Page 2 of Cloud Nine Love

When I walked into the executive lounge, I wasn’t sure what I’d expected to see, but I was surprised to see that it was crowded. It made sense, considering the entire airport was overflowing with people.

After a quick scan of my seating options, I saw that I only had one. There was a single high-back stool open at the far end of the bar. Pulling the straps of my carry-on duffle up on my shoulder, I weaved my way through the sea of passengers complaining about the delays and cancellations.

When I reached the empty seat, I did a double take at the woman to the right of the vacant stool. She was a dead-ringer for Ana de Armas, the actress I always used as my hall pass whenever Misty forced me to name someone. But I hated that game. I didn’t see what was so fun about ‘pretending’ that cheating was okay. It wasn’t. Ever. It wouldn’t matter to me if Aphrodite, reincarnated, tried to seduce me; it would never happen. I was raised better than that and had seen the consequences of cheating firsthand. After my dad died, my mom dated a string of losers who all cheated on her.

As I stood behind the vacant stool, I was mesmerized by the similarities in this woman’s features. She had the same sweetheart-shaped face, large and luminous green eyes, and full red lips framed by silky brunette hair. I tried to look away but couldn’t.

The Ana lookalike must have noticed that I was staring at her, because she looked up at me. When her eyes met mine, everything in my world shrank to a pinpoint view, all I could see was her. The entire bar disappeared, and all the sound around me muted.

All I could see and hear—all that existed—was the green-eyed, brunette beauty. My reaction took me by surprise, and I forced myself to snap out of the spell I’d so easily fallen under.

After clearing my throat, I asked, “Is this seat taken?”

As soon as the question left my mouth, I realized it sounded like a pickup line, but it wasn’t. I actually did want to sit down.

“No,” she replied as she moved a purse I hadn’t noticed because it was the same deep red color as the stool. She placed the bag on top of a suitcase that had a very distinct pink and purple scale design. This woman had an air of class, grace, intelligence, and just overall having her shit together. Which made her luggage choice totally out of place and her even more intriguing somehow.

I shook off that thought as I pulled out the barstool, set my duffle bag on the floor next to her suitcase, and lowered onto the seat.

When I did, the bartender approached me. “What can I get you?”

After what had just occurred, I was rethinking whether getting a drink would be a good idea. I was feeling a buzz from a simple interaction. I didn’t need alcohol to make me feel any fuzzier.

I decided on a safer option. “Just coke.”

The bartender leaned forward, tilting his head so his ear was closer to me as he questioned, “Jack and Coke?”

“Just Coke.”

He nodded and quickly filled my order, then set it in front of me. I handed him a ten-dollar bill and told him to keep the change. When he moved away, I took a drink, then set it back down and pulled out my phone in a calculated effort to ignore the gorgeous woman beside me.

Even though I wasn’t sure what had just happened, I knew that I had no business indulging in it. I was engaged. Distraction and distance—that’s what I needed to concentrate on.

I looked down at my phone and saw I had a Google Alert with a headline about my sister’s upcoming wedding.

Broadway Star Ruby Sky Set to Tie the Knot in Hometown

That headline was a lot better than most had been this past year, after a video of her debut performance in Wicked had gone viral. After being an understudy for a year and a half, she finally got the call to the big show. She’d been nursing an injury at the time and was offered what she thought was an all-natural muscle relaxer, but it turned out to be molly. That, combined with the shot of vodka she’d taken for her nerves, resulted in her ending up in the E.R. after being dragged off the stage in the first act after she started stripping.

Ruby worked so hard her entire life to get to Broadway, and in one night, all her dreams came crashing down. The scandal cost her dearly. Within months, she was jobless and homeless. I’d been so worried about her that I’d almost skipped the course in Montana, but she’d insisted I go. I suppose it all worked out in the end. If none of that had ever happened, she would never have had to go back to our hometown, and she wouldn’t be walking down the aisle to the love of her life in a week.

The fact that I didn’t have to worry about her anymore outweighed any concerns I might have had about her hooking up with my best friend. Ruby lived with Kane, who was a six-foot-four cop who everyone in town—hell, the county—knew not to fuck with. In New York, she was alone, without any family, unprotected. That had cost me more night’s sleep than I cared to admit.

As much as I tried to ignore the woman next to me, I couldn’t help feeling her. Despite my efforts, I was acutely aware of her presence. It might sound insane, but I felt my breath sync with hers.

This was playing with fire, and I had no intention of getting burned.

I’d just made the decision to leave when she reached for the glass in front of her. I clocked the moment her knuckles tapped against my Coke and saw it begin to tip. My reflexes had always been fast, and on instinct, I reached out and managed to grab it before it spilled.

When I did, her hand was reaching out for it, too, and our hands were intertwined. We both froze, and our eyes met. The innocent contact sent a jolt of awareness shooting through my body. My heart pounded wildly in my chest, and from the shocked look in her eyes, I had a feeling hers was doing the same.

At the same time, we both removed our hands from each other as if we’d touched a hot stove. Our gaze was still locked, and I noticed we were both breathing as if we’d just run an eight-minute mile.

Without saying a word, she stood and started walking away.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

She glanced back over her shoulder, “Um, yeah, I just need… Can you watch my…” She waved her hand toward her suitcase beside mine.

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