Jacqui frowned and tilted her head. Then, she took the pen from him and rewrote the numbers, leaving spaces between some of them.
“They look like…coordinates, maybe?”
Khizar saw it as soon as she was done writing. “Yes! That’s it.”
“But coordinates to what?”
Again, he almost gave away the fact that he knew more than he was supposed to. Khizar changed what he was going to say as he took a breath.
“I don’t know. It looks like your great-uncle was trying to send you on a treasure hunt.”
Jacqui brightened. “Do you think he left me something else? Maybe something that belonged to our family?”
Khizar felt guilty again that he was searching for a diamond that he didn’t need, and Jacqui was simply searching for a connection to a family member she hadn’t known. He found himself wanting to help her learn more about Bill Bauer, to introduce her to people that had known him so that she could learn more about her family.
“I don’t know, but we can find out. I have my jet; we can fly to the coordinates and see what’s there.”
Jacqui’s smile rivaled that of a real diamond.
“Maybe it’s where he lived. Or grew up.”
Khizar resolved to see at least part of her wish met, whatever else happened. If they found the diamond, or if they didn’t, he’d make sure that Jacqui got to see where Bill Bauer had lived, where his family—Jacqui’s family—was originally from.
“Let’s go find out. I’ll call the crew and get everything set up. We’ll leave within the hour.”
“Thank you, Khizar!” Jacqui gave him a sudden, fierce hug and a kiss on the cheek.
Khizar wasn’t used to being shown that kind of easy warmth. It was nice, he had to admit. And so was the idea of an adventure with Jacqui. He was truly looking forward to the idea of a treasure hunt with her. Of spending time with her.
Jacqui was beautiful, but she was also kind and fun to be with. She made him feel like a regular person, and she didn’t care about who his family was or his wealth. And Khizar couldn’t deny that he had a strong physical reaction to her. Especially after last night, he wanted to be close to her, to touch and kiss her.
Maybe this little adventure would turn out to be a good thing, after all.
Chapter 14
Jacqui
Despite having less than an hour to prepare for their trip, Jacqui took a few minutes to call her parents and let them know she was going out of town. She explained about finding the stuffed bear and how her great-uncle might have left her something. She then called Lyssa, sharing her news about the engagement and then asking Lyssa if she could manage the bakery for a few days while she went out of town.
Khizar was on the phone at the same time, making the arrangements for the flight. He watched as Jacqui threw together some clothes and shoes for a few days away, and closed up her apartment.
They stopped by Khizar’s hotel so that he could get his things as well. Jacqui roamed his hotel suite while he packed. She hadn’t been in his hotel while he was in Milwaukee; he always came over to her house.
That fact had bothered her a little, but she understood when she saw his hotel suite. The rooms were almost as luxurious as their hotel in Hawaii, but they were a bit cold. Not uncomfortable, just not homey feeling, and Jacqui could understand that Khizar would want to spend time in a friendlier setting.
This was the style she was going to have to get used to, Jacqui thought. The luxury she could handle, even if she had to talk Khizar from going over the top all the time. But maybe when they traveled, they could find different kinds of places to stay.
She realized she didn’t know how often they would travel. Jacqui assumed that Khizar traveled quite a bit—he’d told her stories about some of his trips. But those were for business, and they hadn’t talked about how much he would continue to travel after they were married. Or if she might travel with him.
Jacqui was so happy. She was in love with Khizar, and thrilled that he had proposed. Even though there was still a lot they needed to talk about, she knew they’d work through it.
In fact, this trip would be a good time to talk through some of those issues. They’d have time on the flight. Not to mention that working together to solve the puzzle her great-uncle had left her would bring them even closer together.