Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Her head bobbed, and then she went into the bathroom. I changed in the living room, still trying to figure out the woman. There would be time on the plane to have a conversation, I told myself. Tayla was out of the bathroom by the time I finished. I ducked in before we left.
Minutes later, I edged the door open and scoped out the hallway. Everything was silent, and all was clear. Even though things appeared okay, I used hand signals to lead us out. This time, I didn’t touch her. She was acting skittish, and I wouldn’t spook her further.
Despite everything, we were in sync with our exit. We made it to the stairwell with no incident. Once inside, I lifted my fist to signal her to hold. Voices could be heard a few floors down. I couldn’t make out the whispers, but giggling followed. As whispered words turned into faint moans, I rolled my eyes. We could be there a while.
I glanced back at Tayla, and it seemed she’d heard and drawn the same conclusions as I had.
“Wait.” The word hadn’t come from either of us. “I’m being paged.”
The voice sounded female. “Later?” a guy asked.
Some other sounds, not words, but fabric movement, maybe. Then a door opened. I held up a finger. I waited to hear if both parties had departed. It was a good thing, as ten seconds later, the door opened again. I waited another few seconds and was fairly sure the guy left, and it wasn’t someone else coming into the stairwell. I pointed down, and we began our descent again.
We quickly made it to the garage level without further incident. The car was right where Griff said it would be. It wasn’t exactly a practical car. Considering the destination, we had to fit the part. The sleek black Mercedes sedan would definitely fit in the private airport parking lot.
I used the key fob he’d given me to unlock the door. Before I could get to the passenger side, Tayla got in. As much as I wanted to know what was going on with her, I decided to wait until we got on the plane. I’d swallow my ego and all of my pride to keep her safe.
The streets were free of traffic, just as the car was empty of conversation. The handful of cars we passed were more than the words that passed our lips.
By the time we made it to the airport, the tension between us was deafening. I got our bags and directed us to the awaiting plane. I’d flown King Air many times and spotted the jet on the tarmac. We bypassed the small building and went straight for the attached stairs. Once we got on the plane, Grant, our pilot, came out of the cockpit.
“Matt,” he greeted.
Grant was related to Kalen and Connor King. And as a favor to them, he was flying us today.
“Grant,” I said. “This is Tayla.”
A precious smile formed on her mouth. She granted it to him and not me. “Hey,” she said with a wave.
“Nice to meet you,” Grant replied.
“How’s Jo?” I asked. He, like almost everyone else I knew, had gotten married.
“She’s good.”
“Liam? I actually need to talk to him.” Liam had moved to Montana to be near Natalie, the woman he loved and the kingpin’s daughter. “It’s important. Can you have him get in touch?” His woman was in protective custody, and we weren’t to know where he was. But this thing with the kingpin directly affected him and Natalie.
“Yeah. I’ll get word to him. We should get going. Take a seat. It’s just me today, but the bar is stocked. The bedroom has fresh sheets. The shower has towels.”
Tayla's eyes popped before she turned away and sat in a solo, comfy leather seat on the left side of the plane, making it impossible for me to sit right next to her. The right side had two rows of double seats. I sat in the double across the aisle from her.
Grant came over the intercom and gave the safety speech before we were underway. When we reached cruising altitude, Tayla said the first words to me since last night. “I’m going to take a shower.”
I watched her walk away as I felt the beginning of a headache. I hadn’t slept well. Every time I closed my eyes, I’d been taken back to prison. Without Tayla to hold on to, the ease at which I slipped into nightmares was problematic. To keep them at bay, I’d stayed awake. What I needed now was ibuprofen. I didn’t have any. Then I remembered that Kelsey had gone to the pharmacy for Tayla.
Past the two rows of seats was a galley that held a sofa on the wall by the windows, and the other had a big-screen TV. Beyond that was a door into the bedroom. Tayla hadn’t locked it, so I stepped inside. Her bag was on the bed, and I heard water running.