Page 99 of Let Me Love You (Excess All Areas 5)

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Fifteen minutes later, Chaya stood at the end of the short red carpet and looked at the small private jet waiting on the tarmac. “Is that for us? Because it’s too much, if it is.”

Ben grinned and squeezed her hand. “If we were doing it every day and twice on Sundays, then, yes, it would be. But this is special.”

The chauffeur opened his door and Ben stepped outside, gesturing to the driver that he would open Chaya’s door. When he did, he offered her his hand. He checked out her legs, first, because in heels, and whatever dewy moisturiser she’d used, they looked incredible. Then, as she stood next to him, he checked out her cleavage, because the dress was doing pretty epic things to it.

“Where are we going, Ben?” she asked as he led her to the aircraft steps. Behind him, the ground crew were transferring their bags from the boot of the limo to the aircraft.

“Mr. King, welcome on board,” the pilot said as he stepped to the door to welcome them on board.

“Hey, it’s Ben. And this is my girlfriend, Chaya.”

“Welcome. Take a seat. We anticipate an easy run to London and should be there within the hour.”

When the pilot disappeared back into the cockpit, Ben was pleased to see the champagne and glasses were on the table as he requested.

“We’re going to London?” Chaya asked, taking a seat on one of the plush cream leather chairs.

“Remember our list?” Ben pulled the champagne out of the ice bucket and popped the cork.

“Oh. My. Goodness. You’re giving me myPretty Womanmoment.” Her grin was worth every penny it had cost.

“It’s what you wanted, right?” He poured them both a glass, then offered one to her. “Cheers.”

They clinked glasses. “Cheers. But, I just said go to the opera. I hope you didn’t think I expected you to do all this.”

Ben shrugged. “Yeah, well, you deserve the fairy tale. So, we get to fly to London, go to Covent Garden to the Royal Opera House, then have a late supper, before checking in to a fancy hotel for the night. Then, tomorrow, we have a couples massage at the hotel spa before flying home. All squeezed into the thirty-six hours off the NHS graciously granted you between shifts.”

Chaya took a sip of the champagne and ran her fingers across the walnut grain of the table. “This might be the greatest thing ever. You win for the grand gesture.”

“I meant what I said. You were there for me when I was worth tuppence short of nothing. I want to share this with you. I know we aren’t particularly ostentatious people. But I want to spoil you. I want us to do things like this, occasionally.”

“You hate opera.”

He shrugged again. “Maybe. But you love it. And maybe I’ll get to like it. And maybe, next time, I’ll ask you to come to a box at the football with me. I don’t know. Beyond knowing that I just want to make you happy and share shit with you.”

Chaya stood and pressed her lips to his. “What’s that line Julia Roberts said in the movie? Something about how, if she forgot to tell Richard Gere later, she wanted him to know she’d had a good time tonight?”

“You have a better memory than I do.”

“You only remember the car.”

“A 1990 Lotus Esprit SE. And you’re welcome.”

Two hours later, after an uneventful flight and transit across London, they arrived at the Royal Opera House. “We’re really doing this?” Chaya asked, practically dancing.

“We are. I have zero clue what La Bohème is about, but it was the one that had the seats I wanted on a night you could make work on your schedule.”

After their tickets had been checked, they were shown to their seats. “You got us a box too?” Chaya asked. “Holy shit.”

“Holy shit indeed.” There was red. Lots of red. Velvet, velour, plush, whatever. With a great view of the stage.

“I wonder who the other two people will be,” she said, as she mooched about the box, running her fingers over the fabrics and textures. When she leaned over the edge of the balcony, his heart leapt into his mouth, for a moment.

“Babe, keep away from the edge, yeah? And there won’t be any people joining us. I booked the whole thing for just you and me.”

Chaya turned, open-mouthed. “Why did you do that?”

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