And yet…the world stopped. The impact never came.
All at once, I was heaved back. A grasp of my wrist pulled me backward moments before strong arms surrounded me, and I was thrust back to the seats. No longer sitting in my own chair, my escape attempt had landed me squarely on Sterling’s lap.
Struggling was fruitless. Sterling Sparrow’s hold exceeded a plane seat belt, even in one as plush and luxurious as his.
The emotions from before and those building over the past week came out, not as anger or rage but as tears that could no longer be contained.
The salty moisture burning my eyes was an insult to me and my strength. I turned away, not wanting him to see the way my body had again defied me.
He didn’t speak, nor did I as the plane continued its course. His lips brushed the top of my head as his hold loosened and he shifted, helping me stand and then sit again where I’d been.
His movement brought more than his loosening grasp to my attention. As I repositioned myself in my own seat and he stood, my gaze unconsciously went to the front of his jeans. He may not have acknowledged my tears, but just as mine had done, his body betrayed his words and actions.
When our gazes met, his dared me to acknowledge what we both knew had happened. Looking away, I decided it wasn’t a challenge I was currently prepared to fight. With something that sounded a bit like a growl, Sterling turned away and walked to the panel upon the wall. Pushing a button, Marianne’s voice came from the speaker. “Captain McGee.”
“Marianne, change of course.”
“Sir? We’ve filed our flight plan, our landing is anticipated, and we’re approaching—”
“Do we have enough fuel to reach the cabin?” Sparrow asked, not allowing her to finish.
“Um, yes, sir, we do. The airport—”
Again he interrupted, “Contact the civil aviation authorities for both countries and alert them to our change. Also alert the proper channels that we’re crossing the border. Make them aware of our manifest. If my calculations are correct, we should have another two and a half hours of flight.”
“Yes, sir, roughly. I’ll let you know when I have the exact information.”
My eyes grew wide as he came back toward me. “Crossing the border? What border?”
Sterling sat beside me and stretched his long legs out in front of him as he exhaled. “It appears you’re not ready for the plans I had set. I’ll have Patrick get word to those who need to know that we will be unreachable for a few days.”
The bubbling concoction of emotions boiled over as I sat straighter in the seat. “Unreachable? No. I told you that I would have daily contact with Louisa. You promised.”
His dark eyes turned my way as his tone dripped with insincere affection. “My sweet Araneae, I made no such promise.” His long fingers upon the armrest clenched and unclenched as he weighed his words. “Something you should know about me is that I keep my promises. A man’s word is his most valuable tool or most respected weapon. I said that you’d get back to Boulder and have time to settle whatever you needed to settle before being delivered to me. You were given that time. You’ve been delivered. My word has been kept.”
I shook my head. “No. On the phone… you said…” I tried to remember exactly what he’d said. I’d given him my demands, yet had he promised? “…that you’d consider my demands.”
He didn’t respond. Instead, he answered my question from before. “The American border. My cabin is in Ontario.”
“No. This is insanity. I have a company to run. I told you that I will not step away from Sinful Threads.”
“And you won’t…not for long. Every CEO deserves a vacation.”
“A vacation? A vacation?” My volume grew with each phrase. “Being kidnapped over the border is not a vacation.”
You are not kidnapped. You willingly entered this plane. The cameras at the airport will show that. Along with the excessive amount of luggage and you telling others you were going away, there is plenty of evidence of your willing participation.”
The plane’s trajectory changed, more noticeable at first, until we were soon cruising steady and level as we had before.
I didn’t have words as I sat in stunned silence and he typed out a text, or maybe it was more than one. Whatever he was communicating and to whomever, it was meant to be done without my overhearing. I had no doubt he could have texted Marianne too. The verbal command wasn’t only for her but, meant for me also. He was changing our plans and neither Marianne nor I were able to alter that change.
Perhaps the only external force aboard this plane was Sterling Sparrow.
With each minute, my mind searched for answers. Thank goodness I’d left Louisa that note. It was my only hope that she would begin a search.
“Ms. Hawkins?”
I looked up to Jana’s smiling expression as she handed me my phone. I’d left it in the bedroom and had been too lost in my thoughts to hear her approach. My gaze went from her to Sterling, wondering why she’d bring me my phone in his presence.
He didn’t speak, yet a quick nod of his head told me that she was doing his bidding.
“Thank you.”
As I reached for it, she asked, “May I get either of you anything?”
My fingers surrounded my phone as I contemplated how to send a message without Sterling knowing. I could contact Louisa or Winnie; either would be able to help.
“That will be all, Jana,” Sterling said. “We are not to be disturbed unless you’re called.”
She nodded and took a step back. “Yes, sir.”
As she walked away, I looked down at the phone in my hand.
Before I could speak, Sterling did. “I would assume that in that beautiful head of yours you’re thinking about the SOS message you plan to send. Perhaps more than one?”
My eyes widened as I lifted my gaze to his. Though I expected the dark stare, I was caught off guard by the sense of amusement in his expression. “Do you think this is funny?”
A deep chuckle filled the air. “I do. And a bit disappointing.”
