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I froze, watching in horror as he brought his finger to his bottom lip and touched the inside, a drop of blood appearing on the tip as he drew it away.
“I’m so sorry!” I breathed. “I’ve never hit anybody in my life.”
This time his smile was unmistakable but mocking. “You need to make better decisions, Hope.”
“Are you okay, sir? I heard some commotion.”
The blood drained from my face as Ares turned to the concerned hostess who stood on the other side of the aircraft.
“I’m fine, thank you. It appears I startled my friend rather badly when I woke her. Entirely my fault.” He then turned to me and held out a hand.
Forced to go along with him, I placed my trembling palm over his. Sudden, prickly awareness flooded my system, sending warning sparks of fire and ice skating along the surface of my skin.
My eyes flew to his which narrowed warily on my face as he wrapped his long fingers securely around mine.
Holding me firmly, he tugged me out into the aisle.
My eyes bounced between his dark, fathomless gaze and the suspicious, worried eyes of the attendant. Inside his grip, my fingers twitched, begging for release.
With a squeeze of my hand, he regained my full attention.
My eyes dropped to his lip, and I winced.
The corner of his beautiful mouth quirked before settling into its usual straight line. “Let’s get to the hotel. Where are your bags?”
I pointed to the overhead bin mutely.
He released my hand leaving me relieved but also oddly bereft.
I gave my hand a little shake and rubbed my palm on my pants to rid myself of the feeling of emptiness. This man turned me inside out and upside down and I didn’t even know him.
His focus homed in on the movement, and his mouth tightened.
My heart dropped at his obvious, and erroneous, conclusion. Could this get any worse? How could I fix this? I couldn’t very well explain the weird sense of loss when he released me.
“Um…” Yet, I didn’t want him to think I despised him. But didn’t I?
His arm brushed my shoulder as he twisted and reached up for my bag. Fire and ice. My breasts swelled.
My body swayed toward him by its own volition.
He brought my bag down between us and faced me, his face immobile. “Yes?”
“What?” Yes, what? Frig, Hope. Pull it together! “Uh…” Frozen in place, I wracked my brain for words. Any words. But none came.
Seemingly unaware of my conundrum, he flicked a glance at me before reaching over the empty seat for my purse. He handed it to me before going back for my book. His eyebrows rose as he scanned the cover, and the blood returned to my face.
With gusto.
“Um…” My cheeks burned. No ice. Just fire. I didn’t even protest when he slipped my book into the sleeve of his carry-on.
The weight of his gaze rested on my flaming face, but I could not bring myself to meet his eyes.
“Please,” he indicated for me to precede him. With no other choice, and the possible threat of an air travel ban hanging over my head, I complied.
Cavernous silence opened between us as we walked up the ramp, taunting me to make this right.
Once inside the terminal, I gathered my courage and pulled up my big girl panties.
