Page 41 of The Money Man
He surprised her by taking her hand as they walked toward the jet. She liked that he was willing to claim their relationship in a semipublic place.
An engine revved as another jet hurled itself skyward, the wind it stirred flattening her skirt against her thighs. She liked the way it felt to stride along beside Derek in her high heels as they boarded a private jet to face down a Russian hacker. Like she was in a James Bond movie.
He helped her up the short flight of steps, the strength of his arm reinforcing her trust in his ability to safeguard her. As she came through the plane’s door, she scanned the interior with wonder. Cushy, cream-colored leather lounge chairs sat on a soft taupe carpet. Tables made of highly polished blond wood jutted between the chairs, offering work space. Toward the rear of the plane, a leather sofa loaded with cream-and-taupe velvet pillows ran along one side, facing a table decorated with a large vase of fresh flowers.
“Flowers on an airplane?”
“Don’t worry, the vase is clamped to the table and they don’t put much water in it.” Derek’s voice was so close that she jumped and pivoted to find him straightening just inside the door, amusement lighting his eyes. “But it’s a nice touch, don’t you think?”
“What about the pillows?” She waved toward the sofa. “Are they Velcroed to the couch?”
He chuckled. “They’re corralled by bungee cords.”
“Does this plane belong to KRG?” she asked with an awe she couldn’t conceal.
“No, we just charter it regularly so I’m familiar with the decor. There’s even a shower in the back. You just have to make it quick if you don’t want to run out of hot water.”
“Unbelievable!” She tried not to think of how he looked in her shower with rivulets of water tracing over his muscled body but her pulse sped up anyway.
He gestured to a chair at one of the tables. “Why don’t you take this seat and I’ll sit across the aisle for takeoff so we’re both facing forward. Once we level off, you can explore further.”
He leaned down to brush a kiss over her lips. “Although I hate being separated from you by even two feet.”
“That’s laying it on a little thick.” But she patted his delicious butt as a ripple of happiness washed through her.
A soft cough sounded behind her so she spun around.
“Hello, I’m Kai.” A slim, blond man in a navy blazer and khaki trousers stepped out of the forward doorway. “Would you like something to drink? Coffee? Tea? Mimosa? Bloody Mary?”
“Um, coffee would be great,” Alice said as she settled into her lounge chair while a flush of embarrassment climbed her cheeks. Maybe she’d indulge in a Bloody Mary on the way home when she didn’t have to keep her wits about her.
“Make that two coffees, please,” Derek said. He slotted his briefcase into a pocket on the wall, shrugged out of his jacket, and tossed it over the back of another chair. “There’s storage space on your side too.”
“Oh, right.” Alice pulled her attention away from the ripple of his shoulder muscles under the blue cotton before she stuffed her leather tote and purse into the compartment. “I guess the laws of gravity apply even on a private jet.”
“The pilot says it should be a smooth flight, so you don’t have to worry,” Derek said, easing into his seat.
“Oh, I’m not worried. It’s statistically much safer to fly than to drive on the Garden State Parkway.” His presence was far more disturbing to her peace of mind than being thirty thousand feet in the air in a metal tube.
“Good point.” Derek buckled his seat belt and stretched out his long, long legs, crossing them at the ankles so the polished gleam of his black wingtips caught her eye.
Kai arrived with their coffee and its accoutrements, allowing them to doctor their beverages before he cleared away the sugar and cream. “If you need me, just hit the call button,” he said, disappearing back into the galley space and closing the door.
“I can’t believe Kai saw me grab your butt,” Alice said, consoling herself with a chocolate-dipped biscotti. “Now he probably thinks I’m some kind of an escort, not a business associate.”
Derek let his gaze roam up and down her body, making hunger bloom inside her as swiftly as if he’d touched her. “I suspect he thinks I’m a very lucky man.”
The longing coiled hot in her belly while the pilot’s voice came through a speaker to tell them they’d been cleared for takeoff. Alice crossed her legs as though that could stifle her reaction and the plane started rolling toward the runway.
“How many times have you flown on a private jet?” she asked, trying to distract herself.
“I’ve lost count, but I remember my first time.” His smile was reminiscent. “Leland, Tully, and I had just started KRG. We got a call from a prospective client out in Des Moines who had a very urgent problem and needed us there ASAP. It never occurred to us that we’d have a problem getting a flight so we guaranteed that we’d be there the next day. But when I tried to book us into Des Moines, there weren’t any seats available. Some huge organization had decided to hold their annual meeting there that year, and Des Moines is not a major hub for any airline, let me tell you.”
“I guess it’s too far to drive from New York.”
He nodded. “I was going to book us to Chicago and rent a car for the five-hour drive, but then Leland up and says no. He insists that we’re going to do things right and charter a jet. It will impress the client, he says.”
“How would they know? Were they meeting you at the airport?”
