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  What if Emmit had screwed her on this plane?

  In a chair?

  Slapping my hands over my mouth, I looked down at the chair I was sitting in.

  “Miss Morgan, are you feeling sick?”

  I dropped my hands and shook my head as I said, “So what do you think of Emmit?”

  Tara tilted her head and gave me a curious look. “Um, well he’s a nice guy. I don’t really know him all that well. If he travels by air, he is usually in his own plane.”

  My mouth dropped open. “Emmit owns a plane?”

  Tara laughed. “Yes! He’s like the second-highest paid driver in NASCAR. I mean with all of his other gigs he has. You know commercials and all that kind of stuff.”

  “Oh,” I barely said. “So, um, when he does fly, what do you do to calm him down?”

  Tara didn’t blink an eye when she said, “Texas Hold ’em.”

  “Excuse me?” I said as my mouth dropped open . . . again. I wasn’t sure why I reacted that way. I knew it was a poker game, but in my mind all I heard Tara say was . . . I screw him until we both scream out each other’s names.

  Shit. I need to snap out of this jealousy thing.

  Tara’s eyes widened. “The card game! It’s just a card game. Oh, my . . . no it’s not what you’re thinking. Mr. Lewis has always been a gentleman. He likes to play poker when he’s nervous, that’s all.”

  I waved my hand and played it off like I knew what she meant. “Oh, I knew that. I think I’m just unnerved right now.”

  Giving me a sweat smile, Tara said, “Well, we took off and are flying. Are you feeling better?”

  “Yes,” I said as I gave her a thumbs-up. “Doing great! No worries here. I am flying high.”

  Tara narrowed her eyes at me and gave me a look of worry. Holding my hands up, I said, “No no no, that’s not what I meant. No drugs here. I am not flying high on drugs; I’m flying high in the air. On life. Happy as a clam. Doing wonderful.”

  I closed my eyes and sighed. “I also ramble on when I’m nervous.”

  Tara placed her hand on my shoulder and gave it a light squeeze as I opened my eyes. “You and Mr. Lewis should get together sometime. You’d hit it off.”

  A bemused look moved across my face as I let out a chuckle. Tara made her way back toward the front of the plane as I pulled out my phone. Shaking my head, I let out a chuckle. If Tara only knew.

  The private plane had Wi-Fi and I had already logged into it before we took off. I was hoping to catch up on Facebook when my heart dropped as I saw his name scroll across my screen.

  Emmit.

  I opened his text as a smile grew across my face.

  Emmit: What are you doing this very minute?

  I felt the heat move into my cheeks as I decided to play with Emmit.

  With a giggle, I hit Send.

  Me: You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. It’s something naughty.

  Closing my eyes, I tried to keep my heart from racing. Up until this point, Emmit and I had been very cautious and slow. As much as we were both feeling the pull toward each other, we had stayed more in the friend-zone this week. I had just taken a giant leap right on out of that comfort zone, and I felt giddy as hell.

  Emmit: I just choked on my water. Tell me.

  Me: Tell you what?

  Emmit: What are you doing that’s naughty, Addie!

  Peeking up, I looked to see if Tara was on her way back out. Taking in a slow deep breath through my nose, I tried like hell to calm my beating heart. Three years it had been since I’d had these feelings. Only Emmit could pull them out of me. A huge part of me was excited to be feeling that pull in my lower stomach that I’d been longing for. I was tired of being careful. Tired of trying to do what I thought was the best thing for both Emmit and me. I knew what the best thing was.

  Us.

  Together.

  Looking over my shoulder, I grinned when I saw the door to the private bedroom. Unbuckling, I walked toward where Tara was.

  “Tara?”

  Her head popped around the corner as she smiled and asked, “Is everything okay, you look flush again?”

  “Um . . . would you mind if I went and took a short nap? My head is killing me.”

  Tara’s eyes filled with worry. “Of course not. You go right on ahead. Mr. Elliot said he wanted you to be as comfortable as possible. Do you need some aspirin?”

  “No thank you. I just need to lie down I think.”

  Tara motioned with her head toward the back of the plane. “You go right on ahead. I won’t bother you unless I need to.”

