The grin that Sig gives me makes his pick-up line more adorably charming than offensive, so I laugh. “I don’t give those kinds of dances.”
“Well, that’s a damn shame. But if you ever change your mind, I’d be happy to lend you my lap or help you with your costumes. You know, whatever you need. I’m a public servant at heart.”
His wide, voracious smile draws another laugh from me. “I get the impression that you’re quite incorrigible.”
“If that’s code for strong, protective, and handsome as hell, then you couldn’t be more right.”
And so it goes with Sig. He has an answer for everything and a totally charming way of turning all my comments into sexual innuendos, which is both flattering and entertaining.
He stimulates my laugh more than anyone or anything has in years. Enjoying his company and his audacious flirting is easy as pie, especially considering how virtually any interaction with Reese keeps me torn up in one way or another. It’s no hardship on my part to let Sig dominate my time and attention during the flight to the west coast.
But every time I sneak a glance at Reese, which happens more often than I’d like or than I intend, I can’t stop the equal parts of pleasure and pain that course through me. At times, it’s like nothing has changed.
But everything has.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN - Reese
When another flight attendant makes her way to me, I find it hard to keep my short temper in check.
“Would you like something else to drink, Mr. Spencer?” she asks quietly.
“Not right now,” is my clipped reply.
She leans forward ever so slightly and drops her voice a little lower. “Is there anything else I could get you or do for you?”
I take my eyes off Kennedy’s profile long enough to give the attendant my full attention. This one has flown with me before. The jet is part of a timeshare between me, my father and two other business associates with frequent travel needs. The company that we use for flight crew knows that I have specific requirements of the female attendants. My clientele like all their staffing encounters to be visually pleasurable and the company we use has always been accommodating. They are screened thoroughly and regularly, just like all my club employees are, and these women are young, beautiful and, occasionally, very willing to go…above and beyond. Like this one.
I see the heat in her dark blue eyes. I see the way she wets her lips and squeezes her br**sts together for maximum cle**age. She’s just as appealing as any girl I’d hire if I had my pick. But not today. Today she’s just annoying. Today she’s not what I want. Today she’s just not Kennedy.
“As…enjoyable as that sounds, I think I’m set for the flight,” I tell her kindly.
She nods and straightens before moving back through the cabin to ask the others if they’d like something to eat or drink. My eyes shift to Kennedy again and I see that she’s watching me. She’s not smiling at something Sig said or talking to him like she’s known him forever. No, this time I’ve got her full attention. And she’s not laughing.
I give her a small nod before I turn my attention to the view outside the window. I don’t even bother to hide the smile that I suddenly feel like wearing.
Damn her, two can play that game.
I let my irritation dissolve into calm determination. If there’s one thing that life has taught me, it’s to never give up. If things aren’t going my way, I do something to shift the tide. If the first answer is no, I keep trying until I get the right one. And if something gets in my way, I’ve learned to move it out of my way. Kennedy may not admit that she’ll be mine again yet, but she will. I’ll see to it.
My cruise assistant, Karesh, is waiting for us with the limo at the airport. He is capable, reliable and a stickler for the details, which is a combination that I consider mandatory for someone in his position. He knows how I like things and he makes sure they are prepared in such a way, down to the letter.
We quietly discuss all the arrangements as everyone else chats on the way to Marina del Rey. He’s already arranged for the smaller boat that will ferry us from there to where the yacht is moored out in the deeper waters.
When the driver pulls up beside the dock, I can see that the ferrying boat is already taking our luggage out to the yacht.
Hemi comes to stand beside me, slapping me on the back as he points out toward the yacht where it floats out in the bay. “Is that the new yacht, bro?”
“No, the new one is registered in the Caribbean. This is the second one I bought.”
Sloane steps up to stand beside Hemi, winding her arms around his waist. After a few seconds she looks out in the direction of the yacht, too. “Ohmigod, is that it? Is that the boat we’ll be going to Hawaii on?” Her voice is dripping with excitement.
“Yep, that’s it,” he tells her. She turns shining eyes up at him and he gives her a quick kiss.
“This is gonna be awesome, baby!” she beams.
He nods and kisses her forehead, the moment turning suddenly intimate. I clear my throat and take a few steps away. With perfect timing, the ferrying boat returns from the yacht to retrieve us. I give my hands one loud slap. “Let’s load up so we can get going,” I tell them, anxious to be on our way.
Karesh ushers Hemi, Sloane and Sig down the dock to where the smaller boat waits. I look back for Kennedy who is trailing behind. She’s walking slowly, staring out at the horizon with a frown on her face.
“Is something wrong?” I ask.
She says nothing at first, simply continues to stare. Finally, she turns cloudy eyes to me. “That is your boat? The one I’ll be spending the summer on?”
“It is.”
“So this is what your life is like? I had no idea.”
“This is just one of my businesses. This isn’t where I live my life. It’s simply what I do.”
Kennedy’s eyes stare into mine. “In your case, I think it’s pretty much the same thing, don’t you?”
She seems unhappy as she walks away. I don’t quite know what to make of her commentary, so I let it go. No sense in wasting time on things I can’t figure out or control. Especially not when I need to put my energy toward the things that I can.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN - Kennedy
A pleasant yet quiet man named Karesh gives us a tour of the yacht.
“This is Domani, the second of Mr. Spencer’s three entertainment yachts.”