“Your white knuckles tell a different story.”
She chuckled. “I’m not keen on the takeoff part. But once we’re in the air, I’m good. How long is the flight?”
“Two hours.”
Her eyes widened. “Two hours?” She checked the slim gold watch on her left wrist. “We won’t get there until eight.”
“I know. That’s why I picked you up at five.”
The plane lifted into the air, and the ground fell away.
“I’m usually in bed by ten.”
I cocked my head. “That can be arranged.”
She let out a hard sigh. “You’re relentless.”
“Guilty as charged.”
She tried her best to keep a straight face, but the faintest curve to her lips gave her away.
If pretending I irritated her was how she dealt with my persistence, then I’d soak up every huff, every glare, every pinched expression.
In fact, I’drelishthose things.
Sassy Kiana made me hard, but so did frustrated Kiana and annoyed Kiana.
It didn’t matter what version of Kiana showed up; she turned me on.
This hadn’t happened to me before. Which was the precise reason I refused to let her walk away.
“Tell me something.”
She looked at me with suspicion and hesitation in her eyes. “What?”
“Why are you fighting me on this?”
She averted her eyes. “Reasons.”
Hmm… Interesting.
“I know you’re attracted to me.”
She huffed a laugh. “Modest, Ash. Real modest.”
I shrugged. I only spoke the truth.
“You and me, Kiana, we’re dynamite between the sheets. We have a lot in common, as we discovered the night we met at the bar. What’s stopping you from having a little fun?”
She pulled in a deep breath through her nose, then slowly released it.
“What happens when it stops being fun? To me, I mean?”
I frowned. “I don’t follow.”
“I didn’t think you would.” She shook her head. “We’re from different worlds, Asher. You’re the boss. I’m the employee. This goes south, and there’s only one winner. To you, it’s straightforward. To me, it’s the difference between having a career and ending up on the scrap heap.”
“That wouldn’t happen.”