  I gave her a weak smile and made my way back to the private bedroom.

  “Good lord, is it just dawning on me there is a freaking bedroom on the plane,” I said to myself as I opened the door and let out a gasp.

  “Please dear God, let Emmit have a bedroom on his plane. Please.”

  Pulling my phone back out, I sent Emmit another text. Time to kick it up a notch.

  Me: All I can think of is you, Emmit. I can’t hide it anymore.

  Emmit: Holy living hell, Addie. Hide what?

  Giggling, I knew Emmit was probably getting himself all worked up but I couldn’t help myself. Shit, I hope he wasn’t about to qualify.

  Me: What are you doing this very second?

  Emmit: Running back to my bus!

  I chuckled as I pictured Emmit doing just that.

  Me: Have you qualified yet?

  Emmit: Yes! Yes! Yes! What can’t you hide anymore, Addie?

  Here it goes.

  Me: I want you, Emmit. I’ve never stopped loving you and this past week . . . it’s led me to this insane desire to be with you.

  Emmit: Damn, Addie. Baby, I’ve never stopped loving you. Please forgive me for being a total fucker.

  My heart felt as if I had just fallen from a ten-story building. Closing my eyes, I softly spoke, “Oh, Emmit.” I had wanted to tell Emmit all of this in person, but fear of rejection pushed me into blurting it out over text.

  I was flying to Tennessee to give Mr. Elliot my answer on his job proposal. He wanted to bring a nurse on to his team. When he told me he wanted me to come to work with him as the team’s personal nurse, I almost burst into tears. I’d had a hell of a time trying to find a job. No one really wanted to hire fresh-out-of-school nurses.

  I could do my job and be with Emmit while he did his. While Mr. Elliot had been talking, I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

  Me: We both made mistakes. Can we start over?

  Emmit: No. We can pick up where we left off.

  Pulling up his number, I hit it and held my breath as it rang. Thank God for the invention of Wi-Fi calling.

  His voice was barely above a whisper. “Addie,”

  I wasn’t prepared for the reaction I was going to have when I heard him say my name. A small sob escaped my lips as I said, “Emmit, I’m so sorry. I was only doing what I thought was right for both of us . . . I . . . I’ve always loved you.”

  Emmit made a noise and said, “Jesus, Addie. We were both young and stupid. Baby, please tell me we can pick up where we left off. We’ll make this work, Addie, I swear to God we’ll make it work.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand as I held my sobs back while tears rolled down my face.

  “Baby, talk to me, please, Addie. Say something.”

  Wiping my tears away, I nodded even though Emmit couldn’t see me. “We’ll make it work, Emmit. I know we will.”

  Emmit released a breath. “Thank you, God.”

  “I love you, Emmit.”

  “Addie, I love you too. Now tell me what you were doing that was naughty?”

  Letting out a laugh, I dropped back onto the bed and said, “What if I told you my hand was sliding down in my panties?”

  Silence.

  I waited a few more seconds and just as I was about to say something, Emmit made a growling sound. “Addie, I’ve just died and gone to heaven.”

  I slid my tongue acr
oss my top teeth as I said in the sexiest voice I could, “Not yet you haven’t.”

  I GLANCED OVER TO DOUG and Jeff while we all sat around a table. The two other drivers on the Elliot race team.

  Jack walked into the room with a smile on his face. “Looks like all three of you kicked ass qualifying today. I like it.”

  Trying to stay focused, I pushed all thoughts of Adaline out of my head and listened to Jack.

  Jack leaned against the desk as he looked at each of us. Stopping at Jeff, he pointed to him. “Third row, outside. I like it.”

  “Thank you, sir.” Jeff smiled and nodded.

  Jeff Harris was the son of one of the greatest drivers NASCAR had ever seen. I couldn’t really get a feel for the guy since he came over to our team six months ago. He was good, but somehow it felt like he was chasing a ghost every time he crawled into the car.

  Jack pointed to Doug. “Awe hell, Doug.”

  Doug smiled and glanced over to me. Giving him a grin in return, Doug looked back at Jack. “Pole position¸ Doug. Hang onto that for as long as you can.”

