Page 34 of Forking the Billionaire

It also happened to be directly across from Esme.

She looked entirely too put together for this hour after the night we’d had. She’d styled her ginger hair in silky waves. She didn’t slouch or sag her shoulders. No darkness circled her eyes. If anything, her skin glowed.

“You look tired,” Gabriel said as soon as I sat down. Concern lined his forehead. “Did you find your accommodations lacking?”

“Oh, no. The room’s good,” I said. “I think it was just the jet lag that messed with my sleep.”

Jules sank deeper into her seat, sipped on her mug, and picked up conversation with Layana’s sisters and friends at that end of the table.

“Weird about the jet lag,” Esme said. “It’s only an hour time difference.”

It was too early to deal with Esme’s fangs.

I sighed. “Travel fatigue.”

A devious glimmer filled her eyes. “And aren’t those the same clothes you were wearing yesterday? Almost like you didn’t sleep at all. What were you doing last night?”

I gave her a swift but not-too-hard kick to the shin.

“Ow.” Gabriel frowned at me. “Did you just kick me?”

Whoops.“Sorry. Just stretching my legs.”

Delight radiated off Esme like she was a fiery meteor.

Jules glanced at Esme, looked her up and down, then said to Gabriel, “He couldn’t sleep. Went off wandering in the night.”

Her explanation caught me by surprise. I hadn’t realized she was listening to our conversation. I turned my attention to my plate and took a bite of quiche. Onion, thyme, and a spice blend I didn’t recognize coated my tongue. It would have been delicious if I wasn’t caught in Esme’s crosshairs. I would have enjoyed the entire island experience more if she wasn’t trying to destroy me.

What would Gabriel think if he knew I’d spent the night with Esme? Nothing good. Of course, we didn’t do anything wrong, but as overprotective as Gabriel was of his baby sister….

“It was hard for me to sleep, too.” Layana gestured with her thumb toward Gabriel. “I made this guy go out and fetch me some ice cream.”

Gabriel beamed at her with pure adoration.

“Did the ice cream help?” I asked, grateful not to be the focus of conversation.

“Nope, but it was delicious,” Layana said.

“I’d gladly go again, anywhere you’d like,” Gabriel said.

The two of them flashed lovey eyes back and forth, the perfect portrait of a happy couple. Oscar reached beside him and took Morgan’s hand. She leaned her head on his shoulder. I would have felt like I was in a Norman Rockwell painting if not for the woman sitting across the table, still staring straight at me.

Esme’s lips curled like the Grinch’s. With faux nonchalance, she said, “So when you got back from your adventure, Jasper, you came straight here?”

Did she want Gabriel to find out the two of us were together? Again, images of Esme pink-cheeked and eyelashes fluttering filled my head. I should delete the photo.

She wouldn’t purposefully upset Gabriel during his wedding festivities, would she? No. She had never purposefully antagonized Gabriel, even though he’d often thought that was her motivation. It was more a byproduct of Esme being Esme and Gabriel being Gabriel.

Did that mean Esme was trying to get me in trouble with Jules? If so, she vastly overestimated how much Jules cared about my comings and goings.

“I slept a bit before breakfast,” I said. It wasn’t a complete lie. I’d tried to sleep, but instead I’d been stuck in my own head, overanalyzing the strangely enjoyable adventure I’d had with Esme. Eventually I’d dozed off, at least for a few minutes. “Since you’re so interested in my clothing, though, I do have a good explanation for it. My luggage is missing.”

“Oh no,” Layana said. “Did you have it when we checked in?”

“Yes,” I said.

“Did you ask yourgirlfriend?Maybe she burned it,” Esme said.

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