“No, it sounds well planned,” she said, choking off the part of her that wanted to gush about Los Angeles and ocean views and five-star restaurants. “I just need to see the script.”
“I’ll email it to you before I leave the office.” He took a breath. “Are you…feeling any better?”
His change of tone felt instantly personal, with every inflection in his voice becoming clear and ringing with personality, like he’d stepped beside her and taken her in his arms again.
“I—” Elayna shook her head, clearing away the memory she’d so easily sunk into. “I am, thank you. I’m sorry about last night. I was so tired. I probably shouldn’t have come to the door. I hope you don’t get sick.”
She bit her lip. That wasn’t exactly the explanation she’d planned out in her head.
“I’m not worried,” he answered, “and I’m glad you answered the door.”
For a moment, she only listened to the silence on the other end of the phone and repeated his last phrase in her head. He was glad? Why? Because he was able to talk about the interview or because of something else? It was too risky to bring up, and he seemed to agree.
“I’ll see you tomorrow then?” he asked. “I can stop by the office later in the day if you want to make any changes.”
He’d switched back to business tone, and her head was feeling more confused than she was comfortable with.
“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She hung up and stared at her phone. How was it that he could be so kind and gentlemanly, and yet memo himself about practically blackmailing her? It didn’t make any sense, but then, people like that rarely did.
She thought back to when Dr. Jerkin had mentioned a former patient he’d had years ago. A man who lived a double life and got away with it for twenty years. On one side, he was a doctor and family man who went to church and coached T-ball, and on the other, he smuggled drugs and worked the black market. Even killing when he had to. No one suspected a thing until his wife went to store a bucket of wheat in the crawl space under the house. She found a tunnel dug out and instead of worrying her husband, who was out of town, she called the police station to have it investigated. Turned out it went on for half a mile and ended in a massive storage room filled with millions of dollars in drugs.
Elayna had spent a solid week imagining what that must have been like for his family. And the biggest question, why? Why would he risk such a perfect life? But when she’d asked Dr. Jerkin what he thought, he told her there was no reasoning with the demon of power; that its cravings were never satisfied.
So was that what fueled Kayson?
Elayna walked through the airport, keeping a wide space between them, unsure of herself after her spontaneous hand-holding decision. They’d gone over the script at her office the week before, and while it seemed a little dry, it gave her plenty of time to cover all the information she’d hoped to.
She glanced over at Kayson, and he caught looks from a few other people as well—a lot of other people. Practically everyone they passed would swivel and gawk. But he didn’t pay any attention, keeping a bland stare through it all. Elayna supposed he had to.
They hadn’t followed the rest of the foot traffic to the terminals, and although Elayna was curious, she didn’t ask. She guessed that high-profile clients like Kayson didn’t fly commercial. Of course. Wherever they were going, she was prepared to act like it was something she did every day.
But when they reached a helipad, her heart began to pound. It was like something out of a movie. The way he stepped aside and held his arm out for her to climb up first was very action-adventure-hero of him.
She climbed into the helicopter and smiled at the pilot, her lips moving in a hello that couldn’t possibly be heard over the blades as they spun in a blur overhead. The harness looked like military-grade equipment, but she lifted it over her shoulders quickly, figuring it out as she went.
She looked up to see Kayson strapped in across from her. He smiled and gave her a thumbs-up, but she could tell he was reading every move she made, and that he was confused. But who could blame him? She’d nearly climbed onto his lap when he came to her house, and ever since then, she avoided him completely. His gaze, his hands. She stayed away from anything that might be misread.
“It’s a quick flight, just under an hour,” Kayson yelled as they rose into the air. The force was enough to make her stomach sink, and Elayna gripped her seat. Kayson’s gaze dropped to her hands. “Have you flown in a helicopter before?” he asked.
She shook her head, suddenly wishing they were next to each other. Who cared if he was crazy? She just wanted someone to hold on to.
“The takeoff and landing require some getting used to,” he explained. “But the rest is pretty fun.”
Elayna smiled a little, trying to keep hold of her stomach. But as the minutes ticked by, she realized he was right. The strange motions stopped, turning into a gentle roll from one side to the other, and the view from her window was gorgeous. They followed the coastline the entire flight, making it easy to judge the distance.
Once the hills and Hollywood sign were in view, they began their descent. It was quick and nausea-inducing, but she managed to keep her stomach from revolting.
The rest was a blur, and she brushed aside some of her previous rules. Staying too far away from Kayson in Los Angeles would mean losing him completely, and she didn’t want that. Although she’d been to places like Disneyland and Planet Hollywood, she wasn’t keen on navigating the inner city on her own.
Her arm brushed against him, and she sidestepped a fraction. It was one of the few times they’d been together when he wasn’t wearing a suit, and the feel of his warm skin had her heart jumping into her throat.
He glanced down at her, which was a feat since she’d chosen to wear casual clothing too, and her flip-flops told the truth about her height. Although it seemed like he had something to say, he remained silent.
They checked into the hotel and found their suites next door to each other, with beachfront patios and a harbor view. The sailboats were beautiful with tall masts that leaned with the sea in a lazy rolling motion. The sun had already set, and lights trailed along the sails and down each roped walkway, glittering in the night. It was enchanting. Kayson stood in his patio next to hers, gazing out at the view.
Elayna took a steady breath. “Thank you for lining up this interview.” She threaded her hands through her hair, letting it fall from a tightly pinned knot.
There was only silence next to her, and she wondered if Kayson was lost in the view as well. But when she glanced over at him, his eyes were locked on her.
She wished their aqua blue color didn’t make her knees feel so weak, or that she could return his gaze with an unaffected lift of her chin and flick of her hair. But as it was, she only stared back, mesmerized.
“So, tell me,” he began, taking two very slow steps closer.
Elayna tried to swallow casually, if that was a thing. But she ended up nearly choking on her tongue.
“I feel like you have something on your mind.” His eyes had yet to stray from hers and seemed to be searching deeper with each step forward.
There was no fence or dividers to separate the patios, only a few shrubs and a two-foot section of wall to give the windows a bit of privacy. Nothing between them when he took another step closer.