Sky was blowing his mind. His impression of her as a sweet, wouldn’t-hurt-a-fly bakery owner crumpled before his eyes. She was pure fire, all woman. No hint of the shy, gullible girl he’d encountered when he first stepped into Sweet Treats.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. The thought wafted through the back of his brain even as he exchanged Sky’s breath with his own. A part of him struggled to rein back his passion before he crushed her.
But it did no good.
He’d built his defenses, done his best to resist her, but Sky’s feelings for him and his for her exploded so hot and so fiery that nothing he could ever put in place would contain it.
And he didn’t plan on stopping.
Not when he had Sky right where he wanted to after weeks of longing for her from afar.
Joon didn’t care about his record, his pitiful bank account or tomorrow. His only concern was whether they should stay in the living room or move things to the bedroom.
He was tracing kisses down Sky’s neck and thinking of a way to get her consent to take things to the next level when Sky went limp in his arms. Joon kept kissing her a moment longer before he realized she wasn’t responding to him.
He scrambled off her body and stared at her closed eyes. “Sky?”
Nothing.
Panic set in then. His nerves skittered in fear. Joon Gi checked Sky over to make sure she was breathing. Had she passed out because of their kiss? Did she have a heart problem he didn’t know about?
They’d been going at it hard. Maybe she’d busted a vein or something.
Sky snorted and rolled over, sending the thoughts about her health skittering and proving that she was still alive.
He sighed in relief when he heard her pulse and felt her breathing. She’d passed out because of her drinking. He should have known there would be some type of adverse effect.
Sky had been acting weird since the karaoke performance.
As cute as that had been.
Joon sat on his haunches and stared at her. The dress had fallen lower thanks to his insistent caress and her chest was all but spilling out of it. He averted his gaze to her face before his excitement got the better of him. Warm brown skin. Thick eyelashes. Plump mouth glistening red.
Stunning.
Still, he struggled with accepting her affection. His future wasn’t in Belize. Sky knew that. Where did she expect them to go from here?
What do I do with you, Sky?
His head began to ache. Joon Gi shook the pestering thoughts and moved to get Sky off the floor. She’d wake up sore and aching if she spent all night there. Carefully, he hefted her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom.
She nestled against him on the way there as if she knew exactly what she was doing. Joon Gi steeled himself and tried to get her into bed, but Sky clung to him, refusing to let go.
“Woman,” he growled, “do you have any idea what you’re doing to me?”
She blew out a breath in response.
Joon Gi sighed and gently tore her hands from around his neck. With the rest of his fledgling self-restraint, he dumped her on the bed. If he were in his right mind, he would have settled Sky down smoothly and tucked her in.
Given he wanted to tear her clothes off and she was currently unconscious, Joon decided not to test his limits and ran, locking her bedroom door behind him.
He took a shower and did some exercises in his room.
Nothing helped.
He was too keyed up. How could Sky fall asleep at a time like this?
Desperate to clear his head, but too afraid to leave Sky home alone in case she needed his help, Joon grabbed his cell phone and called Tyler.
His friend picked up groggily. “Hello?”
“How are things going with the Health Department? Have you called the Minister of Health yet?”
“Joon?”
“Yeah.”
He heard a groan and bed sheets shuffling on Tyler’s end. “Do you know what time it is?”
“No.”
“Way too late to ask for progress reports.”
“Babe, what’s all that noise?”
A woman’s voice.
Joon Gi straightened. “Are you with someone right now?”
“Who me? No. I’m completely alone. Totally alone.” A door opened and closed. Tyler returned on the line. “What were you saying again?”
Joon whirled around and faced the wall. “No, I heard a woman.”
“Me? A woman?” Tyler snorted. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m always falling asleep in front of the TV. You must have heard the commercial or something.”
Joon nodded. Maybe he had misheard. Tyler would tell him if he was seeing someone.
“So back to your question,” Tyler said quickly. “I contacted the Minister since you asked me to look into this last week, but I haven’t heard anything back from him. Maybe being friends with his son doesn’t hold much weight.”
“Could you try again?”
“I’m doing all I can, Joon.”
He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I know it’s just… I can’t stay here much longer and before I leave, I need to make sure that Sky is okay.”
“Whoa, what’s the rush? I thought you were happy living with your boss.”
“Happy? No, I’m embarrassed. This isn’t the life I dreamed of living when I was younger. Revenge is the only thing keeping me going.”
“That’s… depressing.”
“I’m serious.” Joon paced. “I was focused on getting back at Sun Gi and Hanna. Then I met Sky and—I don’t know. My priorities changed.”
“You love her,” Tyler said simply.
“I care about her.”
“What’s the difference?”
“I’m not playing word games with you this late at night, Tyler.”
“Fine. Fine.” Tyler chuckled. “I’m still not seeing the problem here. Revenge isn’t good for your health anyway. Why don’t you just let it all go and be happy with Sky?”
“I can’t.”
“Why? Because of your pride? Because she’s your boss and you work for her?”
