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Layla nods and quickly disappears. I move to the seat farthest from him.
“Penelope…” he breathes, humor evident in his voice. “Don’t be upset. It was an honest mistake.”
“I’m not upset.” Liar.
I fumble with my seatbelt that is way fancier than a normal airplane seatbelt. I’m so focused on figuring it out, I don’t notice he’s left his seat until he’s standing in front of me. He brushes my hands away and fastens my seatbelt himself.
“Hey…,” he says and tilts my chin up with his fingers. “I’m sorry, baby. Truly.”
“Yeah? Well you don’t look very sorry.”
He does a better job of containing his smile. “You’re nervous. And now I’ve upset you. I’ll make it up to you later. I promise.”
“Have you flown a lot of women on this plane?” I bristle at my own question.
He, of course, grins. “None as pretty as you.”
“That Guy would’ve flown me on a jet he hadn’t fucked any other woman on. He would say it was because I deserved something more. To him, I was worth more than all of them. He would’ve burned this plane to the ground and just bought another one.”
“You are definitely worth more than any other woman I’ve flown on this plane. But you’re not worth more than sixty million dollars, baby.”
I’m river dancing on the inside because I’m worth more and prettier than the others. And Jake Swagger is worth a lot. On the outside, I look unimpressed as I glance around at the cabin and all its ridiculous luxury. “You paid sixty million dollars for this?”
He grins. “You’re such an asshole.”
Jake grabs the drinks Layla left for us and hands one to me. I throw it back—realizing a little late that it was a mistake. He pats my back until my choking fit passes, then returns to his seat.
I snap a selfie and send it to Emily before I settle back in my chair and let the warmth from the alcohol swim through me. It’s still too early in the morning for me. I’m tired. And before we leave the ground, I feel myself drifting—smiling at Emily’s signature, middle finger emoji response.
Still jealous.Chapter Twenty-Three“Did you Bill Cosby me?”
I try to jerk my wrist free of Jake’s hand but he doesn’t let me go. He just looks up at me from beneath his lashes as he continues to kiss my fingers. Nip the tips of them with his teeth. Make me melt into a pile of goo on the backseat of this fancy car that’s being driven by someone I don’t even know.
“What?”
“Did you drug me?”
“No, Penelope. I didn’t drug you.”
“Then explain how I managed to sleep so hard the entire flight?”
He shrugs. “I guess you were tired.”
“I wasn’t that tired.”
“Then I guess you have a low tolerance for alcohol. Which, now that I think about it, you do have a very low tolerance for liquor. I should’ve considered that. Forgive me?”
I pretend to be annoyed and glare at him. “How can you expect me to forgive you when you just keep fucking up? This is the second time you’ve apologized to me today. I’m starting to see a pattern. You know, this is how all relationships that end with the man killing the woman, start. With him constantly being mean, then apologizing and expecting to be forgiven immediately.”
He smiles against my fingers. “So you think we’re in a relationship?”
I snort. “Um. No. Duh. Geeze. Whatever.”
Fuck!
“I’m teasing you, gorgeous. I didn’t know a double shot of vodka would knock you out completely. If I had, I promise I would’ve used it long before now.”
I smack his arm with the back of my hand. He grins and I can’t help but grin myself. “Well, don’t let it happen again.”
“Noted.”
“Good. Now feed me.”
He leans over and gives me a kiss that I feel in my toes. Then, smiles and winks and says in his best southern drawl, “Yes, ma’am.”The diner Jake took me to might’ve looked like something straight off the set of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but the food was the best I’ve ever eaten. And I’ve never been more thankful for stretchy pants than I am in this moment.
“Can we take a nap now?” I ask, yawning loudly as I rub my stomach.
Jake smirks. “No. We’re meeting Jim and his daughters at the plant where they build the irrigation system.”
“Why?” I frown, realizing I know very little about this trip. He asked me to go, I said yes. The end.
I’m so easy.
“Because I haven’t seen it yet. And his employees are now my employees. So I’d like to meet them.”
I yawn again. “But I’m so tired….”
“I’d take you back to the hotel so you could sleep if I could, gorgeous. But I have a full agenda today. And the Cantons like you. This will go much smoother if you’re there.” He sweeps my hair off my face and I rub my cheek on his thigh like a cat.
