The Dare (The Bet 3)

He pulled back and smirked. "Got it."

"Well," Grandma sighed loud enough to wake up every single child under eight in the back of the plane, "I guess what's done is done. And again, I'm so very sorry for the inconvenience. We'll be landing around dinnertime. I've already apologized to the kids for crashing their honeymoon. They've agreed to take your bags back with them to the hotel while we go have our peaceful dinner, then we can meet them there for a nightcap."

"Fine." I smiled tensely.

"Ta-ta." Grandma waved and walked back down the aisle.

With a sigh I slumped back against my chair, trying to look at the positive side of things. Just because Jace didn't want me didn't mean I was a loser. It just meant I was… single. Still single. Did it mean I was bad in bed? Possibly. It also meant that I was probably a terrible kisser. Who could blame me when my practice had been with Vampire Lover and McDonalds' Employee of the Month?

"She's up to something."

"Jace," I swore, "stop being so…"

"So what?"

"So… suspicious. She apologized. We get a free vacation. Leave it at that."

"But—"

"I'm going to sleep."

"Okay." He sounded disappointed.

I wanted to see the look on his face. I wanted to dissect every single look, every touch, every sigh, but I knew in the end the equation would still equal out to be zero. No matter how many tallies I put in his favor, he still wouldn't want what I had to offer.

Because in the end, I wasn't even sure what I had to offer, except for my heart. And for thirty years — even that hadn't been enough.

Chapter Eight

"You mean to tell me he wanted to be kidnapped?"

Grandma nodded. "Yes, that's correct."

"And he wanted to be rufied?"

"Of course."

"And he asked you to give him some time before you revealed his location?"

"That's what I'm saying."

"Did you murder Senator Brevik?"

"Oh honey, if I'd had murdered him. I wouldn't have gotten caught — that's why I'm here."

"You're here because you got caught."

"I let you catch me. To give him time."

"Fine. I'll bite. Time for what?"

"Love."

Jace

Once the plane dropped down in Honolulu, I was beyond ready to lose my cool. The little girl in front of us had, for the past hour, chattered about school, life, her mom, her gas — really anything that she'd thought might interest us. But the real kicker had been when Beth had started coloring with her.

And I'd been left to watch.