Completely Smitten by Kristine Grayson Page A

they had to fly?”
    “Well, yeah.” Duke glanced at her.
    She raised her eyebrows at him deliberately, and he gave her a sheepish grin.
    “Okay,” Duke said. “So he could have walked in.”
    “Hiked in.”
    “That too.”
    There was a valley. The land was flat; the mountains were in the distance. Tiny buildings dotted the ground and a ribbon of highway flowed through the center. Ariel was never so glad to see anything in her life. She would be getting out of this plane soon.
    “I’ll just ask him about it when I see him again,” Duke was saying.
    “Who?” Ariel asked. Her heart rose in expectation. Maybe she could see Darius one last time.
    “Vari.”
    “You’re going to see him?”
    Duke nodded. “Next Wednesday. Gotta pick him up, seven A.M. If I’m late, he don’t pay for the flight. It’s been our agreement forever, before me even.”
    “Before you? I thought you’ve flown this route for years.”
    “Yeah,” Duke said. “Vari’s been around forever. He had that same bet with the guy who flew the route before me. Guess someone was late once, and it really torked Vari off. I guess he’s not a guy you’ve ever seen mad.”
    “I take it you’ve never seen him mad.”
    Duke shook his head. “Don’t want to either. He’s unpleasant enough when he’s nice.”
    “No wonder you didn’t think he rescued me,” Ariel said.
    The plane eased toward the highway. The buildings were getting larger, the ground was getting closer, and she still didn’t see anything resembling a runway.
    “I didn’t think he rescued you because he’s too short to carry you. It’d be like being rescued by an eight-year-old.”
    “He’s that short?”
    “Lady, he’s the shortest adult I’ve ever seen.”
    It looked as if the plane was heading toward a flat, square building. Ariel gripped the side of the seat even harder, her fingers finding the stuffing. This plane ride was never going to end.
    “When we land,” Duke said, “Evelyn’s gonna drive you to the hospital.”
    “That’s not necessary,” Ariel said.
     
    Duke let out a barking laugh. “What do you think you’re gonna do, catch a cab?”
    She hadn’t given it any thought “I don’t know. I thought—”
    “No sense wasting an ambulance ride on you. You’re okay enough. Even though Vari wanted you checked out. He was real insistent about that.” Duke frowned at her. “You sure you didn’t see him?”
    “I’m sure.” Ariel was the only one looking at the windshield now. The building was too close. It was made of some kind of corrugated metal and painted gray. The roof was flat and huge. Did he plan to land on the roof?
    “Because he was awful insistent about what happened to you. And …” Duke paused. He probably meant it for dramatic effect, but it was just annoying. “… he’s paying for this flight.”
    “What?” That got Ariel’s attention. It even made her look away from the windshield.
    “Hang on a sec.”
    Duke said that last casually, but Ariel was convinced he had just realized they were going to hit the building. He spit out the toothpick and leaned forward as if he were nearsighted and had forgotten his glasses.
    The engines roared even louder and the plane continued to head toward the roof.
    At the very last moment, the plane cleared the roof and a runway appeared. Apparently the building had hidden it from view.
    Ariel let out a sigh of relief. Duke brought the plane down on the runway too fast. The plane bounced, rose in the air again, then sank to the ground, the squeal of brakes so loud that Ariel’s ears hurt.
    She could smell burning rubber, and she knew if she looked behind them, she would probably see smoke, tire marks, and maybe sparks.
    Oh, good. Sparks. That was just what they needed, given the fuel fumes inside the cabin.
    Duke brought the plane to a complete stop. Ariel’s fingers were permanently embedded in the passenger seat. She’d need to get them surgically removed.
    A fiftyish woman with