Page 15 of Falling for You Again

“But it’s our honeymoon.”

I looked up at Aaron. Did he just whine? I bit the inside of my cheek to hold in the laughter.

“Isn’t there anything you can do?” He played up the charm. Then he cupped my face and looked directly into my eyes. “I can’t bear for us to sit apart.”

I could have melted in that gaze. Out of nowhere, envy spiked, and I was instantly jealous of whomever he would marry for real, assuming he ever decided to get married.

“Aww.” The attendant pressed a hand to her breast. “You are so adorbs. Give me a sec.” She picked up the PA system’s receiver. “Aloha,ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Flight 1585 to Kahului Airport, Maui, Hawaii. We’ll be departing shortly, but first, we need to get these newlyweds seated—together. Aren’t they the cutest?”

“You match!” a passenger in the first row shouted, and I curtsied.

“They’re going on their honeymoon,” the attendant declared with more enthusiasm than a college cheer squad.

Aaron turned to me, his chest against mine, and did the most expected thing a newly married husband would do: he kissed his bride. I gasped when his mouth landed on mine, shocked at the contact. This kiss didn’t feel anything like the one during our wedding that, for a blip, had me feeling like a real bride. I had actually considered that our adventure could unfurl into something meaningful. This kiss was for show.

And show off he did.

His tongue swooped into my mouth. He sucked my bottom lip between his and nibbled at the corners. My knees buckled. I grabbed his arms to brace myself. He kept kissing me and kissing me until the noise registered. Passengers cheered. They whistled and catcalled until one woman hollered, “They can sit here!”

Aaron lifted his head and his thumb stroked my cheek, turning a very public moment in a public place into something private between just us two. The kiss hadn’t meant anything, but it left me wanting. Aaron left me wanting.

The flight attendant hung up the receiver. “We have side-by-side seats for you near the back.”

I looked down the belly of the plane. A short woman scooted into the aisle, waved at us, and shuffled into the row across from where she’d been sitting. She settled into the middle seat, leaving adjoining middle and window seats for Aaron and me.

In less than twenty-four hours, we broke our promise to marry for only twenty-four hours. We were off to Maui.

The hand on my lower back moves up an inch, drawing my attention back to the gala and to Aaron. “Why are you here, Meli?”His question makes me think of the gala’s invitations. How they started arriving with my name on the envelope alongside Uncle Bear’s that same year. Before Aaron and I met, the invites had been addressed just to my uncle. Has Aaron been trying all along to break our promise to quietly go our separate ways and not see each other again, at least not deliberately? We work in similar industries. Even though it hadn’t happened prior to meeting on the plane, there was always the chance we’d run into one another down the road.

“You know why. I’m sure it’s for the same reason your dad said we have much to discuss.”

“Savant’s intent to acquire Artisant.”

“I learned of it only yesterday.”

“That’s why I hadn’t heard from you.”

“About me coming to work for Savant, I didn’t agree to that. My uncle has been negotiating without my consent.”

“I see.” His fingers press harder into my back, and his attention shifts over my shoulder. “Can we talk about this later?”

I stop swaying, confused. His quick dismissal sharpens my tone. “I realize this isn’t an ideal time, but I—”

“There you are, darling,” comes a lyrical voice behind me.

Aaron’s arms fall from me as he steps back. His expression cools as an elegantly dressed woman slides into the space I just filled. She loops a thin arm possessively around Aaron’s waist. His hand lifts to rest on her back more from habit than adoration. At least that’s how it looks to me.

She smiles pleasantly at me. “Hello. I don’t think we’ve met.”

“I’m Meli,” I introduce myself, aiming a bewildered look at Aaron. Who is this woman?

“Meli’s with Artisant Designs here in Boston,” he explains in a guarded tone.

“TheArtisant Designs?”

Red tinges Aaron’s cheeks. He shifts away from the woman. Barely, but enough that I notice. So does she. She leans closer to him. “Aarontalks about your work all the time, and I have to admit, I’m a bit of a fan myself. Don’t tell anyone at Savant, but I have a couple of your pieces.”

“You do?” I can’t help but preen. “And you are?”

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