TAILSPIN

  I turn away from the hustle and bustle of the streets to stare at Aaron. “That’s very generous of you, considering the way he behaved at dinner.”

  Aaron shrugs as if it doesn’t bother him. “He sees me as a theat.”

  I frown a little. “What makes you say that?”

  “I’m making advances toward his PA and he doesn’t like it.”

  I start laughing. “Ah, you noticed that, did you?”

  He nods. “What’s the deal with you two anyway? Is there something I should know?”

  My heart beats a little. I swallow, looking down at my dress before I look back up at him. “There’s nothing to know. He’s been best friends with my brother since school and now I work for him.”

  I can tell by the look on Aaron’s face that he doesn’t buy it. He inhales a little, looks away momentarily, then glances back at me. “I’ll leave it for now, but I may want to address something a little later.”

  I swallow hard. “Okay.” I don’t say anything more. I have a feeling he will press on the subject of Devon and me, and I’m not quite sure how to address it.

  But as I stare out the window once more, all thoughts of Devon are pushed to the back of my mind when I see the lights of the Empire State Building coming into view. I gasp. “Oh, my god. It’s so beautiful.”

  Aaron laughs. “I take it you’re impressed.”

  I look over at him. “Aren’t you? I know you live here, but how can one ever tire of staring at something so … so … remarkable? Something so … dominating.”

  “You get used to it, but I guess you’re right. It is rather exceptional.”

  When we pull up to the building and the driver gets out, I turn to Aaron. “We’re not going inside, are we?” Biting my lip again, I try and suppress my smile.

  He nods with a smirk. “Yes. I know this isn’t the romantic moment you were probably hoping for, but I hope it’ll be close.”

  I gasp. “Are you kidding me? I can’t think of anything more perfect. Thank you.”

  With a smile, Aaron helps me out of the car and I follow him into the building. I’m thinking we’ll have to wait, but I’m pleasantly surprised when we skip the line.

  “Come here often?” I ask, a joke in my voice.

  Aaron smiles softly. “I know a few people.”

  I nod. “Of course you do.”

  We both laugh as we head into one lift. When we get out and step into another, my eyes widen.

  “We have to take two elevators?”

  “There will be three. We’re going straight to the top.”

  “Wow,” I breathe out, trying to curb my excitement. I feel like a child on Christmas.

  I notice Aaron staring at me, so I turn to him. “You have the most amazing smile.”

  I feel the heat rush to my cheeks. “Thank you.”

  When the elevator comes to a stop, we make our way onto the main deck. Even though it’s dark, the air is sticky from the heat of the day. It’s not too unbearable, though.

  As Aaron and I make our way toward the corner of the deck, I look across at the expanse of lights. “It’s beautiful.”

  “Come,” Aaron says, taking my hand. He pulls me over to the middle and points to a massive building. “You see that building over there?” I look into the distance at the tall, extremely shiny building with a blue, red, and white top. I turn back to him.

  “Yes.”

  “That’s the One World Trade Center.” He points again. “Over there is the Statue of Liberty, and over there is the Chrysler Building.”

  I look again. “It has a very distinct shape with its arches and triangles.”

  He turns to see me looking at him. “Triangles, huh?” I nod. He looks down at my lips before looking back up. “Central Park is just over there.” He points, making me look down. All I can see is an expanse of black trees. As I follow it across, I notice the Hudson River.

  “That’s where that pilot had to land.” I point. “Unbelievable.”

  Aaron looks at me. “Chesley Sullenberger. What a great man and a fantastic pilot. He saved everyone that day.”

  “I remember being at home with my dad when it came on the news. I was in complete shock. I couldn’t imagine a plane could land on water like that without at least breaking apart.”

  “I know. That’s why they called it a ‘miracle on the Hudson.’”

  Thinking of flying and planes, I turn to him. “Did you ever have any incidents in your flying career?”

