Page 31 of Sin City Lights

The admission scared her to death.

As a little girl, she had watched Disney stories with an open heart, believing in fairy tales and happy endings, convinced that somewhere in this world, a boy was growing up, unaware that he was destined to be hers. Inevitably, he showed up in her daydreams, tall and blond and looking exactly like…

She settled in the wide tan leather seat and looked out the oval window, watching him shake hands with a shorter silver-haired man in a similar uniform, except that he had three gold bars on his epaulets. Adam told him something, and the older man looked up, scanning the windows until he spotted Eve. He nodded and gave her a warm, fatherly smile. She liked him immediately.

An attendant closed the luggage compartment. Adam stopped to acknowledge the man, exchange a few words, and hand him a tip.

The older pilot climbed the stairs and strolled past the service area into the cabin.

“Good mornin’, little lady. I’m Ted Sims.”

She instantly loved his soft smile and lazy drawl.

“Eve Layton. Nice to meet you. You’re from South Carolina?”

“I’ve been accused of that.” He winked.

“I have a friend who is from there. He talks just like you.”

“Watch out for him.” Ted’s kind brown eyes twinkled.“Have you flown in one o’these birds before?”

She nodded. Her clients traveled private, quite a bit.“Never in one as big as this one, though.”

“She’s a beauty, isn’t she? Just took delivery last month. Largest one in the LarsAir fleet, so far. Fastest too. You’re in for a treat.”

Ted went through a safety briefing, also taking her to the lavatory and showing her where she could find drinks and snacks.“There’s noflight attendant today, so feel free to come up to the cockpit if you need anything. Enjoy the flight.”

He picked up a sheaf of papers off the polished mahogany storage cabinet, then headed to the front.

Eve lingered in the aisle and was surveying the long row of crystal glasses in the cabinet when Adam climbed the steps and breezed in. She watched him open a small access door on the polished wood service area panel, revealing a small red switch. He flipped it, and the cabin door smoothly folded in.

He pulled it all the way shut, then pressed a lever to lock it with a metallic click. “We’re good to go. Flight should be around five hours. I had them set up the bed for you in the back in case you’d like to sleep.” His eyes met hers, and it was clear what he was thinking.“Come, let me show you… It’s right behind that partition.”

It was large for an airplane bed. Crisp white sheets, two fluffy down pillows, blankets with diagonal gold and royal blue stripes and the LarsAir logo in the corner. It was inviting and cozy, and she hadn’t slept in twenty hours. She couldn’t wait to get between those sheets.

His gaze flicked to the shuttered oval window.“They forgot one. These need to be open for takeoff.”

He leaned over the bed to lift the shade. His navy-blue tie dangled, pointing directly to the mattress as if indicating what she should do with him. The impulse to lie down and use that tie to pull him on top of her was almost irresistible.

But resist she had to, and resist she would.

She was a mermaid.

Her body undulated languidly under his hands.

One was at her nape, kneading, while the other slowly moved down her back, the tips of his warm fingers barely grazing her fevered skin. A million sensations fired along her nerves, like mini sparklers.

His fingertips were up and down her arms now, slowly, slowly, barely grazing, and she whimpered, needing a firmer touch.

He took it slow, as if he had all the time in the world to do this.His fingertips glided along her spine, making her jerk violently as they reached her lower back. Around and around at her tailbone he traced, then lower.

One fingertip dragged along her naked backside, just skimming, not invading, until he reached the heat at her entrance.

Everything tingled and pulsed there.

She was drenched.

At long last, he pushed in his finger, going deep. She backed into his hand, whimpering, feeling the overwhelming need for more. He surely knew exactly what she wanted and what to do to drive her wild, but he wasn’t doing it.

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