I heaved a sigh, letting my head sink into my hands.
“We’re almost there,” Alex said, flicking his gaze into the backseat.
“It’s not that…I’m just imagining the reaction from my sister if we never find her. She’ll probably tell me I made the whole thing up.”
“We all saw her, Doc,” Ava answered. “We’ll vouch for you. And even the fact that you two had a connection.”
I shifted in my seat as the airport came into view. “Really? Did you actually notice that we had a connection?”
Ava shrugged as Alex veered toward the hangar containing his private plane. “Yeah. I mean, you two seemed sort of into each other while we were playing video games. She was definitely into it when you helped her.”
My heart sped up as we came to a stop. “Really? She was?”
“Definitely,” Ava answered.
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” I asked as we left the car behind, hurrying toward the plane.
“Why would I tell you?”
I scoffed, climbing aboard the plane behind my friends. “Because I needed the confidence and reassurance. Honestly, Ava, I need constant reassurance.”
She dropped onto the leather couch next to Alex as the pilot appeared, letting us know we’d be underway soon, though the orders were very odd.
“I’m patching the route as we know it through to your phone. Sorry, but that’s all we have.”
“If we need to stop and refuel–“
“I get it. Just try your hardest to follow her, okay?” Alex asked.
I strapped into my seat, my muscles tight as I drummed my fingers against the arm of the chair, eager to be underway.
As the engines fired to life and the door closed, Ava glanced at me. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but she’s totally into you. I just didn’t want you to get your hopes up in case…”
“There’s something wrong with her,” I said with a sigh.
“I don’t think there’s something wrong with her,” Alex said as he slouched down in his seat. “But what if there’s more going on that you realize?”
“Alex is right. What if whatever she’s running from, whatever caught up to her is something you can’t handle?”
I bit into my lower lip as the words rolled over me. I’d been through a lot. I’d run both from and toward things. And I carried some heavy baggage with me. Was there really anything that she could be going through that I couldn’t handle–and top?
“I think we should be more concerned about her not being able to handle what I’m bringing to the table.”
I couldn’t shake the memory of her smile, the way she’d looked at me with such trust. Did I deserve it? Would she still look at me like that when she found out about my past? Worse, would I still feel the same way about her when I knew the full truth about hers?
“What, the weird war you had with Grant?” Ava asked.
I scrubbed my face. “Yeah. And my overall line-crossing behavior. I mean, I’m not subtle, you know?”
“And the woman who is perfect for you will be totally okay with all the line-crossing, not subtle version of you.”
I let my head smack against the headrest in the back. That woman did not exist. I didn’t care what Ava said.
“Don’t settle, Doc,” she said with a wag of her finger.
I ignored the statement, scrubbing my face as we finally reached a cruising altitude. “Where is she now?”
Alex toggled on his phone. “Over the ocean.”