  Aaron looks away for a moment. “There were a couple. I had an incident where the plane stalled for twenty minutes. That was pretty frightening. But the worst incident was when I was on exercise off the Florida coast. There were four of us. One had trouble, causing his aircraft to dip and hit another plane. The shrapnel from that ripped into my engine—”

  I gasp. “Oh no! What happened?”

  “Clouds of coolant went into the air. I couldn’t see to get my bearings. After a couple minutes of trying to control the plane, I decided to admit defeat and pull the ejection seat. I landed safely in the ocean, but I was pretty beat up. It took me three weeks to recover before I could fly again.”

  I place my hand on his shoulder. “I bet. Were your colleagues okay?”

  He nods. “Yes. We all ejected and landed in the water. Then, we just waited for rescue.” He laughs. “The sharks kept us company.”

  My eyes widen. “I can’t think of anything worse.” I involuntarily shiver. “There’s a reason they belong in the sea and we belong on land. They don’t venture into my space, I won’t go into theirs.”

  “You don’t like sharks?” he asks, an amused look on his face.

  “I like sharks, but I respect their territory. That’s the difference.”

  “Ah, so it has nothing to do with that fact they’re huge and have sharp teeth that can bite into your flesh.” He laughs.

  “That’s not funny, you know.”

  Placing a hand on his heart, he stops, smirking. “I’m sorry.” He points up higher. “Do you want to go up farther?” When I nod, he offers me his arm. “Let’s go.”

  Once we reach the cooler, more intimate setting at the top, Aaron lets me gaze out of the windows for a few moments.

  “You like it up here, huh?”

  I turn to find him watching me. It’s nice to spend time with a gentleman.

  “I do.” I grab his arm. “Thank you so much for this.” I turn back to look out at the thousands of lights. “I think I could stay like this forever.”

  “Here,” Aaron says, grabbing me. I turn to see him holding up his phone. He takes a selfie of us, then shows it to me.

  “That’s nice.” We look great together. So happy. So radiant.

  “I’ll text it to you later. I have a feeling this is going to end up being my profile picture on Facebook.”

  I notice him staring at my lips again. It’s getting to be extremely difficult not to cross that line with him.

  “So,” he says, clearing his throat. “You only have the one brother?”

  Grateful of the change of subject, I nod. “Yep. He’s staying with my dad until he goes to Afghanistan.” My face falls.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. It’s always tough on families when they know their loved one is going somewhere so dangerous.”

  I nod. “It certainly is. We’re so close … especially since my mum died.”

  “Can I ask how?”

  When I see his eager expression, I take a deep breath. “She was shot at home, but the murderer was never caught.”

  Aaron looks down for a moment, shaking his head. When he looks back up, he places a hand on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Andi. Were you living with them at the time?”

  I nod. “Yes, and for a little while after. It’s my home; however, I couldn’t help but think some stranger invaded it and took one of the most important people in my life away from me. After she died, I did some stupid things I’m not proud of. I made poor decisions that caused more heartache for my dad. It??
?s something I will never forgive myself for.”

  He faces me and puts his hands on my shoulders, squeezing lightly. “Hey, as far as your father’s concerned, I’m sure there’s nothing to forgive. You were grieving as much as he was.”

  Taking a deep breath, I nod. I don’t want to start tearing up in front of Aaron. We haven’t known each other that long. I’m sure he wouldn’t appreciate the woman he’s trying to take out on a nice date turning into a mess.

  “Yeah, it was one of those things. Eventually, I grew up, moved out, got myself a housemate, and got a job working for Devon.”

  Smiling, he moves his hands away from my shoulders. “Yes … Devon …” He thinks for a moment. “Out of curiosity, what’s he like to work for?”

  I look away, blowing out some air. What can I tell him? That he’s an ignorant pig who doesn’t care what he does or says to hurt me? As far as trying to strike a deal with this man and his father, it won’t look very good for him.

  “He’s—” I start laughing. “Truth be told, it’s like working for a thirty-five-year-old child.”

  “Well, I guess we all have a little bit of a boy in us.”

  “See, there you go again, sticking up for him,” I joke.

