Heaven in Hedonism (The Sinful Series Book 3) (8 page)

“So white chocolate?”

Making the sign of the cross with my fingers in front of his face, I shouted, “Blasphemer!” Then more calmly, I continued educating him. “There is no such thing as white chocolate. Remember…chocolate should be brown.”

Mac was laughing. “Jolie,” he began, “I’m really going to enjoy our week together. You are so much more than you seem in that stuffy office.”

There was a chance I would have come up with some kind of clever response, but they started announcing our flight was boarding. These compliments pained me. I was so unaccustomed to male attention. Ever since the night of the rape, I had avoided males altogether. Now, here was Mac. He was warm and generous. More than that, for some reason, he seemed to like me—really, really like me. The more time we spent together, the more I wanted him to. I wanted to see where this was going to go.

We headed to our gate and as we reached the counter, Mac spoke to the woman. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance that we can pay for an upgrade to first class?”

After studying her screen for a moment, she smiled and nodded. “Yes, we have two seats together. You’ll be much more comfortable there with an overnight flight.”

Whipping out his black American Express card, he smiled. “Exactly.”

Within minutes our new tickets were printed and we were walking the long tunnel to the plane. The excitement had me shivering and Mac picked up on it immediately. He repositioned our bags and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “We’ll get you a blanket just as soon as we get settled, okay?”

When I looked up at his face, the warmth from his eyes nearly melted me. This man was such a terrible idea. He was going to hurt me. I could feel it. He was the kind of man I could trust and give myself completely to. Spending a week together was such a horrible idea.

“I’m fine,” I managed. “Must have been an air vent.”

Glancing around behind us, he smiled. “Yeah. Must be. Nasty vents.” He winked.

“Let’s just find our seats and settle in. I have my heart set on another cupcake before I rest.” The thought of more sugar and sweets had me about bouncing the rest of the way to the plane.

Once inside, a cute, petite stewardess greeted us. Part of me wanted to hate her, but then I realized that Mac had merely nodded at her. It was me he was focused on. “Window or aisle,” he asked as he stood beside our seats.

Usually, I took the aisle. I hated climbing over people. Sin always wanted the window. Then it occurred to me that he might want the aisle and I really wanted him to be happy. Somehow, I had gone from a decisive independent woman to an insecure needy girl in a matter of hours. Fuck this. “Aisle,” I announced as I gestured for him to move in.

“Oh.” His word was short, even shorter than the two letters normally conveyed.

I could feel people lining up behind us. The pressure was building. He wasn’t moving. With a huff, I moved into our row and slumped in the window seat. For a moment, I was silent, trying to calm down before I said something I’d regret. Only emotion took over and as soon as he was seated beside me, I sat up, leaned closer and let loose. “Why’d you even ask?” I grumbled.

“What?” He seemed confused as he tucked his ticket into the outside pocket of his bag.

“If you wanted the aisle, why did you even offer it to me?” I glared at him. “We could have avoided this altogether if you had just motioned for me to take the window seat. You could have even passed yourself off as a gentleman while you did it.” Leaning back, I crossed my arms over my chest and stared out the window. The sky was dark, the lighting purely artificial. For a moment, I wondered if he would even answer me. Maybe he thought I was joking. I had snapped rather suddenly. Already remorse was setting in. This was going to be a long week.

Mac seemed to be reaching into the Just Desserts bag. I could see the movement from the corner of my eye, could hear the sound of the plastic containers moving about. How the hell could he eat at a time like this?

Suddenly, there was a tap on my shoulder. I whipped around, my eyes flaming balls of loathing, only to discover he was holding out a cupcake for me. “What?”

“Have a cupcake. Let me explain.” He looked at me with no guile. Whatever he had to say, I was willing to give it a listen.

“What flavor is that?” I asked, trying not to appear too eager.

Pulling it closer, he peeked at the label. “Strawberry Patch,” he said. “Nothing says I’m sorry like a cupcake.”

Softening, I gazed at him. “How did you know?”

“I guessed. I saw the way you had looked at it when the woman packed it at the bakery. It was like you were eating it with your eyes.” He teased.

“Gah. I hate you. I hate that I’m so easy for you. Gimme the damn cupcake.” Then I snatched it from his outstretched hands and started opening the container.

“Oh, you may want to wait until after take-off,” the stewardess commented on her way up the aisle.

“It’ll be long gone before then,” I assured her. “I’m not one to waste time savoring.” Then I winked. For a moment, I worried Mac would think I was trying to hit on her, but when I met his eyes he was just smiling at me, confident that we were working through my anger. “So talk,” I ordered.

“Oh.” Taking a deep breath, he began. “It’s going to sound stupid to you,” he warned.

“I’ll take my chances. Spit it out.” Then I bit into my cupcake.

