Chapter 18
HAILEY
“I cannot believe you upgraded us,” I exclaimed, touching the leather seat.
“Only the best for my girl. I was surprised you and Val didn’t book business class.”
I shrugged. “I already spend too much on shoes and clothes, so I have to choose my battles wisely. Val can afford business class, but she’s careful with her money. I guess it’s a habit she formed way back when we couldn’t afford much.” I turned to him. “Thank you.”
After boarding was completed, the flight attendant brought us glasses of champagne. We were on a very early flight, so coffee would have been a better option, but I wasn’t about to turn her down.
“Oh la la. I can get used to this treatment,” I whispered an hour later. I’d just received a new glass.
“Easy there.”
“It’s only my second glass.”
“Third,” he corrected with a light smile. Ahh, that might explain the light buzz. And why I’d been talking his ear off. I could barely sit still. I felt an incessant need to share with him every detail I’d ever read about Chicago.
“Tell you a secret?” I whispered. “I think I’m tipsy.”
“I promise I won’t tell.”
His voice was low and conspiratorial.
“Also, you’re a much better travel companion than Val. Oops… don’t tell her I said that.”
“I’ll keep your dirty little secret.”
He touched his fingers to my jaw, traced a path down my neck.
Fire danced in his blue eyes, lighting me up.
He pulled me into a fiery kiss, while his hands kept touching me.
He slipped one between us, palming my breasts.
I was wearing a silk bra, but I felt his touch as intensely as if it were on my bare skin.
Oh, sweet heavens. Why was he doing this to me? Kissing me until every stroke of his tongue brought me closer to forgetting we were on a plane. He circled my nipple until it was so sensitive that even the slight touch of the silk over it felt like torture.
I hummed low in my throat when he pulled back, because I wasn’t ready to let go. He pressed his thumb on the bow of my upper lip, kissing my forehead. Oh, right. We weren’t alone. That’s why he’d stopped.
I squirmed in my seat, just in time to see the flight attendant serving food.
“More champagne?” she asked.
“Oh, no. Thanks.”
I didn’t want to overdo it, or next time Reid kissed me, I might completely forget we weren’t alone.
The flight was over far too soon for my liking. Some of the senior consultants at my old company had traveled business class, but I hadn’t reached that level. Still, I had flown business class occasionally when I’d been able to upgrade with frequent flyer miles. I loved the comfort.
“This was so comfy I almost want us to fly right back just so I can enjoy it some more. Thanks for spoiling me,” I said, stretching my back while we waited for our luggage.
Reid pulled me into a half hug, whispering, “Don’t worry. I plan to spoil you for the rest of the trip too.”
A delicious shudder coursed through me. What exactly did he have in mind? I could try and lure it out of him. I had my tricks. But I decided I wanted to be surprised.
Thanks to the priority tags, our luggage came out first. Reid took his phone out of his pocket while we headed toward the exit.
“Do you have internet?” he asked. “Didn’t work on the flight, and I don’t have a signal now either.”
“No, no.” I stepped sideways, almost bumping into him. “Vacation rule. No work emails. It’s a rabbit hole. You open one email, then you start thinking about it….”
Reid looked utterly perplexed. I gnawed at my lower lip.
The light buzz had relaxed me on the plane, made me a little less worried that I might have twisted his arm into offering to join me.
But now, my head was clear. I knew my Type-A personality drove some people crazy.
Sure, Reid had told me he liked it… but that had been back before we spent so much time together.
I didn’t want to be obnoxious. Crap, was I pushing it?
“Okay. You’re in charge,” he said, and I felt my muscles relax. He handed me his phone. “You keep this.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Trust me, if I have it on me, I won’t be able to help myself.”
I dropped the phone in my tote. “Okay. Temptation safely out of the way.”
“What’s next?”
“You’re putting yourself in my hands?”
He nodded. “Completely.”
“Ah, that’s… inadvisable. You haven’t even seen the itineraries I’ve planned.”
“You gave me a detailed rundown on the plane.”
“Clueless man. Those were just highlights.”
He chuckled, stroking the back of his neck. “Well, I’ve never been to Chicago, so I need a guide anyway.”
“I stand corrected. Not clueless. Brave. Extremely brave. You can still change your mind until we leave the airport. Then I get into tourist mode and you won’t be able to reason with me.”
“I won’t change my mind.”
