“You never did tell me why you were working in Paris,” he remarked.
How much time had he spent staring at her, even burning into her with his greedy gaze? It was probably a good thing she’d been looking out the window earlier, though he had no clue what she was seeing now. They were over the ocean and it was dark. It had to be that she could feel his look, could feel this intense energy rushing between them, and it was making her nervous. Well, it was about to become a lot more intense.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” she said when she turned his way again and raised her eyebrows in a flirtatious yet pointed extension of her words.
“You will find that I’m not easily dissuaded.” His eyes still held hers, his hand moving away from her skin as he reached for a mojito shrimp in pineapple sauce.
He was intrigued by the shuddering breath she took. Though she was trying to look as if his touch hadn’t affected her, it was nothing but a show. When their fingers had entwined themselves earlier, he hadn’t been the only one who’d felt the spark. No, Alyssa was doing her best to keep her distance with her snarky comments and short sentences, but she, too, was intrigued.
He wanted to know how intrigued.
“Do you always get what you want, Jackson?” There was a challenge in her eyes.
“Always.” He was sure in his answer.
“Sadly, you won’t be able to say that after tonight,” she said, her lips turning up in a winning smile.
“No, Alyssa. I can guarantee you that you’ll talk.” He leaned close enough to make her squirm in her seat.
She said nothing, just put a tender scallop into her mouth and chewed. Jackson laughed as the flight attendant cleared their trays, refilled their drinks, and said the main course would be right out.
After they were served, Jackson found that he was enjoying her pleasure in the food far more than he was enjoying his own dinner. Hell, he couldn’t taste it, really, because his brain was engaged elsewhere. This plane ride was becoming one big adventure to him, in great part because it was clearly exciting to her. He watched her delight in everything around her.
“Have you flown first-class before?” he asked once they’d both finished their meals.
“Never. But I’m telling you, this is the only way to fly.”
“Yes, it makes it more pleasant when you’re stuck on a commercial flight.”
“How else are you going to get around?”
“On a private jet. It’s much more enjoyable than even the best first-class cabin.”
“Isn’t that a bit excessive?”
“Why would you think that?”
“A big jet for just you?” she replied incredulously, making him almost feel guilty about it.
That was insane. He had nothing to feel guilty about if he wanted to travel alone by private jet. “You’re not going to start spouting off about saving the whales or something, are you?” It wasn’t that Jackson was anti-nature. It was just that he worked hard and he enjoyed life’s luxuries. He couldn’t stand it when people tried to make him feel ashamed over that.
The key word there was tried, though. They might preach to him, but it was easy for him to tune their words out. If he wanted something, he took it. That was who he was and he wouldn’t apologize for it.
“No. But still . . .” Her voice faded, leaving her sentence unfinished.
“There are pilots being paid. A staff to run it on the ground, and many others who are employed because of my jet. There’s nothing wrong with owning one. Bill Gates has a few,” he pointed out.
“Yeah, what’s up with that? One seems excessive, but to have more than one . . . What? Do you need a different color to fly in for different days of the week, or to match your outfit?”
Jackson sat dumbfounded as she spoke, then he laughed again. “Perhaps I will point that out to the board. Tell them that one just isn’t enough.”
“Rich people baffle me. They don’t even think for a minute about how lucky they are, about how easy they have it. All of this,” she said, holding her arms wide, her hand coming within inches of his chest, causing his breath to hitch, “and still, it’s not enough. I made decent money the last few years, and luckily I sent some back to my parents. If I hadn’t—” She stopped when she realized she’d been revealing something of herself.
Jackson really wanted to know what that was. Yes, he could have a background check done on her the second they touched down, but he wanted to hear it from her, not from his investigator. He wanted to know her—but only for tonight.
“So, you think the wealthy are just a bunch of pompous asses?” he asked, interested instead of offended.
She tilted her head and paused briefly. “I wouldn’t say that. I mean, there are a lot of amazingly wealthy people out there. Do you know the amount of money Bill Gates donates? Oprah gives away so much it’s staggering. And lots of celebrities give millions anonymously. I’m just saying that the wealthy, especially the ones who are born with a silver spoon in their mouth, should take a moment to appreciate what they have.”
“And I take it you weren’t born wealthy?” he asked.
“No, but I wasn’t poor, either. My dad always worked hard, provided well for our family. We got a family vacation somewhere new and exciting every summer. My parents made sure I never missed out on anything; they paid for sports and clubs and so on. My mom was able to stay home when I was little, and I love her more than any other person on this planet. So, I wasn’t rich by any means, but neither was I poor.”
“That sounds like a pretty great childhood,” he said.
“I’m not complaining. I’m just saying that really rich people should have a little more appreciation for all the extra luxuries they take for granted. A lot more appreciation, in some cases.”
“Point taken,” Jackson said.
She had no clue about his story. The very strange thing was that he wanted to tell her. Would it change her opinion of him? Did he want it to?
Jackson shook his head, confused yet delighted by the woman fate had led him to sit next to in the terminal. Had their flight been on time, he never would have met her, never would be having this conversation.
Jackson wasn’t a man who believed in fate. He could, however, appreciate good timing. And though he’d been furious earlier because of all the problems he’d encountered while simply trying to get home, right now he could kiss the mechanic who had delayed their flight. Or at least he could kiss the woman sitting right next to him. Not only could he kiss her, but he most certainly planned on it.