“Disappointing?”
“Araneae, your predictability is disappointing. Your fiery spirit is more than amusing—it’s electrifying.” He nodded toward my phone. “Contact your assistant and your business partner. Tell them whatever you want to say, as long as you make it clear that you’ll be unreachable through the weekend.”
I sucked in a breath. “Weekend? That’s four days.”
“And that you’ll be in touch with them when you return from this much-needed getaway.”
“I won’t do that. I need to be accessible.”
“No.”
With the level flight, I once again had steadfast footing as I stood. I took a few steps, turned, and took a few more. With each pass I collected my thoughts and my words. Taking a deep breath, I began, “I get that you’re in control of this plane. I get that you think you’re somehow in control of my decisions, but you’re not. I have a company. I have a friend who is weeks from giving birth.” I stopped my pacing and looked him in the eye. “Tell me you won’t hurt them.”
Sterling’s gaze widened. “As it has always been, it’s in your hands. You see, Araneae, you have control, too.”
I let out an exasperated breath. “I’m going with you.” I lifted my hands and gestured toward the windows filling with red hues from the setting sun. “You see, I forgot to pack my parachute so my escape opportunities are limited.”
His lips curled upward. “And yet once again failing to obey, you packed quite a bit.”
Deciding not to take that bait, I went on, “As I was saying, many things can happen in four days. I need to be accessible.”
“Tell them they may only contact you in the case of an emergency. Patrick will keep your phone. If an emergency occurs, you’ll be notified.”
My head shook as I contemplated his offer. “I want my phone with me.”
“First, we have some rules to discuss.”
“Rules?”
Sterling stood, his height, despite the heels on my shoes, dwarfing me as it had the first night in the office. “I’ve waited longer than you know for this.”
He stepped closer, reached for my hands, and removed the phone from my grip. While domineering, there was no anger or wrath in his touch. Without argument, I released the phone as he tossed it in one of the chairs.
Before he continued speaking, he once again secured my fingers, enveloping them in his warm grasp. “I’ve always known it would happen, that one day you would be mine. It’s too easy for me to forget that you haven’t had the same knowledge. In my anticipation, I wrongly assumed that you’d be ready to learn about yourself, your future, and your past. It seems that by your little display earlier, you’re not.”
“I am ready. I want to know.”
“Then behave.”
“You act like I’m a child.”
He squeezed my hands as his eyes darkened and head tilted. “Araneae, if you think there’s any part of me that sees you as a child, you’re mistaken.” He took a step back and scanned me from my toes to my eyes. By the time our gazes met, there was no doubt how exactly Sterling Sparrow saw me. Though we were flying nearly a mile over the earth, the heat in his stare could ignite the forests below, decimating the pristine land to ashes.
“I don’t know you,” I said, repeating something I’d told him before.
“You will. That’s why we’re going to the cabin. It will give us uninterrupted time to become acquainted.”
I wanted to ask how acquainted. Instead, I acquiesced. “Fine.”
He chuckled. “You’re agreeing to go where you’re already going?”
“No,” I said, straightening my shoulders and lengthening my neck. “I’m agreeing to sending the messages you mentioned and to allowing Patrick to monitor my phone. However,” I said, removing my hands from his and taking a step back, “I want a promise—your word—that if a message comes through, at any hour, I will be notified.”
I watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed.
“Sterling, I mean it. I need to know what’s happening. Louisa and Sinful Threads are…well, they’re my family.”
“You have my word. You also have my word that they aren’t.”
The relief in his first statement was quickly washed away. “What do you mean? Do I have family? Real family? What do you know?” And how do you know it? I didn’t ask the last part.
He reached again for my hands. “I’ve already told you that I know all about anyone or anything that belongs to me. Soon you’ll acknowledge that that includes you.”
Araneae 16
“You may change into something more comfortable if you would like,” Sterling said after my messages were sent.
I may.
Fuck him.
Leaning back, I crossed my legs at my knees, bobbed my high-heel sandal, and settled against the soft seat. With my hands gripping the arms of the large plush seat, I found my most defiant voice. “Thank you for your permission. It’s not necessary. I’ll wear whatever the fuck I want, when I want.”
His grin curled upward as one brow lifted.
With a humph I rebelliously folded my arms over my chest like the child he told me not to be. I was well aware that sitting here in the outfit he’d told me to wear, freshly showered, and fucking prepared, my words held less substance than a boat filled with holes, sinking to the depths of Lake Michigan.
After a few minutes, he spoke, “I wasn’t expecting you to do it.”
“Do what? Get on the plane?” Because more than once I’d regretted the decision.
His expression of power from before was replaced with something different—perhaps an attempt at understanding? Maybe I was reading too much into it.
“No,” he said. “I knew you’d do that. I told you. I know your weakness.”
“Yes, so you said. I care. I give a shit about other people. How horrendous of me.”
“That isn’t your only weakness, but it’s the only one I’ll currently admit to exploiting.”
