Page 34 of Relentless
She lifted her head. Ethan’s green eyes watched her. Her gaze drifted over his face, taking it in. His dark brows, his strong cheekbones, his full lips. A face—a man—that had come to mean more to her than she realized. The possibility had always been there. But tonight, that possibility had become a certainty.
“Kara?” Ethan’s voice was soft in the night.
She leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. Then she rose, drawing her hand down his arm until she interlaced her fingers with his.
He lifted their joined hands and kissed the back of hers. “Are you ready for bed?” he asked.
She tugged him up. When he stood in front of her, their hands still clasped, but his other arm around her waist, she smiled up at him. “I am,” she said.
Then, pulling him down until their lips barely touched, she added, “I’m ready for everything you are.”
CHAPTERTHIRTEEN
“Time to wake up, sweetheart,”Ethan said as the wheels of Cody’s charter touched down at the private airport in San Diego.
Instead of opening her eyes, Kara turned and snuggled against him even more. A small smile tugged at his lips. She’d fallen asleep as they’d taxied for takeoff back in Mystery Lake, and she hadn’t woken up since. Not even through the patch of turbulence they hit about forty minutes into the flight. He’d like to take full credit for wearing her out—which he had. But he suspected that over the years, like military personnel, she’d learned to sleep when she could.
He looked down at her, a hint of disbelief still flirting in the parts of his brain reserved for self-doubt. He’d wanted her for a long time and couldn’t quite believe that she felt the same. It wasn’t that he thought himself unworthy. It was more that he couldn’t believe their luck. Their luck at finding each other.
“Is there a reason she’s so tired?” Cody asked as the plane taxied toward a private hangar.
Ethan flipped him off, eliciting a chuckle. “So how is this going to work?” Ethan asked, deliberately changing the subject. He might want his cousins to know that his relationship with Kara had changed, but any specifics were sure as hell off-limits.
“What? Our arrival right now or something different?”
“I’ve been to some of your concerts, but I’ve never been around for any of the backstage/preshow stuff. Tell me about it.”
Cody shrugged as the engines’ power throttled back even more and they slowed to a crawl. “The security team will meet us here and take us to the concert grounds. All the buses are there already, so you don’t have to do anything other than walk from the car to the coach.”
Despite being the closest to Cody of all his cousins, Ethan realized he had very little insight into his day-to-day life. He’d always been clear when he came home to Mystery Lake that he didn’t want to be “Cody Warwick, country music star.” He wanted to be a brother, son, cousin, grandson, and everything else he didn’t get to be when in the spotlight. And Ethan and the family had respected his wishes. But as the pilot cut the engines’ power and silence fell throughout the cabin, Ethan wondered if maybe he’d beentoorespectful. While he and Kara might retire to a luxury bus for the rest of the day, he doubted Cody would do the same.
But as he started to ask the question, the pilot opened the cockpit door and strode out. “Sorry for the bumps, folks,” she said.
Cody waved her off with a grin that had appeared on many a magazine cover. “We’re here in one piece. I’m not going to complain.”
“Me neither,” Kara said as she shifted away from Ethan and stretched her arms. “And don’t think it didn’t occur to me that perhaps getting in a small plane with a rock star wasn’t the greatest of ideas.”
Cody smiled as he unbuckled his seat belt and rose. “Nah, I’m past my prime. It’s one of those things that if you live past thirty, that curse doesn’t apply.”
“Well, for your sake, I hope it doesn’t,” Kara said, reaching for her purse.
“Cody?” a woman called. The pilot had let the stairs down, and a woman Ethan didn’t recognize stood in the doorway.
“Hey, Alex,” Cody said. Ethan flickered a gaze to his cousin. He didn’t know who Alex was, but Cody didn’t sound all that excited to see her.
“We’re fifteen minutes behind schedule already—”
“Not now, Alex. Can you wait until we at least get in the car?”
The woman’s gaze traveled to Ethan then Kara. Whoever she was, she was the epitome of a country girl. Or the cliché of a country girl. Her long blond hair curled just so and fell from beneath a cowboy hat. Her plaid shirt fit snug over a white tank top and was tied at the waist. A rhinestone belt held up a pair of jeans so tight Ethan was certain they could walk on their own. And her feet sported black cowboy boots that looked understated but probably cost more than his monthly mortgage.
“I’m Ethan Warwick,” he said, holding out his hand. He had no idea why Cody hadn’t performed the introductions. In fact, he’d already brushed by Alex and started down the stairs. “And this is Kara Kenyon, my fiancée,” Ethan added, going with the story they’d agreed on the night before. They hadn’ttechnicallyagreed on it. But Cody had suggested it and Kara hadn’t said no, so he was going with it.
“A relation?” Alex whatever-her-last-name-was asked.
“Cousin,” he answered. “Closest in age.”
Alex’s assessing gaze swept over them again.
