Page 66 of Come Fly with Me

Taylor and I talk until I reach customs. It’s a totally PG convo, though, because it’s impossible to have the type we’re both thinking about when I’m walking with the crew through one of the busiest airports in Asia. Still doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about it, especially knowing she’s getting ready to go to bed.

“Ok, babe, I gotta go,” I say apologetically. “I can call you back when I get to my hotel, but it’s late for you right?”

Taylor sighs. “Yeah, it is. I should go,” she says. “I have an early start tomorrow.”

I nod even though she can’t see me. “I miss you,” I say quietly, not bothering to hide how true that statement is.

“I miss you too,” she says, and I can tell she’s smiling.

“Call me when you land tomorrow,” I tell her. “I’m in Singapore for twenty-four hours.”

“Okay,” she says. “Goodnight.”

We hang up, and I slide my phone into my pocket, ignoring the look Theo shoots me that basically screams the fucker was listening to the entire conversation.

I’m glad Taylor didn’t ask me about him. Even though he and I barely spoke the whole flight over, I just don’t want to give this prick any airtime in my relationship with her. As far as I’m concerned, he’s part of her past, not her future. And I couldn’t care less about him or anything that happened between them.

As we all proceed through customs and immigration, the crew makes its way toward the doors to the outside, the heat and humidity already palpable despite the heavy air-conditioning.

As we step outside the terminal, it hits me like a brick wall, and I instantly start to sweat. From the corner of my eye, I see Theo walking over to me.

“So what, are you and Taylor a thing now?” he asks.

I glance over and see him standing next to me as we wait for the crew bus. “What?” I ask, not bothering to hide my annoyance.

He gestures to me. “You and Taylor,” he repeats. “That was her on the phone, right?”

I shake my head in exaggerated disbelief. “Sorry, but how is that any of your business?”

Theo looks away, hands in his pockets as he rocks on his heels. “Well, when you disappear halfway through saying goodbye to the passengers, it becomes my business,” he says, glancing at me, a smarmy look on his face.

I scrub a hand across my jaw, not bothering to hide my eye roll. “That isn’t actually a requirement of the job,” I remind him.

“Maybe not,” he says. “But it’s unprofessional when you disappear the way you did.”

I turn and face him, letting out a long exhale that’s got nothing to do with the heat. “What exactly is your problem with me?” I ask.

“What are you talking about?”

I raise a brow. “Really,” is all I say, not bothering to elaborate, knowing he’s had a bug up his arse from the second we met back in L.A.

And I know he knows exactly what I’m referring to because he’s made it abundantly clear since he came up to me in the pilot’s lounge that he knows who I am and how that relates to Taylor. He didn’t need to bring up my phone call just now to confirm that.

Gossip travels fast in the airline industry, and I’ve got no doubt after she turned him down in Sydney, he tried to find a reason for why that had nothing to do with him being a total fucking wanker and everything to do with her not being interested.

Theo shakes his head as the bus pulls up, not bothering to answer. I walk on and take a seat up the back, not talking to anyone as we make the short journey over to our hotel.

After we all check in, I decline the invitations to head up to the rooftop pool and instead head to my room where I spend an hour or so talking to my family in Australia because the time difference is more in our favor, before logging on to check my emails.

There are the usual work emails, one or two from friends, along with a high-priority one from my lawyer. Opening it, I read through what she’s sent me, which essentially amounts to fuck all change with everything after the paperwork got returned to her, unsigned, yet again.

She’d warned me from the start that it was going to take forever to settle, given the contesting and all the shit that was being brought up. And even though I know all of this, I can’t help firing back a strongly worded email that I really need this shit sorted ASAP. It’s already been dragging on long enough and I’m fucking sick of it, and the thought that it might somehow go on indefinitely drives me insane.

And it’s not just my new relationship with Taylor that’s making me feel this way. It’s that I don’t want to be tied to my past anymore. Don’t want the complications and drama that I know come with all of this shit that’s still hanging over me.

After a bit, I get changed, pulling on some running gear and heading down to the gym. After I crank out 10 kms on the treadmill, I head up to my room for a shower before heading back downstairs to grab some food.

I leave the hotel and wander the streets, eventually ending up at the night markets at Lau Pa Sat. After I grab a plate of kebabs and a Tiger beer, I find a seat and people watch while I eat my dinner. I send a couple of photos to Taylor, but I know she’ll be up and flying by now,the quick text I got while I was showering let me know, so I don’t expect a response.

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