Enchanted (The Accidental Billionaires #4)(5)

Owen kissed the top of my head in a brotherly way. “If anybody can get him to relax, it’s you,” he said gruffly. “Although I doubt you’ll get him to do beach yoga or meditation.”

“We’ll see,” I said in an upbeat voice, but I honestly wasn’t sure I could do that, either.

Years ago, I’d idolized Noah Sinclair. He’d always seemed so grown up and wise to me. Maybe because he’d never lacked reassuring words for me as a kid and a teenager.

He’d told me I could do anything.

He’d told me he had faith in me.

He’d told me I was smart and talented.

Noah had been there to tell me everything my parents never had.

And I’d adored the eldest Sinclair brother for that.

Maybe I hadn’t seen the man in close to a decade, but I’d surmised, from everything Owen had told me, that Noah hadn’t changed all that much.

Back then, Noah had always worked hard to raise his siblings, but he’d also been there whenever they needed him emotionally, too. Now that I was an adult, I had to wonder who had been there for him.

“He’s such a good man,” I said with a sigh as I laid my head on Owen’s shoulder. “He was always so nice to me, even though I was just your friend who hung around your place a lot. I’ll find a way to make him get some rest and take some time off work. I just have to find out what he likes to do and what makes him tick.”

I didn’t really have a plan as to how I was going to get Noah away from his work. I was counting on being able to figure him out as the vacation went along.

“I don’t think he knows what he likes,” Owen contemplated. “His whole damn life has been dedicated to taking care of us.”

I smiled. “I’ll figure it out. Am I taking the same flight as him?”

I felt Owen nod. “Yeah. Eli offered up his jet for the trip.”

I nodded. I’d momentarily forgotten that all of the Sinclairs were now among the elite group of people who had more money than they knew what to do with. After watching Owen struggle for so long, it was hard to reconcile that broke student with the wealthy man he was now.

Private jets?

Of course—why wouldn’t they each have one?

Owen didn’t, but he hadn’t really had a lot of time to consider his newfound wealth. He’d been too busy finishing his residency.

“He doesn’t mind that I’m tagging along?” I asked, wondering how Noah really felt about some friend of his kid brother’s butting into his long-needed vacay.

Owen had told me very little about the Cancún trip. Only that the two-week luxury resort vacation had included a guest, and that Noah had chosen to go alone . . . until I’d agreed to go, too.

Was Noah really going to want me there?

Since I knew the city, Owen had begged me to go along with Noah and keep his mind off work.

I hadn’t been able to refuse. Owen had never asked me for a favor, and I wanted to do something for him. I’d always liked Noah when I was younger, so it had sounded like a fun adventure.

Now, as I had a chance to really think about what I was doing, I had to wonder how Noah had dealt with the news that he was going to have company.

The silence stretched on, which was concerning. Owen was rarely quiet.

I disentangled myself from him just in time to see him swallow. Hard. “He doesn’t exactly know you’re going,” he said sheepishly. “Yet.”





CHAPTER 2

ANDIE



I was still annoyed with Owen the following day as I boarded Eli Stone’s private jet. I’d discovered that Jade’s husband had happily offered up his aircraft since Seth was using his own for his honeymoon with Riley in Costa Rica. The newlyweds would be returning a day or two before Noah got back from Cancún.

Once Owen had shared that he and his siblings hadn’t told Noah that he was going to have a companion on his vacation, I’d insisted that he tell his eldest brother that I was going to be tagging along.

After all, Noah should have the choice of who he wanted to hang out with on his trip. I hadn’t signed up to be forced on the poor guy.

Owen had reluctantly agreed to deliver the news, but I hadn’t seen much of him after that. He’d gone to look at homes for sale and had stayed with Aiden last night while he was on his house hunt.

He’d claimed he wanted to get to know his niece, Maya, since he hadn’t had the chance to spend much time with her.

I had no doubt that was partly the reason for Owen’s absence, but I was pretty sure he also just wanted to avoid me.

He’d had no plans to stay anywhere other than my house before I’d discovered he wasn’t being totally honest with me about the trip with Noah.

I didn’t get angry all that often. Through meditation, yoga, and various other practices, I’d learned to control those negative emotions to a certain degree. But Owen knew me, and he’d known I was in a rare, incredibly pissed-off state of mind. I supposed he was giving me a cooling-off period before we talked again.

“Coward,” I said under my breath as I climbed the stairs that led to the entrance of the aircraft.

I’d had no luck getting in touch with Owen this morning to find out how Noah was taking the news that he was going to have a companion in Cancún.