“Brilliant, Ava. Hopefully, he’s not going to land on the other side of the continent and you’ll be able to get to your apartment.” She sobered. “Just how the hell are you going to explain to Parker you stowed away on the chopper? For that matter, how are you gonna get back on the island before he does?”
It served no purpose to dwell on semantics, so she tried to relax and prayed that they’d land sooner rather than later. With a sigh, she scooted lower and drifted off to a half slumber.
When the chopper shuddered to a stop, she sat upright, glancing around wide-eyed. She didn’t take into consideration that Parker might need one of the bags on this trip. What was she going to do if he opened the hull and found her there?
She was on tenterhooks for thirty minutes before she finally relaxed enough to attempt to exit the helicopter. For the first time panic set in when she couldn’t find a lever or a switch to open the hatch from the inside. Getting in had been easy; she’d slipped in just as the hatch was closing after the techie had finished the pre-flight check.
“No, no, no! I have to get out of here,” she whimpered as she ran her hands all over the sides of the hatch. “Breathe, Ava. Stand back and think. There has to be a way to open it. Just don’t panic.”
The little pep talk helped, along with a thorough search using a sharp torch she found in one of the armor bags. She sighed with relief when she spotted the lever.
“No wonder I missed it before,” she muttered as she pulled the black lever that appeared nondescript in the black and yellow painted lines around the hatch. “Finally!”
She didn’t wait until the door was fully open before she jumped off and quickly punched her fist against the outside lever to close it again. She couldn’t afford to be caught by a guard doing his rounds.
“Now, where the hell am I?” She peeked back and forth as she skirted around the numerous aircrafts. “It looks like a private airfield, which means there won’t be a car rental agency here. Dammit!”
Ava huddled next to a small two-seater plane as she studied the surrounding area. Across the runway, she detected a large hangar with a smaller building next to it, which she assumed was the administration office. There were no people moving around, which expounded her frustration. She continued scanning the area and sighed with relief when she spotted four vehicles parked to the side of the hangar.
“There has to be people around. Now, I just need to put my best smile on and beg for a lift to the city.” A smile split across her face as she read the name of the airfield out loud. “Smithies Flight and Rescue. We’re in New York! Now, that’s what I call luck.”
“And skulking around is what I call looking for trouble.”
Ava started at the gruff voice behind her. She straightened and turned around with a smile ready on her face.
“Hi there, sir. I know this looks a little … ehm, suspicious but I promise you I’m not a criminal,” she said in a sweet dulcet tone. She swallowed hard as the gray-haired man stared unsmiling at her. Her charm obviously had no effect on him.
“If that is true, why are you hiding behind the plane?”
“I’m kinda lost. I’ve been hiking for a lift on ninety-five but I guess people are scared to pick up strangers nowadays.”
“That doesn’t explain how you ended up here.”
“I took a shortcut in the hope that I might find a place where I could phone a cab. I’ve been walking for hours and my feet are killing me.”
The old geezer finally seemed to soften as he looked her up and down. Ava had no idea what he saw but she knew she was somewhat disheveled from romping around in the hull of the chopper.
“Where are you heading?”
“Staten Island but if I could only get to the City, I’ll be fine.”
“I’m heading that way in ten minutes. You’re welcome to come along.”
Ava was hard pressed not to jump on him and hug the hell out of him.
“Thank you so much!” She looked down and stabbed her sneaker in the dirt. “I’m parched. Could I have some water, please?”
“Of course. Let’s go, little lady. I’ve got some cold soda in the office.”
Ava felt like skipping next to him, happy that he now seemed relaxed and was going to get her home much quicker than she’d believed possible.
Chapter Fourteen
“Home sweet home.”
Ava’s sigh was one of peace and joy at being back into the comfort of her own surroundings. She’d only been away for two weeks but she couldn’t help but breathe in the familiar fresh smell that permeated throughout the apartment. Admittedly, she loved Castle Sin with its nooks and crannies, the unexpected contrast of medieval and modern. Not to mention being surrounded by people all the time, which to her surprise she reveled in. But this was where she’d come to her own over the years, found herself as a person, and it would always be home.
“I’m so damn hungry. I should’ve stopped at the grocery store first,” she mumbled as she opened the fridge. As expected, it was empty. She’d cleared it out before she’d left. “Junk food it is, then.” She opened a packet of chips and moaned as she started chomping them down. “Nothing beats this. Pity I don’t have some ice cream to dip it in.”
She stiffened as a shuffling sound floated towards her. She tilted her head and listened. It came from one of the bedrooms.
“Shit, shit, shit! Someone is in the apartment.”
Ava frowned as she stared at the front door. It had been locked when she arrived. How the hell did someone get inside? She gingerly placed the packet of chips on the counter and slipped a big meat cleaver from the butcher’s block.
“Freaking hell, Ava, you should just get out and phone the cops, not go to the danger.” She ignored her own warning and walked with trembling legs toward the hallway. “Ouch! Fuck!” she hissed as she bumped her hip against the sharp corner of the kitchen island.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
Ava shocked to a halt at the harsh voice echoing in her ears. She gaped at Parker who stood in the doorway of her operations room.
"What am I doing here? What the devil are you doing in my apartment? For that matter, how did you know where I lived?"
He prowled closer. Ava forced her legs not to move as she waited for him. This was her apartment. She’d be damned if she allowed him to intimidate her in her own home.
“Didn’t I implicitly tell you that you were not coming with me?” He stopped a hair’s breadth away from her and pushed his nose against hers. “For that matter, how did you get off the island?”
Ava leaned back to assess whether his anger was real or maybe a little exaggerated to put the fear of the devil in her. His thunderous expression quickly obliterated that assumption. She licked her suddenly dry lips.
“I … er … well, I … ehm ...” Try as she might, she couldn’t get her lips to form the words her brain shouted at it. Not while Parker’s look promised dire consequences for openly defying him.
He crossed his arms over his chest, which of course aggravated the situation as they pressed against her breasts, teasing the tips to hardness.
Down, ladies! Now isn’t the time to jump to attention. My ass is probably going to burn for this!