The Billionaire's Reunion Read online

  The Billionaire’s Reunion

  Second Chance Islands

  Jenna Brandt

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Locale and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, actual events, or actual locations is purely coincidental. All rights reserved.

  This book was previously published under the title, Rekindled, and was part of the Second Chance with You Series. Minor changes have been made to change the main hero into a billionaire as well as the location to an island.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, email [email protected].

  Text copyright © Jenna Brandt 2019.

  Photo copyright by Depositphotos.com, designed by Virginia McKevitt

  Praise for Jenna Brandt

  I am always excited when I see a new book by Jenna Brandt.

  Lori Dykes, Amazon Customer

  Jenna Brandt is, in my estimation, the most gifted author of Christian fiction in this generation!

  Paula Rose Michelson, Fellow Author

  Ms. Brandt writes from the heart and you can feel it in every page turned.

  Sandra Sewell White, Longtime Reader

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  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  A Note from the Author

  Also by Jenna Brandt

  Join My Mailing List and Reader’s Group

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Dedicated to

  All the Romantics

  Who believe in second chances

  Like I do.

  Chapter 1

  Ten years had passed since Molly left her hometown on Echo Island in utter despair. In that time, she completely overhauled her life, leaving her troubled past and adolescence behind.

  Today, she was returning with a college degree, an established journalism career, and her hot, new boyfriend, Rick, an elite Miami plastic surgeon.

  As he drove his rented, red Corvette through the streets of Crystal Cove, Molly realized little had changed with the small town where she had grown up. Main Street was still filled with the same handful of restaurants and half dozen hotels, along with the grocery store, coffee shop/bakery, and salon.

  She watched as people moved along the wide sidewalks next to the stucco buildings. A handful of people were sitting on the benches, which had flower pots on the side of each one. The residents had on shorts and short-sleeved shirts, due to the weather remaining warm year-round on the tropical, Florida Keys island.

  “So, this is the town you grew up in?” Rick asked her, the disapproval obvious in his tone. “When you said small, I had no idea you meant this. You said it was a regular tourist destination, but I can’t imagine how anyone would even find this place. It’s so far from the airport,” he pointed out with shock.

  She forced herself not to show her irritation with his condescending judgment. She wasn’t sure why it bothered her anyway, considering that when she left a decade ago, she had convinced herself she was better off leaving the provincial place behind.

  “That’s the charm of the town; people come here to escape their regular lives,” she explained, though she had ran as far away from the place as she could get only ten years prior.

  He let out a small chuckle as he turned onto the small road that led to her parents’ house. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you were upset. I know that can’t be the case considering how you’ve never wanted to come back here to visit until now.”

  “I never had a reason until my boss gave me this assignment.”

  “And your reunion has nothing to do with it? You’re not coming back here to show off your awesome life?” He reached out and patted her arm. “Otherwise, why would you have invited me along?”

  She shrugged. “I’m not saying it won’t be nice to show the people from school they didn’t break me; however, it’s just a bonus. The reunion will be the perfect cover for my real reason for being in Crystal Cove.”

  “Right, you’re investigating some lawyer from here.”

  Molly stiffened, not liking how casually Rick threw around her real purpose for returning. She didn’t need him ruining her chances of finding out the truth for her story. She had spent hours online going over Spencer Wilmington’s social media and newspaper articles after years of trying to forget about him. She knew all the public details of the past ten years of his life, including the fact that he went to the University of Southern California where he created his social app that subsequently made him billions. Then there was a two year blimp where he partied and was seen running around LA with vapid blondes and a slew of Hollywood A-listers.

  The part that didn’t make sense was that shortly after those two years where he seemed to have left college in the past, he transferred to Stanford law school. Considering he could have gotten a job anywhere, there was no mention of why he returned to Crystal Cove to take a position as a local defense attorney. It was one of the pieces she needed to figure out. Perhaps it would reveal a connection to the district attorney, Jeremy Jacks, the other person secretly accused of unethical conduct. She had looked into him too, not finding anything out of the ordinary. Until she figured it all out though, she needed Rick to stay quiet.

  “Remember, we discussed how we need to keep my work part of the trip a secret. If anyone gets wind of the real reason why I’m here, they won’t talk to me, and my whole investigation will be over before it starts.”

  “You’re so dramatic. You act as if everyone in this town cares about what happens to this guy.”

