Stomach knotted, Chloe followed Trent into the private waiting room in the airport. Travis was there, along with an older man who kept looking at his watch.
Leaning close, Travis muttered, “Slade’s thirty seconds away from going on the warpath. Get your best groveling on.”
Chloe frowned at that. She didn’t care who Slade was; that didn’t give him a right to be rude.
The distinguished man in a suit pointed at Trent and nodded towards the small anteroom. “You, in here.”
Trent grinned and gave Chloe a kiss on the cheek. “Be right back.”
She watched Trent enter the room and as the door closed behind him. Travis stepped up next to her. “You excited about seeing Jawhara?”
“I guess.” She shrugged. She couldn’t quite meet his eyes. Memories of him bare assed in the shower kept coming up—and, yeah, he was as built as his brother.
Trying to keep the heat out of her cheeks, she glanced up at him, and then paused.
Travis offered a grin that was so much like Trent’s—but Travis’ mouth twisted up more on the right. He leaned closer. “You know, there was so much steam in the bathroom, I barely saw your eyes, let alone anything else.”
She glanced at him, searching to see if he was telling her the truth. “Really? ‘Cause I saw a lot more than that.”
He spread his hands. “I wouldn’t have minded. You’re gorgeous. Anyone can see that. But I swear, my vision was bad enough as it was from lack of sleep and pullin
g an all-nighter. I didn’t see anything that I wouldn’t have seen if you’d been wearing a swimsuit.”
Trent came out of the room. He didn’t look as if he’d been yelled at and she hadn’t heard any voices raised. The man with him came forward, offered a charming smile, and held his hand out. “I’m Slade. I take it you’re Chloe. Welcome. Are we ready to go?” He shook her hand and went over to pull open the door that led to the open tarmac.
Chloe caught a breath. “Uh…airport.” She waved over her shoulder. “Back there.”
Trent put an arm around her. “We’re taking the company jet. Travis is staying.”
Slade looked at Travis. “Don’t screw this up. We need some new talent, and any woman who can complete Hell Week needs to be on our team. Find her and convince her to sign on.”
Travis nodded. “I’ll do my best, boss.”
“I’d like better. Don’t forget that Bethany is coming by the office today to give you a look at her newest program.”
Travis’ face lit up, and Chloe wondered who Bethany was. Travis asked, “She bringing Jason with her? I want to get that kid started on programming while he’s still young enough to be great.”
Turning, Slade took Chloe’s arm in his. “Chloe, you’re with me. Now, what stories do you want to hear about Trent’s past?”
Travis nodded to Trent, and Chloe heard him call out, “Stay out of trouble, bro.”
She hoped he would—and she hoped he’d keep her out of trouble, too.
Chapter 17
Chloe hadn’t flown all that much and had never been on a private jet before. It was hard to keep her mouth from hanging open at the luxury surrounding her.
Butter-soft white leather chairs held her like she was a precious gem. Dark wood wainscoting gleamed in the interior and a luxuriously soft carpet begged her to slip her sandals off and rub her bare feet against it—the plane was more like a club than a means of transport.
“I need to talk to Slade for a few minutes. Do you want something to drink before we take off?”
Chloe looked up at Trent. She wet her lips, swallowed, and tried not to fidget. “No. I’m fine.”
He gave her a quizzical look and touched her cheek. “You’ll do fine.” He stepped to the back to talk with Slade.
Chloe tried to get herself comfortable. She slipped off her sandals and pulled her feet onto the seat. She wrapped her arms around her legs. She’d taken Trent’s advice and had dressed for comfort—sweats and a T-shirt. She was more than a bit nervous.
She gazed out the small window, and squeezed her legs tight when the cabin door closed and the plane began to move. She paced her breathing, counting slowly to four as she breathed in and then counting just as slowly as she breathed out. People flew everyday—this was no worse than bouncing along in the back of a pickup over gravel roads.