“That’s a ‘we won’t rule out any possibility.’”
“What happens when they come for me in New York City?”
“They won’t be that foolish,” I assure her, and I believe that to be true. “They know I’ll be waiting. They know I’ll be ready, especially after tonight.”
“If they believe I’m the way to cover up whatever you’re about to discover, they might be desperate.”
“That bank account was wiped out,” I remind her. “They can’t pin anything on you.”
“We have no idea what else they might have on me, what else they framed me for.”
“We knew about the bank account,” I counter. “And anything else digital Blake has found.”
“There could be paper trails, things I did that I didn’t know I was doing. Eric, that meeting with the union I was supposed to have—it felt weird. It felt like a set-up. I actually thought that when I found out about it.”
“What kind of set-up?”
“At the time, I thought they were going to make it look like I screwed things up with the union to fire me. A way to get rid of me for bringing you here. Now, I’m not so sure, Eric. Maybe it was something more nefarious. Who knows what kind of ways they’ve been setting me up to be a fall guy. After tonight, I’m afraid I’ve been blind and stupid.”
“No,” I say. “You’re not blind. You’re not stupid. You had a gut feeling about the union meeting. When we get to New York City, we’ll sit down and tune into any instinct you had that might guide us. Sleep now. We only have a couple of hours until we land and we’ll plan this out.”
“How can I sleep? The plane. This damn family. My mother back there with them.”
“Your mother is safe.”
“Can we warn Walker Security that Gigi might be involved? What if me leaving has them turn on her?”
“You know Wa
lker is already watching her. They’re damn good. They’ve thought of everything we’ve thought of.”
“How can you be sure? If this was your mother—”
“You’re right,” I say. “You’re absolutely right.” The plane is calm enough, for the moment at least, that I unbuckle and walk to the table where I left the MacBook in a compartment under the wooden top. I grab it, hold on as we shake a good thirty seconds and then make my way back to my seat. Once I’m secure again, I pull up the MacBook and try to connect but this time it’s a no-go. I show Harper the message I’m getting. “Sorry, sweetheart. It’s just not going to happen.” I shove the Mac into a pocket by my chair and turn to Harper. “Adam’s in charge in Denver and he’s damn good. He’ll protect your mother with his life. I promise you this. Rest, princess.”
“Princess?”
“I like that name for you,” I say, my voice rasping with about ten emotions I can’t name. “You’re my princess, not theirs. Not ever again. They don’t get to define us, remember?”
“But you—”
I lean in and kiss her. “Want you like I have never wanted in my life. Now rest. You won’t get to rest when you’re in my bed. Not the first night. Hell, maybe not the first month.”
A faint smile touches her lips but doesn’t quite reach her eyes. I want it to reach her eyes and that means ending the Kingston hell she’s in. Fuck. I should have ended the Kingstons when I wanted to end them. When I was five seconds from doing it, and doing it with proverbial dynamite. I lean her seat back and stand up to grab the blanket and pull it over her. I then crank my seat back as well and face her.
I cup her face and my thumb strokes her cheek. “Shut your eyes and think of something that makes you happy.”
“Ending this would make me happy.”
“Then I’ll end it, just to make you happy.”
She gives me another half smile. “Just to make me happy?”
“Yes, princess. Just to make you happy.”
Her hand settles on my princess tattoo. “Maybe princess isn’t such a bad nickname. Not when you say it like you just did.”
“How did I just say it?”