“Then, Mr. Davenport, you’re going to get intimately acquainted with the Hailey Connor way of experiencing a city. You’ve been warned.”
Reid
We’d been walking for five hours, but Hailey was an endless well of energy. Surprisingly, I wanted to keep going too.
“You were right. The city is great. Can’t believe I’ve never been here before.”
“Right? It’s just so alive, and there’s something here for everyone.
But early May was maybe not the best time to visit.
Still a bit cold,” she said after we left Millennium Park and took pictures in front of the metal structure dubbed the Bean.
It was a clever construction that reflected its surroundings, and it was a hell of a lot of work to elbow our way to take a selfie.
“Our river cruise starts in about half an hour,” Hailey said, bouncing back and forth on her feet.
“Someone’s starting to get tired?” I teased.
“Well, I know I’m eager, but I’m not superhuman. But… I can still talk. Ready to hear some more random facts? Like why it’s actually named the Windy City?”
“Come on, give me more credit. Everyone knows that. Not because of the winds, but because of the politics.”
“Bravo.”
She went on to share other tidbits, like how the Chicago River is painted green for St. Patrick’s Day every year. I loved hearing her opinion on everything from current affairs to which shop in town served the best deep-dish pizza.
When we arrived at the embankment spot, it was so crowded that we backtracked a few feet and waited there.
“So, on a scale from one to ten, how happy are you that you’re here?” she asked.
“Hailey… I wouldn’t have come if I didn’t want to. Stop fretting.”
“What happened to ‘hell is other people’?”
“Not the people I like.”
She grinned. “Oh, you like me? Good to know.”
Hailey made me long to experience things I’d dismissed before; I wanted to experience them with her.
“You know, when we ate with my parents, after you and Mom left the room, Dad gave me this speech about how I should enjoy life more.”
“Okay. You weren’t expecting that?”
“Not really. He’s never had much to say about my personal life.”
“So, he thinks you’re too focused? Too determined?”
I heard the admiration in her voice, and a sense of euphoria rushed through me. Was that how she saw me? Focused, not robotic? I kissed her right there and then, against the railing.
“Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but what was that for?” she whispered.
“Just felt like kissing you. Do I need a reason for that?”
“Hmm… good point. Want to do it again? I kind of liked it.”
“Kind of?”
She licked her lips as I leaned in, but at the last second, I veered in to her ear, laughing at her small sound of protest.
“I could kiss you again, but then I’d have to throw you over my shoulder and take you to the hotel.”
She shimmied against me.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” I drank up every reaction, every word, everything she had to give to me.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself. We still have a boat tour.”
I chuckled, stepping to one side, leaning against the railing next to her.
“So… you were saying about your dad? Why do you think he’s bringing this up now?”
“Because I’m different around you. He saw that.”
“I think it’s admirable that you wanted to make sure the legacy is kept, even if it wasn’t the easiest path for you. And then you kept doing it.”
“Because I was good at it.”
“But I think that’s how life goes. We don’t know we’re good at something until we not only try it but give it our best shot.
I’ve tested a few jobs, and wasn’t sure I was going to like this one, but I just wanted a well-paying job in LA so I could be close to my family.
But I turned out to love it. I think everyone has their path.
Val always knew she wanted to make fragrances. She just waited for the right moment.”
“Val’s the oldest, right?”
“She and Landon. They raised us. The rest of us did get to have a normal childhood. Will was really good at parenting us too. It was hard on them.”
“On all of you.”
She nodded, smiling sadly. “The first years were pretty rough. I… well, I’m ashamed to admit it, but I kind of pushed my siblings away.
Didn’t mean to do it, just kept to myself a lot.
In those first months, I was so afraid that something could happen to the rest of the family, that I could lose them too, that sometimes I’d shut myself in my room, pretend I was on my own, just to prepare for how it would feel. ”
Fucking hell, I was hurting for her.
“But… eventually Jace got me out of my shell. Or rather, I got out of my shell for him. He was even more withdrawn than I was. The only thing that seemed to cheer him up was planning shenanigans. In the beginning I only did them because I was afraid he’d break his neck if he didn’t have supervision, but then discovered I absolutely loved being up to no good.
As I said, I’ve never been one to instinctively know what I like or need.
” She looked behind us, straightening up.
“Oh, our boat’s here. Let’s go. And afterward—”
“Babe!” I pulled her to me, splaying my hand on her neck. “We did everything you wanted today. But the night is my domain.”