I sat taller and purposely turned toward the row of windows on the other side of the plane from Mr. Sparrow. The view from before of light blue sky was gone, replaced with darkness. I wondered about the time of day or night. I was at a complete loss. Like many other things, the only answer I would get would be from the arrogant man seated across the room. After my brief exchange with both Winnie and Louisa, my phone had been safely stowed with Patrick, or so I’d been told. Since I didn’t think it went with the red dress and most likely expensive jewelry, my watch was also tucked away of my own doing in my carry-on. That meant my only gauge of passing time was the length of the flight. I’d lost all sense of most everything since Sterling materialized and changed our destination.
“I didn’t think,” he went on, pulling my attention back to him, “that you’d wear what was in the gift box.”
I tilted my head. “Perhaps I’m learning your weaknesses as well.”
His grin transformed into a smirk. “Be careful, Araneae. I have none. There were powerful men who have thought otherwise. They’re no longer alive to test their theories.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
He stood from where he’d been seated and walked my direction. Although every voice in my head said to look away, I couldn’t. Despite his height, within the confines of an airplane, he displayed no awkwardness. I presumed his location was irrelevant. In all situations, Sterling Sparrow moved like a lion: majestic, strong, proud, and above all, powerful. He was the king of the beasts and everyone within his realm was either a peasant, present to do his bidding, or prey, waiting to be devoured.
As he came to a stop in front of me, the twisting in my core told me that I didn’t qualify as a peasant. No, I was his prey. I craned my neck upward, attempting to remain expressionless as I strived to maintain eye contact.
I’m not prey, asshole. If I’m yours, as you’ve said, I’m the lioness.
“It would be good if you did,” he suggested.
It was my turn to smirk. “I didn’t realize that real estate was such a cutthroat business. Besides, it seems to me that if my death was your goal, and as you yourself have said, you’ve been watching me for some time, my demise would have already occurred.”
“If that had been my goal, it would have. It wasn’t.” He crouched to his haunches before me as his large hand grazed my exposed ankle, sparking heat as he moved up, uncovering my knee. His eyes met mine. “My goal has been achieved. It always is. I don’t fail.” His broad shoulder shrugged as his grin turned either sly or sinister—I was yet to have him completely figured out. “However, it’s also wise to keep in mind that goals can change.”
His grip of my knee tightened. “I also prefer to know that when I give instructions, they’re carried out—completely. The entire time we’ve been together in this cabin, I couldn’t help but wonder if you’d done that.”
“Done what?’
“Tell me if you did as I said.”
“Stop talking in riddles. You’ve said a lot. What are you asking?”
“Are you wearing everything in the box?” Standing, he offered his hand, encouraging me to also stand.
Heat flowed from our connection, flooding my core as I made it to my feet. My heels wobbled as I remembered what I’d added to the outfit.
Like velvet moving the wrong way, his deep voice rubbed my nerves as he slowly shook his head, stood back, and assessed everything about me. “I recommend you avoid poker,” he said with a hint of amusement.
“I’ll have you know I excel at poker. Five-card draw is my game.”
His chuckle filled the cabin. “Then your opponents were amateurs. Though your life is one, you’re not good at keeping secrets. That is why until now you’ve been spared the truth. In this case, your body is giving you away.”
I tried not to think about what he knew about my life.
When it came to here and now, he was right. My damn body was a traitor. It and I were no lon
ger on speaking terms. As infuriating and arrogant as this man could be, in his presence my body was a flush of energy—most of it now settled between my legs.
“Your cheeks are growing pinker,” he said. “Your feet are shuffling, and your breathing has changed. I could continue on about your ice-hard nipples and wet pussy, but for now I plan to learn what you did or didn’t do that has you reacting this way.”
I tilted my head from side to side, giving him a view of each ear. “The cubic zirconia earrings are in place.”
“Three and a half carats per earring. Common cut with near-perfect clarity. I never settle for imitations.”
Holy shit.
I looked down and lifted the platinum chain. “The necklace is in place. You can see the sandals and the dress.”
His arm snaked around my waist, pulling me closer until my breasts collided with his broad chest. “You know what I’m asking. Don’t make me spell it out.”
With my chin lifted, I stared through veiled lashes, and leaned my hips inward. I was this man’s kryptonite. I had no idea why, but it wouldn’t stop me from using it.
A shallow breath escaped me as he roughly pulled me even closer.
Earlier, I’d covered my skin in the rose-scented lotion from the bathroom, yet at this moment, it was his scent that filled my senses. Masculine, clean, and spicy, the aroma surrounded us like a cloud as not only our chests connected, but also once again, his body declared his desire.
“Do you think it’s wise to push me?” he asked, his voice growing deeper. The gravelly tone had the same effect as his cologne and erection, twisting my insides.
My response was breathy. “You’ve said more than once what you want.”
“If I lift that pretty red dress, will I find what was in the box for you to wear?”
“There was nothing in the box for me to wear beneath this dress.”
The vein in his neck pulsated as his hand lowered from the small of my back to my behind. His fingers splayed, grabbing my ass, yet thankfully, the material was too thick for him to feel the underwear. “Answer my damn question, or I’ll find out for myself.”
“Your instructions didn’t say I couldn’t add another item.”
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