Beauty and the Billionaire

Part 8 - Totoka night

Chapter 28

OVER the pacific, Shine was nudging his goddess, "Josako, worried akech. Your JB ha, dinner date, helicopter. Breather, may I cross ng Pacific Ocean. Pano ang vacation, fly me to the moon na?" (I'm worried, your JB ha. We took a helicopter for a dinner date. This breather crossed the Pacific Ocean. What if it's a vacation? Is it fly me to the moon?).

Elysse laughed inaudibly, making no comments. Briefly, she attended to her fans through her social media accounts when the wi-fi was still up. The flight was smooth and uneventful. Hardly any turbulence. And there was no flight attendant. But snacks were available in the small pantry. She ate lightly and went in and out of naps. Miguel was out of it shortly after the ascent. Jessica explained that as far as she was concerned, her boss had slept for only twenty-four hours since the ribbon cutting. There was no need to say it out loud, it was the day the beauty and the billionaire met.

When Miguel finally woke up, he heard the captain speaking, "...landing at Nadi in 30 minutes, Mr. Sevilla. The weather will be mostly cloudy, at 28 degrees, with a humidity of 69%. Sunset will be at 6:07 PM, so enjoy the view before dinner at Totoka."

Forty-five minutes later, they were on a chartered flight to the island. Elysse and Shine admitted they were a little nervous as it was their first on a seaplane. They held their breaths when the aircraft bobbed about on the waves before take-off. The thirty-minute flight was still scenic, albeit darkness was turning the islands into a landscape of silhouettes and the ocean water into the shadow of the coming evening. Miguel was right when he said they would see dark green islands with white sandy borders. True enough, they were shaking hands with the resort staff when the sun retired at the horizon.

Isikeli, the resort manager, met them at the welcome arch. He served them the island rum before proceeding to the private dining arranged on the beach. The table heaped with the freshest bounties. On the table were fish, lobsters, crabs, and hand-sized shrimps caught that same day by the village fishermen and prepared by the resort's executive chef using local ingredients. There were tropical fruits, too, served on plates and glasses as desserts and juices. Shine described the dining experience as extraordinary.

They were offered drinks after dinner. Shine and Jessica celebrated and got busy with the choices. Elysse ordered tea, and Miguel was given a mug of hot coffee without even putting in an order. Jessica's satellite phone rang, interrupting their first tropical evening at the island paradise.

Jessica cordially answered the call and handed the phone to her boss, indicating it was Jurgen calling from Manila. Jessica told Elysse and Shine that it was the office reporting who was naughty and nice at SGC.

"Duty calls. Excuse me, ladies. But commerce is everywhere," he left the 'girls' at the table and walked towards the shore.

Elysse stared at Miguel. Being with him for almost a day, it was still quite difficult to associate him with the word billions. Somehow, he did not fit the part. She was reasonably positive no one would mistake him as the third richest man in the country if he walked along Ayala Boulevard. Even in a suit. She thought that that maybe was the magic of billionaires. You don't see them every day. Not even once a week. Their social group was almost always visible only in newspapers. And more frequently on business pages than any other. Seemingly, the pages most readers would skip. He and his kind were constantly on a table playing their private game of real-life monopoly.

It was different from her side of the coin. She could never get out of her van and enjoy a leisurely walk, even for five minutes. Almost everyone would recognize her. And walking alone peacefully in any district of the country was nearly impossible. Also, coming from the sidewalks, it would take her minutes to get inside a building, even if it was just ten steps away.