  “He likes you,” he says. I laugh sarcastically. “I’m being serious. He really likes you, Andi. In fact, I would place a bet on the fact he’s in love with his PA and doesn’t know what to do about it.”

  Thinking how preposterous that sounds, I nudge him with my shoulder. “Oh, come on. That’s just silly.”

  “Why?”

  I stare at him in disbelief. “You haven’t seen the models he parades through his office.”

  Aaron leans forward. “And I’d bet every one of them doesn’t hold a candle to you.”

  I stare into Aaron’s eyes, thinking how sweet he is. How easy would it be to let this man kiss me? But I know I’ll be flying back to London and he’ll be staying here. There would be no point to it … other than having a really good time that is.

  I can tell by the look he gives me that he feels the same way. He has a certain hunger in his eyes that I want to explore, but know I can’t.

  Then, as quickly as it comes, it vanishes when he pulls away, inhaling. “The question is: How do you feel about him?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t know what—”

  “Come on, Andi. You can tell me. I won’t say anything.” When I don’t respond, he says, “Okay, tell you what. I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Well, it’s probably not much of a secret, considering I can’t seem to keep my eyes off you, but here goes. I like you … a lot. I know it’s crazy because we live so far apart. You’re only here for two or three more days, and then you’ll be flying three thousand, four hundred and seventy miles away.” He raises an eyebrow at me as my eyes widen. “Believe me, I’ve checked.” I laugh. “Anyway, I guess what I’m trying to figure out is whether this,” he motions between us, “is crazy. Is it just me?” I shake my head. “But I sense something else, too … an uncharted spark between you and Devon. I can hazard a guess as to how he feels for you, but what is it you feel for him?”

  Wondering if I should say anything, I take a deep breath. Considering he’s so sweet and kind, laying himself on the line like that, I owe him.

  “Okay,” I say, closing my eyes. “I do have feelings for Devon.” I roll my eyes after realising how preposterous that sounds. He treats me like crap. “I know nothing can happen between us, but—”

  Aaron puts his hand up. “Say no more. I don’t want to make you feel any more uncomfortable. I already know more than enough.” He shakes his head with a smile. “I know how cliché this is going to sound, but when I saw you at the bar and heard your voice, I think I fell a little bit in love with you.” He smirks, letting me know he’s kidding. “So I guess you and I are both crazy. I’d rather know now than you leaving me with a broken heart.” When he sees my smile, he says, “Have you ever thought about quitting your job so you and he could date?”

  I snort out a laugh. “Okay, first of all, that will never happen. Second, I’ve actually started looking.” I sigh. “I’m not saying Devon is bad to work for.” I almost choke on the lie. “I just think I have devoted way too much time to him. Even when I go home at night, my life revolves around him in one way or another. It’s like he can’t brush his own teeth without me.” I laugh again, but none of this is funny.

  “It sounds as though he has relied on you way too much. Does he at least appreciate everything you do for him?”

  God, this is awkward. How can I say he doesn’t in front of a perspective business partner? Knowing I’m going to lie again, I nod. “Yes, he does.”

  Aaron smiles. “Good.” He steps away a little. “Do you want to go have a look around the main deck before I take you for some champagne?”

  Smiling brightly, I nod. “I would really like that. Thank you.”

  We take the elevator down to the main deck. We spend a good thirty minutes walking around, gazing at the lights and talking. Aaron is fantastic company, and I can’t help but think how sweet he is for spending so much time with me. He must have seen the sights a million times, yet he’s patient and lets me go at my own pace.

  Once we’re finished, we drive to a local bar where we have a glass of champagne and talk some more. In fact, we talk so long, I don’t even realise it’s after midnight until I check my watch.

  “I’d better get you back. Your boss won’t be happy with me for stealing you away for so long.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he’s got better things to do right now than worry about me.” In fact, I can just imagine him entertaining yet another woman in his room.

  Aaron shakes his head as he leads me out of the bar. “Oh, I highly doubt that.”