Slowly, he leaned back and turned his face my direction. “Well, the aisle is like the protector seat. I need to be on the outside.” Then he was silent as though letting me digest his words.

Shaking my head, I mumbled, “Insane.” Then I took another bite and sat up straight while I tried to process the nonsense he had spewed. “Do I look like I need protecting?”

“If something happened, I should be on the outside, just like I should be closest to the door in bed,” he muttered.

Throwing my hands up in the air, I groaned. “Well, thank God we’re not sharing a room. I like my space. I like sleeping however I want to, even if it’s diagonal.” My eyebrow rose in challenge.

“Good for you.” He looked humbled. “I’m the man. I just want to be the man,” he murmured.

“We have air marshals for this.” I reminded him. “They stay alert and awake so we don’t have to.” Standing suddenly, I grabbed for the blankets and pillows stored above us. “Take this. Just because we aren’t sleeping together the rest of the trip, it doesn’t mean we can’t snuggle together now, right?” Why did I suggest it? Since when did I cuddle? Shit.

“I’d like that,” he said in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

Finally, I sat down and buckled my seatbelt. The stewardess was about to speak. The door had been locked and the lighted alert warned us to remain seated and buckled. The taxiing down the runway had begun. As soon as it was finished, I leaned my chair back. “You too,” I ordered.

“What?” he asked, clearly confused.

“Lean your seat back. You agreed to snuggle.” I rolled my eyes. This was a new side of me.

Once he did, I settled my head on his shoulder. It was more comfortable than the pillow against the window. And it gave him a place to lean his head. Honestly, I was so relaxed after a few minutes of sniffing his cologne that I found myself very easily drifting off to sleep. There was a moment just before I gave in to exhaustion where I could feel my blanket starting to slip down. Though I wanted to lift it, cover my bare arms, I was so tired that it seemed like an impossible task. That was when I felt him. His hand brushed my skin as he pulled the blanket over me and tucked it around my shoulders.

“There,” he whispered in the dark quiet of the plane.

In that second I had grown accustomed to his touch, completely unready to relinquish it. Nuzzling into his neck, I waited to see what would happen. Mac didn’t disappoint. Soon, his arms were around me, holding me as much as was possible despite the armrest between us and the seatbelt securing me. The last thing I recalled was his lips on my forehead, the way he crushed me to him. A girl could get used to this. I was ready to be that girl.

I slept. Seriously, for the first time in so very long, I slept. While I had hoped to get maybe a catnap, work on my laptop, read something on my Kindle, instead, I passed out until we arrived in Atlanta for our layover. How the hell did that happen? Really, as far as I could tell, the only reason I woke up was because we had to have our seats in the upright position for landing. Ever so gently, Mac woke me.

“Jolie, love, we have to sit up now,” he murmured in my ear as he lifted first his seat and then mine.

Slowly, I opened my eyes and realized for the first time in so very long, I felt rested. Hell, I was even smiling. “Wow,” I mumbled. “I didn’t think I’d doze off for so long.”

“Must be your body needed it,” he commented.

Nodding, I smirked. “My body needed that and so much more.” My face grew hot as I imagined what he was reading into my remark.

“I swear, a week with you in Hedonism is going to be like Heaven for me.” He smiled warmly. “Hey, I don’t suppose that’s what the ‘H’ stands for?”

“Ugh. You’re never going to let that go, are you?” I asked, pretending to be far more dismayed than I actually was. Really, I was feeling more rested than I had been in forever. Now I was ready to play.

When I looked at him, his eyes were sparkling. Maybe he was ready to play too. “We have almost three hours in between flights. What if we freshen up in the bathrooms and then grab breakfast?”

“Hey, I thought the coffee cakes were breakfast.”

Laughing, he admitted, “They can be for breakfast, but if I have a shot at something more substantial, like a chicken biscuit or a McGriddle, I’m going to take it.”

Before I knew it, we had landed and pulled up to the gate. Atlanta was huge, which made me nervous. We might be walking for a long time. On the bright side, we sure did have plenty of time. “Deal,” I agreed. “Let’s go get pretty.”

“You get pretty,” he joked. “I’m going to get manly, without the stink.” He winked at me as he allowed me out into the aisle in front of him. Again he was carrying all the bags. Damn, but I could get used to this.

We walked out of the gate to the nearest restrooms. Mac slipped my bag off his shoulder and passed it to me. “Take your time. I’ll wait for you right here,” he said calmly.

“Right here?” I asked, gesturing to where I was standing. “Not there or over there?” I motioned to nearby chairs.

Throwing his head back, he chuckled. “I’ll be in the vicinity.”

“Wait!” I exclaimed as I tugged on his arm. “What if I’m done first?”

“Then you aren’t trying hard enough.”

Laughing, I said, “Touché.”

