I thought it was more likely he wanted to keep an eye on me, but I didn’t want to ruin Layla’s enthusiasm. Besides, there was a small chance she could be right. I remembered how we’d been together, him making me come with both our fingers inside me, and me sucking on his cock. Okay, so how he’d acted afterwards had been cruel, but I’d given him a taste of something, and maybe he wanted more. But there would be plenty of women in Estonia willing to suck his dick for him. I hoped he wouldn’t parade them in front of me, if that was what he had planned.
I perked up. It might be fun to spend some time with Jodie, get to know her better, and Leo, too. I was going to be a part of this family now, no matter what Tam said, so spending some time with them was a good thing.
Tam’s shout came from downstairs. “Hurry up, Hallie. We have to go.”
He must have packed earlier, before I’d come home. I wondered what Tam’s holiday clothes consisted of. I couldn’t see him in brightly coloured shirts or a pair of cut-off shorts. He probably did something really wild like roll up the sleeves of yet another identical black shirt.
Teasing him, if only in my head, made me feel better about myself. I grabbed my bag and phone and hurried down to join him. His bag sat at his feet. He saw me coming and opened the front door, then picked up his bag. He made no move to offer to carry mine.
“How are we getting to the airport?” I asked.
“I’ll drive us.”
I wasn’t someone to be impressed by cars, but even I liked his almost silent Tesla. The idea of Tam Cornell being worried about the environment made me laugh, but then I realised if he was happy to be jetting off to a foreign country at the drop of a hat, he most likely just liked the car.
We drove through the city, via the Blackwall Tunnel, and then headed towards Stratford. I wasn’t sure which airport we were going to, but it certainly wasn’t one of the bigger ones. Not that I was surprised. I knew how people in our business travelled.
Forty minutes later, we arrived at a private airport. It had a big hanger, a flight centre running flying lessons, and there even appeared to be an accommodation block. Tam parked the car and climbed out. He raised his hand in a wave at another man, one I vaguely recognised from the wedding. He looked similar to Tam with the dark hair, but he was shorter and bulkier.
The two men shook hands, and I waited to be introduced properly. When Tam didn’t even acknowledge me, I introduced myself, sticking out my hand.
“Hi, I’m Hallie. Hallie Wynter.”
The man glanced down at my hand and then lifted his gaze to my face as though he couldn’t figure out what I was doing there. Tam made no effort to intervene.
“And you are?” I prompted, refusing to allow either of them to ignore me.
“Sly,” the man said and jerked his chin at Tam. “Tam’s cousin.”
He still didn’t shake my hand, and so I lowered mine. I only felt half defeated, though—at least he’d spoken to me. I wanted to kick Tam in the ankles for not speaking up. He was such a prick.
A younger couple hurried over to us, and I recognised Leo and his fiancée, Jodie. Leo shook hands with Tam and Sly, and Jodie kissed them both on the cheeks.
I felt hideously self-conscious, a total outsider. They were clearly all close, and I was a Wynter, daughter to someone who had previously been an enemy. My instinct was to remain one step behind Tam, but I forced myself to stand at his shoulder and smile as though I was meant to be there.
“Hi, Hallie,” Leo said. “Good to see you again.”
“You, too.”
Jodie threw me a wide smile. “Hope you’re ready for some pamper time?”
I smiled back. “Absolutely.”
“Let’s get in there,” Leo said.
It felt beyond strange being at the airport with Tam. He created such an imposing figure with his height, dark hair, and black suit, I was sure everyone must be staring at us wondering what we were up to. We certainly didn’t look like a group heading off on holiday, though I’d tried to make an effort in a maxi sundress and a pair of slip-on sandals. Tam’s brother, Leo, was more jovial than Tam—who barely seemed to smile at all. I was envious at how tactile Leo and Jodie were, how they seemed to constantly need to have some part of their bodies touching—a hand, a hip, their lips. Leo swung his arm protectively around Jodie’s neck when they were walking, and she slipped her hand into the back pocket of his jeans. Leo was far more like Harvey had been than Tam was, and I wondered what had gone wrong in the genetic pool to have produced one brother so different to the others.
We were taken through the hanger to where a plane sat on the runway.
The small aircraft wasn’t exactly luxurious, but it was far more comfortable than a commercial plane. Our group were the only people on board—other than the pilot and airhostess—so we had plenty of room. Tam and I had barely spoken on the drive over here. Was he still angry with me for going out and not telling him where I was? I couldn’t get the memory of how he’d touched me out of my head, and even now the salty taste of his cum remained on my tongue. But as much as I wanted to focus on what we’d done together, I also couldn’t forget how he’d made me feel afterwards, leaving me kneeling on the floor like that while he’d gone to get himself a drink.
I chose an empty row of seats and sat furthest away from the aisle. Tam and Sly also took separate rows but sat one in front of the other so they could talk through the gap. Leo and Jodie slid into a row together, near the back. From how they were all over each other, I wondered if they’d be wanting to join the Mile High Club while we were in the air.
The alcohol from that afternoon had long worn off, but it, together with my earlier orgasm, had made me sleepy. The flight took off with a rumble and a blast of G-force. My stomach lurched as we left the ground, and we quickly levelled off. I rested my head against the inside of the cabin and shut my eyes. Behind me came the laughter and giggles of Leo and Jodie, and from the other side of the aisle drifted the deeper voices of Tam and Sly. I wasn’t sure about Sly. Leo, I’d immediately warmed to, though I suspected Jodie’s presence had something to do with that, but Sly had barely acknowledged me. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. He was Tam’s cousin after all, and Tam had already proven that he could be a complete arsehole.
By the time the airhostess came around with drinks and snacks, I was too drowsy to want anything. I must have fallen asleep fully, as the next time I became aware of what was going on around me, my ears had that tell-tale popping sensation, and I knew we were reducing altitude to land. Sure enough, the light came on to tell us to do up our seatbelts. I obliged, and within minutes, we were bumping across a runway.
We disembarked and went through border control, and then went on to pick up the hire car Tam must have booked in advance, though I knew it wasn’t in his name. I’d caught a glimpse of his passport as we’d gone through passport control and seen that he was travelling on what I assumed was a forgery. He didn’t want anyone else to know he was here.