Page 23 of Too Much In Common
“I’ll clean out my stuff.” He turned to the bathroom.
Tian set her suitcase back on the rack and unzipped it. The container holding her dinner sat on top. Asparagus chicken pasta didn’t sound as appetizing as it had earlier. Her headache wanted a greasy hamburger and a chocolate shake—neither of which was remotely healthy comfort food. Which meant her headache wasn’t merely a headache—it was PMS. Joy.
Not joy.
At least she knew why she felt so attracted to Chris. He’d rescued her and Mother Nature had an extra boost.
Chris exited the bathroom, his suit coat hanging from one arm and a plastic chain store bag in his hand. “I’ll be back. Then I’ll get out of your hair.”
He knocked on the door to the adjoining suite. Dana opened it.
As soon as he exited, someone tapped on the open door. Mrs. Ogilvie. The woman she was inconveniencing stood in yoga pants and a t-shirt with a scarf tied around her head.
“Hi, I’m Candace. Chris said you have a headache. Do you need anything? I have some peppermint oil.”
Dumbfounded. Tian stood frozen, holding her dinner container. “Mrs. Oglivie, I—”
The woman held up a hand. “One, it’s Candace. Two, if the next words out of your mouth are to apologize for a situation that isn’t your fault, stop. Three, It is my honor to meet you officially, not the other way around.”
“Oh.” Seriously, her vocabulary had shrunk to monosyllables in the last hour. At this rate, she’d have Mrs. Ogilvie complaining to the airline and end up having to take a drug and alcohol test before flying in the morning. Tian held up her container. “Dinner.”
“It hurts to talk?” Mrs. Ogilvie didn’t wait for an answer. “That is a severe headache. Dr. Pepper? Or a chocolate shake? Or my personal favorite—a Dr. Pepper, chocolate, and ice cream float.”
“A what?” The combination sounded weirdly soothing.
“The perfect blend of caffeine for the headache and calcium to keep your stomach from getting upset. I try to avoid painkillers of any sort.”
“I’ve never heard of that.”
“Why don’t you heat up your dinner, change, and come on over? By then, I’ll have one for you.” Candace waved and returned to the suite.
At some point during their conversation, Chris must have come back into the room. He exited the bathroom and tossed a cleaning wipe in the trash. “Not as good as if housekeeping had come, but hopefully it is adequate.”
“You cleaned the bathroom?” A guy who cleans up after himself. That was hotter than a dripping wet shirtless Chris.
He smiled. “Shut the adjoining door after me. I heard Candace tell you to come over when you are ready. No need to knock. The sitting area is on the other side. You won’t walk in on anyone coming out of the shower.”
Was she imagining it, or had he blushed?
Fifteen minutes later, Tian stepped tentatively into the suite. Her long hair was down and she wore a t-shirt and yoga pants, as she had when Chris first met her.
Candace looked up from her iPad. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll go make the floats.”
Dana made space on the couch. “Hi. We met in the gym.”
“I didn’t realize you worked in personal security, too.”
“Officially, I am one of the Ogilvie’s nannies—or I have been for the last six months. But I’ve worked for Hastings for two years.”
“No offense, but you don’t look like a bodyguard.” Tian sat at the end of the couch.
“That is the point. I blend in, go unnoticed. Which reminds me, thanks for closing the curtain to first class during the incident. I was trying to figure out how to block people’s view of Candace.”
“I didn’t think of that. I didn’t want a viral video from someone who could only see half of what was happening. No one in first class seemed to be filming, and they all looked pretty disgusted with Thor and his owner.”
“Does that sort of thing happen often?” asked Candace as she handed Tian and Dana the first floats.
“When I started flying, not so much, but we are seeing it more and more. In December, we had three flights where we expelled passengers. The cabin crew isn’t as likely to let things slide either. Last September, my cousin Simone, a flight attendant, was punched by a noncompliant passenger. Not only did they have to make an emergency landing, but he broke her nose and cheekbone.”
