Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 115435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Thanks to traffic in New York that never really dies down, it takes almost an hour to get to the plane, and then it’s time to wake her up again.
Once we’re in the air, I take my girl to the plane’s bedroom and help her get cozy in the bed.
“You’re not going to sleep?” she asks me groggily.
“I have to work, a ghrá. But I’ll bring the laptop in here so you can sleep.”
“You don’t have to,” she says with a frown. “I’m sure I’ll sleep fine. You’ll be more comfortable in the seats out there.”
I narrow my eyes at her. “You’re sure?”
“Let’s give it a try. I know you’re nearby.” She gives me an encouraging smile.
“Come get me if you can’t sleep.”
She nods, and I walk out, closing the door behind me. Although the bed on the plane is comfortable for sleeping, I can tell that it wouldn’t be great to sit up and work in, not like our bed at home. But if she needs me, I’ll go be with her.
“Is she okay?” Miller asks, looking up from his iPad. Simon’s a few rows up, typing on his computer. One of the reasons I hired him is because he’s excellent with tech, with tracking, and he’s smart as fuck.
“Aye, just tired.” I sit and pull out my laptop, and within minutes, I’m absorbed in emails, projections, reports, and more decisions than most people make in a year.
But then, the air shifts, and I know my angel has come out of the bedroom.
I glance down the aisle and see her walking toward me. She doesn’t look particularly refreshed, which tells me she never fell asleep. Fuck.
“Hey,” she says as I set my laptop aside, and she climbs in my lap, straddling me, wraps her arms around my neck, and hugs me, burying her sweet face in my neck.
“I’m sorry. I should have stayed with you.”
“It’s fine. I don’t think I would have slept more anyway. I should work, too. I have a bunch to do since I took a couple of days off to shop.”
I feel her smile against me.
“Not that I’m complaining.”
I chuckle and rub my hands up and down her back. “I understand. Want to go cuddle for a wee bit before we get back to work?”
She sighs, and I know I just hit the nail on the head. She didn’t want to ask, but she needs to be touched, and I will never turn her down. I love that she craves my touch.
Billie’s needs always come before anything else.
I nod at Miller as I stand with Billie in my arms. She wraps her legs around my waist, and I carry her to the bedroom, and we get comfortable on the bed. I pull her against me, and she tucks her face against my chest.
“I know I’m needy,” she says, hugging me close. “And I’m not sorry.”
“Nor should you be.” I tip her chin up and kiss her softly. “I enjoy cuddling you, a ghrá.”
“Something occurred to me while I was lying here, and I want to talk to you about it.” She’s still looking up at me and raises her arm to brush her fingers through my hair. “If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s okay.”
I ghost my fingertips down her smooth cheek. “What is it? I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”
“I was just thinking about the other day, when you were so upset, just sort of replaying it in my head—”
“I’m sorry I was an arse.”
“No, that’s not what I was thinking about. I was just contemplating the events, and then I realized why you might be extra overprotective. Because of Skyla and everything she went through at the hands of that piece of shit who stalked her and tormented her. I know that had to have impacted you because the two of you are so close.”
I frown and kiss her forehead, breathing her in, so fucking grateful that she’s so perceptive.
A psychopath stalked my baby sister for three bloody years, and every day of those was a torment I don’t wish on anyone.
“I felt incompetent,” I finally say. Our voices are quiet, and lying here with her intimately, I’d confess anything she wanted to hear. Her compassionate eyes hold mine as she gently brushes her hand up and down my arm. “No matter what I threatened or bribed him with, nothing mattered. He wouldn’t stop. Every day, I watched Skyla’s security cameras, checked in with her, and kept an eye on his comings and goings. It was always easier when he was out of the country.”
“Who was he?” she asks with a scowl. “I mean, I know his name, and that he was wealthy, but as you said, most people do exactly what you say, especially if you threaten them. So, why didn’t he fear you?”