muttered irritably beneath his breath, and looked around for a place to let the thing do his business.
Since Jack was not authorized to fly the label’s plane, as luck would have it, he had to ride in the seat facing Audrey’s for the flight to Omaha.
If she noticed him, she gave no indication. When she wasn’t making calls and talking into her earpiece, she kept her nose in some papers. She only looked up a couple of times, wearing a very thin and very forced smile. Jack couldn’t tell if she was in a snit because she didn’t get her water, or if it was because he’d shoved Bruno back at her and said, “ Here .”
He couldn’t understand her problem. Was she just rude, or did she have a problem with his providing security? If she did, she damn sure should have said something before now.
He couldn’t help noticing that the other passengers didn’t seem to notice her at all. Lucas Bonner had popped open a couple of bottles of Cristal champagne the moment they had cleared the runway, proclaiming this flight a celebration of his finishing an album—and the group had proceeded to party like it was 1999.
Not Audrey. She kept her head down.
For the first three hours of the flight, Jack gritted his teeth. He tried not to look at her legs, or the tantalizing view of her breasts that the deep vee of her shirt afforded him. He tried not to look at her mouth and think of that kiss, or hair that begged for a man’s fingers. He tried not to . . . but Jack had nothing to do but watch her and wonder why the hell she wouldn’t speak to him or at least acknowledge him. She knew him. And the longer the flight went on, the more obsessed Jack became with making her at least look at him.
He finally nudged her with his foot.
Audrey lifted her gaze without lifting her head. “What?”
“I thought I’d try and say hello again,” he said. “I don’t think you heard me clearly the first time.”
“ Hi ,” she said impatiently, and dropped her gaze to the papers again, as if she were being bothered by some punk kid.
All right, that was it. She had weaseled her way onto his beach and his lap, and he’d be damned if he was going to be treated like a bothersome gnat. So he shifted forward, arms on knees, his hands dangling between his legs. “You do remember, don’t you? Private beach? Moonlight? Dancing?”
“Me on your iPod?” she muttered without lifting her head. “Of course I remember you. I said hello, didn’t I?”
“Right before you ordered me to fetch you some water and walk that thing you call a dog. And then you got downright frosty.”
That prompted her to look up. “ Frosty? I’m not frosty , I’m busy . Most people understand that. And it’s not a thing , it’s a dog .”
“That’s not a dog. That’s a child’s toy. And you are definitely frosty.”
Her mouth dropped open. Then she quickly closed it and frowned. “ Jesus ,” she muttered. “Okay, Jack. Try and understand—I am about to go on my first nationwide tour, so I’m just a little preoccupied with my job. Maybe you should be focused on your job, which is providing security, you think? We’re not going to be beach buddies. We won’t even see each other that much. Let’s just establish that as a ground rule, and that way, neither of us will expect anything. All right?”
“Wow,” he said, leaning back. “That may be the warmest welcome I have ever received.”
She shrugged. “I’m just saying. I’ve got a lot going on.”
“So much that you can’t even say hello?” he asked incredulously. “Most humans, regardless of how busy they are, say hello if only to acknowledge they’ve met before. And I thought, seeing as how I am going to keep some whack job from getting to you, that you could at least extend me that small courtesy.”
Audrey sighed and placed her hands primly on top of the papers in her lap. “ Hello! Okay? Are you satisfied?”
“No.”
“What more do you want from me?”
“Manners,”
Since Jack was not authorized to fly the label’s plane, as luck would have it, he had to ride in the seat facing Audrey’s for the flight to Omaha.
If she noticed him, she gave no indication. When she wasn’t making calls and talking into her earpiece, she kept her nose in some papers. She only looked up a couple of times, wearing a very thin and very forced smile. Jack couldn’t tell if she was in a snit because she didn’t get her water, or if it was because he’d shoved Bruno back at her and said, “ Here .”
He couldn’t understand her problem. Was she just rude, or did she have a problem with his providing security? If she did, she damn sure should have said something before now.
He couldn’t help noticing that the other passengers didn’t seem to notice her at all. Lucas Bonner had popped open a couple of bottles of Cristal champagne the moment they had cleared the runway, proclaiming this flight a celebration of his finishing an album—and the group had proceeded to party like it was 1999.
Not Audrey. She kept her head down.
For the first three hours of the flight, Jack gritted his teeth. He tried not to look at her legs, or the tantalizing view of her breasts that the deep vee of her shirt afforded him. He tried not to look at her mouth and think of that kiss, or hair that begged for a man’s fingers. He tried not to . . . but Jack had nothing to do but watch her and wonder why the hell she wouldn’t speak to him or at least acknowledge him. She knew him. And the longer the flight went on, the more obsessed Jack became with making her at least look at him.
He finally nudged her with his foot.
Audrey lifted her gaze without lifting her head. “What?”
“I thought I’d try and say hello again,” he said. “I don’t think you heard me clearly the first time.”
“ Hi ,” she said impatiently, and dropped her gaze to the papers again, as if she were being bothered by some punk kid.
All right, that was it. She had weaseled her way onto his beach and his lap, and he’d be damned if he was going to be treated like a bothersome gnat. So he shifted forward, arms on knees, his hands dangling between his legs. “You do remember, don’t you? Private beach? Moonlight? Dancing?”
“Me on your iPod?” she muttered without lifting her head. “Of course I remember you. I said hello, didn’t I?”
“Right before you ordered me to fetch you some water and walk that thing you call a dog. And then you got downright frosty.”
That prompted her to look up. “ Frosty? I’m not frosty , I’m busy . Most people understand that. And it’s not a thing , it’s a dog .”
“That’s not a dog. That’s a child’s toy. And you are definitely frosty.”
Her mouth dropped open. Then she quickly closed it and frowned. “ Jesus ,” she muttered. “Okay, Jack. Try and understand—I am about to go on my first nationwide tour, so I’m just a little preoccupied with my job. Maybe you should be focused on your job, which is providing security, you think? We’re not going to be beach buddies. We won’t even see each other that much. Let’s just establish that as a ground rule, and that way, neither of us will expect anything. All right?”
“Wow,” he said, leaning back. “That may be the warmest welcome I have ever received.”
She shrugged. “I’m just saying. I’ve got a lot going on.”
“So much that you can’t even say hello?” he asked incredulously. “Most humans, regardless of how busy they are, say hello if only to acknowledge they’ve met before. And I thought, seeing as how I am going to keep some whack job from getting to you, that you could at least extend me that small courtesy.”
Audrey sighed and placed her hands primly on top of the papers in her lap. “ Hello! Okay? Are you satisfied?”
“No.”
“What more do you want from me?”
“Manners,”
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