Chapter 5
POV: AMBER
The next morning arrives too quickly.
I barely slept.
Not because of nerves about the project.
I’ve led projects bigger than this before.
But this one feels different.
Maybe because it’s happening in the one place I’ve spent the last decade carefully avoiding.
Or maybe because Alexander Fitzgerald will be there the entire time.
I finish packing my laptop into my bag and head out the door.
Just one stop at the office to grab the final documents Mrs. Taylor prepared, then straight to the airport.
The building is quieter than usual when I arrive, most people not even at their desks yet.
Mrs. Taylor hands me the folder with a proud nod.
“Everything’s inside. Permits, legal drafts, the marina documentation.”
“Perfect,” I say, slipping it into my bag.
As I turn to leave, I almost collide with Ethan in the hallway.
He looks… off.
His usual neat appearance is there, but there are faint shadows under his eyes and his hand presses briefly against his stomach.
“Morning,” I say.
“Morning,” he replies, forcing a smile.
“You look like you didn’t sleep.”
He lets out a tired breath.
“Yeah. That seafood last night might have been a mistake.”
I raise an eyebrow.
“Come on, Ethan. I need you sharp today.”
He chuckles weakly.
“I’ll survive.”
“Good,” I say, already heading toward the door. “See you at the airport.”
The private terminal is quiet when I arrive.
Too quiet.
Alexander is already there.
Of course he is.
He’s standing near the tall windows overlooking the runway, dark sunglasses pushed up into his hair, a phone in one hand.
Even from across the room, his posture is unmistakable.
Relaxed.
Confident.
Like he belongs anywhere he stands.
My stomach does an annoying little flip.
He notices me almost immediately.
“Morning,” he says.
“Morning.”
I glance around the terminal.
“No Ethan yet?”
“He was supposed to meet us here.”
Right on cue, my phone buzzes in my hand.
I glance down.
Ethan:
Amber, I’m so sorry. I think I got food poisoning from last night. I’m at the hospital getting fluids. Doctor says absolutely no flying today.
I stare at the message.
“Well,” I mutter.
Alexander tilts his head slightly.
“Bad news?”
“Ethan’s in the hospital.”
His eyebrows lift.
“Food poisoning.”
A slow smile spreads across his face.
“Guess that leaves us.”
I sigh softly.
“Guess it does.”
He grabs his bag and gestures toward the runway.
“Just like the old times.”
My stomach tightens.
“Just the two of us.”
Oh my God.
The private jet is smaller than I expected.
Comfortable.
Quiet.
Too intimate.
There are only a handful of seats.
I choose one on the opposite side of the cabin and fasten my seatbelt while pretending to review the project files on my tablet.
Alexander settles into the seat across from me.
The engines start a few minutes later.
The plane begins to taxi down the runway.
I glance out the window.
The city slowly shrinking beneath us.
Takeoff is smooth.
The first thirty minutes pass in silence.
Not awkward.
Just… aware.
He’s working on his laptop.
I answer messages and review project notes.
It almost feels normal.
Just the quiet hum of the jet and the occasional tapping of keyboards.
Eventually my back starts to ache.
I unbuckle my seatbelt.
“I’m grabbing my laptop,” I say.
He glances up briefly.
“Dangerous mission.”
I roll my eyes and stand, reaching for my bag in the overhead compartment.
Just as I pull the laptop free—
The plane jolts.
Hard.
The pilot’s voice comes through the speaker.
“Small turbulence ahead, folks.”
The floor shifts under my feet.
I try to steady myself, grabbing for the seat—
But another sudden dip throws my balance completely.
And suddenly—
I’m sitting in Alexander’s lap.
My brain short-circuits.
His hands come up instantly.
One grips my waist.
The other settles against my hip.
Strong.
Warm.
Instead of just steadying me, his arms instinctively pull me closer so I don’t slide off as the plane jolts again.
My breath catches.
His chest is solid against my back.
My face is inches from his.
Green eyes lock onto mine.
For a moment I can’t think.
Can’t breathe.
The cabin fades away until it’s just him.
Just those eyes.
Just the warmth of his hands against my waist.
“Sorry about that,” the pilot’s voice crackles over the speaker. “Little turbulence.”
The spell breaks.
I blink.
“Oh my God,” I breathe.
“I’m so sorry.”
I scramble up from his lap as fast as dignity allows and retreat to my seat, heart racing.
Alexander leans back slowly, watching me with clear amusement.
“You always did have dramatic entrances.”
I glare at him.
“That was not intentional.”
“Sure it wasn’t.”
Despite myself, I laugh.
The tension loosens slightly.
The flight settles again after that.
Calm.
Quiet.
After a while, he studies me again.
“Do you still go back there?” he asks.
I know what he means.
Our hometown.
I shake my head.
“No.”
“Not even to visit?”
“I usually make my parents come to the city,” I say lightly.
“It’s easier.”
The real reason sits quietly in my chest.
Every street there reminds me of him.
Alexander doesn’t push.
He just nods once and looks out the window.
The warm coastal air hits my face the moment we step off the plane.
Salt.
Ocean.
Memories.
I inhale slowly.
God.
It smells exactly the same.
I reach for my phone to call a taxi when Alexander stops beside me.
“I rented a car.”
I look up.
“You did?”
He lifts the keys.
“Figured it would be easier to get around. And I know the streets”
I hesitate for half a second.
Two of us in a car, in this city?
Too familiar.
I sighed.
Then nod.
“Okay.”
The drive from the airport feels surreal.
The same roads.
The same coastline.
Like stepping into a life I once lived.
Then we pass a familiar street corner.
And I sit up suddenly.
“Oh my God.”
Alexander glances at me.
“What?”
I point toward the small restaurant glowing under a bright neon sign.
“I can’t believe that place is still open.”
His eyes follow mine.
And he laughs.
“Giovanni’s.”
“Yep.”
The neon pizza sign flickers exactly the way it used to.
The memory hits me instantly.
“Friday nights,” I say.
“Cheap red wine,” he adds.
“And cheese pizza.”
He shakes his head, smiling.
“We really thought that was peak romance.”
I laugh softly.
The car continues down the street.
But for a moment it feels like we’re seventeen again.
And the past is sitting right there in the passenger seat with us.