For a moment, she relaxed against his grip, closing her eyes. She could feel him gently kissing the back of her neck, and it would be so easy to just surrender--to give in--to let them be together. But she put a hand on his hand and eased it out from under her skirt. Reluctantly.
"I should really go. I don't want to, but I have to."
"All right." Ryan sighed again. "I understand."
She turned around to look at him in the eye. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure." He nodded, but his eyes were bereft of their usual spark.
She still looked uncertain, and part of her just wanted to stay in the bed and be with him forever--but another part was also extremely worried about her first magazine story. A bona fide assignment! She'd just have to overcome her natural shyness and get a few quotes from the celebrities in attendance. Ask them what they were wearing and who they were dating . . . and . . .
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what? She had to fill a column--eight hundred words! She hoped she could pull it off.
"I'm sorry," she repeated.
"Don't be," he said. "We've got the whole summer ahead of us."
Mara smiled. He was such a great guy. And what was one missed night? He was right--they had three glorious months ahead to do everything together.
She held up his Ferrari keys. "Okay if I drive it to Cain?"
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black hawk down!
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, OUR CHOPPER ISN'T HERE?" ANNA
demanded, jabbing a finger at the chest of the beleaguered air traffic controller. "We're always slotted first for departure."
"Sorry, ma'am, but you'll have to wait till they leave," the nervous technician explained, thumbing behind him. "Then your pilot can land and you can board."
Anna looked over to where he had pointed and gasped. "What the hell is that? And what is it doing in our space!"
In t
he Perrys' usual spot was a magnificent army-issue Black Hawk helicopter revamped with custom detailing and luxury finishes, boasting a veritable Pimp My Ride makeover, from the cushy leather bucket seats to the retractable step platform. It could withstand Iraqi gunfire but was currently used to ferry its owners from Manhattan to the Hamptons in under an hour.
A boxy, behemoth, bright yellow Hummer barged into the terminal and pulled up next to the Black Hawk with a loud screech. The side door opened and three very cute young indie-rock-looking guys jumped out. One was tall and light-haired with a pleasant face and a quick, friendly grin. He was wearing a purple Atari T-shirt and baggy jeans. The second had neat dark
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hair and black plastic square-rimmed glasses. A hipster nerd, good-looking in that bookish way. The third was lanky and laid-back, with messy brown hair and a fine set of sideburns. He wore a yellow polyester shirt with a seventies-style spread collar that spanned the length of his shoulders and a pair of loud checkered trousers. They looked like college freshmen lost on their way to orientation.
Jacqui stood by the chain-link fence next to the Perry kids, holding Zoe's backpack and Cody's hand. She barely noticed the three guys. Cody was screaming that he had to go potty, and Jacqui had to tell him to wait until they got to the Hamptons because there was no bathroom at the helipad. He'd finally been toilet-trained at the grand old age of five, but the poor kid still had the occasional accident. Jacqui prayed he wouldn't have one now--or perhaps she could just let him go by the side of the road. He was just a little boy, after all, and it seemed cruel to let him suffer like that.
While she debated on how to handle the toilet situation, her mind searched for an easy answer to her problems. She needed to think, and it was hard to concentrate with the sound of the helicopter engines and the Hummer stereo blasting and Anna's incessant complaining.
The trio from the Hummer sauntered toward the Black Hawk.
"Sorry we're late," the tall blond one said to the air traffic controller with a wicked grin. "Ben here had a little appointment
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with Madame Cinq Doigt," he said, holding up five fingers and smirking.
"Duffy, man, you know she's my best customer," said Ben, the one with the glasses. He shrugged easily and laughed.