“Maybe.”
“I know you, Joon. You caught a bad break, but you’re too good to stay down for long. You can build another business from the ground up if you wanted to.”
“This isn’t about money.”
“Then what’s the issue?”
“We’re too different.”
“You mean because she’s black and you’re Asian?”
He remained silent.
“Come on, Joon. It’s the twenty-first century. Nobody cares about interracial couples anymore. Besides, your mom’s already written you off so you don’t have any family obligations keeping you from doing what you want.”
“Is that supposed to be encouraging?”
“Not really.”
He leaned against the dresser. “You don’t get it Tyler. It’s not just about our race or my situation. We’re fundamentally different people. Sky’s the type that would give the clothes off her back if she thought someone was in need. She’s so trusting and pure.”
“Ah, and you’re a heartless monster who’s only interested in the bottom line. Is that what you’re saying?”
He pulled the phone away. “I shouldn’t have called.”
“No!” Tyler laughed. “I’m just messing with you. Maybe you’re right. Maybe you’re not good enough for Sky, but you know what? She likes you anyway. Who knows? You both can learn from each other.”
“I’m losing my mind over here. Just get Sky out of this mess with Director Grayson.”
“Yes, sir.”
Joon hung up and flung himself into bed. With nothing but the darkness and the silence as company, he turned on his side and tried not to think about the woman sleeping in the next room.
Joon Gi wasn’t sure when he’d started falling for his boss. If he was honest, he knew his intentions had changed early on.
The reason he’d stayed on Sweet Treats, it wasn’t just for revenge. Sky was kind, but she was also strong. She would have found a way to defeat Hanna on her own.
No, Joon should have abandoned Sweet Treats and found a way to take Sun Gi down instead of barking up a tree that already had a guardian. Instead, he’d lingered around Sky, finding more and more reasons to be close to her.
He’d dug this hole himself and then complained when he fell into it.
Idiot.
Somehow, Joon fell asleep.
His alarm blared what felt like minutes later.
He forced himself up and headed to the bathroom. When he passed the mirror, he was stunned by his reflection. Dark circles hung beneath his eyes and his skin was unusually pale.
He wet his fingers and fixed his hair but save wearing makeup, he couldn’t hide the signs of his fitful sleep.
When he opened the bathroom door, Sky was standing right outside. Shocked, he stood there, staring at her. She clutched an arm around her stomach and streaked past him. Joon Gi felt her hand on his back.
She shoved.
He stumbled out just as the door slammed.
Sounds of vomiting wafted through the door. Concerned, he knocked. “Sky? You okay?”
More hurling.
Joon Gi shook his head and went to the kitchen to prepare some ginger tea to help settle her stomach. A few minutes later, Sky shuffled out of the corridor and took a seat around the small dining table.
She’d changed out of the red dress from last night and now wore an oversized T-shirt and shorts. Her hair was shoved into a sloppy bun that leaned to the right. Her skin was darker than his so the half-moon shadows beneath her eyes were slightly hidden, but he could still sense her exhaustion.
“Remind me to never drink during a work week,” Sky said on a rolling groan.
Joon set the tea in front of her. “Try this.”
“What is it?” She bent over and sniffed, making a face. “Smells like ginger.”
“It’ll help settle your stomach.”
Sky obediently sipped the tea, continuing to make faces as if it was poison. Joon Gi leaned against the counter and waited until she had finished to ask, “How’d you sleep?”
“Like a baby. Until I woke up this morning needing to empty everything in my stomach.” Her brown eyes found his. “Did you help me into bed yesterday?”
He straightened, his eyebrows slanting over his eyes. “Yeah.”
She blew out a breath. “Good.”
“Don’t you remember?”
“The last thing I remember was asking you to do karaoke with me at Toucan Isle. After that, it’s all kind of blurry.” Sky leaned her elbows on the table. “I didn’t… do anything too embarrassing yesterday, did I?”
His mouth opened and closed.
No sound escaped.
Sky chuckled self-consciously. “I’m not much of a singer. Did I embarrass you?”
“No, you sang great. The crowd loved it.”
“They did?” She scrunched her nose. “What did they like?”
“Um… your dancing.” He eyed her closely, looking for any signs that she was pulling his leg.
There were none.
She blinked innocently, as stunned by his revelation of their night as he was by her amnesia.
“Dancing. I danced?” When he nodded, Sky ducked. “I’m usually shy in front of crowds. That’s weird. Did I do anything else I should know about?”
His mind tripped back to their fervent kiss. His hands bunching in her short skirt. Her fingers tugging at his hair. Their tongues…
“Joon.” Sky cocked her head. “You’re blushing.”
He swooped away from her and squeezed his eyes shut. Maybe Sky’s memory loss was a divine gift. It would’ve been better if it never happened in the first place, but this would do.
Sucking in a deep breath, he faced her. “No, there’s nothing else you should know.”
“Good.” Sky popped out of her seat and smiled. “Then let’s get to work.”