Simon: Rockstar Romance (The ProVokaTiv Series Book 3) by Cara Nelson Page B

making its way to Newark, and then finally to West Africa, I thought about how there had better not be any unexpected surprises that I couldn’t take care of from across the ocean. It wasn’t like Gauge or Hunter could help me out until they arrived in West Africa for the concert. I was going to be gone for ten days and all the forms of technology I relied on regularly might not always be available or at optimal performance. I just had to hope that I’d put everything into perspective.
    “Simon, hi,” Jessie said.
    I jumped up and if it wasn’t for the extra space in first class, I would have bumped my head on the overhead luggage bins that would have been there.
    “Jessie, hey there.” I looked at her. She looked like a walking ball of sunshine, wearing a white t-shirt with an abstract orange swirling sun on it, a white skirt and some sandals. A bit hipster, but she pulled it off, especially when you factored in her slightly tanned skin and the smile. She instantly made me happier and I felt like a better man.
    I stood up and grabbed her carry-on bag. “Overhead?”
    “Under the seat,” she said.
    I slid it under the seat as she stood in the aisle and then turned around. It was only then that we hugged each other and I gave her the ‘friendly’ two back pats style hug, but I didn’t want to let her go. That floral scent she wore came back to me and I really liked it.
    “Want me to take the inside seat?” she asked.
    “If you don’t mind.”
    “No problem,” she said, looking around. Her left eye brow raised slightly and then eased past me to sit down. Her skin brushed against my leg and although it was just material on material, my flesh reacted like she’d just seductively stroked my inner thigh.
    I dropped into my seat and watched her fiddle with her seat belt. “Everything okay, Jess?”
    “I guess. I was just looking around. This is so luxurious up here. Where’s everyone else?”
    “In coach.”
    “That makes me feel kind of snobby. You didn’t have to spend this money on me for first class, you know. I bet it costs more than a semester of grad school.”
    “I don’t know if it does or doesn’t, but we haven’t had a chance to talk face-to-face for five weeks. I kinda thought we might have a lot to say. Easier to talk up here than it is in coach, yes?”
    “I have no idea, but the money this cost could have probably been put to a better use,” she said.
    I looked at her and thought, oh no, here we go again . Her money, rather lack of money, fascination tripped me up a bit.
    “No turning back now,” I commented.
    “Well, I’ll be eager to see how different a conversation is in first class than in coach,” she said, winking at me.
    A flight attendant came up and smiled. “Would you care for some champagne or another beverage before take-off?”
    I saw Jessie contemplating it. “I think you should have champagne to celebrate the kick-off to the festival.” Then I looked at the attendant and said, “I’ll take one, as well. Thanks.”
    Two minutes later, we had crystal champagne flutes in hand and were toasting our adventure as the plane started to taxi down the tarmac, preparing to take flight again.
    “To Eradicate Festival’s success,” I said.
    “To our success,” Jessie added. “And a successful flight.”
    My face dropped and she sensed her comment warranted an explanation.
    “I recall you saying you didn’t care for flying,” she said, smiling and patting my hand with her free one. “Let me know if you need me to hold your hand.”
    Okay, she was teasing me, but I didn’t mind. We each took a sip of the champagne and I tried to hide the fact that I despised champagne. Why I even thought I’d drink it just for the sake of the toast with Jessie was beyond me. It wasn’t something I’d normally do, but it seemed fitting.
    Jessie, on the other hand, took a sip of the slightly amber bubbly liquid and as it slid down her throat, I saw her smile in complete delight. I