Forty-four
Austin
Early Friday afternoon, with all the details in place, I pull up in front of SHN, my heart drumming a beat of anticipation. A grin spreads across my face as I see Danica step out, her hair catching the light. “Hey, beautiful.” I get out of the car to greet her as she approaches, her blue eyes going wide. “Surprise,” I announce, taking her hand. “I’m whisking you off to the airport, private plane and all.”
Her grip tightens around my fingers. “Where are we going? For how long? Wait—what about Mischa?”
I squeeze her hand. “Marisa’s got it covered. She’s watching the cat.”
“Really? How on Earth did you manage that?” she asks, a skeptical arch to her brow.
“Let’s just say Marisa and her new boyfriend will be enjoying a week away, courtesy of me.” I can’t suppress the chuckle when I see her mouth fall open.
“Wow, that’s...going to be pretty expensive.” She laughs, shaking her head.
“It’s money well spent for a week away with you,” I reply. “Oh, and I also cleared it with your office. Consider it a well-earned break between positions.” I wink. Three months’ worth of orgasms—Danica threw out that number a couple of times, and I intend to provide every last one and then some.
“A week? I don’t have any clothes packed. Where are we going? I need things.”
“Good thing I still have the bag you left with me the night of the anniversary party,” I say with a smile. “And whatever is missing, we’ll find a replacement…or you can be naked all week.”
Danica still looks like she wants to protest, but she gets in the car. Before Steve has shut her door and rounded the back of the car, I’ve pulled her into my lap to shower her with kisses.
Steve clears his throat. “Um, I can’t leave until you’re both wearing a seatbelt.”
Danica slides off my lap and looks at him. “Sorry.”
“Not a problem.” Steve smirks. “I just know we have a window of time to take off, and it’s already tight.”
With that, Steve begins navigating the dense traffic out of San Francisco to the airport’s private terminal, and I tell Danica everything that happened today.
“They think Justin is out there working somewhere?” she says when I’ve finished.
I shrug. “He’s checking his email.”
“Why do you think he cares about his email? Could he be trying to send you on a wild goose chase around the world while he’s sitting in his house here in San Francisco?”
“Well, I hope Crystal would clue us in if that were the case, but those are all questions running through our heads. I’d certainly rather he be in hiding than anything else. But it just doesn’t make sense. When he comes back, he’ll have a lot to explain, and I guess the board can decide if he can have his old job.”
“Do you think he’s behind the fake batteries?”
“The timing is weird, since all of this is happening at once, but I don’t know why he would be. Whoever is making counterfeits seems to be using the plans from the first battery we developed in college.”
She nods thoughtfully. “And where are we going?”
A smile spreads across my face. “You thought you could trick me into telling you?”
Her eyes grow wide. “Moi?”
“Yes. But I’m not that distracted.”
Steve pulls up to the airport, talks with security, and gets permission to drive us to the tarmac, right up next to our airplane. We thank him for his assistance, and he unloads our bags as we climb the stairs to the sleek jet.
Inside, the pilot greets us with a nod. “Good afternoon, Mr. Sands, Ms. Winters.”
“Good afternoon,” I reply, steering Danica into the cabin.
“Where are we going?” she probes again, curiosity burning in her gaze.
I just shake my head, winking as I settle into one of the plush seats. While Danica takes a seat across from me, her expression a picture of mock frustration and delight, I pull out my laptop.
“Sorry, just need to finish up a few things,” I explain, opening my inbox. Crystal’s name floods the screen, each email another problem solved, another idea pitched. A swell of relief washes over me. I’m damn glad she’s back at EnergiFusion. She knows our products and has a vested interest in our success. Her marketing suggestions are the piece we’ve been missing.
“Work never stops,” Danica observes.
“Never,” I agree, though my focus is already half lost to thoughts of our upcoming days together. “Sometimes, work can wait, though, at least for a little while.
“Good thing I didn’t have a start date set with CMR Surgical,” she muses.
“Best coincidence ever,” I agree, letting the emails blur into the background as I redirect my attention to her. The flight ahead promises escape, not just from San Francisco, but from the weight of expectations and unanswered questions. Just Danica, the open skies, and the promise of paradise, and I am ready for every second of it.
My fingers busy themselves on the keyboard, and I hardly notice when we take off, but eventually, I realize the silence around me has become a heavy weight. No soft murmurs from Danica, no gentle rustling of her clothes. I lift my head, scanning the cabin. The view outside the windows is fluffy clouds and blue sky now, but Danica’s seat—an empty cocoon of blankets—mocks me with its vacancy.
“Danica?”
