I swallow hard, trying to decipher what he’s getting at through the alcohol haze, weighing me down. “Have I ever had a real choice?”
He exhales and closes his eyes. “You wound me.” He groans, laying a hand on his face. “Tell me what you want, Drew.”
“If you love me, really, truly love me, let him live.”
He hangs his head. “I prayed for you not knowing how complicated everything would be when I got you. Understand, just because I can’t give you this one thing doesn’t mean you aren’t everything to me.” His throat works as he swallows, and I finally lose the battle to my stomach. There’s a vase on a table next to us that I vomit in. “Good talk,” Riley exhales. “I’m going to work out. Why don’t you go to bed? We have an early morning.” He kisses me on the forehead and gently tugs the wig off my head. “There you are.” His golden eyes twinkle. “I love you. Please don’t worry about me tomorrow. I fought too hard to finally have a safe place to land to fuck it up now.” He licks his lips. “This is the good part.”
“I’m sorry for puking on the beautiful flowers you got me. God, I love you.” Riley smiles at me sweetly then vanishes for the rest of the night. I don’t feel his side of the bed dip down, and when my screaming alarm wakes me up, he’s not next to me. Still drunk, I shower, grab the suitcase I packed yesterday and meet Reggie and our new travel team in the hallway. These are all men we can trust implicitly. Callie hugs me, still in her pajamas. She tells me it’s going to be okay. That I need to trust fate. That’s what she’s really into now. Fate. It brought her Reggie and the best life she’s ever had. I don’t know if I believe in it the way she does. I’ve seen how easily fate is manipulated.
“Riley is already on the plane,” Reggie says. He turns to Callie, and they share a look. I’m sure actual goodbyes happened last night and this morning. Reggie is in front of his employees now and has to be professional, so right now, it’s just a longing look. My eyes are heavy on the drive to the private airport. I’m surprised by how many people are here this morning. Some I recognize—Astor officers and the mayor. Amy is in a casual sweatsuit holding two suitcases as she takes a call on her headphones. This is a way to make money. It’s a way to launder cartel money. This is business. This fight was always going to be more than meets the eye like everything in the Astors do.
“Reggie, I’m nervous,” I say, voice cracking.
“For who?”
“For everyone.”
“Nerves don’t serve anyone. Try to relax. Be smooth. All eyes will be on you, Drew. It’s your first appearance since being Riley’s official consort.”
“I look like a drowned, wet rat,” I say, widening my eyes.
“That’s on you for going out last night,” he replies, annoyance still there.
“I’m sorry. It’s my usual way of dealing with stress. Guess I need to find a new vice now that people know who I am.”
Reggie laughs. “Don’t apologize.”
“Ugh, stop telling me that. I’m hungry.”
“Breakfast is on the plane.”
I say his name, and it hangs in the air. “Jesse is already there. He flew out last night. He wanted to visit some folks he used to know.”
I nod. “That makes sense.”
“It’s not in your best interest to talk about him. Riley is nervous.”
“Did he sleep last night?”
He shakes his head, and we pull up to the plane where a narrow, red carpet is prepared for passengers. Riley is standing at the top of the stairs. He’s wearing jeans and a white t-shirt. He’s waiting for me, I realize. I step out, with only eyes for him even though I know the dozen people behind me are staring at me. I take the steps two at a time until I’m in his arms.
“I missed you.”
“I had work, and I wanted to make sure to get a workout in. So you’ll have more faith in my fighting abilities.” He laughs, pressing his lips against my neck. “I missed you, too. Hoping to make up last night during the flight.”
A thrill of expectation shoots up my spine and my core clenches. “Yes, please.”
A feral noise rips through his throat as he spins us into the plane. He sets me down, then introduces me to the pilot standing by the cockpit and a flight attendant holding two glasses of orange juice. “Eat. I know you’re hungry when you first wake up.”
I nod and take the juice. I’m parched from last night and we eat breakfast together during takeoff. Our security team is on this plane, but no one else. They all flew on a different plane. When we reach cruising altitude, Riley stands and slides open a door in the back of the plane that exposes a bedroom. “Join me?” He lifts one brow, and his thick lips pull into a carnal grin.
My answering smile must satisfy because he adjusts his cock while shaking his head once. I rub my ass against his hard-on as I slip past him. He closes the door and locks it. “About me missing you last night.”
I nod. “About that.”
“I don’t want to talk about anything else. Please, all I want is to have you. I want to be with you and pretend for this one flight that we’re a normal couple with regular problems.”
I smirk. “What are our regular problems?”