  “Hell yeah I will, sir,” Doug said as and he Jeff slapped hands.

  Jack turned and faced me. “Doug barely pushed you out of pole position, Emmit.”

  A quick shake of my head, and I said, “I know. First row inside isn’t too bad, and I’m going after his ass with everything I have.”

  Laughter erupted in the room as Jack slapped his hands together. “Go have fun tonight, boys. Not too much fun though, it’s race day tomorrow.”

  Jack always wanted to have a few minutes with us. Most of the time it was on race day, but for some reason he wanted to meet with us this afternoon. Getting up, I headed toward the door.

  “Emmit, stay back a second.”

  Stopping, I turned back to Jack. “You need something, Jack?”

  “Yeah. My private plane is about to land at Tri-Cities airport.”

  I groaned internally. He was going to ask me to pick up his niece. Motherfucker. I wasn’t in the mood to keep her entertained again for a weekend.

  “I need you to pick someone up.”

  “Lynn?” I asked.

  He gave me a wicked smile as he shook his head. “No.”

  I look at him with a confused expression. “Do I even get to know who I’m picking up?”

  Jack pushed off the desk and laughed. “I’m hoping a new employee.”

  Walking past me, Jack headed for the door as I quickly followed him. The idea of a new driver on the team intrigued me as I thought of who it could be. “Another driver? Are you bringing on another driver?”

  “Better hurry, son. The plane will be landing soon.”

  My mouth dropped open as I stood there and watched Jack walk away. “I only have my bike, Jack!”

  “I’ll have the limo there just in case, but I’m pretty sure she’ll love the bike!” Jack called back over his shoulder.

  My eyes widened. No fucking way was I going to have another woman put their hands on me anywhere. Not when I was so close to getting Adaline back. Letting out a frustrated moan, I glanced around as I pushed my hand through my hair. “Great, I’m just there to be a greeter. Even better.”

  Pulling up to the private hanger, I rolled my neck as I waited for Jack’s plane. It had already landed and was taxiing the runway. Seeing it pulling in, I set my helmet down and let out a curse under my breath. Why in the hell did Jack have me doing this kind of shit lately? Like I didn’t have more important things to do than greet somebody and make them feel all warm and cozy.

  The door to the plane opened and I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw Adaline pop her head out.

  “Addie?”

  She looked back and said something to someone as she headed down the stairs. I watched as she got to the bottom and turned to thank, Billy, the co-pilot. Pulling her phone out, she began texting someone as she stood there.

  I smiled when my phone went off. Pulling it out, I saw her text.

  Addie: Hey. What are you doing?

  Me: Looking at the most beautiful woman in the world.

  Addie: I’m really hoping you’re talking about Lola.

  I whistled and Adaline looked directly at me as the most beautiful smile I’d ever seen moved across her face. Picking up her small suitcase, she walked quickly over to me. Pushing off my bike, I started making my way over to her. It didn’t take her long to start running. Right before she got to me, she dropped her bags and leapt into my arms as our lips smashed together.

  Our kiss turned passionate quickly as I held Adaline in my arms and she wrapped her legs around my waist.

  “What. Are. You. Doing. Here?” she asked between kisses.

  Forcing myself to pull my mouth from hers, I couldn’t help but smile. “Damn, Jack. He told me to come pick up someone he was hoping to hire.” Shaking my head, I kissed Adaline on the lips again.

  Adaline gently grabbed a handful of hair and pulled on it. “Emmit, it’s been three years since I’ve had sex. Take me somewhere quickly. Please.”

  The guilt I felt rushed through my veins as I slowly set Adaline down. “Addie, I’m so sorry.”

  With a shake of her head, she placed her hand on the side of my face. “That’s all in the past, Emmit. The only thing we have is now.”

  My eyes closed as I pressed my lips together and fought to say the words. “Those women meant nothing to me, Addie and if I could go back I swear—”

  Adaline placed her finger over my mouth to stop me from talking. “Emmit, all I need is to be in your arms. You’re the only place I want to be, Emmit.”

