They rode mostly in silence as she soaked in the experience, watching as people got on and off as they passed through various stations beneath the city. Finally, they arrived at Camden Road, and Flynn indicated that this was where they should get off. Whereas they’d descended from a busy street filled with tall, stone-faced buildings, they came out in a much more colorful section of town. The buildings were lower here, brightly painted, with vendors set up beneath their awnings.
“I’m starving,” Flynn commented. “What are you in the mood for?”
“Something…different,” she told him. “Something I can’t get at home.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem, because you can get just about any cuisine in the world right here.”
“Okay.” She felt overwhelmed by the possibilities.
“This market used to be a distillery,” Flynn told her as they walked. “It was known for producing some of the world’s finest gin, as well as being a hub for all kinds of trade, due to its location here on the canal. I’ll show you the old—oh look, there’s the juice stand I used to visit as a boy.” He had a habit of interrupting himself, his words following whatever random train of thought his brain had taken. She found it—and him—ridiculously charming.
They ended up getting Venezuelan arepas, delicious corn wraps stuffed with savory meat and vegetables. Afterward, they bought edible cookie dough on cones and strolled along the canal as they stuffed themselves.
“I feel a little bit sick after all that,” Ruby said, pressing a hand against her stomach. “But wow, it was so good.”
“So, I shouldn’t suggest that we go shopping right away?” Flynn winked.
“God, no.” The last thing she wanted to do at the moment was to try to zip a dress over her belly full of cookie dough.
“Oh, I know just the thing,” Flynn said, snapping his fingers. “Are you a Harry Potter fan?”
She cocked a brow at him. “What do you think?”
“I think you look like a woman who waited around for her letter from Hogwarts once upon a time, but I would hate to make a snap judgment.”
She grinned. “You’d be right about that. So, what do you propose?”
“We can walk to King’s Cross Station from here, and—”
“Take our picture on platform nine-and-three-quarters?” she interrupted.
“Precisely.”
She tipped her face toward the still-gray sky and laughed. She was having so much fun she hadn’t even thought about plans or spreadsheets since she’d left her hotel room. The station came into sight up ahead, and she and Flynn waited in a short line to take turns posing with the trolley cart that led to the mythical, magical platform. Then they boarded a real train and headed across town to the London Eye.
“You said you wanted to do something thrilling today,” he said. “I thought this might fit the bill.”
“Oh, it definitely will.” She felt a tingle in the pit of her stomach as she looked at the huge Ferris wheel in front of them. The closer they got, the bigger it seemed to grow. Each capsule was enclosed in glass and held about twenty-five people, which sounded faintly claustrophobic to Ruby, but she wasn’t about to pass up the chance to go for a ride and take in the view of the city. “We have one like this in Orlando, but I’ve never been on it.”
“I imagine the views here are better,” Flynn said as he led her to the ticketing area, explaining to an employee that he’d booked a reservation online. When had he done that? The woman confirmed Flynn’s information, and then someone was escorting them past the line. They waited for a few minutes in a private area, while Flynn avoided her questions about what exactly was going on.
And then, they were being escorted onto one of the glistening glass capsules. Ruby had a moment of panic when she realized they had to step on while it was moving, but with Flynn’s hand resting reassuringly against the small of her back, she hopped on without incident, and the door slid shut behind them. Their capsule was empty except for her and Flynn, oval-shaped and rounded at the ends, completely encased in glass. There was a bench in the middle for sitting. Beside it, a bottle of champagne sat chilling in a bucket of ice.
“You booked us a private capsule?” Ruby pressed a hand against her mouth, spinning a full three-hundred-and-sixty degrees to take in her surroundings.
“I did. You deserve to ride in style.”
She turned to Flynn, heart thumping against her ribs and cheeks hot. “This is…romantic.”
“Or celebratory, if you prefer,” he said with a casual shrug. “There’s never a wrong time to enjoy a bottle of champagne while you’re a hundred and thirty meters above London.”
“This must have cost a fortune.” She swallowed roughly. It was amazing and wonderful, and also…too much for two people who barely knew each other.
“I have it, and today I’d like to spend it on you,” he said quietly.
Ruby pressed a palm against the glass as their capsule slid slowly along the loading area. “Tell me again what you do for a living?” Because all he’d given her before was a vague line about trying different things within the family business, and that felt suddenly, painfully inadequate. She took in the expensive press of his clothes, remembering the sleek sports car he’d driven her in that morning.
Flynn sighed, turning to stare out the glass wall behind them, although there wasn’t much to see yet, as they were still at street level. “My family owns Exeter Hotels and Resorts.”
