He looked stung. I was joking, but perhaps there was a little bit too much truth to what I said.
“No one would do that while you were with me.”
“Of course not,” I shot back. “They’d do it when you weren’t around.” I turned away from his face and wished there was something to drink. It’s ten in the morning, I reminded myself.
Silence stretched between us as I cringed, waiting for him to reprimand me or do whatever it was billionaires did to their inferiors. You shouldn’t talk to him like this. He’s not your buddy.
“You’re very blunt.”
An apology was already falling from my lips, but Luke silenced me with a reassuring nod. “I like it, even though it might be a little hurtful. I’m usually surrounded by sycophants. I expected you to be one of them.”
It was strange to feel unpleasantness in my gut and pride glowing in my heart at the same time. “Do you want me to be a sycophant in front of other people?”
He shook his head and laughed. “Just be yourself.”
Be myself? Was he crazy? “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
“Jessica, I picked you because I like the way you are. They’ll understand that. The only thing is we need to come up with a background.”
I tried to bury the glowing feeling in my chest. “Well, I could just use Natalie’s background. It would be easy to remember. Her parents are both dentists. Their names are Rita and Tom.”
Luke nodded as he typed something in his smartphone. “My father’s name is Giacomo.”
Giacomo Pardini. I committed it to memory. “What about your mom?”
“Mary,” he said stiffly.
A shadow crossed over his face and I was afraid to ask more. Looks like I’m not the only one who doesn’t like talking about myself, I thought as Luke’s frown became even more pronounced.
I looked outside and was startled to discover that we were already driving over the new Bay Bridge. Soon, I’ll be sitting on a jet with nothing between me and the ground but thousands of feet.
“What airline are we taking? It didn’t say on the ticket.”
He looked at me as though I had made a poor joke. “It’s my private jet.”
Oh, right. I felt a stab of nerves as the limo rolled into SFO. “I suppose this would be a bad time to mention that I’ve never flown before?”
“You have got to be kidding.” He scowled when he realized I was serious. “Shit. This is going to be a nightmare.” He ironed his face with his hands and then suddenly his head perked up. “Please excuse my language.”
I didn’t know whether I wanted to laugh or yell. “Hey,” I said a bit defensively. “I’m not terrified of planes or anything, I’m just saying that I’ve never flown before. Whoa—”
A wall of people holding cameras blocked our exit from the car, madly clicking away. Holy shit.
“Paparazzi?”
“Yeah. Look alive,” said Luke in a neutral voice.
Clearly, he was used to this sort of thing.
It was daylight, so at least we didn’t have to walk into blinding camera flashes. The driver opened the door and their screams blasted into the car, which had been silent only a moment ago. He slid out of the car first.
“Mr. Pardini!”
“Luke, what do you have to say about the merger with Hilton Hotels?”
I took Luke’s hand as I got out of the car. The horde of paparazzi closed in around us and shouted his name, demanding to know where we were going and what was his opinion and who was the girl standing next to him? I clung to Luke instinctively and shrank from the men closing around us. He tugged my arm, but I was afraid to squeeze between the people clustered around us.
I met his puzzled, blue eyes and his expression became one of concern. He pulled me against his chest and I loved his protective heat, and as Luke walked they parted from him. He said nothing to the screaming voices but beamed at them, as if posing for a photograph. A light flickered inside my head and I grabbed Luke’s shirt, forcing him to stop. Before he could utter a word, I hooked my hand around his neck and crushed my lips against his.
They want a picture? I’ll give them some juicy gossip. I could imagine the headlines: Luke Pardini seen kissing blonde trollop at SFO!
Okay, they probably wouldn’t use that word.
The kiss made me feel more alive than I had in years. Heat simmered in my chest and I could hear them still clicking away, shoving their cameras in our faces, but I didn’t care. I just wanted to cling onto him and savor the moment for as long as possible. My hand rested over his chest and I could feel his lean muscles under my fingers. I raked my fingers through his thick hair and when we finally broke, it was to breathe.
I didn’t know why I did it—I wasn’t really thinking, but my hand slid down his chest and around his abdomen. His body was so fucking hot, that I wasn’t really thinking straight, and I lightly stroked the curve of his ass. His nostrils flared and his eyes smoldered. He laughed a bit into my lips and pinched my waist with his fingers. I snapped out of it. I had been so caught in the moment that I didn’t realize I had taken a flying leap over our professional arrangement and had crossed into the territory of sexual harassment. I couldn’t tell if he was turned on or pissed off.
A rush of self-loathing filled my guts. Jessica, you idiot. My little ass-grab would be plastered all over the tabloids.
Luke turned away, the moment broken, and plowed through the crowd. The waiting agents at the airport took our bags from the driver, who left the moment Luke handed him an envelope.
“This way, Mr. Pardini.”
He kept a firm grip on my hand as we walked through the airport, and we bypassed the normal security to go through some sort of VIP screening process. As the agents loaded our luggage on the conveyer belt, Luke turned towards me. His cheeks were a bit pink, and it thrilled me. He leaned into me and I flushed under his accusatory stare.
“So, care to explain what that was all about?”
I thought that my cheeks would be stained permanently red. I lowered my gaze. “I was just acting for the cameras.” I cringed at myself as Luke’s dry laughter shook through my body.
“Yes, you certainly were.”
The amount of smugness in his voice should be made illegal.
It was all right, though. At least he wasn’t mad. I got a bit carried away, but still, my guilt stayed with my all the way to the small jet was waited for us on the tarmac. I seized Luke’s hand and my nails bit into his palm.