Chapter 30 #2
Ankles crossed, he’s leaning with relaxed confidence against yet another sports car—a Lamborghini, I think, glossy and black as a panther ready to pounce.
Designer sunglasses shield his eyes as he surveys me, the airfield behind him. Dressed in jeans and a spotless white T-shirt that matches the pristine white of his sneakers, he looks effortlessly relaxed, while I suddenly feel overdressed in my royal-blue work dress.
And holy freaking shit, he’s the sexiest man to have walked Planet Earth, I’m sure of it.
Max uncrosses his ankles as I pull up beside him, the parking lot almost completely empty.
I turn off my car, then open my door to get out of my black Range Rover. My fully equipped SUV has never felt so dull compared to his supercar.
“What are we doing here?” I move to him and stand between his uncrossed legs.
Pulling me into his arms, he rests his hands on my hips. “Skydiving.”
“I’m not skydiving,” I shrill, mildly panicking.
“No? Well, I am. You can join me or watch me. It’s up to you.”
I look up at the sky just as a small plane is taking off. “Do you go up in that?”
It’s so tiny, I’m not sure it looks safe.
“Yes. Are you scared of heights?” he asks with a slight hint of mockery in his tone.
“I’m not scared of anything.” That’s not true. He scares me because meeting him here today feels like an official date.
Relationship territory. My earlier thoughts appear in my mind.
“Then jump with me.”
“Have you done this before?”
“Dozens of times. My brothers might be all work, work, work and no play, but I like doing both.”
“You’ve done this dozens of times?” Once is too much for me.
“It’s a hobby of mine.”
“What else do you like doing?”
“I take Lidia here”—he taps the door of his car—“to the racetrack most Sundays. I bungee jump wherever I go on holiday, and the next thing I want to try is base jumping.”
I hope he has great life insurance. “You are certifiably crazy.” I laugh at his absurdity, also because he named his car.
“Crazy about you.” He possessively pulls me closer and kisses me breathless. Every nerve ending erupts with the certainty that I’m falling for this insanely gorgeous, kind, and powerful man.
“What if someone sees us?” I whisper against his lips.
“No one I know comes here, and besides, everyone is working.”
“Edward told me today that people have begun to talk at work.” I could even hear the whispers behind my back and could feel the heat of their stares as I left the office today. “You can’t send any more gifts or flowers to the office.”
“I’ll send them to your house then.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Stop fighting us, Paige.” The worry I see in his eyes every time I try to push him away is back, and I hate that I’m the one who put it there.
“I don’t want to lose my job, Max.”
“What about me? Do you want to lose me?”
I can’t even lie. “I don’t.”
Maybe I should just take the job at Hart Law. It would make everything easier. But what happens to my career if Max and I implode?
That’s a hell of a leap. I mean, we’re not even dating. It’s just sex. Right? “You’re not going to lose me, baby. You’ve got me.” His arms around me squeeze me tightly. “After the Youngs’ case closes, then we figure out how we make us work.”
“Is that what you want?” I ask tentatively. It feels like the question that could change everything.
“Yes… more than anything. I just don’t know how we’d do it if you were to continue your job at Moore & Associates.”
I feel the same and have thought the same. “So, we just keep doing what we’re doing, for now?” I ask, petrified of ever having to give him up.
He nods with a gaze so intense it feels like he’s touching me everywhere. “In the meantime, we need to keep us a secret, for the Youngs’ sake. I don’t want anything about us coming out that will affect their case.”
“We’ve never spoken about them.” I look around the lot again. “We’re in a very public place.”
“Like I said, no one comes here that I know. Chill, baby.”
This is getting too serious, so I change the subject. “I don’t want to jump.”
“Come and watch me then.” He stands to his full height, threading his fingers into mine.
“I can’t believe you skydive for fun?”
“What can I say, I love the rush. I love being reminded I’m alive.” His grin is reckless and dazzling, the kind that makes my stomach somersault. He swings our joined hands between us, like we’re just two ordinary people on an ordinary day, even though nothing about this feels ordinary.
“Promise me you’ll be safe,” I say.
He laughs, a deep, warm sound that vibrates through me. “That sounds like you care about me, Bunny. But don’t worry I know what I am doing, although I do have to sign a waiver, because there are no guarantees.”
That makes my stomach turn in a different way. I’m already worried about his safety, confirming his accusation. I care about him. Too much. It’s almost dangerous.
I roll my eyes, pretending to brush off my concern.
He pulls me closer, tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear, and kisses me again. For a second, the buzz of a distant plane is the only sound between us.
“Bye, Lidia.” He nods toward his sleek black Lamborghini, an obedient servant waiting to fulfill his thrill.
I burst into a fit of giggles like a lust-filled teenager. He’s unlike anyone I’ve ever dated. Oops… we’re not dating.
“Let’s do this.” He tugs me along behind him, his steps quickening, driven by the buzz of adrenaline he’s always chasing just out in front of him.
My heart’s already racing faster than any supercar. “What are we doing after this?”
“I’m taking you out for an early dinner at the Rolfstone.”
That’s a Michelin-star restaurant.
Yeah, this is a date.
A crazy, unpredictable, only-he-could-plan-it kind of date.