“You could say that,” he hedged.
“Will you tell me where we are going? California is pretty big.”
“San Francisco,” he answered. “Have you ever been?”
I shook my head. “Nope. I’ve never left the east coast.”
“You’re in for a treat.”
“What’s in California?” I pressed.
“Business.”
It was a curt response and said he didn’t want to tell me the whole story. I wasn’t going to push it. There needed to be some separation between us. I couldn’t let myself get used to him or this life. It wasn’t anything permanent.
I heard the engines fire up. I made sure Jace was buckled up. “Are you ready?” I asked him.
I was sure the kid was about ready to explode from an overload of excitement. I laughed as I watched him grip his armrests. I turned to Nash who was staring at his phone. “He’s never going to sleep tonight,” I told him.
“Thankfully we’re going back in time three hours,” he joked. “Hopefully, he’ll be ready to go down before midnight California time.”
I smiled and focused on Jace once again. Ten minutes later, we were in the air and Jace had his face glued to the small window. “I can’t see anything!” he complained.
“Do you want to watch some TV?” Nash asked. “There are movies too.”
“Can I?” Jace asked me.
“Yes, go ahead.”
I watched Nash get him set up. It was crazy to think of the alpha asshole I knew Nash to be acting so patiently with Jace. He said he never wanted to have a family, but he was a natural. Once he got Jace set up, he came back and sat in the chair that faced mine.
“He’s not scared at all,” he said in a low voice.
I shrugged. “I guess not.”
“I remember the first time I flew I was terrified,” he said.
“Me too,” I agreed. “I think he is just too excited to be afraid. You have made his whole year.”
“I’m glad I could make him smile,” he said. “How was his week at school?”
“He didn’t get beat up and he didn’t beat anyone up,” I said.
“Is that what qualifies as a good week?” he joked.
“Lately it has been,” I said with a sigh. “Tell me something. Does it ever get better?”
“What do you mean?”
“You told him you’d been bullied in school. He’s in third grade. Will this end?”
He looked thoughtful. “I’m afraid to answer that.”
“Why?”
“Because I think it will get better, but my reason is not something you agree with. We are on this little plane with no escape.”
I rolled my eyes. “You think it was him hitting the boy that will stop the bullying?”
He slowly nodded. “I do. I’m not condoning it, but it shows he will not be an easy target.”
“I will only say this once,” I said and held up a finger. “I think you might be right. But I will not let him go around beating kids up. I will ground him forever if he does.”
“I don’t blame you. I won’t interfere ever again.”
Chapter 58
Nash
I woke and immediately remembered I wasn’t home in bed. I rubbed a hand over my face and turned to look out the window. It was still dark. The clock said it was five, but my brain told me it was eight. I wasn’t much for sleeping in. I tried to go back to sleep but it just wasn’t happening.
I wondered if Saige was still asleep. Her and Jace were in the bedroom on the other side of the suite. I wasn’t sure she would be okay with the arrangements, but when they saw the room, all was well. I didn’t want to play house, but it just made sense to stay together. It wasn’t like we were sharing a bed. Thinking of a bed and her had me growing hard.
I reached down and stroked the morning wood that rose to attention as thoughts and images of Saige filled my head. Last night, she and I stayed up and enjoyed a drink while Jace was in bed. It would have been so easy to invite her back to my bed. I wanted to, but I resisted. I didn’t want her to be uncomfortable. She would think it was the only reason I invited them to come along. The truth was, I wanted some company for the trip. I didn’t want to do it alone, even if my business had to be handled on my own.
I got out of bed, knowing I wasn’t going back to sleep. If I stayed in bed, I was going to end up beating off and I didn’t think I could look at her after doing something like that with her a hundred feet away. I could resist.
I pulled on my sweats and a T-shirt. I didn’t want Jace to have any questions about anything. Me running around in my underwear in front of his mom could be awkward.
The small kitchenette included a coffeemaker. I started some coffee before moving to look out the window that overlooked the bay. The city was already bustling below. I stared at the Golden Gate Bridge and was transported back to my youth. I had spent a lot of time studying that bridge. I marveled at the architecture. I loved when my mom took me to see it. My dad thought it was stupid. We saw it every day. What was the big deal?
“Good morning,” Saige said from behind me.
I turned to see her walking toward me. She was wearing a pair of yoga pants and a loose T-shirt. Her hair was slightly mussed, and she didn’t have a stitch of makeup on. I had never wanted her more. The rawness of the moment did something to my guts. I never did overnights. If I did, it was a drunken mistake and either I was pushing the woman out the door or I was fleeing the moment my eyes popped open. To see her in her pajamas without any rush to leave was screwing with my mind.
“Hi,” I said and forced my erection to stay down. This was not the time. I could not scare her away by dragging her into my room and burying myself inside her with the kid so close. I cleared my throat. “You’re up early.”
“My internal clock says it is time to get up,” she said with a laugh. “I thought I was going to sleep in, but my brain had other ideas.
I laughed. “Me too. I started coffee.”
“Good, I have a feeling I’m going to need it.”
“Is Jace still asleep?”
She smiled. “Yes. He was pretty excited last night, but the moment it all wore off, he crashed hard.”
“Jetlag can kick your ass,” I said.
“Do you make these trips often?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Often enough. It’s a lot easier to look someone in the face than deal with them on the phone.”
“I agree, but is anyone doing business on a Saturday?”
I slowly nodded. “Anyone that wants to stay on top does.”
“I don’t know if I would want to sacrifice my weekends to stay on top,” she said. “Life is too short to spend it thinking about money all the time.”
She wasn’t wrong. I had seen the casualties of those who put money above all else. I supposed some might think I was one of those casualties. I wasn’t. I purposely chose my life, and I didn’t regret it. “I’ve got my meeting first thing this morning, but after I’m done, I’d love to take you guys sightseeing.”