Page 23 of Mile High Ruin

I want to take her away from this aircraft and away from the lecherous pilot waiting outside. I want her assigned only to my flights. I want to know where she lives, who she speaks to, and whether there’s a man waiting for her when she lands.

I want things I have no right to want after one kiss.

That doesn’t make the need less real.

Sloane watches me carefully, as though she senses the direction of my thoughts and doesn’t trust it. She shouldn’t.

I release her. The effort it takes is greater than it should be.

She immediately steps away and begins fastening her blouse, her fingers less steady than before. I turn my attention to the door because watching her conceal the skin I just tasted is likely to destroy the restraint I’ve managed to recover.

When she’s finished, she smooths both hands over her uniform and lifts her chin. Professional again.

Almost. Her mouth remains flushed, and the pulse in her throat is too quick.

“I should return to work,” she says.

“Yes.”

Neither of us moves.

Then she reaches for the door. I open it before she can.

The corridor outside is empty for half a second, then Captain Hale steps from the galley. He stops when he sees us, his gaze landing first on Sloane’s face, then on her loosened hair, then on my damp shirt and unfastened cuff. His expression tightens before he can hide it.

Displeasure. Possessiveness.

The sight of it awakens something cold inside me.

“Captain,” I say.

He straightens. “Mr. Chernovar.”

His eyes slide back to Sloane.

She notices, and her shoulders stiffen.

“The stain required more attention than expected,” I tell him.

Hale’s jaw shifts. “I see.”

“No,” I say. “I don’t believe you do.”

His gaze snaps to mine.

The corridor seems to narrow.

Sloane steps past both of us before the silence can become something worse. “I need to check on the dinner service.”

She doesn’t wait for permission. She moves quickly into the main cabin, not quite running, but close enough that I know she’s escaping both of us.

Hale watches her go.

I watch him watch her.

When he realizes I’m still standing there, he forces his attention back to me. “Is there something you require, sir?”

“Yes.”