For a moment, I just stood there and watched Mac walk into the men’s room without looking back. Then I slapped my forehead. I was supposed to do that. I was supposed to be the one walking away and leaving him wanting more. Fuck. I really sucked at this girl stuff. It was so much harder than Sin made it look. Because of this realization, I vowed to take my time. I would stay in there for a good twenty minutes and walk out looking stunning or die trying.

Marching into the bathroom, filled with determination, I wondered for a moment how in the hell I was going to kill twenty minutes. My nails were already polished professionally the day before, as were my toes. Guess I could start with brushing my teeth, fixing my hair and makeup, then freshening up in general. Taking my toiletry bag from the carry-on, I opened it and tried to take my time to get ready. God forbid I not look like I tried hard enough. I found my toothbrush easily enough, along with my travel-sized toothpaste. Glancing at the time on my cell phone, I realized it was nearly six-thirty in the morning. Well, at least I had a starting time. Now I just had to pace myself.

It was amazing what a good tooth brushing could do for a person. After all those sugary cupcakes, my mouth had felt disgusting, but now I was human once more. Next, I pulled out my deodorant. I needed a shower. That would have been the best way to kill the time, but instead, I had no option other than to perform the most delicate of whore baths. Washing my girl parts in a public sink was something done quickly, and as privately as possible in the stall. Afterward, I applied a liberal amount of deodorant, copious squirts of perfume, and finally slathered fresh lotion on my arms and legs. I pushed the button on my phone so I could see the time once more. Crap. That had only burned seven minutes.

Moving on to my hair, I realized there was no way to make up for the fact that I had slept on it for a good six hours. Taking a hair tie out, I pulled it into a messy bun. Of course, now this just drew attention to my plain face. Sin had these gorgeous eyes that took center stage whenever her hair was pulled back. Mine were considerably smaller and definitely more boring. Guess I would have to play up my lips. Though they were small, they were full, some might even suggest pouty. So, I powdered for shine, and added blush to my cheeks, some neutral shadow to my eyelids, a touch of eyeliner like I had seen Sin do so often. Finally, I picked a nice natural looking gloss. After putting everything away, I had still only used about fifteen minutes. Maybe that was enough. I was hungry. Slowly, I walked out the door and headed toward the area he said he’d be waiting for me. Sure enough, he was there, leaning against one of the big pillars.

Walking up to me, he gave me a warm hug. “I was almost afraid to touch you. I didn’t want to ruin the face and hair. You did this in a public restroom? Amazing,” he said admiringly.

Obviously I should say something here. His compliment couldn’t have been more perfect. “You cleaned up pretty nice yourself,” I managed. Then I smiled widely because I simply couldn’t help it.

Offering me his arm once more, he laid out the plan. “I found that we have both a Chick-fil-A in here and a McDonald’s. Do you have a preference?”

Cocking my head to the side, I considered. “Let’s do chicken biscuits, and then find some place for me to get a hot chocolate?” It had been a while since I had enjoyed one. Sin and Ben were coffee and tea drinkers. I wasn’t going to make Lucy pull out hot chocolate too.

“I love hot chocolate!” Mac exclaimed. “There must be a Starbucks. We’ll find one.”

Then we were off, walking to get food, acting all chummy like we had been friends and more forever, rather than boss and employee for closing in on ten months. I tried not to think about it. Instead, I chose to focus on the positive. I might just get over my issue with men. I might be able to have the life I longed for, one like Sin’s. Maybe I would even be able to have a baby someday. Even if I decided against sharing my life with some man, as long as I could share my body with him for a bit, it would be enough to produce the desired results.

Just before nine in the morning we were back at the next gate where Mac once again decided to upgrade our ticket. “Hey,” I protested, “you’re spending too much!”

After he put his credit card back in his wallet and slipped it into his inner jacket pocket, he looked at me with one eyebrow raised. “Seriously, Jolie,” he argued, “you bought the trip and the plane tickets. I’ve bought dinner, cupcakes, breakfast, and a few upgrades. We’re not even close to even.”

“I didn’t know we were keeping score,” I mumbled as we walked down the tunnel to the plane.

Grabbing my shoulder, he whirled me around to face him. “Any man, make that any
real
man, will always be acutely aware of whether or not he’s pulling his weight. A man will want to take care of his woman, take care of anyone he cares about. He’ll do what he can to protect her, make her feel loved and wanted. Most of all, he will shoulder the financial responsibilities with a smile, grateful that he is contributing to their lifestyle.” He frowned a moment. “For some reason, I fear you haven’t had a lot of real men in your life. As long as you let me be around, you’ll never have to experience that again.” Throwing an arm over my shoulder, he pulled me close. “Now let’s go enjoy the last leg of our journey.”

