Nora dutifully boards, scanning the area with shaky hands and frayed nerves that only zing and tingle even worse when she realizes it’s a window seat. She had forgotten it was the only one left when she booked, but now she has to stare down at the earth as they leave it. If there’s not a good stockpile of barf bags on hand, then she won’t be the only one to suffer.
“Hey again.”
She can’t believe she’s relieved to see a relative stranger, but when his voice rumbles behind her, all low and gravely, and slightly concerned as he points to the seat next to hers, she most definitely is.
“That one’s me. You’ve got the window seat?”
She winces. “Mhmm.”
“You don’t look happy about that. Wanna switch?”
“Yes. Absolutely. Please.”
He gives her a slightly awkward smile before stuffing his carry-on in the overhead compartment, a move that flexes an impressive set of biceps. Then, he points to her bag, asking silent permission to lift it up for her. When she nods, he takes care of it in two seconds flat.
Damn, she’s easy, Nora thinks sadly. He bought her coffee and loaded her carry-on, and she’s already a goner. What happened to being done with men?
It’s fine, though, because he’s bound to say something stupid during this plane ride that will rid her of all attraction in an instant. It’s inevitable. All she has to do is wait.
“I’m Nora,” she offers, once he’s seated beside her. They’d been too distracted by drink spills and weddings for proper introductions.
“Theodore,” he replies. “Everyone calls me Theo.”
“I’d say it’s nice to meet you, but not much is nice while hurdling through the air in a giant metal tube.”
The plane starts to move a moment after they’ve secured their seat belts, and she grips her armrest, sucking a breath deep into her lungs and holding it tight.
“I don’t like flying either,” he says with a resigned sigh. “I hate it every time.”
She chances a glance to her right, and sure enough, Theo’s nearly as pale as she is. They’re quite the pair. They’ll be feeding off each other’s panic the whole way there.
“They say it’s safer than driving,” he tries.
“They do say that.”
“Doesn’t mean shit can’t go wrong, though.”
She raises a brow. “That’s the spirit. Crash over a random lake and have to row our way back on a broken wing?”
“Sure. Sure. Or, crash in the middle of nowhere. Get lost in a desert in Arizona. Have to fend for ourselves, eating snakes and scorpions.”
She huffs. “Go big or go home. Crash in Alaska. Get stuck in miles of snow with no sign of life for days or weeks. Have to fight off polar bears and drink melted snow.”
It’s a morbid discussion. Probably bad luck, but oddly enough, talking about it takes the power out of the possibility when it’s just words like any other conversation. It calms her down enough that she’s not hyperventilating like she thought she’d be, and he seems to appreciate the distraction, too, nodding thoughtfully like all of this makes perfect sense as the plane finally levels out.
A woman with two small girls shoots them the most horrified look from across the aisle. “Can you two stop? You’re scaring the children.”
“Shit, sorry,” Theo winces at his own curse when the mother gasps even harder.
Nora holds up her hands in mock surrender, mouthing her own silent apology before turning to her newest partner in crime when it comes to emotionally scarring kids for life, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “It’s not even noon, and we’ve already incurred the wrath of other passengers. Solid work. Have a drink with me?”
Well crap. That sounded more like flirting than she intended.
Not that she wouldn’t…
Not that he would even consider it…
Last she checked her reflection in the bathroom mirror, her under-eye circles made her look like she’s seen a few hauntings, and her hair was falling out of its ponytail. She’s not exactly putting in the effort on a level that would get her even a one-night stand from someone like him. And yet…what if?
