“Damn it, just when things were getting good.” I chuckle as I look around for my clothes, quickly pulling them back on.
“I miss you too. How about you take me on a tour of this plane once we get to cruising altitude? I wouldn't mind joining the mile-high club since I didn't get to last time we were on a plane together.” His eyes light up, and a grin crosses his handsome face.
“Oh baby, you know how to treat me right,” he jokes. “Come on, the guys must be done with the luggage by now. I had snuck away to see if you were done with Jazzy and Jace. Then I passed them on the way in, and she told me you convinced them to come with us.” He takes me by the hand as we head back toward the seating area.
We meet the other guys at the top of the entry steps where they’re talking with two women, one whom I recognize—unfortunately. Frowning, I take in the two women who are warmly greeting each of the brothers. One of them could be Ruby Rose’s twin sister. She’s smoking hot, with her dirty blonde hair in a pixie cut, and both her arms are covered in tattoos. She has smoldering blue eyes and plump lips that combine with her sharp cheekbones and pointy chin to make her all the more show-stopping. She’s dressed in a uniform of pants and a black tunic-style top with the Neighpalm Airlines logo above her left breast. She’s friendly and familiar, but she manages not to cross that line of professionalism.
Turning my eyes to the other one, I almost cringe as Veronica, the hostess from my very first flight, flutters her eyelashes and simpers at each guy as they pass her. Her uniform is the same in color, but she’s wearing an inappropriately short skirt, and her top is low cut enough that the tops of her breasts show. I can't imagine what it looks like when she bends over in front of someone. The guys are all polite, smoothly passing her by without engaging overly much. Thomas is the last to enter, looking over his shoulder as he does, and he doesn't see her face light up.
“Tommy!” she squeals, throwing her arms around his neck. Well, okay then. I don’t miss Kai’s quiet laughter when I accidentally tighten my hand maybe a bit too much.
“Is that a smidge of jealousy you’re feeling, babe?” he whispers, but I just huff, ignoring his question as we watch Thomas try to untangle himself from her.
“Jilly,” Kai calls, and the unfamiliar woman turns around, her annoyance at her co-worker smoothing out when she spots us.
“Kai! I was wondering where you were. How did you sneak past us? And this must be Harlow! Chris and James have told me so much, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Jilly holds out her hand, and there’s not an ounce of insincerity in her face. Phew, another nice one. I was beginning to think that most of the women who worked for Neighpalm were assholes.
“Hi, it’s nice to finally meet you. I feel like I know you already; the family has so many nice things to say about you.”
“It’s me that’s lucky. Not everyone gets treated as one of their own. The Summers are a very welcoming family.” I raise my eyebrows and snort at the scene behind us, and she shares a frown with me as Veronica is still attached to Thomas like an octopus. For someone who’s supposed to have secret agent training, he’s not very good at evading capture.
“Yes, maybe a littletoowelcoming.” The sarcasm can’t be missed, and Jilly tries to hide her smile.
Kai finally takes pity on his brother, or maybe he’s taking pity on me—who knows? “Veronica!” he snaps. “What the hell are you doing? That is not appropriate work behavior.” She drops her arms, raising an eyebrow at him.
“Oh really, Kai? I seem to remember another incident when you didn't exhibit very work-like behavior on my flight. In fact, it was both of you together.” She points between them, and I feel myself stiffen at her insinuation. Fuck! Kai and Thomas look at me, obvious guilt in their eyes, and she smirks, pleased to have gotten the upper hand.
“Veronica, I believe you will be working in the galley for this trip. Jilly will be running.” The voice behind me is fully annoyed, and when we spin around to face Chris, he has his arms crossed. “I’m actually not sure why you’re even here. I had asked Samantha to do this flight, and Grace had you moved to the public flights.”
“She’s my roommate, and when she got food poisoning last night, she asked if I would fill in,” she tells Chris—rather rudely if you ask me.
“That’s not how the process works. She should have called in for a replacement,” Jilly points out, and Veronica gives her a dirty glare. “In fact, I could have handled the whole flight myself.”
“We can’t kick her off now,” Kai whispers in my ear. “Not if we want to keep this trip relatively secret.” My back stiffens even more, so much so that I could swear my spine has turned to steel. I might be overreacting to a simple situation, but having another of their exes thrown in my face is not something I’m excited about. They’re all so fucking catty.
“Shall we just get this flight in the air?” I ask, changing the subject and breezing past the group. When I get to the seating area, Jaxon waves to me. He had taken my backpack when Jacinta dragged me away for the dress fitting, and he’s still holding it. I grab my book out of it then put it in the overhead storage before taking a seat between him and Declan. Oliver and Holden are sitting together, as are Jacinta and Jace, and I really don't want to sit next to Kai or Thomas right at this moment.
“Is everything okay?” Declan asks, snuggling closer to give me a kiss on my cheek.
“Not really. It’s never pleasant to have exes thrown in your face, but to have her brag about her sexual escapades is especially off putting.”
A growl escapes Declan’s mouth. “Veronica is a leech, not so much an ex as a convenient hole to stick it in.”
“Wow, don’t hold back on my account,” I tell him, my sarcasm bitingly obvious. There’s a small part of me that’s almost glad though, knowing that she’s the one who gets that description, not me.
He shrugs. “Just telling it how it is, or was. Kai and Thomas made a big mistake there, but up until recently we’ve all made stupid mistakes like that. Even though Dad has always told us not to mix business and pleasure, we’veallmade that mistake.” He gestures to himself and Jaxon. “Well, okay, maybe not all. The only one I know who definitely hasn’t is Oliver. He has a strict policy of no sex at work or with any of the artists.”
“I don’t think Holden has either,” Jaxon admits. “He likes to keep his kink to the clubs he frequents. It’s less messy that way. People know what to expect, so there are no surprises.” That’s an interesting point. Between our moment with Oli and this comment, I’ve really got it pushing at my brain to talk to Holden. I need to learn more about his needs and boundaries. I’m not opposed to trying anything that’s important to him, and I don’t want him feeling like his needs are being pushed aside or ignored.
“Well, they just became my favorites.” Said favorites are not even hiding that they're listening, proven by the grins on their faces. I blow them each a kiss, and they pretend to catch it before high fiving one another.
“I knew that policy would pay off,” Oliver crows, and Holden winks at me like he knows what I was thinking. I shiver at the thought of that future conversation and what it might lead us to.
Thomas and Kai quickly come down the aisle and take seats, their walk of shame catching all our attention. Kai looks at me with hurt in his eyes, but I guess now he knows what it feels like. I know it’s not his fault she was on the flight, but itishis fault for fucking someone who doesn’t know how to be discreet.
“Is there any way we can fire Veronica?” I quietly ask Declan. “Without her retaliating with any kind of sexual harassment charges.” He looks surprised that I would ask the question, but I shrug.
“I’m not immune to pettiness. I can’t stand her, and I don't want to dread getting on a flight, thinking she may be the one working it.”