There were tears welling up in my eyes. Soon I was struggling to hide them. He had pretty much hit that nail on the head. Damn. Mac was way too perceptive. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him watching me as I blinked back tears. “What?” I snapped. Then with a sigh, I explained, “You made me ruin my makeup. And I put this face on just for you.”

Leaning over, he kissed me on the very tip of my nose. “I wouldn’t want to ruin your makeup.” He teased. “And for the record, you are beautiful with or without a painted face.”

We made it through the rest of the tunnel without any more issues. Soon, we were at our seats. I could tell because Mac had stepped next to one and motioned for me to sit by the window. “Thank you,” I said with a smile. He remembered. It had been hours and he still held onto what I told him before.

Leaning back in my seat, I felt satisfied in a way that I hadn’t for so long. Gone was the restlessness that had been eating at me in San Francisco. Sure, trips had always worked their magic, but this time, since we weren’t even there yet, I had to believe that some of the magic came from Mac. He had a way with me like no one else, other than Sin. His way was far superior. As I stared out the window, enjoying the sun still rising in the horizon, the dawning of a new and beautiful day, my hand was suddenly squeezed.

“What are you thinking?” he asked me while he lovingly kissed my fingers. “What’s going on in that incredible mind of yours right now?”

Sighing happily, I considered his question. “Really, I wasn’t thinking at all. I was just happy being, living, and experiencing this moment. Is that enough?” His opinion mattered to me very much at the moment. It was a wildly new feeling for someone who never cared what anyone thought.

“Yeah. That’s perfect,” he admitted with a nod.

We were quiet the rest of the trip, our last few hours on the plane punctuated by Mac’s occasional question. “Hortense?”

Laughing, I shook my head. “Ew! Not Hortense.”

He tapped his chin for several minutes while he considered equally horrific options. “Hermione.”

I made a face. “Do I look like I stepped out of Hogwarts?”

“Helena. Hilda. Hazel. Harriet.” He stared at me for a reaction.

“Stop guessing. It’s a family name. I hate it, but I loved my mother. That’s all you’re getting.” I looked down at the magazine in the back of the seat. I could tell he wasn’t going to let up. “Look, please leave it alone.”

He was silent a moment, then he shrugged. “That’s fine. I’m going to give you a new ‘H’ name. I’m going to make it something happy, a smile producing name you can be proud of. It’ll be your new nickname.” Mac pulled at his chin. “I have one in mind. In a few days, I’ll know if it fits.” He smiled at me before bending low and pulling out the cupcakes. “This is all we have left. Want one?”

I set the magazine back in the pouch on the back of the seat. “You would share your cupcake bounty with me? Wow. I’m honored. I’m not sure I’m hungry, but I’m definitely honored.”

“Come on. We need to toast our trip.” He had opened the last chocolate one and was eyeing it.

“It’s ten am. We don’t need to drink.”

He made a face before saying, “I meant with cupcakes.”

“We’re having a cupcake toast?” I asked to clear up the confusion.

Nodding, he handed me the lemon one. “This is yours.”

“What if I wanted the chocolate?” I joked.

He set my tray down. “Like I said. This is yours…” He chuckled at his cleverness.

I was pretty sure I did too. “So what are we toasting?” Having decided the experience was inevitable, I was ready to play along. Opening my container, I pulled out my lemon drop cupcake.

Lifting his chocolate one high in the air, he spoke with confidence and certainty. “Here’s to a wonderful week in Hedonism. May this be the start of a beautiful relationship. May our joy abound. May memories be made, but never spoken of.” He looked at me pointedly which had me covering my mouth to hide a laugh. “And may this week change the rest of our lives.”

“Wait!” I croaked.  “Relationship?”

“Friendship?  Would that be better?”  He watched for my reaction.

“Huh. I’ll toast to that.” I lifted my cupcake and bumped it against his.

“Clink!”

“You just clinked a cupcake?” I smiled. Then I took a huge bite while I considered the toast. Mac was right on. I wanted this week to change the rest of my life too.

When we stepped off the plane, he managed to surprise me again. As we rounded the corner, there was a man dressed in business casual island wear holding a sign with our names. “I should have known you’d think of everything,” I commented, feeling rather embarrassed that I didn’t think of it when I made the reservations. Ah, but I knew why I hadn’t. Sin was usually in charge of transportation, so we usually ended up taking a taxi. I chuckled thinking about it.

“I just want you to be able to relax and enjoy yourself. You seemed so tense and unhappy at work.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “I never want you to look like that again.”

It was an impulse, a crazy wild hare. How else could I explain it? All I knew was that seconds later, I had turned to him and buried my face in his neck, planted a kiss, and murmured, “Thank you,” against his skin. This man. He didn’t seem to be bothered by it, although I did catch him touching that spot as we walked to collect our luggage.