Page 2 of Taboo

“Well, none that you would want.”

Julienne sighed and closed her eyes, setting her head against the back of the chair. She didn’t regret breaking off her engagement. If anything, Gregor’s pettiness about it solidified her belief that he was not the one for her. Was it too much to ask that he just go away?

“What do you want to do?” Nicola asked her.

Julienne opened her eyes to find Nicola watching her closely. The former ice-skating champion was one of those amazing women who caused heads to turn. Tall, slim, with ice blue eyes and dark hair, she was stunning. As in, she could be a supermodel if she wanted, or had the temperament. She did not.

Whenever Julienne was around her, though, she felt frumpy. Well, frumpier. She was short, curvier, with long blonde hair, and eyes that had always seemed too huge for her face when she was a child. She could make herself look decent these days, but it took a lot of work. Nicola, on the other hand, looked like a goddess first thing in the morning.

“I don’t know. Nothing seems to work.”

Nicola sighed and leaned back on the sofa, resting her hand on her baby bump. It was still hard to believe that she was going to be an aunty soon.

“I have a plan but I’m not sure if you’ll like it. Or that idiot brother of yours.”

“Which idiot brother?”

“Both of them.”

They shared a smile.

“I think you should go to Hawaii and oversee the redo of the resort.”

For a long moment, Julienne said nothing. She’d been to Hawaii for Nic and Jensen’s wedding, but she had flown in for seventy-two hours and then had to be back in England. And she wasn’t someone who usually did onsite work. She tended to work remotely, handling the interior design from her home office. This suggestion intrigued her.

“I thought they didn’t need one of us.”

“Your mother wants a Wulf there. You know how she is. I’d go, but Jensen doesn’t want me to go very far right now,” Nic said, smoothing her hand over her baby bump.

Julienne smiled, happy and envious of Jensen and Nic’s life now. She was so ecstatic that Nic was now a sister by marriage and not just a friend, but Julienne wondered if she would ever get that. A husband who adored her and a baby. She really did want babies, but with this media storm by her ex, it was doubtful. What man would want a woman whose name had been dragged through the press?

“Is this just a ploy to get me out of England and make the problem go away?”

Nic shook her head. “No. In fact, I want you here. I mean, do you think this lot is going to be fun? Hawaii is wonderful, and you’ve never spent enough time there to get a feel for the state.”

They owned a home on Oahu, which had been more for Jensen, who had a favorite club he frequented. And then it hit her.

“Do you think Gregor did this because of Jensen? If he knows he’s a Dom, he might have just assumed I’m one myself.”

Nicola shrugged. “It could be, but more than likely, he tried to pick something that he thought would shame you.”

“Wanker.”

“Indeed. So, Hawaii?”

“Do they honestly need me to be there? I could always go somewhere else.” It was true. They had properties all over the world.

“No, they don’t need you there. But I think it would be good.”

She studied Nic. “What are you up to?”

Nicola sighed. “This pregnancy is making me stupid if I can’t fool you Wulfs anymore.”

“So, give it up.”

“Okay. But I want you to hear me out.”

She nodded, waiting. Nicola’s brain was an amazing thing. She could see connections, things that the rest of them didn’t. Jensen getting clean had helped the company, but since she had been by his side, the company was a million times better.

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