Her Singapore Fling by Kelly Hunter Page B

and their marriage had been an arranged one that had gradually developed into a love match.
    According to Madeline, when it came to influencing Singaporean society, Bruce and Elena Yi wielded only slightly less power than God.
    So much for dining with mortals.
    â€˜Do I want to know the going rate for a seat at tonight’s table?’ Jake asked Luke.
    â€˜You really don’t,’ said Luke. ‘Think of it as part of the Yi family’s contribution to getting Zhi Fu off Ji’s back and enjoy that ten-thousand-dollar steak.’
    â€˜You’re not serious.’
    â€˜Aren’t I?’
    Jake swore, and started unbuttoning his white dress shirt. This one had button cuffs. For a ten-thousand-dollar steak he was going to have to do better than that. ‘Where’s Po?’
    â€˜Here,’ said the boy from the doorway.
    â€˜Can you go up and get me the white shirt at the very end of my clothes cupboard?’ he asked. ‘On the shelf above it you’ll find a shoebox full of old watches and stuff. You’re looking for a pair of jade cufflinks set in platinum.’ They’d been a present from Jianne on their wedding day. A Something New. She’d been trying to embrace western customs at the time. Heaven only knew how much they’d cost.
    â€˜Anything else?’ said Po. ‘From the box?’
    â€˜Like what?’
    â€˜A watch or something?’
    â€˜No watch.’ He didn’t have one good enough.
    â€˜Here, borrow mine,’ said Luke. ‘Best fake Cartier in the business, according to my good friend Po’s very good friend Jimmy the Rat. The diamond chips are real zirconium.’
    Jake took the watch and studied it a while. ‘Nice,’ he said mildly. ‘How much?’
    â€˜Fifty Sing.’
    â€˜Po your go-between?’
    Luke nodded.
    â€˜Deal done in Chinese, was it?’
    â€˜Most of it.’ Luke shot Po a hard glance. ‘Something I should know?’
    Po shook his head.
    Jake shook his. He’d sort it out later. Give Po the benefit of the doubt for now. Maybe the boy would come up with a reasonable explanation. Even a halfway reasonable one would do. ‘You got a good deal.’ Considering the very real possibility that the watch was the genuine article. The way this evening was shaping, Jake would probably come across the real owner of the watch tonight. That’d work well.
    â€˜Anything else?’ said Po, looking a picture of innocence. ‘From the box?’
    â€˜Just the cufflinks.’
    â€˜Because I could bring the whole box down,’ said the boy. ‘In case you saw something else you wanted from it.’
    â€˜Just the cufflinks. And the shirt.’
    Po departed, swift as ever. The kid had speed and stealth enough to make even the most accomplished martial artist weep. When the power came—and it would—the boy would be a truly formidable opponent.
    â€˜What was that all about?’ asked Luke.
    â€˜The watch or the box?’
    â€˜Not the watch,’ said Luke. ‘I’m not sure I want to know what’s wrong with the watch.’
    â€˜Good call.’
    â€˜So what’s with the box?’ asked Luke.
    â€˜I really don’t know.’
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    â€™Jake needs a different shirt and some cufflinks,’ said Po as Jianne opened the door and ushered him into the room. ‘He’s not wearing a ring.’
    â€˜Thanks, Po.’ Jianne tried not to let heaviness settle over her like a shroud. ‘That’s all I needed to know.’
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    Luke and Po had decided they would be Jake’s chauffeurs for the evening and were waiting—along with Jake—in the training hall when finally Jianne deigned to descend the stairs.
    â€˜Oh, man,’ muttered Luke reverently. ‘You are so screwed.’
    Jake took one look at his wife and felt every last bit of blood to his brain head south. ‘Go and get the car,’ he