In Flight (Up in the Air #1)(61)

“Who’s texting you? What does it say?” James asked. He was nosy and had no shame about it. I wondered how he would take it if I was so nosy with him.

“Stephan. I have to work tomorrow. Just a turn, so we’ll be back the same night, though late.”

James brooded after that. I knew he had assumed I would keep all of my days off this week. He couldn’t seem to understand that I needed to work overtime to pay my bills.

“I can’t imagine you eat leftover chicken for dinner very often,” I said, smiling at him, trying to draw him out of his sudden dark mood.

He had never even put a shirt on, just wore his boxers around like the shameless hedonist he was. Though he had stayed strong in his resolve not to have sex with me. I wasn’t particularly pleased with his success.

His eyes were cold as he raked me with a glance. “Are you done eating?” he asked in a bland voice.

I nodded.

“Go get on your bed,” he ordered.

I did, thinking that he was an unpredictable tyrant with every step.

“Lay on your back,” he ordered.

I did, and he yanked my hips to the edge of the bed, shoving my nightgown up to study me. He parted my legs, then put my feet up on the edge of the bed with his hands gripping my ankles. He removed one of his hands almost instantly and touched the petals of my sex with light fingers, examining every inch of me. It made me squirm.

“Stop that,” he told me in a hard voice. I did.

He slid a finger inside of me ever so slowly. It smarted a little, but not too much to bear. It was a delicious kind of soreness.

“Are you sore?” he asked, still pushing.

I moaned, not answering, hoping that was answer enough. He cursed, pulling his finger out in one motion.

“Another day, at least, before we can f**k.”

He began to work on me with his mouth, making me pant and beg in scant seconds. After coaxing a quick, intense orgasm out of me, he rose.

His face was still hard and cold, even wet with my passion. He went into the bathroom and closed the door. I heard the shower running.

I began to get my things ready for the next day, packing up my flight bag and setting my alarm.

He came out with a towel around his waist and I could tell with one look on his face that he was still in a dark mood.

“Is there something I can do for you? I feel bad being the only one to get pleasure out of an exchange.”

He just stared at me for a long minute. “No, I’m fine. When do you have to go to bed?”

“I should probably get to bed as soon as possible. Are you taking off?” I asked, assuming from his demeanor that he was planning to.

His face darkened even more. “Are you kicking me out?”

The idea startled me. “No, of course not. You can stay, if you like, but-”

“Yes, I like. Let’s go to bed,” he said, going into the closet to slip into a new pair of boxer-briefs.

He sprawled on the bed, closing his eyes without another word.

I got ready for bed, lying beside him awkwardly. It took me a long time to fall asleep beside him. It wasn’t like any of the other times we’d slept together. No parts of our bodies were touching.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Mr. Withdrawn

My alarm went off. I turned it off quickly, trying not to disturb the sleeping man wrapped around me tightly. One of his hands was cupping my breast, even in deep slumber. He had apparently thawed out a bit in his sleep.

I pulled free of him slowly and with effort, padding softly into the bathroom to shower.

He was sitting up on my side of the bed when I re-emerged. He ran a hand through his hair when he saw me.

“Will you call me when you get home?” he asked.

I nodded, and went back to getting ready. He got dressed as well, though he didn’t pack his things. I suspected he was going to leave them there without asking me if it was okay. I decided not to make an issue of it. I didn’t want to rile him just then.

“I’m off for most of thursday. You know we don’t fly out until late in the evening,” I told him, trying to draw him out of his mood.

He just nodded, and I worried that I’d been too presumptuous, assuming he’d want to spend another day with me.

“I’ll come here again after you get off of work, unless you object to my company,” he said.

It was the closest he would get to asking, I thought.

“Sounds great.” I smiled at him, but he remained expressionless.

He was ready before me, but waited patiently, dressed in a pale gray suit, with a dark gray shirt and a crimson tie. It was beyond stunning to see him fully dressed after spending so much time with him nearly naked in my house.

“That’s a lovely suit,” I told him.

He thanked me for the compliment, but stayed withdrawn.

I realized that his withdrawal made me want to cling to him. I squelched the unhealthy urge.

He walked me out. He didn’t say goodbye until Stephan approached my open garage. James gripped the back of my head, giving me a hard kiss on the mouth.

“Call or text me the second you get back in town,” he told me gruffly, moving out of my way.

He didn’t get into his own car until we started to drive away.

Stephan gave me a careful look. “That man is intense,” he said quietly.

I heard the implied question there, but I just nodded. He was worried about me, but I still didn’t know James well enough to confidently reassure him that everything was fine.