Page 161 of 5+Us Makes Seven

Lucy raised her eyebrows at me, nodding her head towards Cruz sitting in the front seat. “Aren’t you gonna talk to him? Or are you struck dumb by his big muscles and gravelly voice?”

I started to protest, but as if on cue, the tinted privacy glass slowly lowered. There was an awkward moment as we waited for it to fully descend. I saw Cruz sitting in the driver’s seat, his huge frame filling his half of the car. He was wearing some black tinted aviator sunglasses, which made him look even more badass.

He had started the engine and was either looking straight forward or at us through the rearview mirror. “You gals all set?”

“Yes!” I replied excitedly. “Just let me grab a seat.” I had to bend over to get to my seat, my shapely ass a few inches away from the lowered privacy glass. I didn’t get a chance to see if there was any reaction from Cruz, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Olivia wolf-whistled at me. “He’s supposed to be driving, not staring at your pretty butt!”

I ignored her and gratefully took a glass of champagne, draining half of it in one satisfied gulp.

“This is it then! Let’s get going!” I said, turning back to Cruz. I put on my sweetest voice. “Oh, I mean to say, please may we be on our way to the airport, sir?”

We all burst out laughing.

Cruz

I set off for the airport, only momentarily distracted by the sight of Alexandra’s shapely and pert butt mere inches from my face, her tight jeans all too revealing. But as we set off, my mind was on other more important matters, like getting to the airport safely and wondering if we were being tailed.

I kept an eye on the traffic behind us. The trick was to see if there were any cars that joined the journey soon after departure, and if they kept a discreet but consistent distance from us.

The last trick was to take a slight detour, changing tack suddenly, if possible, and keeping an eye on what the cars did behind you. If they were really good, they would appear and disappear with two or three cars doing the tailing to reduce suspicion.

I couldn’t see any sign of a tail though. Having said that, the car I was driving wasn’t exactly inconspicuous and would be easy to tail without giving much away.

Thing is, if they were that good, they wouldn't need to follow us. They would know we were going to the airport, and now would not be their perfect opportunity to strike. If they knew where we were headed, they most likely knew our destination.

I relaxed somewhat, with the odds of no immediate danger stacked hugely in my favor.

I’d had the privacy glass down for a while, mainly so I could catch glimpses of Alexandra through the rearview mirror, my dark sunglasses hiding my wandering gaze. She was smiling and joking with her friends, in her element.

God, she was so damned beautiful.

Part of me hoped that she felt the same way. I’d seen her look at me a few times in the house, but I couldn’t tell if she was just in awe of my strength or slightly scared of me. Or if she was actually attracted to me.

The girls’ chatter increased in volume over the next few minutes, and I then saw a second gold bottle of champagne being procured from the fridge near Olivia. I decided to wind up the privacy glass for the remainder of the journey.

Without the distraction, I turned my attention back to the traffic around me. My eyes flicked to the wing mirrors every few seconds out of habit, looking for a sign of something I knew I was unlikely to find.

I settled into the drive, my mind on the traffic around me, the impending check in and flight, and the trip to the destination. I thought over the route, visualizing landmarks and events, and analyzing possible danger.

Basically, keeping my mind off of Alexandra, at least for a little while.

Chapter Eight

Cruz

We arrived at the airport about twenty minutes later. As the girls were flying first-class, the airport staff had known in advance of our arrival, through the booking process. A few attendants waited for us near the fast track check in, which le

d directly to the fancy, first-class lounges.

At least I ain’t gotta lift those fucking suitcases again, I thought, looking on the bright side.

With the attendants helping the girls out of the car and struggling with their cases, I had time to survey the traffic surrounding us and took reassurance in the weight of the revolver in my jacket.

The girls rushed off to check in, babbling excitedly, my presence momentarily forgotten.

I turned my head slightly toward them, and saw Alexandra looking back at me over her shoulder. She smiled briefly, her face lighting up. I nodded back, smiling awkwardly and hoping I wasn’t going mad and imagining the whole exchange. Yet, the thought of it having happened for real was scary in its own right because I needed things to stay professional between us.

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