“Hi,” he said shyly, sitting down and buckling his seatbelt.
She whipped her head toward him, and her emerald green eyes immediately locked with his. “What took you so long?”
“The tail section broke off,” he joked. Judging by her reaction, he knew it was a bad one. “Kidding.” He touched her arm.
“I knew that.” She glanced at her watch and took a deep breath. “Ten hours and fifty-three minutes to go.”
“We’re practically ready to prepare for arrival.” He chuckled. “So, I’m Drew by the way.” The woman shot him a confused look. His brother must have already introduced himself. Figures Drew had told her his name but couldn’t remember hers. “I mean you know that already. How do you spell your name again? It’s so unusual.”
“K-a-t-e.”
Kate. Okay, not uncommon. He was going to murder his brother. Confessing that he was Drew’s twin was probably the right thing to do but she looked so terrified. He wouldn’t know how to explain that his idiot brother had begged him to trade seats. No, he’d continue the charade. It’s not like they were going to become friends or start dating. Harmless conversation with a stranger he’d most likely never see again was all this was.
He motioned for the flight attendant. “Would you care for another drink, Kate?” He reached for the crushed tomato juice can still in her hand. “Here, let me take that for you.” He noticed that her dress had a large red stain. “Accident?”
“Yep. An expensive one,” she said dryly. It was clear she didn’t want to talk about it.
“How about joining me in a glass of champagne?”
She shrugged. He took that as a yes.
A few minutes later, the flight attendant brought over two flutes. Luke handed one glass to Kate and raised his. “To bumpy flights with safe landings.” He chimed his glass rim to hers.
She took a sip and frowned.
“You don’t like it? I can get you something else. What would you like? Some coffee, perhaps?”
“No, it’s not that, I … um,” she stammered. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“You obviously drew the short stick by having to sit next to me.” She picked up one of the empty vodka bottles and turned it upside down. “I thought the first drink, or second, would loosen me up. Oh, well. Maybe this will do the trick.” She tilted the flute all the way back and finished it. “I hate flying.”
“So let’s get your mind off of it.” Luke moved his armrest up and then reached over. His arm brushed against the top of her dress as he shut the tiny window screen. What he wouldn’t give to run his hand underneath it.
Stop it, Luke. The poor woman’s having a nervous breakdown.
“How long will you be in Hawaii?” he asked.
“Three weeks. I’m going there for work.”
“Wow. I’d like your job.” He was happy to hear that this was a business trip and that she wasn’t meeting a lover, at least he hoped not. “Do you live in New York, Kate?”
“No, Los Angeles.”
Damn. She would live on the west coast. “Were you in New York for business?”
“No. I was visiting my mother to kick some — ” Her sentence broke off as the plane hit another air pocket. The airbus dropped down and bounced back up. Luke felt Kate’s seatbelt hit him followed by her weight crashing against his leg. She flung her arms around his khakis and hung on for dear life.
“First time flying,” he mouthed to the older couple sitting across from them. “Here,” he instructed, placing his arm on her back. He unleashed her hands from his leg, guiding her into his arms. “Hold on to me.” The scent of her perfume mixed with tomato juice and champagne infiltrated his nostrils. It was surprisingly arousing.
He stroked her hair. “It’s going to be fine. You know, pilots like to stay in the air.”
“Drew, I don’t want to die.” She clung to him, burying her head deeper into his chest.
He cringed at the mention of his brother. Should he confess to her that his name was Luke? Now didn’t seem like the best time. It would be easier to just continue pretending to be Drew.
He took a deep breath. “Nothing bad is going to happen. I promise you that. If I was worried, I wouldn’t — ” He paused for a few seconds. How was he going to calm her down and get her back into her seat?
She looked up at him. “Wouldn’t what?” Her fearful green eyes pleaded with him to make the rocking stop. His heart fell to his stomach and it wasn’t because of the turbulence. He didn’t know why, but he had an overwhelming need to protect her.
“Well, I wouldn’t do this.” He cupped her chin and brought her mouth to his. Her soft lips reacted to his. He deepened the kiss and their tongues moved in sync as the plane continued to sway. When he finally broke the kiss to check on her and catch his breath, he could see she was much more relaxed. “Better?”
She snuggled into his chest and wrapped her arms again around him. “Your heart’s beating fast.”
“Hmmm.” She was right. His heart was racing.
“Drew, I think I had too much to drink. Can you wake me when we land?”
Reclining his seat, he held her as she fell asleep. Who was this beautiful mystery woman in his arms? He smiled. Maybe pretending to be his twin brother would work out in his favor for once.
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Broken Wings, Soaring Hearts Page 19
