Make Me Yours

“If the tables were turned, I suppose I’d be more upset over you being gone, too.”

“Are you flirting with me, Remington?”

“Always.”

That makes her laugh, and I’m glad to see we’ve moved past the water works.

The limo drops us at the terminal for the private jet service. A few cars are parked in the lot, but we’re the only ones flying out this morning.

“Wow.” Ruby’s eyes are round as she follows me up the short flight of stairs into the Lear 60. “Do you own this?” She’s speaking just above a whisper as we pass through the oval door and walk down the short aisle separating seats with tables in the center.

“No.” I sit in one of the seats toward the back and motion for her to join me. “I charter it for short flights. It’s not really worth the upkeep to own a jet, with as little as I travel.”

She sits beside me in the plush, cream leather chair. A small sofa is behind us, but this plane doesn’t have a bed. Our flight is barely over an hour.

“I’ve never been on a private jet before.” She’s still speaking low, tilting her face toward me as the flight attendant puts glasses of champagne in front of us.

“Welcome aboard, Mr. Key, Miss. Banks. We’ll be taking off momentarily. If you would, please fasten your seatbelts, and I’ll let you know when it’s safe to move about the cabin.”

“Thanks, Grace.” Taking the glass of champagne, I hold it to Ruby’s. “Here’s to a successful business trip.”

She clinks my glass and takes a sip. “Mm… that’s delicious.”

Our seatbelts are fastened, and we’re in the air in less than fifteen minutes. Grace comes through and tells us it’s safe to move around. We only take off our seatbelts, and I rotate in my chair to face my companion.

Ruby’s like a kid in a candy store, looking around, touching everything. It’s hits me like a renewed thrill. I remember a time when all this was new to me, too.

“Why do they always give you champagne on private jets?”

“I thought you’d never been on one.”

Her nose wrinkles as she takes another sip. “I’ve seen it in the movies. Is it to celebrate being so rich?”

Shrugging, I sip my own sparkling beverage. “More likely to celebrate not having to stand for hours in the TSA line then be forced to sit in a cramped seat next to a potentially annoying neighbor.”

She nods. “I can get onboard with that. What’s our schedule like in New York?”

“We arrive in Manhattan after noon then we’ll take a car to the hotel. The gala is tomorrow night at eight.”

“What do we do between now and then?”

“I’m meeting one of my investment advisers tonight for drinks. His name is Stephen Hastings. I’d really like it if you’d join me, but you don’t have to… if you have something else in mind you’d prefer.”

“I’ll join you.” She scoots closer, biting her lip. “I’ve never been to New York.”

“You haven’t?

” That changes things. Reaching out, I tug her lip free from her teeth with my thumb, thinking about kissing her. Based on the look she gives me, she seems to be thinking the same thing. “Then I think we should spend a little time being tourists.”

A huge smile splits her cheeks, and it’s like I’ve won the fucking lottery. “You’ll do that for me?”

“I’d love to do that with you. What do you want to see?”

“Oh man, I want to see everything.” She leans back in her chair, taking another sip of champagne. “The Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building, Central Park, Wall Street, Time’s Square, Broadway, the Guggenheim museum, the Met, the Brooklyn bridge, Soho, the Village…”

I start to laugh. “We can’t do all of that, but we can make a plan and see how much we can fit in.”

Reaching down, I clasp her hand in mine, threading our fingers. I’m gratified when she doesn’t pull away. In fact, she seems very comfortable holding my hand up here, thousands of feet above the world.