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She took a deep breath, studying me, a glint of a question in her eyes. Did she remember me after all? Had she recognized my voice? No, she was only anxious, looking for reassurance. I wondered how someone so intelligent could be afraid of flying. It was pure science: lift, weight, thrust, and drag. I’d be happy to explain it to her when we took off,ifwe took off. She didn’t move toward the jet way. Her hands opened and closed on her carry-on’s handle.
“How can I help you?” I asked. “What questions or concerns can I address for you right now?”
“I don’t… It’s just…” She took a shuddering breath. “I really need to get to New York.”
“Don’t worry. You will.”
The fact that I’d spanked this woman’s ass last night didn’t register, only her trembling. She was so afraid. I could see it in her pallid complexion, her tight lips. “We need to leave now,” I said. “Are you ready?”
She turned from me and buried her face in her hands. I stared at her glossy, thick curls, imagined threading my fingers in them and dragging her onto the plane with my lips at her ear, whispering graphic, erotic threats. Would she like that? Definitely.
But it wouldn’t look very professional to everyone else.
“We really do need to go,” I said, sympathetically, but firmly. “The airport in New York will be expecting us at a certain time.”
“Okay. I’m going to get on the plane, but this is really, really hard. I’m really scared right now.”
“Did something happen?” I asked. “Something on some other flight?”
“No.” She was practically in tears. “That’s why this is so ridiculous. I’ve never had anything happen while I’m flying. But what if something does? It’ll be so…catastrophic.”
“You’ll know if something goes wrong, because you’ll see it in my face. That’s why we’re flying together. You can trust me to be honest with you. And I honestly promise that we’ll arrive in New York without a scratch on either of us. I travel thousands of miles a year by plane, and nothing’s ever happened to me, so I would know.”
Her eyes searched mine. Deep, rich blue, like photos of the earth’s oceans taken from outer space. Fuck. I had to get her on the plane.
“I don’t even want to go,” she burst out. “I wanted to decline the job in New York, but I can’t. I mean, it’s groundbreaking work, but… This morning, I just…”
“I think you want to go,” I said, cutting her off. “You’re here, aren’t you?” I kept my voice light. “Come on. You’ve got to see the inside of the plane. The first class compartment is a beauty.”
She turned toward the boarding door. Progress.
“So, you know how to fly this kind of plane?” she asked. “In case something goes wrong?”
“Well, there’s already a pilot and a co-pilot, who’s also called the first officer—”
“But do you know how to fly it?”
“Yes, I do.” I grinned at her, reining in my upstate accent. “I can fly anything with wings. I used to be in the Air Force. I can also land anything,” I added, when she opened her mouth to speak again. “Not that I’ll have to. I know these pilots, and they’re great at their jobs. Everything will be fine.”
I sharpened my gaze to prevent her from chickening out and backing away. An airline agent beckoned us from the door.
“If you’re ready, Dr. Novatny?” I said, trying to guide her that way.
“I guess we have to leave on time, right?” She was trembling. “I mean, otherwise, we might crash into another plane because we’ve messed up the flight patterns.”
“That would never happen. Air travel is exceptionally safe. There are backup systems on top of auxiliary systems on top of redundant systems. Seriously, the safety precautions are crazy. You were in more danger traveling here in your car.”
“I took a cab.”
“My point stands.”
She hung back, still arguing her points. “Between a car and a plane, a car crash is more survivable. I have more chance of surviving in a car if…if something goes wrong. Because things can go wrong.”
I heard the scientist in her voice, the scholar who researched and crunched numbers, and considered possibilities. Even in faded leggings and a loose blue sweater, she came off sharp. Her wide eyes blinked. Her lips tensed, revealing a flash of white teeth. Ah, those nerd glasses, and hardly any makeup. She didn’t need it. Hell, she was even beautiful in a ball gag.
Get her on the plane, asshole. Forget the other shit right now.
“Nothing’s going to go wrong,” I said in my Dom voice, even though we were in an airport rather than a dungeon. Authority was authority. She was under my protection for the next few hours, and I wanted her to feel secure. I was pretty good at helping women feel secure while their world fell into disarray and danger, while they flailed and panicked, and wished they could use a safe word.
