specifically to Dani, and now she walked through the lobby, soaking up the place that had been her home away from home, knowing that it very well might be the last time she set her eyes on the place.
The building was new, all steel and glass, with a wall of windows looking out on to the tarmac lined with millions of dollars worth of planes. Beyond that lay an incredible view of the LA skyline.
Hard to remember that only a year ago, all of Sky High had been housed in a single leased hangar with borrowed planes and boatloads of debt.
But the three guys, her three guys, had built this place from sweat and guts and sheer determination. Now they ran a luxury jet service to the stinking rich, and she was a part of it.
Or she had been.
That was the thing about burning bridges. And she’d burned a big one when she’d left Brody in the mountains with his keys in her pocket.
Even having lifted his keys, she knew she had a limited amount of time before he figured out a way to get here and went all Neanderthal on her. So she left the lobby for the tarmac, waiting for her plane. She was financially stable, thanks to a great paycheck, but even with that paycheck, she wasn’t in a position to afford a charter flight. With Dani’s help, she’d shamelessly used her employee status to deeply discount the flight.
Once the plane was rolled out, she could board, and since she would do so under an assumed name, Brody would never know. She wondered how many times he’d called. Was he worried or just plain pissed off? God, she wished it didn’t have to be this way, that things had turned out differently, but she didn’t have time for regrets.
Too bad her heart didn’t seem to get the message.
When her sister’s phone vibrated, she jumped on it, expecting it to be Leena, but she was about as wrong as she could get.
It was Rick.
Good to know you came to your senses about protecting Maddie. We’ll expect you on the island at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning to do the job.
Oh, God. Did that mean…no. Leena hadn’t gone to New Orleans. Somehow, some way, she’d spoken to Rick and was headed to the island.
To protect Maddie.
“No. No, no, no, no…” As quickly as she could make her fingers move, she hit send, entered her own number, and typed in, DON’T DO IT!
But Leena wasn’t exactly on a roll of listening to Maddie, was she? Which meant she needed to stop Leena from getting to Stone Cay.
Where was her plane? Just as she thought it, two linemen finally came out of hangar two, towing the Learjet she’d ordered, but before she could board, Shayne exited the lobby.
Crap .
He strode down the tarmac toward her in his easygoing, long-limbed gait, looking for all the world like any one of the wealthy, sophisticated clients they served on a daily basis.
But she knew that was just the veneer he pulled on like those designer duds he favored. His family might be wealthy and sophisticated, but on the inside, Shayne was a guy’s guy, a regular blue-collar type, holding his own with the streetwise Noah and Brody.
Shayne didn’t say a word, just pulled her into his arms. He was tall and lean but strong as hell, and for a moment, she absorbed his strength and affection while fighting a stupid urge to cry.
“You scared the hell out of us,” he murmured, pressing his cheek to her hair, holding her tight. “All of us.”
She knew. And she hated it because they were her family here. They were her life, but she’d done what she had to.
“Why didn’t you return any of my calls? Are you okay?”
Throat tight, she nodded.
“So what’s going on, Mad?”
At that, she went from nodding to shaking her head in the negative.
Still gently holding on to her, he pulled back enough to search her gaze. “Tell me this much. Are you quitting? Because I need to schedule in hanging myself if you are.”
That tugged a laugh out of her, and he smiled. “Okay, so you’re not quitting. Do you need help?”
“Obviously, you know I ordered a
The building was new, all steel and glass, with a wall of windows looking out on to the tarmac lined with millions of dollars worth of planes. Beyond that lay an incredible view of the LA skyline.
Hard to remember that only a year ago, all of Sky High had been housed in a single leased hangar with borrowed planes and boatloads of debt.
But the three guys, her three guys, had built this place from sweat and guts and sheer determination. Now they ran a luxury jet service to the stinking rich, and she was a part of it.
Or she had been.
That was the thing about burning bridges. And she’d burned a big one when she’d left Brody in the mountains with his keys in her pocket.
Even having lifted his keys, she knew she had a limited amount of time before he figured out a way to get here and went all Neanderthal on her. So she left the lobby for the tarmac, waiting for her plane. She was financially stable, thanks to a great paycheck, but even with that paycheck, she wasn’t in a position to afford a charter flight. With Dani’s help, she’d shamelessly used her employee status to deeply discount the flight.
Once the plane was rolled out, she could board, and since she would do so under an assumed name, Brody would never know. She wondered how many times he’d called. Was he worried or just plain pissed off? God, she wished it didn’t have to be this way, that things had turned out differently, but she didn’t have time for regrets.
Too bad her heart didn’t seem to get the message.
When her sister’s phone vibrated, she jumped on it, expecting it to be Leena, but she was about as wrong as she could get.
It was Rick.
Good to know you came to your senses about protecting Maddie. We’ll expect you on the island at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning to do the job.
Oh, God. Did that mean…no. Leena hadn’t gone to New Orleans. Somehow, some way, she’d spoken to Rick and was headed to the island.
To protect Maddie.
“No. No, no, no, no…” As quickly as she could make her fingers move, she hit send, entered her own number, and typed in, DON’T DO IT!
But Leena wasn’t exactly on a roll of listening to Maddie, was she? Which meant she needed to stop Leena from getting to Stone Cay.
Where was her plane? Just as she thought it, two linemen finally came out of hangar two, towing the Learjet she’d ordered, but before she could board, Shayne exited the lobby.
Crap .
He strode down the tarmac toward her in his easygoing, long-limbed gait, looking for all the world like any one of the wealthy, sophisticated clients they served on a daily basis.
But she knew that was just the veneer he pulled on like those designer duds he favored. His family might be wealthy and sophisticated, but on the inside, Shayne was a guy’s guy, a regular blue-collar type, holding his own with the streetwise Noah and Brody.
Shayne didn’t say a word, just pulled her into his arms. He was tall and lean but strong as hell, and for a moment, she absorbed his strength and affection while fighting a stupid urge to cry.
“You scared the hell out of us,” he murmured, pressing his cheek to her hair, holding her tight. “All of us.”
She knew. And she hated it because they were her family here. They were her life, but she’d done what she had to.
“Why didn’t you return any of my calls? Are you okay?”
Throat tight, she nodded.
“So what’s going on, Mad?”
At that, she went from nodding to shaking her head in the negative.
Still gently holding on to her, he pulled back enough to search her gaze. “Tell me this much. Are you quitting? Because I need to schedule in hanging myself if you are.”
That tugged a laugh out of her, and he smiled. “Okay, so you’re not quitting. Do you need help?”
“Obviously, you know I ordered a
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