“Rafe, one sec,” I said. I muted the call before he could argue with me. Cocking my brows at Drea, I said, “Do you really want to spend the next four to five hours pretending we barely know each other while being on display for all our relatives?”
“Of course not.”
“Then let’s run away.”
She gasped. “Are you serious?”
“Absofuckinglutely.”
“How would we do it?”
“Rafe’s taking our jet to Sicily. We could hitch a ride with him.”
“Wow, nothing screams honeymoon getaway with the man you were supposed to marry who is now your brother-in-law,” Drea teased.
“We’ll only be on the plane with him to Palermo. We can get a hotel on the beach, or I could call in a favor to our family friend who owns his own island off the coast.”
With a dreamy sigh, she said, “That sounds amazing.”
“So you’re in?”
She laughed. “I’m totally in.”
I unmuted the call. “We’ll meet you at the airport.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE:
When we arrived at the airport, the SUV pulled up alongside the jet. As Drea peered out the window, she remarked, “Looks like ours.”
“I’m pretty sure ours is bigger,” I teasingly replied.
Drea snorted. “I’ll be sure to tell that to my father.”
After the bodyguard opened the SUV door, Drea and I got out. Taking her hand, I led her over to the jet. “This should be interesting,” Drea mused as she started up the narrow stairs.
“Don’t worry. I’ll catch you if you fall.”
She threw a withering look at me over her shoulder. “Thanks a lot.”
Thankfully, she only pitched forward once, and I had her by the waist so she didn’t get hurt. When we got inside, we found Rafe already seated with his head buried in his iPad.
“We’re here.”
Without looking up, Rafe instructed, “Good. Go ahead and have a seat, so we can take off.”
Glancing down at herself, Drea then said, “I need to get out of this dress.”
I pointed at the bedroom. “You can change in there, and there’s also a bathroom if you’d like a shower.”
After throwing a quick glance at Rafe, she gave me a knowing look. “Yes, I need to get cleaned up. I’m a mess.”
With his head buried in his iPad, Rafe replied, “You don’t have to go to any trouble for us, Drea. You look fine.”
Drea held my gaze before darting her tongue out to lick her lips. “It’s more that I’m a mess on the inside.”
Inwardly, I groaned at the mental picture she’d just given me. To my surprise, she crooked her finger at me. “I need your help.”
“With what?”
