“No, I don’t want to fall asleep with my mouth open in front of you.” Then she yawns again right after she makes her declaration and we both laugh.
“Tell you what. I’ll move over to that corner and you can rest in peace. Hmmm?”
She shakes her head. “No, I don’t want to trouble you.”
“No trouble,” I say, standing. It would be good to be away from her. She’s too distracting.
“Thank you for being such a gentleman.”
I nod and move away, but the term surprises me. No woman has ever called me a gentleman. Ever. Hard. Cold. Unfeeling. Bastard. Aloof. Heartless. Those are the words that are usually hurled at me.
I debate getting myself a whisky, but I would rather stay sober. I am thirsty though and I’m starting to get restless cooped up on the plane. I go to the bar and I pour myself a coke, add some ice and walk to the corner seat. For a second I stand looking down at the seat then I walk back toward Cindy. The word she used is still rattling around in my brain. Gentleman?
Cindy is already fast asleep. And her mouth is slightly parted.
I can’t move. I stand over her and watch her with fascination. She looks so angelic, her long lashes lying on her smooth cheeks. Her skin looks so damn soft I want to touch it and let my fingers caress the curving contours.
What the fuck are you doing?
Waking up to find someone watching you sleeping is pretty fucking creepy, and the last thing I want is for Cindy to start thinking I’m a pervert. I turn away instantly and go back to the corner seat. I feel shaken. My lack of control is extraordinary. I’m never like this.
I open my laptop. Work. Work is always the answer. At least if I’m working, I know I have to focus on what I’m doing. I type in my password. I might as well get some emails out of the way since I’ll be keeping work to a minimum while I’m at my aunt’s house.
Cindy makes a little snuffling sound and shuffles in her seat and in spite of myself my head lifts and my whole body comes to attention and listens intently, the way a man in a jungle who has heard a twig break behind him might.
Resisting her is going to be hard. Much, much harder than I’ve imagined.
Cindy
Something wakes me up and my eyes flicker open. It takes a second for me to remember where I am. Ah yes, I’m on Alex’s plane heading to Russia. I come awake fully when I think of Alex. Turning my head, I spy on him, sitting in his seat, a slight frown etched into his forehead as he types something into his laptop.
He must have felt my gaze on him because he raises his eyes and looks unsmiling at me. I have dragged him out of another world; there is no trace of the hunger/lust whatever you want to call it in his eyes. He is completely unapproachable and brutally distant.
“Just need to get this email sent before I shut down for landing,” he says quietly.
“Of course,” I croak and quickly turn my head back around. Frankly, it’s a shock to see him like that, and I realize with a start that this is the face he shows the rest of the world.
I hear him typing furiously as I put my seat upright, then take my compact out of my purse. After I make sure I don’t have drool running down my chin I snap my compact shut close. As I straighten my clothes, I hear him close his laptop.
He strolls over and slips into the seat opposite me. “Do you feel better for your nap?”
“Yes thanks,” I say, searching his face. The hunger is back. Suddenly, I feel self-conscious. “Was I snoring?”
“Like a full-grown hog,” he drawls in that deep, smooth voice of his.
My God, this man is calling me a full-grown hog and yet it sounds like he is making love to me. I feel heat rush up my throat and cheeks.
Alex laughs. “I’m joking,” he says. “You slept like an angel.”
I clear my throat. “How long before we land?”
He glances at his watch. “Less than half-an-hour.”
“I’ve been sleeping for nearly three hours?” I ask surprised.
“Mmm …”
“And you worked the whole time?”
“Three hours is not exactly a long time,” he says quietly.
At that moment Gloria comes through to the cabin to check our seat belts are fastened correctly for landing. I fasten my seat belt quickly, then I peer out of the window. We’re flying lower now, coming in to land over a vibrant city. I remember what Alex said about this part of our journey. We’ll land at a normal airport and have our documents checked before we’ll take off again to get to our final destination. Wherever that is.