Eve sighed. “I guess that means that my grandson’s system was wrong and we’re just crashing.”
Yep. No good deed went unpunished.
The flight attendants were hurrying around, picking up the drinks that the passengers were holding in their hands. Well, the glasses, because the liquid had already gone flying all over. One cart got loose and went careening down the aisle, scaring the living shit out of everyone.
With the landing maneuvers and the opening flaps, the sounds grew exponentially louder while the plane bounced up and down and swung sideways.
Elle was frozen in place.
Jack grabbed her hand and shrugged at the question in her gaze. “Look at it this way. If we crash, by holding on to me you ensure you drag me down with you.”
“Fair enough,” she said with a wavering smile.
The turbulence became worse and everything started shaking, so Elle clutched his hand. Hard. Man, for such a tiny woman, she was strong.
Then Eve latched on to his free hand. She was terrified so he tried to smile reassuringly. He was so out of practice comforting people that it probably came out as a grotesque grimace, but she didn’t seem to mind because she didn’t release him.
“I…I think I’m going to be sick,” she said.
Getting better and better. Jack looked up.
Jesus fucking Christ. Let the plane crash and put him out of his misery.
While driving to Elle’s place, Jack heard his cell ringing. He threw a glance at it. James. Since turning the device on after landing, he’d done nothing but get calls from him, and some colorful messages too.
“Yo,” he said, answering.
“Finally. You already in Boston?” James asked.
“Yeah, we landed a while ago.”
And thank God for that. He’d been in controlled airplane crashes. He’d parachuted from shitty planes with even shittier parachutes into enemy territory. Crawled miles with a broken leg. He’d repeat any of those experiences—heck, all of them together, in a blink of an eye—if that meant deleting the one he’d had today.
“The grandmas from the Eternal Sun called, saying that some Terminator-looking guy had come to pick Elle up and was escorting her back to Boston. I figured it was you. What gives?” James asked, interrupting his thoughts.
“Nothing.”
James didn’t believe him. Not even for a second. Jack knew him well enough to read his friend’s silence.
“Elle with you?” James asked.
“I left her at her house to rest a bit. Now I’m going to her.” He’d had to pick up some of his stuff and Elle had told him she needed to sleep. She’d been running on fumes, so he’d driven her home and ordered her to wait for him and open to no one.
She hadn’t seemed to be too happy about it, but she’d saluted him mockingly and hadn’t challenged him.
James’s tone was concerned. “How much trouble is she in?”
“She saw something she shouldn’t have seen while doing some dumb shit she shouldn’t have been doing. Nothing you should worry about. I’m on it.” James wanted answers, but Jack couldn’t give them to him. The Bowens would freak out, get in Elle’s face, and try forcing her into hiding…which was actually what Jack thought she should do, but she’d trusted him. He knew how important it was for her to stay and do right by her sister and the restaurant, and for some unfathomable reason, he wanted to give that to her.
“What the hell is going on?” James asked as Jack parked in front of her place and got out of the car. “You’ve been running away from Elle since ever. What do you mean you’re ‘on it’?”
He walked to the door and rang the doorbell, but there was no answer.
“James, I have to go.” As he rang the bell again, he disconnected the call.
Nothing.
Shit, fuck. After glancing discreetly around, he picked the lock.
The place was totally silent. And empty.
Not even twenty-four hours and she’d ditched him already.
Chapter Five
“Thanks for the ride, sweetie,” Elle told Barney while she jumped off the pushback and blew him a kiss. She got into her car, drove as fast as she could to the office, left all the documents from her last flight, and rushed on foot to the check-in counters. It was at moments like this she missed her sneakers the most. Who said airline agents had to wear pencil skirts and heels? Someone who had never worked at an airport, obviously.
“Here you are,” Louise called when Elle approached the counter. “I was worried you wouldn’t make it on time.”
“Please, girlie. I haven’t missed him even once in the last year,” she answered and started typing on their reservation system. “Not going to start now.”
Elle had managed to switch her flight-coordinating duties for supervising the check-in for this intercontinental, so all was good.
She still couldn’t believe that Jack had fallen for the old I’m-tired-going-to-sleep trick. Maybe the trauma of being puked on by Eve had had something to do with it.
“You sure there won’t be any trace?” Louise asked, watching over Elle’s shoulder.