No answer. My laptop clatters onto the adjacent seat as I stand, urgency igniting my pulse. I move through the narrow aisle, pushing open the door to the bedroom.
There she is, sprawled like the centerpiece of an artist’s dreamscape, her skin aglow against the crisp white sheets. “Mile high club?” she offers, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Laughter bursts from my chest. “I’ll do anything you say if you ask while naked.” I click the door shut, sealing us in our private world above the clouds. “Off the bed,” I command.
She rises and approaches me. Her mouth tilts up as she reaches for my shirt, fingers grazing my skin as each button pops free. The fabric falls away, and her hands roam lower, working to free me from my jeans.
Her touch is both familiar and exhilarating, like rediscovering a favorite song. I lean down, capturing a taut nipple between my lips, eliciting a soft moan that fills the room. I lavish it with attention, tasting, teasing, until the sound of her pleasure is the only language I understand. Then I blow on the dampened skin, watching it pucker, her body reacting to the sudden coolness.
She shivers, and I journey south, exploring the heat and wetness that awaits. She’s so wet for me, her body’s response a testament to our connection, to the depth of her desire. It’s not just physical. It’s emotional, a craving born from shared wounds and dreams.
“Damn, babe,” I murmur, lost in the slick warmth of her, feeling her tense and arch into my touch. She’s perfect, and in this moment, soaring miles above the Earth, I am home. “Give me a minute,” I say as I step out of my pants. The urge to be buried inside her is overwhelming, but I want to savor every moment. I lie back on the bed, my head dangling off the edge, feeling the blood rush to my temples, an apt metaphor for the way she flips my world upside down.
“Come here,” I beckon, motioning for Danica. My hands glide over the curves of her hips, guiding her until she’s poised just where I want her. “I’m going to feast on you,” I tell her. “Play with your tits for me. I want to watch you come undone.”
She lowers herself, and I don’t waste a second. My tongue lashes out, tasting the sweetness that is uniquely hers. I draw her in deeper, the scent of her arousal intoxicating as I suck and lap at her folds. My hands find their way to her breasts, joining hers to knead them before I refocus on what’s in front of me. I fuck her with my mouth, feeling her shudder above me. My cock throbs, desperate for attention, which I provide with firm strokes.
Danica’s moans fill the cabin, a melody of pleasure that drives me wild. She clenches around my tongue, a small orgasm rippling through her, but it’s not enough, not for her, not for me. I crave more.
“Tell me what you want,” I command between licks, eager to give her anything, everything.
“I want you inside me,” she breathes.
Her words sear through me, igniting an even fiercer hunger. I am ready—so damn ready—to claim her, to be one with her where nothing can touch us but the sheer intensity of our connection.
I’m pulsing with a need that’s almost painful, my body on fire, her taste lingering on my tongue. She moves down between my legs, her breath hot against my skin. The slightest flick of her tongue, and it’s like I’ve been hit by lightning—intense, electric, and threatening to unravel me completely.
“Stop,” I manage to gasp, gripping her shoulders to pull her away. “Get on your knees on the bed and face the windows.”
She obeys, presenting herself to me in a way that steals my breath. The sight of her, so open and willing, brings out something primal. With one hard push, I bury myself inside her with a guttural “Fuck yes.” This...this is where I belong, deep within the warm embrace of her pussy, feeling her clench around me. “Danica,” I growl as her hips rock back into me. My hand comes down on her ass, a sharp spank that’s both a reprimand and an encouragement. “If you make me come before I’m ready, you’ll be sorry.”
She moans and rolls her hips, seeking more, always more. Her fingers dance down to her clit. I grip her hips, pulling out slowly, savoring the tension before driving back in with all the pent-up frustration of the last three months.
“Harder,” she gasps, and I comply. Each thrust is a claim, an affirmation of what we are together. I can barely hear the roar of the plane’s engines over the slap of our bodies, the sound of our union filling the small space.
“Keep going,” I tell her. “Don’t stop.”
I’m on the edge, my control unraveling like a fraying rope. Danica’s movements are relentless, her body speaking a language of raw need that mirrors my own. Her head drops forward, surrendering to the intensity, and she grips the sheets, knuckles white.
“Danica,” I whisper, a plea and a command all at once. My hand finds her breast, fingers teasing, then pinching her nipple firmly. It’s the last spark in a powder keg.
She gasps, her body stiffening, and I feel the rush of her release. The pulsating rhythm of her pussy around me is exquisite torture, milking me relentlessly. I can’t hold back. I’m caught in her storm, following her over that blinding edge into oblivion.
“Ah, fuck, Danica...” The words dissolve into a groan as pleasure crashes over me in waves.
