over there.” Tanner jabs a thumb at Sebastian as the car starts rolling, nearly knocking me over again. “I sure as hell don’t know. Got some text from ‘unknown’, figured it was from Opal since I keep forgetting to get her number, and next thing I know I’m being bundled into this car with Cheerful Face here—”
“Which am I—Mr. Sullen Silence, or Cheerful Face?” asks Sebastian acidly. “I suggest you pick one, since I doubt you have the mental capacity to remember two nicknames for one person.”
“I doubt you have the face capacity to not have your face break when I punch it—”
“Face capacity. Is that a scientific term?”
“Stop it,” I interrupt, trying not to look at Sebastian, because every time I do, blood floods into my cheeks. I peer into the passenger seat—Renée’s not there, and the driver has got headphones on. He takes the exit not for town, but for the highway. “Seriously, guys, where are we going?”
Sebastian doesn’t look at me as he says, “I don’t know. I was roped into this the same way you were. I assume it’s some annoying plan of Renée’s.”
By roped into it, I suppose he means he was pushed into the car with no explanation as well. I realize he’s slightly pale, and I remember what I read about his abduction. “Sebastian, are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” he says coolly. His face is as carefully guarded as ever.
“Oy!” Tanner knocks the back of the driver’s headrest. “Where are we headed?”
Unsurprisingly, there’s no answer.
It takes all my strength not to stare at Sebastian. He’s acting like the kiss never happened. When he glances at me, it’s like his gaze goes straight through. I’m not sure how to reconcile that with the fierce passion I got a glimpse of. All I know is that I want more.
Finally, the car pulls into an empty parking lot at the edge of town. I’m completely perplexed until Sebastian gives a low sigh. I follow the direction of his eyes and see it at the same time as Tanner, who swears loudly—a private jet, huge and white, is crouched on the asphalt like some gleaming bird.
The driver finally takes off his headphones and twists around toward us. I notice how beefy he is—more like a bouncer than a driver. “I have instructions to make sure you three get on the jet.”
Sebastian massages his forehead. “ Renée has gone completely insane, then.”
“Are you guys kidding me?” Tanner says delightedly, practically kicking open the car door. “That thing’s like straight out of James Bond! I bet it has martinis. There better be martinis.”
There are, in fact, martinis, a fact we discover after we’re all on the jet. Sebastian very obviously doesn’t want to get on, and I have my own reservations, but Tanner runs ahead. If this is some sort of supervillain ploy, I can’t let him get into it on his own. Sebastian calls after me in annoyance, but after I get on, he follows. I’m fairly certain that if we hadn’t, that driver would have had his own ways of making sure we complied.
I’ve never been inside a jet before, and I can’t stop staring. Each creamy white leather seat is bigger than the armchair in my mom’s living room. A matching couch stretches along one side of the jet. Gleaming wood tables fold out from the walls, and high-definition television sets are mounted above them. A young woman in a neat uniform smiles at us. “Anything to drink?”
Tanner immediately orders a martini and claims the couch, sprawling out on the luxurious cushions. He tosses one at Sebastian. “There are definite perks to being friends with you, even if I do have to look at your face.”
“Tanner, shut up.” I sit gingerly on one of the chairs. I sink in a few inches. I glance up at Sebastian, who frowns deeply as the entry hatch closes behind us. I can’t help but smile—it is like something out of a movie. “This is really Renée’s? Sebastian, this is amazing!”
“It’s my father’s.” He
“Which am I—Mr. Sullen Silence, or Cheerful Face?” asks Sebastian acidly. “I suggest you pick one, since I doubt you have the mental capacity to remember two nicknames for one person.”
“I doubt you have the face capacity to not have your face break when I punch it—”
“Face capacity. Is that a scientific term?”
“Stop it,” I interrupt, trying not to look at Sebastian, because every time I do, blood floods into my cheeks. I peer into the passenger seat—Renée’s not there, and the driver has got headphones on. He takes the exit not for town, but for the highway. “Seriously, guys, where are we going?”
Sebastian doesn’t look at me as he says, “I don’t know. I was roped into this the same way you were. I assume it’s some annoying plan of Renée’s.”
By roped into it, I suppose he means he was pushed into the car with no explanation as well. I realize he’s slightly pale, and I remember what I read about his abduction. “Sebastian, are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” he says coolly. His face is as carefully guarded as ever.
“Oy!” Tanner knocks the back of the driver’s headrest. “Where are we headed?”
Unsurprisingly, there’s no answer.
It takes all my strength not to stare at Sebastian. He’s acting like the kiss never happened. When he glances at me, it’s like his gaze goes straight through. I’m not sure how to reconcile that with the fierce passion I got a glimpse of. All I know is that I want more.
Finally, the car pulls into an empty parking lot at the edge of town. I’m completely perplexed until Sebastian gives a low sigh. I follow the direction of his eyes and see it at the same time as Tanner, who swears loudly—a private jet, huge and white, is crouched on the asphalt like some gleaming bird.
The driver finally takes off his headphones and twists around toward us. I notice how beefy he is—more like a bouncer than a driver. “I have instructions to make sure you three get on the jet.”
Sebastian massages his forehead. “ Renée has gone completely insane, then.”
“Are you guys kidding me?” Tanner says delightedly, practically kicking open the car door. “That thing’s like straight out of James Bond! I bet it has martinis. There better be martinis.”
There are, in fact, martinis, a fact we discover after we’re all on the jet. Sebastian very obviously doesn’t want to get on, and I have my own reservations, but Tanner runs ahead. If this is some sort of supervillain ploy, I can’t let him get into it on his own. Sebastian calls after me in annoyance, but after I get on, he follows. I’m fairly certain that if we hadn’t, that driver would have had his own ways of making sure we complied.
I’ve never been inside a jet before, and I can’t stop staring. Each creamy white leather seat is bigger than the armchair in my mom’s living room. A matching couch stretches along one side of the jet. Gleaming wood tables fold out from the walls, and high-definition television sets are mounted above them. A young woman in a neat uniform smiles at us. “Anything to drink?”
Tanner immediately orders a martini and claims the couch, sprawling out on the luxurious cushions. He tosses one at Sebastian. “There are definite perks to being friends with you, even if I do have to look at your face.”
“Tanner, shut up.” I sit gingerly on one of the chairs. I sink in a few inches. I glance up at Sebastian, who frowns deeply as the entry hatch closes behind us. I can’t help but smile—it is like something out of a movie. “This is really Renée’s? Sebastian, this is amazing!”
“It’s my father’s.” He
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