Page 53 of Made For Romeo

“If I tell you, it’s not a surprise,” she teases me and looks out the window at the clouds.

We land two hours later, the plane touching down with a jerk. As soon as the plane stops, I look out and see them. The cameras are aimed and ready. “Someone tipped them off,” I warn, looking at Gabriella, who shrugs her shoulders as she puts on the gray sweater.

I get up from my seat and stretch my legs before grabbing the black jean jacket from the couch. Sliding it on, I make sure the beige hood from my sweater is out. My hands shake a touch when I look up at Gabriella, who is watching me. “How do I look?” I ask, and she just smiles at me as she walks to stand right in front of me.

Her hands go to my jacket as she fists it, pulling me to her. “Good enough to eat,” she mimics what I always tell her, then leans in, kissing me on my neck in the same spot I always kiss her.

“I have something for you to eat,” I mumble to her as she reaches for her big black purse.

The door of the plane is pulled open, and the stairs roll out. I can hear them starting to unload our bags. “You ready?” she asks.

“With you by my side…” I kiss her nose softly. “I’m ready for anything.”

“Smooth,” she says, walking toward the door, and I pull her back for a second.

“You aren’t going out there first,” I tell her, shaking my head. “I’ll go.”

“Okay.” She laughs, holding her bag in both her hands.

I walk to the door of the plane. “Thank you,” I tell the attendant, who stands with her hands behind her as she nods at me. I wait until Gabriella stands beside me before I walk down the five steps of the plane.

The flashes start to go off, one after another. I turn and watch Gabriella walk down the steps of the plane, one hand holding the railing and the other holding her bag.

I wait until she’s on the last step before holding my hand to her. She lets go of the railing to put her hand in mine. “We should have worn sunglasses,” I tell her, and she just smiles at me.

“Next time,” she says as I slip my fingers with hers, turning to walk toward the waiting SUV in the distance.

“Here we go,” I groan as a couple of them start shouting questions at us.

“Are you engaged?” one of them asks.

“How long are you here for?” another one asks.

“Are you taking her to meet your parents?” I can’t help but laugh at that one.

I stop mid-step, turning to look at her. She looks up at me, surprised I stopped walking. “Are you okay?” she asks as I release her hand and now cup her face with my hands.

“More than okay,” I confirm softly before I close the distance between us. My lips meet hers, and I kiss her softly. “I’m just giving them a good picture.” I wink at her before taking her hand again in mine.

The driver of the SUV has the back door open. “Welcome home, Mr. Beckett,” he greets, and I want to correct him and say this isn’t my home, but instead, I watch Gabriella step up into the back of the car.

“Thank you,” I reply to him before getting into the SUV with her. The door closes as soon as I sit down.

“That wasn’t so bad.” She turns her head from looking out the window back to me.

“Come here,” I ask or tell her. I’m not sure. All I know is I need her beside me. She slides over to the middle, putting her bag where she’s been sitting. I put my arm around her as she cuddles into me.

“Better?” She looks up at me, and I nod before kissing her. Her kisses make me forget everything.

The trunk is slammed shut right before the driver gets in. “Do you need to stop anywhere on the way?” he asks over his shoulder, and I just shake my head, looking out the window. Luckily, they are tinted so no one can see inside. He stops at the gate, and it opens slowly, the paparazzi standing at the side of the gate waiting to snap pictures of us driving away.

“Please make sure no one is following us before you head to my house,” I instruct him and he nods.

“We are going to be changing cars in ten minutes,” he says, and I look over at Gabriella, who gasps.

“Is that necessary?” she asks, and I nod.

“I don’t know, but I’m not willing to chance your safety, so this is what I’m going to do,” I inform her, and I feel my body go tense. “It’s a whole different world now.” My thumb rubs her arm. “We aren’t in Dallas, where there are a couple of pictures here and there. We are in LA.”