Page 34 of Sapphire's Gem
“No, but Jameson would want a cut of our profits, and I refuse to hand that over. We work hard for what we earn, and I’m not ready to share it. We’ve got plans, and I won’t let them be sidelined.”
“What plans?” I asked, wondering if she’d share.
Sapphire sighed and held my eyes before looking out of the window.
“My sisters will find men, or they’ll have kids without them. Which means they’ll need houses. We own some land, and I want them to build houses there to create a community. We’ve got enough land that our kids and grandkids can build homes there too.” Sapphire clamped her lips together as if she’d said too much.
But I grasped what she meant. “That’s why you keep buying businesses and expanding. You’re building a legacy, a future.”
Sapphire’s eyes widened. “Yes. How did you guess?”
“Because I’m starting to know you. That’s an admirable plan, and I hope you see your dreams come true.”
“Through hard work, blood and sweat, we’ll get there. We’ll also protect it from anyone who means us harm.” Sapphire bit her lip and sent me a glance from under her lashes.
“I’m not a cop right now,” I said with a chuckle.
“Can you turn it off just like that?”
“Yes and no. Being a protector is ingrained in me, same as Cassidy. It was hammered into us at a young age. I fought for my country for ten years and served four tours abroad, Sapphire. Sadly, Cassidy, Warrick, and I saw and did things that haunt us. Cassidy and I could have left after eight years, but we signed up for another two because of Warrick. We all got out together.”
“How old were you when you joined?”
I was elated. Sapphire was actually showing an interest in me. “Both Cassidy and I were eighteen. We left at twenty-eight, and Warrick was twenty-six.”
“You didn’t leave him,” Sapphire mused as she sucked on her straw. My cock went hard at the sight. I could imagine those plump lips around me, sucking hard.
“No. Luckily, we ended up at the same company. Our captain may have pulled some strings to make that happen.”
“Why would he do that?”
“Because he knew us from here. He was older but looked out for the three of us.”
“Sounds like a good man.”
A chuckle arose from me. “Oh, he is, although you don’t like him.”
Sapphire stared at me as her brain figured it out. She laughed and shook her head. “Captain Chase Hatton was your captain there!”
“Yup. He’s six years older than us. He left two years before we did. Came here and joined the force. We followed him and, luckily, he was able to swing Cassidy and me into getting his precinct.”
“Damn, you four are pretty tight-knit.”
“We’re family.”
“What about your parents? Do you see them?”
That was an awkward question. Sapphire seemed to sense it.
“Sorry, I forgot you said your parents didn’t approve of your joining the army.”
“My parents are… my dad manages his own business; he’s a self-made millionaire. He runs the Imagine stores.
Sapphire gaped. “The nationwide gift stores?”
“Yeah, and he also owns the Sleepy Feet stores, the shoe stores. He hasn’t taken them public and still runs them with an iron fist. I’m an only child, so in his eyes I’d go to college, then university, study business, and take over from him. That was something I wasn’t ever going to do. So, I signed up.”
“Damn, your father is a billionaire.”
