Pushing her sunglasses higher up her nose, she slapped a hand down on top of her annoying, floppy hat before it blew away. The gust of intensely hot air that threatened to take her hat with it wasn’t a breeze. It was God’s furnace.
“Good grief,” she muttered, hitching her tote bag higher up onto her shoulder as she headed for the ridiculously large plane that was waiting for her, her suitcase rolling alongside.
An airport worker hurried over to her, his mirrored sunglasses hiding his eyes. “Are you Ms. Morris?” he yelled over the roar of the plane.
“Yes. That’s me,” she yelled back, leaning towards the man’s ear to be heard.
He smiled and nodded. “I’ll take that for you, ma’am. Go ahead and board the plane. We’ll take off as soon as you’re seated.”
Startled, Rachel immediately handed over her cumbersome suitcase, wiping her hands on her flowered skirt. “Oh! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to hold up the others.” Rachel ignored the man’s confused expression as she rushed across the hot cement towards the stairs that had been rolled up to the door of the plane. Grabbing onto the steel stair rail, she jerked her hand back with a hiss. The sun had heated the steel handrail until it was too hot to touch. “Darn it! Why did I do that?” As she raced up the stairs, Rachel gathered up her full skirt so that she didn’t step on it, careful not to trip because she didn’t want to grab the handrail again.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Morris,” the flight attendant greeted her with a coolly professional smile. “We’re ready whenever you are.”
Rachel sighed with relief as the blessedly cool air of the plane caressed her overheated skin, and looked around, ready to smile her apologies to the other passengers. But the plane was empty. “Um…where’s everyone else?” she asked, moving deeper into the divinely cool interior.
The flight attendant turned the lock on the plane’s door. “You’re our only passenger this trip,” she announced. “Would you prefer a glass of champagne before takeoff?”
Rachel stared at the woman who looked like a perfectly made up Barbie doll in a flight attendant’s crisp, beautiful uniform. The only difference between her uniform and that of another airline’s was that hers had the Izara government seal on the sleeve.
“No, thank you. I’ll just go sit over there and work during the flight.”
The woman smiled as she nodded. “Take whatever seat you prefer. What would you like for dinner?”
Rachel started and looked back at her. “No! I don’t…I mean, you don’t need to bother with making a meal for me.”
The woman’s smile widened. “It’s not a problem at all. It’s a long flight and cooking meals helps pass the time. So it really isn’t a bother in any way.”
Rachel sighed. She didn’t like people making a fuss over her. “Well, whatever you’re having for dinner is fine.”
The flight attendant tilted her head. “That’s great. I’ll tell the pilot that you’re on board and she can take off anytime.”
Sinking into one of the leather seats, Rachel sighed with relief once she was alone. Looking around, she studied the cabin. She remained in the section where the press would ride during the flights when accompanying a member of the royal family, although normally, she would ride in the back of the plane with Princess Talia. It was a much more comfortable area with wider seats, deep sofas, a conference room, and several bedrooms along with bathrooms complete with showers. It was luxury at a level Rachel had never conceived of before she’d started working for Princess Talia. These luxurious flights were one of the perks of her job, a job she loved with all her heart. Every day was different and challenging and she knew that she was good at it.
And yet, as she stared out the plane’s window, her heart ached at what was to come. Maybe if she hadn’t been so good at her job, Prince Tarin wouldn’t have agreed to use her for this next project. She wouldn’t be flying towards the man who made her heart race and she wouldn’t be about to make a fool of herself. Again.
She remembered the time she’d first seen the man. Prince Tarin had walked into her office and smiled at her and every muscle in her body had just…stopped functioning. She’d been stunned by his handsome features, terrified by his height and brawn, then awed by his sweet, devastating charm. As she’d gotten to know him over the past two years, Rachel had discovered that the enormous man with outrageous muscles was actually a horrible tease! He’d walk into her office and wink at her just to see her blush. He’d bring her cookies and other treats, knowing that Rachel had a terrible sweet tooth. He would tease her, tell her horrible jokes, then wink at her when she covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
He was also the most annoying brother to Talia and Rachel had watched with envy as Prince Tarin would tickle or hug his sister in variously affectionate ways. He loved lifting her off her feet and squeezing her until she laughed and begged for mercy.
Having come from a family that never touched, hugged, or even voiced affection, Rachel had craved those moments of familial warmth.
Plus, watching him with his twin nieces or his nephews was like watching a man in heaven. Prince Tarin might be a horrific playboy, loving the ladies and always flirting, but when it came to his duties as an uncle, he was sweet and kind, wildly protective, and could spend hours playing with them, holding them, taking them in the pool, and had infinite patience teaching them to ride horses, ride their bikes, play games or even reading to them. In fact, there had been many times she’d passed by the nursery and caught Prince Tarin with a baby in his arms, reading or feeding or just rocking them to sleep.
Her heart ached during those moments and she blinked back the tears at the memories. “This is going to be painful,” she muttered to herself. Not even the past two years of working in Padar had eased her love for the man. He visited Talia too often for her to completely get him out of her mind.
But she had a job to do, she reminded herself. So, instead of mulling over the inevitable heartache, Rachel opened her computer and got to work. There were several issues she needed to conclude for Talia so that the princess could enjoy her maternity leave. Then she read through the information on the plans for the new university that Prince Tarin had sent.
Several hours later, Rachel had pages of notes and her excitement over the project was overriding her dread. “I’ll just focus on work issues and not on…” She looked up just as the flight attendant stepped out of the small galley kitchen, carrying a cup of tea.
“Thank you!” Rachel gushed, grateful for the small gesture of kindness.
“My pleasure,” the flight attendant replied. “I’ll have dinner ready in about an hour.”
And then Rachel was alone again. Always alone, she thought, as she sipped her tea and looked out the window. She was the boring, dependable, almost invisible person who made things happen for others.
Chapter 2
“Have you seen Rachel?” Gaelen asked.
SMACK!
Tarin stared up at his brother, the matt underneath him barely absorbing the brunt of his fall. “That was a good one!” Amit called, walking over and peering down at Tarin.