Page 71 of Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

I grunted, stepping forward as the line crawled ahead. “I can think of plenty of reasons.”

She nudged me with her elbow. “You’re such a grump. Look around—travel is full of moments to appreciate.”

I glanced around. All I saw were screaming kids, people rushing like their lives depended on it, and a guy arguing with a gate agent over a missed flight. “Yeah, it’s a real paradise,” I deadpanned.

Merritt just laughed, and somehow, it didn’t irritate me. She was impossible to stay annoyed with.

When we finally got to the checkpoint, she breezed through like she’d done it a hundred times before, chatting casually with the TSA agent as she handed over her ID. Somehow, she even managed to coax a faint smile out of him before she strolled toward the conveyor belt to load her bags.

Me? Not so lucky.

“Sir, you’ve been randomly selected for additional screening,” one of the agents said, motioning for me to step aside.

Of course, I had.

Merritt glanced back, her expression tensing. She mouthed, stay cool, but I was already biting back a string of curses.

The agent started rifling through my bag, pulling out everything and laying it out on the table like he was hosting a yard sale. I stood there, arms crossed, as another agent waved a wand up and down my body. When it beeped, they patted me down like I was hiding something.

When one of their hands strayed a little too close to my dick, I stiffened. “Easy, champ,” I said through gritted teeth. “You’re going to have to buy me dinner before you try and tug on that.”

The agent didn’t look amused. He moved his hand back slightly but took his time finishing the pat-down.

“As if I’ve never heard that before,” he muttered.

By the time they finally let me go, my mood was ice cold. Merritt was waiting nearby, arms crossed and lips pressed together like she was trying not to say something that would make it worse.

“You good?” she asked quietly.

“Peachy,” I said, shoving my stuff back into my bag. “I was wondering if they were going to ask me to drop my pants and demand I bend over and cough.”

“Well,” Merritt said, the corners of her mouth twitching upward. “That would’ve been quite the spectacle.”

I grumbled something under my breath, zipping my bag closed with more force than necessary. “Let’s just get this over with.”

She gave me a onceover, then took my hand and tugged me toward the concourse. “Come on. Let’s find something to distract you.”

I wasn’t in the mood, but Merritt was relentless. She dragged me into one of the shops, plucking a ridiculous touristy hat off the shelf and plopping it onto my head.

“What do you think?” she asked, tilting her head as she studied me. “Does it scream ‘sophisticated world traveler’?”

I scowled at her, but she was grinning so wide I couldn’t help the smirk tugging at my lips. “It screams ‘get this off me before someone sees.’”

She laughed and swapped it out for an even uglier one. “This one, then.”

I rolled my eyes, but before I knew it, I was following her through the shops, watching her sniff every perfume bottle she could find and load up on snacks for the plane. She had this way of making everything seem fun, even something as mundane as killing time in an airport.

In one store, she tried on a dozen pairs of designer sunglasses, striking exaggerated poses like she was on a runway. “What do you think?” she asked, donning a pair of oversized aviators and pouting dramatically.

I chuckled. “You look like a movie star. Or a spy.”

“Good,” she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “Because these are definitely going on my wish list.”

Then something sparkly caught her eye and she darted over to the jewelry display. I hung back, watching as she picked up a bracelet and turned it over in her hands, her face lighting up. It wasn’t expensive looking, just a simple chain with a few charms, but she examined it like it was a treasure.

I checked my watch. “We’ve got about an hour before boarding.”

She nodded, reluctantly putting the bracelet back. “We should get something to drink. I’m hungry.”