I laugh to myself and type another inquiry.
So what are we doing tonight?
Chapter 42
As it turns out, we’re going on a date. And not just any date. A date that involves Gray helping me onto a hovercraft, one of the smaller models designed for only two people.
“Why do we need a hover?” I ask curiously.
“You’ll see.”
The aircraft powers up with a low hum, and as it slowly rises off the ground, I feel the quiet vibration in the soles of my feet. I rode in a few hovercraft when I was in Silver Elite, but it never gets old, that weightless sensation as you float in the air like a feather.
The night sky stretches all around us. It’s dark, but we must not be going far because Gray keeps the lights on to guide our way in tandem with the nearly full moon.
I peer at the dark outlines of the mountain peaks. “Where are we going?”
“You’ll see,” he teases again. Keeping one hand on the controls, he takes his other hand and rests it on my thigh.
My gaze shifts from his hand to his face. When I narrow my eyes, he gives me that trademark wink.
“What?” he says innocently.
The hovercraft is far more subtle than a chopper or jet. It’s aconstant drone, getting louder only when he pushes the throttle and the engine roars, sending us skimming forward in a smooth burst of power. The fans on the underside hum, creating a cushion of air that keeps us gliding through the sky.
I can’t say I’m not enjoying the warmth of his palm on my thigh, the way he moves it in lazy caresses. My breathing comes out a bit faster, and I realize it’s turning me on.
I haven’t been with anyone since the night I met Cross at Haven, and those urges went dormant the moment we ended it in the quarry. I didn’t expect to feel sexual arousal again for a long, long time, but my body is coming back to life. It remembers the intoxicating feel of another body pressed up against it, while my heart remembers what it’s like to pound from breathless kisses.
As we soar over another ridge, a flash of brilliant purple light fills the hovercraft. We’re above the lagoon.
“Why is it glowing?” I exclaim.
“Magic,” he answers, an echo of what Evlynne said the day she stranded me down there. “I was flying drills out here one night and couldn’t believe it when I realized the lagoon glows in the dark. But that’s not the good part.”
“There’s something better than this?” I can’t take my eyes off the shimmering purple water.
“Trust me. Gets even better.”
He pulls a lever and flicks a couple of switches on the dashboard. With a soft mechanical noise, the hovercraft…stops. Right in the middle of the sky, hovering in one spot over the lagoon.
Gray unbuckles his harness and gestures for me to follow suit. As I unsnap mine, he’s already jumping into the back, shocking me by sliding open the rear door. A cool breeze wafts into the hovercraft.
“C’mere, cowgirl.” He beckons me toward him.
The cabin is just tall enough for me to walk at my full height, but Gray has to duck as he approaches the opening and plops down, dangling his legs over the edge. I sit beside him, and he reaches for my hand, lacing our fingers together.
The moon hangs high above us tonight, but the stars…they lookclose enough to touch. Big, brilliant specks of light against the black sky.
As we hover over the glowing lagoon, I can’t deny that this is very, very romantic.
“This is a pretty good date, ace.”
His lips curve in a slight smile. “I like that.”
“What?”
“When you call me ace.”