  I searched Adaline’s face before my breath hitched by her beautiful baby blues. My stomach felt like I was on one hell of a roller coaster.

  With a raised eyebrow, I said, “There’s a Courtyard not far from here.”

  Adaline’s face lit up. Reaching for her bags, I walked over to Jack’s limo driver and handed it to him. “Can you drop this off back at the track? Ask for Waldo Morgan; he’ll know what to do with it.”

  The driver took the bags as I took Adaline’s hand and led her over to my bike. Pulling on my hand to stop me, I looked at her. “What’s wrong?”

  Adaline was looking at my bike. “Is that your motorcycle?”

  I looked between the bike and Adaline. “Um . . . yeah but if you’re not comfortable riding on it, you can ride in the limo and I’ll meet you over there.”

  Adaline’s mouth dropped open. “Are you insane? There is no way I’m turning down wrapping my arms around you and the chance to go fast.”

  A wave of heat moved across my body as my knees got weak. Pulling Adaline into my arms, I kissed the tip of her nose. “God, I’ve missed you.”

  With a soft hit on my stomach, Adaline said, “Let’s go for our first ride.”

  A low growl formed at the back of my throat as we made our way to the bike.

  I took Adaline down a country road as we drove for a bit on the bike. Turning down a side road, I pulled over and got off the bike as I held my hand out for hers. With an adorable smile, she put her hand in mine.

  “What are we doing?”

  “Walking.”

  Adaline giggled. “I see that, but why?”

  With a smile, I looked at her and winked. “I just want to be with you, like we used to. Remember when we used to walk in the fields and watch the stars?”

  My breath caught as I watched Adaline’s eyes as they lit up. “I do remember that. I also remember the night you put the blanket in the back of your truck thinking you were going to get lucky. That garden snake crawled over your chest and you screamed like a little girl and took off running.”

  My head fell back as I laughed. “I can’t argue with you on that one. I did take off running.”

  “Screaming. Like a girl.”

  My eyebrows pinched together as I chuckled. “I must have blocked that part out.”

  Adaline walked up to me as she placed her hands on my chest. “I’ve missed us so much.”

&nb
sp; My lips kissed her forehead as I held her close to me while we stood in the middle of a field. Just the two of us, with no one else wanting anything from us.

  When I couldn’t take the heat from her body anymore, I led her back to my bike.

  “Let’s head to the hotel.” Adaline giggled as she climbed on the bike and wrapped her arms around me.

  Making our way back to the hotel, we checked in and rode up in the elevator in silence. You could practically feel the heat moving off our bodies as we stole glances at each other. Stopping at the door, I slipped the key in and pushed the door open. Taking Adaline’s hand in mine, I slowly walked backward as I led her into the room. The door shut and we stood frozen as we stared into each other’s eyes.

  Adaline blushed and said, “Um, I’m just going to run to the bathroom really quick.”

  I swallowed hard while I nodded and made my way into the room. Looking around, I took in the large king bed, oversized chair and the desk.

  Wiping my hands on my jeans, I rolled my eyes and counted to ten. Shit. It feels like this is my first time all over again. And Adaline was my first! This should be easy, Emmit. Calm the hell down.

  I made my way over to the window and looked out. I wouldn’t be able to stay here all night, but we still had plenty of time since it was just mid afternoon. Time I planned on using to get familiar with Adaline’s body again.

  Adaline cleared her throat and I turned around, expecting to see her still dressed and just as nervous as I was.

  Taking a stumbling step backward, I hit the window and stood there with my mouth on the ground.

  “Holy living shit. You’re so beautiful. You’re more beautiful than a sunrise,” I whispered, as Adaline stood before me in blue and white polka dot panties and a matching bra. Her hair hung in pieces as it framed her face. She had thrown it up when we went for a ride and it looked sexy as fuck.

  Adaline gave a shy smile as she looked down and stared at the floor. “Thank you.”

  I forced my feet to move as I made my way over to Adaline. Stopping in front of her, I placed my hand on the side of her face as she leaned into it. “Adaline, you and I will never be apart again. I’ll do whatever it takes to make you happy.”