  “You say that in jest, but you have no idea how right you are,” Molly said, pushing her long, brown hair behind her ear. “Spencer Wilmington is the darling of Crystal Cove. He has been ever since we were kids, despite the fact he was an awful person.”

  “Wow, you really don’t like the guy, do you,” Rick stated. “I mean, every time he comes up, you become hostile. What’d he ever do to you?”

  “Nothing I want to talk about,” Molly stated adamantly. “It’s in the past, anyway.”

  Without her wanting it to happen, her mind drifted back to the first time she met the handsome billionaire’s son.

  Oh, goodness, there was Spencer Wilmington coming through the front doors of the town’s public library. Molly saw him every day in the school hallways and in two of her classes, but she never talked to him. He was popular, being rich as well as the varsity football quarterback—and Molly was most decidedly not part of the “in” crowd.

  He looked good, really good, with his thick, sa
ndy-blond hair and his blue and white letterman jacket hugging his body in all the right ways. He had his backpack slung over one shoulder, and his hands shoved into the front pockets of his jeans.

  Her blue eyes drifted to his perfect pair of lips, and for a moment, she let herself wonder what it would be like to kiss them. She knew she wasn’t the only one to imagine it. Every girl in school was obsessed with Spencer Wilmington, but she had made it a point to avoid his crowd. They were mean, and made it a point to pick on anyone unpopular. Even though she knew all the reasons that she shouldn’t have a crush on him, Molly found herself doing it anyway.

  “Stop it,” she chastised herself. “Spencer Wilmington is completely off-limits. Besides, you don’t want to be with someone like him. Just keep this about tutoring.”

  As Spencer approached the table, he looked annoyed, like he didn’t want to be there. Good, I don’t want to be here either, she thought to herself.

  “You’re late,” Molly stated with frustration, pushing her long bangs out of her eyes. “If this is going to work, you have to be on time.”

  He shrugged, placing his backpack on the ground next to him as he slung himself into a seat across from Molly. “What can I say, I had football practice.”

  “You’re not the only one that has a busy schedule. I have commitments too.”

  “I’m sure; math and science club I’m betting, right?” he asked with a smirk.

  “No, yearbook and church.”

  “Ah, you’re one of those,” he said with a knowing smile.

  “One of what?” Molly asked with confusion.

  “A Jesus freak.”

  “You know that’s offensive. I believe in Jesus, but that doesn’t make me a freak. You should really think before you speak,” Molly suggested to him.

  His face pinched up for a moment as if he was thinking, then a moment later, he gave her a big grin, making sure to flash his smoldering blue eyes at her. “So, how are we going to do this?”

  “Do what?”

  “The coach said this was all lined up by the school,” Spencer said, gesturing between them. “You’re supposed to take care of this English thing for me.”

  “Correction, the school counselor assigned me as your tutor. Mr. Marks wants me to help you pull up your grade since you’re in danger of failing.” Irritated that everyone jumped through hoops for him, she added sarcastically, “Otherwise, no more sports for you, and the town can’t have that. I mean, heaven forbid, the star quarterback for the Crystal Cove Lions can’t play anymore. It would be a sign the end of the world is coming.”

  “Exactly, the team has a real chance of making it to State this year, but only if I can play. The season is over if I can’t.”

  Ugh, he is so full of himself, Molly thought to herself. He literally thinks the world revolves around him.

  Trying not to let his ego get to her, she focused on making it clear he wasn’t the only one being inconvenienced by the forced arrangement. “So to keep you eligible to play, I have to give up three hours of my life every week.”

  He narrowed his eyes as he crossed his arms. “Hey, there’s no reason to be so snotty. You think I like this? I can think of like five other things I would rather be doing.”

  “Only five? And I’m sure all of them center on the cheerleading squad,” Molly mocked with a roll of her eyes. “I can think of a dozen myself, and all of them are much more practical than yours.”

  “Why do I feel like you’re judging me, and you don’t even know me,” Spencer stated defensively. “Didn’t you just say you’re a Christian or something?”

  Molly stiffened under his rebuke. He was right, she wasn’t acting the way her parents or God would want her to.

  She pressed her lips together as she averted her eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I think we’ve gotten off to a wrong start, so let’s just focus on working at raising your English grade. What’s your latest assignment?”

  Spencer bent over and opened his backpack. He pulled out a bent, blue folder and slid it across to her. “Everything’s in there.”

  Molly opened the folder and glanced through it. “You have three essays you’ve never turned in; plus, a test you could have corrected to get some extra points.”

