I knocked my foot against hers. “Relax. She’s fine.”
“I am relaxed.”
“Your shoulders are up by your ears.”
She shot me a look but didn’t argue. She cradled her tea between her palms, staring at it in a daze.
“You gonna actually drink that or just hold it hostage?”
“I’m thinking.”
“About?”
“How much I regret agreeing to this trip.”
I smirked. “We haven’t even left UK airspace yet.”
“Exactly.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
GRIFFIN
Violet didn’t stand a chance against sleep.
She fought it, of course. Sat upright for as long as she could, but the cabin was warm, the hum of the engines steady, and she was running on fumes. At some point, she lost the fight and her body slumped, slipping lower in the seat until her head landed on my shoulder.
And I didn’t move.
I should have. Should have shrugged her off, nudged her awake, done something to put distance between us before this turned into a thing.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I sat there, watching the rise and fall of her breaths when exhaustion finally wiped that stubborn tension from her face.
I pulled up a true crime podcast. Some ridiculous conspiracy theory about a missing heiress. I let the voices fill the silence while they both slept.
An hour passed before Violet stirred. Her fingers curled into the sleeve of my hoodie and her breath caught. She stiffened before her lashes fluttered and her eyes opened.
For a second, she didn’t move. I held myself über still, willing her to fall back to sleep. She stared up at me, her brow furrowed.
Close. Too close. Her lips parted, her gaze dipping to mine. Too quick, too fleeting. But I caught it.
And because I’m a fucking idiot, my eyes dropped to hers.
Like I had any choice. Like the second she looked at my mouth, my brain didn’t immediately short-circuit and follow.
I waited for her to pull away, but she didn’t. Instead, her grip on my hoodie tightened and I berated myself for not being stronger.
I leaned in. Just enough. Just to see. I don’t know, maybe I hoped the movement would jolt her out of her sleepy daze and she’d laugh it off.
She didn’t.
Her breath hitched, eyes locked onto mine, pupils blown wide in the dim cabin light. My heart pounded against my ribs as she closed the distance. Hesitant. Like she was waiting for me to be the one to decide.
As if I had the restraint of a saint.
As if I’d ever been the type to turn down a beautiful woman.
