Page 5 of Still Her
We pull up to the security gate, where a guard confirms my name, business, and my I.D., before waving us through. As we approach the wide open entryway to the hangar, I see Eli’s jet waiting with the staircase entry already lowered.
Ian whistles as he puts the truck in park. “Wow.”
I lift my eyebrows and nod in agreement before opening my door to get out. Ian gets my larger suitcase out of the bed while I open the back of the cab to leash the dogs. I’ve dressed casually and warm with my hair in a ponytail, for comfortable traveling, but I’ve got a change of clothes in my carry-on for when we land in a warmer climate.
“Mayzie!” I hear Eli’s voice echo throughout the hangar. Ian and I look up at the same time to see him standing at the top of the stairs, just in the doorway to the jet. He is, as always, impeccably dressed and groomed. His expensive suit was clearly tailored just for him, and I don’t think I’ve ever not seen him in a pair of shiny, pointy leather shoes. His black goatee is neatly trimmed and compliments his olive skin tone. His green eyes flash with his smile as he greets me with a friendly wave. There is only one thing about this dude that appears unkempt: his black hair probably takes an hour to style just right to look like he doesn’t give a shit.
“Hi Eli,” I give him what I hope is a demure smile. I pull my carry-on up higher on my shoulder and walk the dogs towards the stairs. Ian follows, pulling my suitcase. “Thank you so much for this,” I say gratefully, as he meets us at the bottom of the stairs.
“It’s my pleasure,” he answers, giving me a charming smile before leaning in to kiss my cheek. I try not to go stiff, but my skin sure crawls at his closeness. “Happy I could offer you and your dogs a nicer lift.”
A crewman accepts my suitcase from Ian, and a flight attendant in a black pencil skirt and matching cardigan offers to take the dogs up into the cabin and give them some water before takeoff. I’m feeling good about this already.
“This is my brother, Ian,” I introduce the men, and Ian takes a hand out of his pocket to shake with Eli, as they exchange pleasantries. I turn and give my brother a hug before following Eli up the stairs, giving him one more wave before I enter the cabin.
The inside of the jet is the perfect combination of elegance and comfort. Sleek designs in tan and brown make up the interior design, and plushy leather lines the passenger seats as well as a loveseat.
Once we’re in the air, Eli takes out his laptop, phone, and a couple of file folders. I guess there’s no rest for the wicked in his line of work. I unbuckle and walk over to the love seat by the opposite windows, excited to stretch out with my Kindle. The dogs amble over to me, and both get comfortable on the floor right beside me. He seems focused on work, which is fine with me, as I delve into a romantic comedy novel.
After a while, the attendant from earlier comes out… bringing her ample cleavage clearly on display. She’s ditched her cardigan and her blouse is missing a couple of buttons. Eli looks up from what he’s doing as she sashays over to us. He sits back in his seat, resting his hands on the chair arms like he’s taking in a show.And there it is.I look down at my Kindle, desperate not to watch the interaction. There is no way that is actually her uniform. She offers us champagne, which I politely turn down in favor of sparkling water, before quickly snapping my head back down to my reading. Eli accepts the offer, and she nods and smiles as she swings her low, black ponytail over her shoulder and goes to retrieve our drinks.
“No champagne?” He asks, his face turning to me. “Come on, have a drink with me,” he shrugs and grins as if to say,what could it hurt?
“Oh,” I start, trying to seem casual, like I’m not weirded out by him ogling the attendant. “Alcohol and flying don’t really mix well with me,” I finish with a friendly smile and a shrug, and go back to my tablet.
“Fair enough,” he complacently nods.
Moments later, Cyndi, as the nametag on her boob reads, comes back out with our drinks. After handing me my glass with a lime wedge and a smile, she turns to Eli and bends down slowly to hand him his flute of champagne.Aaand back to my book! Ugh.
I can hear murmuring and cooing coming from their direction, and I try like hell to tune it out. I read the same sentence what feels like two hundred times. When I see her walk away in my peripheral, I think it might be safe to look up.Wrong. Eli is watching her ass as she disappears into the cockpit, and the look on his face chills me to my core. He’s staring, and it shows more than a mild interest, or even a hope that he’ll get lucky. He looks like it’s already a done deal. Like it’s a given. As if in his mind, she’s already in his bed and he’s just trying to decide how he’s going to take her. The feeling it gives me sits like a cement brick in my stomach. I pull my eyes away from him immediately and reach for my drink, hoping the bubbly carbonation will settle the uneasiness I’m feeling, or at the very least, the action will distract me.
I don’t see Cyndi come back for a while, and it doesn’t take long to shake off the jitters, so I get back to my book. Even so, I’m still counting the minutes.
Several chapters later, there’s still another couple of hours left of the flight, so I lie all the way down on the love seat, curl onto my side, and pull a blanket that’s been neatly pressed and folded nearby, over my legs. A rest might actually be a good idea, seeing as how there will be the show tonight followed by the club appearance, and I’ll be going through it all on Eastern Time.
I continue to read, and I must have dozed off, because I’m startled awake by the sound of rumbling thunder. When my eyes open all the way and I reacquaint myself with my surroundings, I’m perplexed at what is going on around me. The noise that woke me was Trooper… growling. I’ve never heard him growl ever before, and it throws me. Eli is squatting down near me, but he stands abruptly when he sees I’ve noticed him. Trooper growls again, freezing Eli in place. He stares at Trooper, a mixture of annoyance and fright on his face. My mind is torn in two directions. The part that is trying to figure out if I was imagining that growl is reassured that I wasn’t when he makes the sound again. I scramble into a sitting position, immediately reaching to stroke Trooper’s head. I start talking to him to try and calm him down, and figure out what’s going on. This is so unlike him, and I’m worried something’s wrong. I’m hoping it just has to do with the flight and he’ll be better after we land. Penny is up now, with her head in my lap, probably wondering what she missed.
Eli clears his throat, realizing he needs to back away. He takes a step back, but before completely retreating, holds my Kindle out to me.
“Your tablet fell on the floor,” he stammers. Clearly Trooper spooked him.
“Thanks,” I say, hesitantly taking it from him.
“Is he okay?” He gestures at Trooper, as he takes his seat.
“I don’t know,” I say, putting my Kindle down and resuming petting Trooper, who seems to have returned to his normal docile demeanor. His eyes look back at me over his shoulder and his tail thumps gently on the thin carpet of the floor. “I hope so. He never growls.”
“You know, it’s this cologne,” Eli says, throwing his hands up like he’s had an epiphany. “It set another dog off before. I didn’t even think about it before the flight. I’m sorry.”
Sothat’swhat smells like a hormonally charged teenager mated with a roided out rugby player… on a yacht. Probably not what he was going for, but glad that mystery’s solved. I don’t see how it would have an effect like that on a dog, however.
A thought does enter my mind. A thought of what a dog’s growling can be indicative of, but I quickly dismiss it. I have to, for now. I don’t want to believe I’m trapped on an aircraft at thirty thousand feet withthatkind of person. I send it to the recesses in the far back of my mind, not allowing it to prod at me for right now.
“So,” he says, rolling his shoulders and sitting back, like he’s trying to shake off the whole incident. “Tell me about Mayzie. How are things with you? How’s the blog?”
Trying not to worry about Trooper and wanting to actuallylikethis guy that has done amazing things for Turn it Up, I bite and follow him down this path of small talk.
“It’s good,” I nod, trying to relax and not come off as too skittish. “I do a weekly post, and I have some really supportive readers, so I’m lucky.”