Spent, I collapse beside her, pulling her close, our skin slick with the evidence of our desire. She’s panting, a tangle of strawberry blonde hair across her face. I brush it aside, reveling in the flush of her cheeks, the way her blue eyes shimmer with contentment.
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going now?” she asks.
I shake my head. “Not yet.”
She huffs, feigning annoyance as she peers out the small window. Miles of ocean stretch below us, endless and serene. “Well, wherever it is, I hope they have room service.”
“Trust me,” I say, my arms tightening around her. “You’re going to love it.”
The warmth of her body seeps into mine as she lies nestled in my arms. This tranquility feels hard-won, a fleeting peace in the eye of life’s relentless storm.
“Thank you,” Danica murmurs, her breath tickling my neck. “For taking me away from all...that.”
“Anything for you,” I reply. It’s the least I can do after everything that’s happened.
She shifts against me, propping herself up on one elbow. “What are you going to do about your mom?”
I sigh. “I’ll call her, eventually. But not anytime soon.”
“She was just trying to look out for you,” Danica says gently. “But maybe it’s time to give her permission to find someone for herself. You know, someone she can take care of.”
“Maybe,” I concede. Mom has always been there, but what if we both need space? For her to find her own happiness? “Right now,” I tell Danica, my voice firm, “she needs to understand that what she did was wrong. If she doesn’t start with a genuine apology—one without excuses—then she can’t be part of this.” I gesture to the space between us, to the intimacy we’ve built, so fragile and precious.
Danica nods and leans in to kiss me. It’s soft and sweet, a promise of support.
Time slips by, measured only by the rise and fall of our chests until the pilot’s voice finally crackles over the speaker, announcing our descent to the airport. We disentangle ourselves, a rush of reality flooding back as we dress and prepare for landing.
The pilot salutes us as we exit. “Welcome to Hawaii.”
Stepping off the plane, the heat of Maui envelops us. Danica squints under the bright sun, the sudden change in climate clearly catching her off guard.
“I don’t have clothes for this weather,” she says, a hint of worry in her voice.
“Relax, I’ve got you covered.” I grin, pulling her overnight bag from where I stashed it earlier. “As promised, I brought this from the night of the EnergiFusion anniversary party.”
Her eyes narrow. “You mean my bag full of slinky lingerie?”
“Exactly.” I lean in close, my lips brushing her ear. “Although, you could just go naked.”
“Tan lines would be a tragedy,” she agrees, bumping her hip against mine.
“Absolutely.” I wrap an arm around her shoulders as we start toward the small terminal. “We’ll aim to avoid those at all costs.”
The heat of the tarmac seeps through my shoes as we move away from the private jet. “Ready for the next part of our adventure?” I ask.
She nods. “I can’t believe you did all this. And what about your work? You must have a mountain back home.”
“Everything’s handled,” I say, tightening my grip on her hand. “Crystal, Theo, and Rhys have everything under control. Crystal’s been a godsend, even in the few days since she returned.”
Danica laughs, the sound mixing with the gentle breeze. “That’s why I didn’t get a start date with CMR Surgical, isn’t it? How did you get Emerson to agree?”
“I just asked.” I shrug, leading her to the sleek, black car waiting just outside the terminal. The driver steps forward and opens the door with a respectful nod.
“Mr. Sands, Ms. Winters, welcome to Maui. I’ll be taking you to Mr. and Mrs. Graham’s estate.” His voice is warm, and it fits the island’s vibe.
“Thank you,” I reply, helping Danica into the car before sliding in beside her.
As we drive, the scenery shifts from the practical layout of the airport to the lush greenery that blankets the island. Palm trees line the streets, swaying gently. The ocean peeks at us between breaks in the foliage, its surface sparkling under the sun’s gaze.
“Jackson and Corrine’s place is supposed to be incredible,” I murmur, squeezing Danica’s hand. “Secluded waterfront property, high on the cliffs, with an infinity pool, and no plans all week.”
“Sounds heavenly,” she says, leaning her head against my shoulder. “And no tan lines, right?”
“None whatsoever,” I confirm. “It’s going to be a week of pure indulgence.”
Danica closes her eyes, a soft smile on her lips. I watch her for a moment, letting myself drift in the contentment of having her close. This week isn’t just about escaping. It’s about reconnecting and reaffirming what we have in our lives.
“Thank you, Austin,” she whispers. “For everything.”
My heart swells, and I lean down, kissing the top of her head. “You’re worth every surprise, every moment.”
We ride in comfortable silence until we approach Jackson and Corrine’s estate. When the car turns onto the private drive, the grandeur of their home comes into view. “Here we are,” I announce as the car pulls to a stop. “Our home away from home.”