  “What can I say, I’m busy with football,” he said as he rolled his shoulders, “but that’s why I have you now. How about I meet up with you in a couple of days and you can give me the essays so I can turn them in.”

  She shook her head. “No way; I’ll help you write them, but I’m not doing your work for you.”

  “Seriously? You can’t just do it?” Spencer asked with incredulousness as he ran his fingers through his hair.

  “Nope, this is going to be a partnership. We’re both going to put in 50/50.”

  He seemed to contemplate what she was demanding from him. After several moments, he unfolded his arms and said, “Fine, we’ll do it your way.”

  As Molly looked across the table at Spencer, she wondered if she had made the right decision. Could she sit across from him three times a week and not be taken in by his good looks and charm? She didn’t want to fall for the football star like all the other girls in her school, especially since she knew it would remain one-sided.

  Pushing the troubling thoughts out of her mind, Molly picked up Spencer’s first essay assignment and started to explain what he needed to do.

  “We’re here,” Rick said, drawing her attention back to the present.

  Molly’s jitters were strong as they pulled into the driveway of her parents’ two-story brick home. Though her parents had come to Miami to visit at least two times a year, she hadn’t set foot in her childhood home in a decade. Would everything be the same? Did they change her room, or was it exactly how she left it?

  Being the baby of the family, her parents had doted on her. By the time she entered high school, her two older brothers had already started their own lives. One had joined the military and was stationed overseas—he still was—and the other had moved to the mainland for a job.

  Her parents had spent their mid-fifties attending her debate competitions, academic decathlons, and church choir performances. By the time her senior year rolled around, she had become the center of their lives. She was certain it was the reason it had broken their hearts to send her away.

  Even though they claimed to have done it for her own protection, she often wondered if they were embarrassed by the unflattering rumors that had circulated around town when everything went bad for Molly. She wondered if sending her to live with her aunt and uncle in Miami, was more to do damage control for the family’s reputation, rather than to shield her from getting hurt further.

  Rick climbed out of the Corvette as Molly did the same. He met her at the steps as he asked, “You ready to brave coming back home?”

  She nodded, steadying herself as they walked up the steps. At the front stoop, Molly rang the bell. A few moments later, the door opened to reveal her mother, Beverly.

  “Hello, there, Molly,” her mother said as she reached out and gathered her daughter into her arms. “Welcome home.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” she said against her mother’s shoulder.

  “We’ve missed you so much,” her mother stated, continuing to hold onto her.

  “Let the poor girl go, Beverly,” Molly’s father, Ken, stated from behind them.

  Beverly did as ordered, quickly dropping her arms from around Molly. “Sorry I held on so long. It’s just been forever since we’ve seen you.”

  “It’s only been six months, Mom,” Molly pointed out.

  “Six months feels like forever when it’s your child,” Beverly corrected. “You’ll understand soon enough when you settle down and have kids.”

  Beverly eyed the man next to Molly skeptically. “Aren’t you going to introduce us to your new boyfriend?”

  “Of course,” She gestured to her boyfriend, “Mom, Dad, this is Dr. Rick Colson. Rick, these are my parents, Ken and Beverly.”

>   Everyone greeted each other before moving into the nearby living room. Once inside, they took seats on the couch and chairs in the center of the space.

  “Have you decided how long you are staying?” her mother asked with a hopeful tone.

  “Well, at least through the weekend. The reunion is Saturday night,” Molly explained.

  “I have to get back for work on Monday,” Rick stated. “I have two breast augmentations and a rhinoplasty scheduled.”

  “But that doesn’t mean you have to leave, does it Molly?” her mother asked. “Can’t you stay on even if Rick has to get back to Miami? Your dad can drive you to the airport later.”

  “Quit hounding her, Beverly, or you’ll just end up driving her off quicker.”

  Her mother nodded her head, her eyes averted to mask her disappointed expression. “You’re right. I should just be happy for the time I have with her.”

  “Can we help you with your luggage,” her father offered. “We have you set up in separate rooms upstairs.”

  “Molly, you get your old room, and Rick, you can use the guest room.”

  Rick raised his eyebrows in surprise. “We can’t share a room?”

  “Not under my roof,” Ken stated adamantly. “We’re Christians. Only married couples get to share rooms around here.”

  “Oh Dad, you don’t have to be so traditional. It’s no big deal. You can’t expect—”

  Rick raised his hand towards her to stop her. “It’s okay, Molly. This is your father’s house. We should respect his rules.”