Page 10 of Landon

Yet as his gaze drifted back to Noel’s serene face, a niggling feeling lingered. Missions like these rarely remained simple.

Noel stirred in her seat and lifted her head, blinking as she looked around, confusion written on her face. She met his gaze, and a blush rose from her blouse to her neck before settling over her cheeks. “Oh God, I hope I didn’t drool.”

His lips twitched as he shook his head. “No drooling noted.”

“Good.” She sat up and smiled at him. “How long was I out?”

“About thirty minutes.”

She blinked again, her mouth dropping open. “No way. Seriously? I thought we must be almost to Jamaica by now.”

“Sorry to disappoint, but we still have about five hours to go.”

Noel blew out a soft breath, a playful smile curving her lips. “I’ve been a rather boring flight partner so far, haven’t I?” shesaid, her tone light and teasing. Before Landon could respond, she tilted her head, a spark of mischief in her eyes. “But you probably don’t need someone prattling while plotting and planning.”

His brows shot upward. “Prattling. Plotting. Planning. That was a mouthful for someone who just woke up.”

Her laughter rang out, and he couldn’t hold back a smile. Her gaze dropped to his mouth, and he immediately adopted a severe expression.

“Are you afraid of smiling?” she asked, a crinkle forming between her brows.

Surprised, he jerked slightly. “No.”

“Hmm,” she murmured.

If she was going to say something else, their attention was diverted by Jana returning to the cabin. She placed a tray of fruit, cheese, crackers, cookies, and various other delights onto the table between Landon and Noel. “What would you like to drink?”

“Just another water for me,” he replied.

“Do you have cranberry juice?” Noel asked.

“Yes.”

“Then I’d like cranberry juice and ginger ale, please.”

“Of course,” Jana said, smiling. She disappeared and soon arrived with two more cut-glass tumblers filled with their drinks.

Jana glanced at the other side of the plane before disappearing again. Noel swiveled her seat from facing the window to face Landon and looked over to see Mike still sleeping.

Noel grinned, plucking up a grape. “I guess he’ll miss the snack. Maybe he’s waiting for the main course.” She popped the fruit into her mouth, her lips still curving.

Landon followed her lead, and they soon nibbled their way through the food.

“Tell me about this security company you work for. Thurston mentioned Lighthouse Security. That’s a rather fascinating name for a company in Montana.”

“The original company was located near a lighthouse in Maine.”

She continued to hold his gaze, waiting as though his lone sentence explanation wasn’t enough.

“Another one is located on the coast of California. And while we are in Montana, where there are no lighthouses, there are light towers.”

Her eyes widened, and so did her smile. “Guiding to safety. I get it.”

It took a lot for Landon to be surprised, but for her to so quickly understand the meaning of the LSI company's name caught him off guard. And once again, in her presence, his lips curved. “You’re right. Different places, but essentially the same mission.”

“You asked me if this was a usual job for me. What about you? I know your assignments are probably private, but is this normally what you do?”

He hesitated, the instinct to deflect rising to the surface. But something about the way she looked at him—her eyes bright with genuine curiosity—made him want to share more than he usually would. “No, this isn’t usual for me,” he admitted. “Though my job covers a wide range of tasks.”

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