Page 28 of Forbidden Hawaiian Nights
The seats were a rich, buttery cream leather, the tables were highly polished walnut and the pale tufted carpet made her want to kick off her sandals and riffle her toes through its soft pile. Champagne was offered by a smiling, uniformed young woman. Mia shook her head. Max, barely glancing at either the woman or the tray, grabbed a glass in passing but he was already on the phone as they settled into their seats.
Mia realised that he was completely oblivious to his surroundings. He could have been on a bus for all the attention he paid to the luxurious jet.
The differences between them gaped wide. The differences between him and his sister were even more puzzling, given they both came from the same background.
She settled into the seat and gazed around her. Agenda? Itinerary? She had to drag her mind back to reality as she waited for him to finish his phone call.
Half listening, she realised that he was talking to his brother about a yacht. Had they just bought one? The level of wealth was mind-boggling.
‘It’s so weird.’ She turned to him as soon as he was off the phone and he looked at her quizzically.
‘Leading statement,’ he said. ‘Can’t wait to hear where this is going.’
‘All of this…’ She made a sweeping gesture to encompass the jet, the flute of champagne, the leather, and the walnut and the hush. Because the young woman who had handed them drinks had tactfully faded into the background and the pilot was still on the ground, talking to whomever pilots of private jets needed to talk before they took off. ‘You’re not impressed, are you?’
He looked absently around him and shrugged. ‘I stopped being impressed by the things money can buy a long time ago. When it comes to private jets, I’ve been on many, and many were bigger, faster and better-looking.’
‘You’re so different from Izzy.’
‘So I’m beginning to conclude.’
‘I mean…’ Mia frowned and placidly bypassed the unwelcoming expression on his face. ‘Of course I knew from the start that she came from a wealthy background, because she told me that she had been hired by you to handle the hotel as a first job experience. How many girls are blessed enough to cut their teeth on such a great job? But, if I hadn’t known that, if I’d just met her out and about, there’s no way I would ever have thought that she came from money.’
‘Because…? And I ask because I don’t suppose there’s the slightest chance of closing this conversation down until you’ve said what you intend to.’
Mia was vaguely aware of an impatient edge to his voice, but she was a lot more aware of his forearm resting close to hers on the arm rest of the seat. Her eyes kept straying to its sinewy strength, the length of his fingers, the dark, fine hair.
‘Because she never dresses in designer clothes and she honestly doesn’t seem impressed by the fact that she can pretty much have whatever she wants. I guess, judging from all of this…’
‘I’ll have to take your word on that,’ Max intoned abruptly. ‘I can’t say I’ve ever paid much attention to the clothes my sister wore.’
The pilot was now in the plane and he walked over, shook hands and chatted about the flight. He inspired confidence. It was a relief, because Mia had never been in anything as small as this before. She could surf with the best of them, and the ocean didn’t scare her, but on the three occasions when she had flown on a plane she had been sickly nervous of the fact that the ground was nowhere near beneath her. Now, peering out of the circular window, she had disturbing visions of being in a matchbox high up in the air, tossed about by air currents. Her stomach swooped.
She’d been talking about Izzy but now, as the pilot headed towards the cockpit, the conversation was lost in a wave of high-wire tension.
‘I’ve never been on a private jet before.’ Her voice was unnaturally high and she cleared her throat.
‘I gathered,’ Max said wryly.
‘No. I mean I’ve never…’ She breathed in deeply as the engines roared into deafening life. She wished she had some vital statistics to hand. How many of these tiny little pieces of metal fell from the sky every year? Maybe, in this instance, ignorance was bliss. ‘I mean…’ She clutched the arms of the chair in a death-defying grip. ‘I’ve never been up in the air in anything quite as small as this…’
‘Are you okay?’
‘Absolutely!’
As the plane began to taxi, she felt her nerves begin to shred even though she told herself that this was probably safer for getting from A to B than some of the taxis she occasionally took after she’d been out at night. It might feel as fragile as a paper plane, but it was as sturdy as a rock. Surely?
‘What’s wrong?’ Max asked sharply.
‘I feel a little sick.’
‘Jesus. Are you scared?’
‘No,’ Mia squeaked.
‘Look at me!’
She stared straight at him as the jet shot upwards at what felt like supersonic speed. She felt a rocket couldn’t have gone faster. Her insides were all over the place and she wanted to whimper even though her head was telling her to behave.
