King Maker (King Maker 3)

My son took that moment to step in front of me.

“Are you Balee?” he asked.

The beautiful woman before me knelt in front of me.

“Yes, I am, sweetheart. What’s your name?”

“Gabe.”

His face was delighted as he brought the model car she’d given him from behind his back and held it in front of her.

“Did you buy me this?”

She nodded.

“Thank you,” he said and moved in to give her a hug.

She hugged him back and a small part of my heart thawed.

“I can show you around,” he said, holding out his hand.

She took it and I shifted to let them pass. I barely heard Gabe start to introduce her to my cousin when Lizzy laid into me.

A well-groomed nail was aimed at my nose.

“I swear, if anything happens to her over there, Scotland Yard won’t be able to save you from me.”

“Have you ever thought of going into personal security? You’re pretty scary,” Griffin said.

She narrowed her eyes on him.

“Yes, I can be scary when it comes to my family and friends.”

“It looks like everyone is here.”

We all turned to look as Matt stepped in farther to give room for Turner to board.

“Can I talk to you?” Matt asked.

“I’ll need your passports,” a man who identified himself as being a TSA agent said following in behind them.

Griffin handed me mine and waved Bailey’s before turning to give it to her.

I handed the agent mine and stepped in a corner to hear what Matt had to say.

Reluctant to let go, I hung on a final second before I finally released Lizzy.

“Oh, honey. I wish I could go with you, but I have the gallery showing.”

I smiled as best I could. “I know. Thank you for coming down.”

She cocked her head. “As if I wouldn’t. And can I say, Turner is a hottie.”

I closed my eyes.

“I might have made a mistake,” I said.

“What—” she began, but Matt came over.

“Time to go.”

She rolled her eyes at her brother and moved in to give me another quick hug.

“Stay safe, honey, and call me when you arrive.”

I nodded and watched my best friend leave. When I turned, Kalen’s eyes were locked on me.

There were so many things to say, but too many witnesses to a conversation we needed to have alone.

“Please take your seats,” the flight attendant said, but more to Kalen.

The woman had been fawning over him since we arrived.

I turned and got my first real look at the plane’s interior.

There was a configuration of six gray leather seats in the first cabin. Four on one side and two facing each other on the other side, both with a glossy wood table in between. Beyond that was a doorway where I caught a glimpse of a sofa, TV, and another set of seats.

Gabe was seated with his nanny, Ainsley, in the four-seater. Griffin, who smiled up at me, had taken a seat in the two-set opposite.

Turner whispered in my ear, “Why don’t we sit back there?”

He pointed to the cabin beyond. I headed in that direction. Just as I’d seen, there was a sofa on one side that stretched the length of the cabin and another two-seater facing each other on the other side.

“Forward or backward?” Turner asked.

“What?” I said, still gaping at this plane.

I wasn’t a world traveler and hadn’t taken many flights in my lifetime. The few times Lizzy and I had taken a trip, we’d flown commercial, albeit first class. This was a totally different experience.

“Do you want to face forward or backward?” he asked.

I shrugged.

“I’ll take backward. It faces the TV if you don’t mind.”

I didn’t and sat in the seat facing the first cabin. When I glanced up, Kalen had taken a backward seat in the four section, thus leaving us to face each other.

For a long second, our eyes locked and the old familiar heat rose in me as I held the buckle in my hand, unable to move.

“Bails.”

I blinked and glanced over at Turner.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

I really wasn’t, yet I managed to buckle myself in. It took an enormous effort to look away from Kalen.

“Can I take your drink order?’ The flight attendant was back.

“A beer?” Turner said more like a question.

“Domestic or import? IPA or lager?”

Turner’s eyes grew in size. I wasn’t much of a beer drinker myself but remembered what Steven had suggested I buy the other night.

“Do you have Heineken?” I asked.

She nodded but looked unimpressed. “Would you like the same?”

The last thing I should do was drink. But with two men I cared deeply about sharing a plane for seven or eight hours, a drink was exactly what I needed.

“A glass of your best chardonnay.”

She smiled approvingly.

Before she could leave, Turner asked, “Do these seats lay flat?”

“Yes, sir. There’s also a bedroom just beyond the bathroom.” She pointed in that direction. “It also has a private bathroom. However, you must remain upright and seated in one of the seats you are currently in during takeoff and landing.”