‘Stop worrying about me,’ Ruby said. ‘I can take care of myself.’
Now all she had to do was prove it.
CHAPTER FOUR
THEFLIGHTTOAthens was uneventful, especially since Lucas had organised a private jet. While they were waiting for their transfer Ruby took the opportunity to buy a swimsuit and a sarong, and other essential items, given she only had her weekend clothes with her. None of which were suitable for a Greek island.
She went back to where Lucas was waiting for her in a private lounge area.
‘Did you get everything you need?’
‘I think so. How soon do we board the next plane?’
‘Not a plane. A helicopter. Stavros, the pilot, is waiting for us now.’
A cold hand of fear gripped at her insides, squeezing, twisting, torturing. She looked out of the window to where a helicopter was stationed.A helicopter?Even saying the word in her mind was enough to send her spiralling into panic. Seeing those powerful blades reminded her of a flight when she was a young child, with one of her mother’s boyfriends. The boyfriend had seemed to enjoy her terror, and had shredded her tender nerves with his reckless behaviour as pilot.
She hadn’t been in a helicopter since. She’d been lucky in her career so far and had not needed to fly in one, but with the growing popularity of destination weddings she knew it wouldn’t be long before she would have to face down her fear.
‘Can’t we go by boat?’ Ruby asked.
‘It’s quicker by air.’
She shifted her weight from foot to foot, glancing with trepidation at the helicopter waiting on the tarmac in the bright, shimmering sunshine. ‘B-but it’d be nice going by boat. The fresh air, the scenery—we might even see dolphins.’
Lucas turned his head in her direction and frowned in concern. ‘Are you scared of helicopters?’
His tone was gentle, not the least bit mocking, and it made it so much harder to maintain her emotional distance. Ruby moistened her suddenly dry lips, conscious of how close he was standing to her. His rolled-up shirtsleeve brushed against the bare skin of her arm and an electrifying tingle raced along her flesh and tripped her pulse.
‘A little...’
‘Have you had a bad experience in one?’
Even though she knew he couldn’t see her expression, she sensed he could read her distress signals. Her rapid breathing, her racing pulse, her agitated movements. He could probably even hear her churning stomach.
‘When I was seven my mother had a rich boyfriend who had a helicopter pilot’s licence. He was also a drug dealer.’ She glanced at the helicopter again and shuddered. ‘He got a kick out of seeing how frightened I was when he made dangerous moves.’ She swallowed and added, ‘I haven’t been in one since...’
Lucas placed a stabilising hand on her shoulder. ‘What a cruel thing to do to a small, sensitive child.’ His voice was throbbing with barely suppressed anger on her behalf. ‘Didn’t your mother tell him to stop?’
‘No, she thought it was funny. She liked the daredevil lifestyle he offered and thought I needed to be toughened up.’ She twisted her lips and added, ‘She blamed me when they broke up a few weeks later. She said he couldn’t cope with a kid who still wet the bed at seven years old.’
‘Oh, Ruby...’
Lucas gathered her in his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head. His arms were strong and yet infinitely gentle, as if he was reaching back through time to comfort that small, terrified little girl.
Ruby breathed in the scent of him—the citrus top notes of his aftershave with its hints of wood and leather. Her face was pressed against the freshly laundered cotton of his shirt, which was the only barrier between her skin and the toned muscles of his chest. She could feel the steadytump-tump-tumpof his heart against her cheek and her own heart went into a hit-and-miss rhythm, along with her pulse. She became aware of how close her lower body was to his. Her soft contours moulded against his hard frame, stirring her feminine flesh, igniting needs she fought desperately to control.
Lucas gently put her from him, but kept his hands on the tops of her shoulders. The only sign that he might be as rattled by her closeness as she was by his was a dull flush riding high along his aristocratic cheekbones.
‘Hey, you’ll be fine with me. I’ve flown heaps of times and never had an incident. I would fly us myself, except for my current condition.’
‘You have a helicopter licence?’
He gave a grim movement of his mouth that loosely passed for a rueful smile and his hands fell away from her shoulders, one of them raking through his hair. ‘Yes—not that it’s much use to me at present.’
Ruby placed her fingers on the bare hair-roughened skin of his tanned wrist. Another lightning zap of electricity shot up her arm, and she knew he must have felt a similar reaction for he gave a tiny flinch, but didn’t move his wrist away from her touch.
‘It must be difficult to not know if you will regain your full vision.’