Page 35 of Jacob

“Does this plane stretch to blankets? Normal soft ones, not the crinkly thermal ones.”

“Of course. In the closet at the entrance. But maybe you’ll just want to go to bed. Bedroom’s through there.” He indicated with his head.

“I saw it. And saw there’s only one bedroom and one bed, so I’ll bunk down here.” She pressed a button and the back of her seat lowered. “I imagine it’s a lie-flat seat, so I’ll be fine.”

“Whoa.” Jacob had to keep his jaw from falling open. “Wait. No way. Are you joking? You’re taking the bedroom and I’ll bunk down out here. Believe me, I’ve slept in far worse conditions.”

“No.” Alex had taken one of the blankets from the closet and had spread it over herself.

No. What the fuck didnomean? “What are you doing?”

Her brows came together in a frown. “Jake. Jacob. What does it look like I’m doing?” She pressed the button in the armrest and the seat reclined even further. She closed her eyes. “For a smart man, you’re being very dim.”

Jacob snatched her blanket away.

“Hey!” Alex’s eyes popped open and she sat up. “What areyoudoing? Give me that blanket back.”

She reached up, but he held it above his head, where she had no hope of getting it back. “No way. You are going to sleep in a bed. In your pajamas, between sheets. You arenotgoing to sleep on an airplane seat.”

Alex shot him A Look and pressed the button in the arm rest until the entire seat was flat. Jake knew it did that. It was a plane designed to allow his people to sleep before a mission. But not Alex.

She was sitting up straight. “See? It unfolds into a bed. I’ll be perfectly fine.”

Jacob ground his back teeth. This was not going to happen. “You. Will. Take. The. Bed.” When he took that tone his employees scrambled. He didn’t use it often but when he did, it got results.

Not this time.

Her chin lifted.

“Are you ordering me around?”

Of course he was. The idea of her sleeping on a chair when she didn’t have to—while he slept in a bed—was something that made his brains scramble. It didn’t compute in his head in any way.

“No,” he said. “It’s just that?—”

“Good. Now hand me that blanket. I’m really tired.”

He could actuallyhearhis teeth grind now. “I can’t let you sleep here.” The words felt as if they were being pulled from his mouth by red hot pliers.

“Excuse me?” Alex’s cheeks were pink. “You can’tletme? What does that mean?”

Jacob was losing this, together with his patience. He always won negotiations, always. He never lost his patience.

Except for now.

He dropped into the seat next to her.

“Alex.” This was supposed to be his Reasonable Voice, but it came out rough, mumbly. “I can’t let you sleep out here while I take the bed. You can’t ask that of me. I wouldn’t sleep a wink, you wouldn’t sleep as well as you could. Please.”

That wasn’t convincing at all. But the part of his brain that was a born negotiator was offline, unavailable. He didn’t have any reasonable arguments, other than the idea horrified him. He knew he should let it go. With anyone else, he would. After trying several times to do the gentlemanly thing, and being rebuffed, he’d just give in because it didn’t make that much difference.

Except it did. In this case, it did.

This was Alex and he simply didn’t have it in him to have her sleep out here. He should be convincing her, but it felt like his tongue was too big for his mouth. It wasn’t a life or death situation. He should just give in. But he couldn’t. All he could do was stare at her miserably.

Alex’s face suddenly softened. She put her hand on his forearm and he stared down at it. He could feel the warmth through two layers of fabric.

“Look.” Alex’s voice was reasonable.

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