Distraction (Underground Kings 3)

“Do you trust me?”

“No,” I answer immediately, but then feel bad when his jaw jerks. “Don’t take it personally. I don’t trust anyone, not even my family,” I add quietly.

“Trust me this once. I won’t let anything happen to you.” Studying his expression, I try to figure out what the look in his eyes means and why this moment seems so important. I have been let down by my sister and the people who raised me more times than I would like to admit, and they have made me wary of trusting anyone. “Promise,” he quietly states, and I nod before turning to look out the window, feeling my throat grow tight.

Feeling a light touch down my cheek, I hear Sven’s voice break through my unconsciousness, stating, “We’re here.”

I groan and ask, “Where’s here?” without lifting my head or opening my eyes.

Chuckling, he mutters, “Open your eyes and see.”

Opening one eye then the other, I pull my face away from the door, where I rested it and apparently fell asleep, and then feel my heart lodge itself in my throat as I look out the window. I see the words Kip’s Skydiving proudly written in bold letters from nose to tail on a small plane.

“Um…why are we here?” I ask, though I’m not sure the words are loud enough to be heard over the pounding of my heart.

“We’re going skydiving.”

“You mean you’re going skydiving,” I reply, pulling my eyes from the window to look at him and glare.

So much for the whole trusting thing.

“No, we’re going skydiving.” He grins as Ken opens the back door, allowing light to fill the car.

“I think I’ll just wait here,” I tell him, scooting as far away from the open door as I can possibly get while wishing I were a chameleon so I could blend in with the leather of the car.

“You told me you would trust me.”

“That was before I knew you wanted to strap a piece of fabric to my back and hurl me from a moving plane at hundreds of miles per hour toward the Earth, where I’m likely to splatter into a bazillion pieces,” I breathe out in a rush.

“You’re going to be strapped to me.” He smiles like that makes it all okay.

“That’s not making me feel any better,” I cry then try to tug my arm free from his hold as he pulls me across the seat. Getting away, I grab onto the door handle and hold on for dear life as he grabs both my feet and pulls. “Sven, let me go!” I yell, and then my body stiffens as an all too familiar deep baritone voice calls, “Maggie?”

“No,” I whisper, letting go of the door to look over my shoulder.

“How do you know Mags?” Sven growls, letting my feet go so he can stand to his full height, which only slightly towers over Ace, a man I dated on and off for a few months. A man who makes Sven’s womanizing ways look like child’s play.

“We dated.” He frowns then looks between Sven and me before asking, “How do you know Maggie?”

“I work for him,” I state as I get out of the car and adjust my clothes.

“Oh.” Ace grins, showing off his perfect teeth and dimple, which is made even more adorable by his dark skin.

Jerk.

“You dated him?” Sven asks from my side, and I turn to look at him.

“I know. Big, huge, giant mistake.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Ace mutters as three blondes who all look almost identical walk up to our group, giggling.

“Yeah, it was that bad,” I tell him as Sven stiffens at my side when one of the blondes stands next to him.

“Why are you working for Sven? I thought you were still modeling?”

“Modeling?” Sven asks, and the three women begin to giggle louder, like they can’t believe their ears.

“I thought we were skydiving,” I state, changing the subject, because at this time, I would much rather be falling to my death than in the middle of this situation.

“Who’s your friend?” the blonde standing at Sven’s side asks, raking her eyes over him.

“Sorry, ladies. This is my friend, Sven, and this is Maggie.” He smiles, nodding toward me.

“And you dated her?” a different blonde questions, looking between Ace and me with a puzzled look on her (sadly) beautiful face.

“I did.” Ace nods, still smiling.

“But she’s fat,” she mutters, looking me over.

“Pardon?” Sven snarls as Ace growls, “Crystal.”

“Sorry,” she whispers, taking a step back toward the safety of her friends.

“Let’s go.” Grabbing my hand and not giving me a choice, Sven pulls me away from the group and leads me toward the building, swinging his arm over my shoulders, asking, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. It’s not the first time someone has called me fat.”

“I mean with Ace.”

“Oh, him? Yeah.” I shrug.

“Really?”

“Of course, we dated casually for a few months. It wasn’t serious. Like you, I don’t think he will ever settle down with one woman.”

“What the fuck does that mean?” he snaps, sounding insulted as he pulls his arm from me like I just burned him.

“Hey, don’t be offended. There are two types of men in this world: the kind who want a family, and the kind who want to have a good time. As long as you’re okay with who you are, nothing else matters.”

“Who said I don’t want a family?”

“When have you ever had a serious relationship?” I ask, and his face closes down. “Exactly,” I mumble as we step out of the hot sun and into the cool interior of the building.

“So what, you and Ace just hooked up?”

“No.” I shake my head then whisper so Ace, who is following close behind, can’t hear. “I think I caught him during a time he believed he wanted something more, only he didn’t really want the pressure or the fidelity of a real relationship.” Just then, thankfully, a tall, older gentleman who Sven introduces to me as Kip, the owner, comes out to gre

et us and takes us back to the hangar.

“Since I have more jumps under my belt, I think Mags should jump with me,” Ace says as I put on the jumpsuit the instructor just gave me.

“She’s jumping with me, and her name is Maggie, not Mags,” Sven grumbles from my side as he reads over some paperwork Kip gave him.

“You call her Mags?” Ace states, crossing his arms over his chest with an amused grin.

“She’s mine.”

“I’m not a thing. I’m a human, and I’m not yours.” I roll my eyes at Sven then look at Ace. “I’m not jumping with you. Take Dumb, Dumber, or Dumbest,” I say with a nod to the three blondes, who are each looking confused as the instructors attempt to help them get into their gear.

“Is that jealousy I hear in your tone, Maggie?”

“No, I just don’t want to be close to you.”

“If I recall correctly, you used to like being close to me,” he says quietly enough for just me to hear.

“I also used to like strawberries until I found out they were the cause for the hives I kept getting,” I mutter, and he chuckles.

“You always did make me laugh,” he says softly.

“That’s me, always good for a laugh,” I grumble, turning away from him.

“Will you be okay while I go talk with Ace for a few minutes?” Sven asks, placing his fingers under my chin, forcing my eyes to meet his.

“Of course,” I whisper, wishing in that moment he would kiss me, which is absolutely ridiculous.

“I’ll be just a couple minutes,” he whispers back searching my gaze then shakes his head, drops his hand, and turns placing his hand on Ace’s shoulder leading him away. Watching them, I wonder what kind of business they need to talk about. Ace is a poker player who first made a name for himself in online gambling, but has since grown into one of the biggest names in Vegas. I haven’t seen Ace since the day I told him I couldn’t see him anymore two years ago. He was always searching for the next adrenalin rush, while I was searching for a happily ever after. It looks like we’re both still looking. Ignoring the sadness that thought makes me feel, I finish getting ready, take a seat, and wait for Sven to come back.

“Are you ready?” Sven asks close to my ear, so I can hear him over the loud roar of the plane’s engines. Shaking my head, I squeeze my eyes closed then grab onto both his thighs when the plane bounces. “I promise nothing will happen to you,” he says gently, giving my waist a squeeze, pulling me closer to him, which seems impossible since I’m literally sitting on his lap.