  We drive back to my hotel. Once there, I look at him. “You’re some kind of special, you know that?”

  Aaron looks taken aback. “What makes you say that?”

  “Well, you take a girl out on a date, impress the hell out of her, then she tells you she likes someone else. In fact, you took me for champagne after I told you. Not many men would do that.”

  Aaron turns away for a second before looking back at me. “I guess I just really like you and like spending time with you. I know nothing can happen between us because of the three thousand miles, but—”

  “Three thousand, four hundred, seventy miles.” I smirk.

  He raises an eyebrow at me, nodding. “Exactly. I guess what I’m trying to say is, despite all that, I enjoy your company.” He holds his hand out to me. “Friends?”

  Biting my lip, I nod. “I would like that very much.” I place my hand in his. “Friends.” I lean forward, placing a kiss on his cheek. I notice his hand lingers for a moment, making it hard to pull away.

  “I think it best you go inside before I cross that ‘friend’ boundary.”

  Letting go of his hand, I pull back. “I had a really good time tonight, Aaron.”

  He smiles. “So did I. Sweet dreams, Andi.”

  The driver gets out and opens my door for me. “You, too.” I climb out of the car. I turn and wave at him before the chauffeur shuts the door.

  With a slight spring in my step, but also disappointment that nothing can happen between us, I step into the lift. I’m about to press the button for my floor when I think about tonight. Making a quick decision, I press the button for the roof. If Devon is entertaining someone, I want to stay away for a while.

  As the elevator doors open, I step through and look around. There is a sign on the wall saying “Rooftop Pool,” so I decide to head in that direction. It’s probably closed, but I can still walk over there.

  At the end of the hallway, I push on the door—surprised when it opens. I expect to see a few people, so I’m shocked when I’m met with only dim lights.

  I step through and walk up to the edge, taking a deep breath. The city of Manhattan is laid out before me, and it looks just as stunning from down here as it did way up there. I look
up at the Empire State Building, thinking about how much I enjoyed tonight.

  A noise in the shadows has my heart racing. Snapping my head to the source, I try and see if anyone’s there. All I can see is black. Maybe I should go. I’m probably not supposed to even be up here this late anyway.

  “Have a nice time tonight?”

  With a yelp, I jump, squinting into the darkness. “Devon?” I ask. I can’t quite see him, but I see an outline. He’s leaning up against the wall, holding a drink in his hand.

  “Well, did you?”

  Guardedly, I answer, “Yes, I had a lovely time. We went to the top of the Empire State Building.”

  He laughs under his breath. “I guess Andi gets turned on by romance. Did you let him touch you?”

  I screw up my face in disgust. “Not that it’s any of your business—”

  “Did you let him touch you?”

  “No. Why do you care so much anyway?”

  “Does it sound like I care?” he asks nonchalantly.

  “You wouldn’t ask if it didn’t bother you in some way.”

  He shrugs. “I’m just looking out for my best friend’s sister.”

  I roll my eyes. “Of course you are.”

  He pushes himself off the wall and walks toward me. Aware that he’s been drinking, I step back, hitting the wall. Devon smiles before reaching up and twirling his finger through one of my ringlets.

  “Tell me, Andi. Does helicopter man make you all wet like I do?”

  I try looking into his eyes to see a trace of humanity there, but all I’m met with is black. “There’s no need for this, Devon.”

  He steps closer, making my breath hitch. “Answer the goddamned fucking question.”

  Smelling the alcohol scares me a little. Ritchie did say it made people blurt the truth. Maybe I just don’t want to know the truth when it comes to Devon.

  “Does he make you wet?” he asks again, blowing his warm, alcohol-laden breath into my face.

  “You’ve been drinking. Maybe you should go to bed, sleep it off, and we’ll talk about this in the morning.”

  I try to move away, but he grabs my wrist and pins me to the wall. He leans down and inhales the side of my neck. He’s so close, I can feel the rapid beating of his heart against mine. So close, his warm breath tickles my skin. So close, I can feel his erection digging into me.