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“There will be plenty of places to visit that are near the trail, so you figure out what you want to do while we’re biking and enjoy yourselves. Alexis, you have your company credit card so put everything on that. Tonight, you’ll stay in a hotel in St. Charles. That’s where the bikes were shipped. We’ll be staying at the campground outside town, so you’ll need to get a rideshare to pick up the camper in the morning. I’d like to be on the trail by six.”

Both women nodded.

“Saturday night we’ll stay in the town of Mokane, so you’ve got the day to get there. It’s about a hundred and twelve miles. I made a reservation for you ladies at a small bed and breakfast. West and I are staying at a campground nearby. They have a small café there to get breakfast. Sound good?” Bridges asked.

“Sounds great,” Alexis said as Stephanie and I nodded.

We arrived at the airport, and Bridges valet parked his SUV. Thankfully, it was after seven at night, so the lines for checking in and going through security weren’t horrendous.

Once we were on the plane, I was surprised to find Bridges had booked the four of us into first class. It felt like old times traveling with my mother and father.

Of course, the dollar signs were piling up on the debt I was incurring with Bridges. God, everything had to work out precisely, or I was so screwed.

Chapter Fourteen

Bridges

“Which seat would you prefer?” West and I stood in the aisle at the front of the plane, the first to board.

Everyone’s boarding passes were on my phone, so I led us all onto the 737 and directed Alexis and Steph to sit across the aisle from us.

“Do you mind if I have the window?” West’s eyes were round as he looked up at me, almost as if he was surprised I’d given him a choice. I was guessing that since Claude’s will had been read, West didn’t feel he had many choices anymore.

“Not at all.” I gladly gave it to him. It worked for me because I needed the extra legroom the aisle would afford me. I tossed my duffel bag in the overhead and then took his backpack and shoved it next to my worn leather bag that had seen a lot of miles in the air.

It was only fair that I give Alexis and Steph a bit of luxury since they were sacrificing a three-day weekend for us. Of course, I hated sitting back in the main cabin because of my long legs, and I wasn’t about to have West sit by himself back there, so I used some of my frequent air travel miles to secure us all seats in first class.

“Do you have any issues with flying?” I asked as I buckled my seatbelt.

“No, I’m fine with the flying. It’s just the take-off and the landing that scare the crap out of me,” he answered as he buckled his own. When he glanced up at me through his lashes, my imagination went into overdrive, and an image of him on his knees in front of me with my cock buried in his throat bombarded my mind. He was giving me that same look as he choked on my prick.

“I promise,” West said, breaking into my fantasy.

“Uh, sorry?” My neck heated at him catching me not paying attention.

“I just said I’ll pay you back for all of this, I promise.”

His embarrassed expression squeezed my chest. “No more promises of payments. I know you’re good for the money. I trust you, Weston. It’s all going to be fine.”

We settled in for our flight, and when we were taxiing to the runway for takeoff, I noticed Weston’s shoulders were around his ears because he was so tense. I reached over and took his hand that was figuratively glued to the armrest of his seat, cradling it in mine. “Your work situation? How’s that going?”

He grinned. “I got a weekend job delivering for Seiler’s Bakery and Deli on 2nd Avenue. I’ll work on Saturdays from six in the morning until six at night, and Sundays from six until three.”

I did the math and figured out he would be working sixty-one hours a week, plus the twenty hours he worked for me. That was entirely too many hours for anyone. I realized he was young and energetic but working seven days a week at ostensibly three jobs was a hell of a load for anyone.

“What about fun? When do you have time for anything fun?”

Weston shrugged. “I’ve got responsibilities, remember?”

“You’re going to burn yourself out, West. You should go out with friends and have a good time while you’re young.” Hell, some days, I wished I had because now, At the ripe old age of forty-five, I didn’t have any male friends to hang out with. Alexis and her girlfriend did a lot of volunteer work together and had a lot of friends, but they were in their mid-thirties. It wasn’t easy to make friends at my age.

As the plane lifted off the ground, West’s grip tightened, and I put my other hand over both of ours. “We’re fine. Once we level off, they’ll bring drinks and warm mixed nuts before they start dinner service.”

Weston clutched my hand and closed his eyes as the sounds of the engines revved and we headed off into the wild blue yonder. He didn’t say anything, just held my hand, though once we left the ground his hand relaxed, but I didn’t let his release mine. Speaking of warm nuts...

I hoped to fuck I wasn’t coming off as creepy. He seemed so vulnerable before he dozed off, and it bothered me. Was he naturally vulnerable, or had Claude destroyed his confidence even before his death?

I didn’t want to judge Claude or tarnish the image I had of him from when I was young and he helped me out. I knew then—and still knew—that Claude wasn’t interested in me the way I was interested in Weston. Did that make me the worst person ever for trying to try to support Weston as he worked so hard to find his place in the world?