate your advice, Marie. I really do. It doesn’t change what I know I have to do, but thank you for understanding.”

Marie stood and nodded. “
Follow your heart, Jeisa. Things tend to work out for the best when you do.”

Jeisa turned to leave, then
stopped. Somewhere during their conversation she had changed her mind. No, it wouldn’t be easy, but she didn’t want to lose Marie as well as Jeremy. “I won’t be working for Corisi Enterprises anymore after today, but I’d like to come back to see you now and then, if that’s okay.”

Marie smiled. “I’d be hurt if you didn’t.”
Jeisa was about to step out of the room when Marie said, “I’ll ask around and see if I have connections to that water project you’re interested in.”

Jeisa opened her mouth to say it wasn’t necessary but was cut off by a
tsk, tsk
from the older woman.

She said, “Make an old woman happy and let me do this for you.”

Jeisa smiled. “You play dirty.”

Marie’s smile brightened
. “Sometimes.”

The housekeeper met Jeisa at the door, her enormous shoulders practically filling it. Jeisa smiled sweetly at her and was rewarded with a steady stare. The woman turned and Jeisa followed her out. Just before she stepped out of the room
, Jeisa paused and said, “Thank you, Marie. For everything.”

Marie nodded and waved
good-bye, once again looking every bit the unassuming sweet lady she pretended to be.
You can’t fool me anymore,
Jeisa thought, and chuckled to herself. Marie would be far too gracious to ever turn down a gift, and Jeisa decided to use that fact to her advantage.
They don’t call me an image consultant for nothing.

The next morning, Jeremy greeted the doorman as he entered Jeisa’s apartment building at seven thirty. “Morning, Tim. How are Carol and the kids?”