Turbulence

BELLE

“What did you just say?” I asked.

“So, business or pleasure?” Grayson asked.

~Oh, right.~ I had almost completely forgotten where I was. I was hearing things. It must have been the stress. My nerves picked up again as I remembered that the plane would likely take off any minute.

“Oh, um, neither, I guess. I will visit my mother and her husband.”

I must’ve been making a face because Grayson asked, “And you’re not happy to see your mother and her husband?”

I shook my head.

“No, not since she left my sick father and me to run off to Paris and marry her rich lover,” I heard myself saying.

I paused. ~I can’t believe I just said that.~

I had told no one about my mother, and now I’d just blabbed it to a complete stranger.

I looked at him. His expression was pensive.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why I said that. I promise I’m not that crazy person on the plane who shares her entire life story with the stranger sitting next to her.”

Grayson looked deeply into my eyes—almost as if he were searching for something—and then he grabbed the armrest between us and lifted it so it was no longer a barrier. I watched his movements closely.

“Um… What are you doing?”

“Shh…,” Grayson said. He grabbed my hips, which were already angled toward him, and tugged me so that my knees were touching his.

The delicious sparks trailed up and down my body again as his hand found its way under my shirt and onto the small of my back, where his thumb began making soothing circles.

I let out a breathy sound from the back of my throat. His other hand went up to cup my face.

“You don’t have to worry about a thing now,” Grayson whispered. “I’m going to take care of you.” He leaned down so that his lips were touching my ear. “You’re mine.”

I tilted back so I could see his eyes.

“What do you mean?”

He smirked. “I mean…” His thumb touched my lower lip, and I gasped.

“Everything”—he kissed my eyelid—“about”—he kissed my other eyelid—“you”—the top of my nose—“is mine.” Finally, his lips met mine.

My eyes fluttered shut at his kiss. The feeling was euphoric, like fireworks and explosions. My hands moved up to his huge, muscular shoulders and squeezed.

I let out a soft moan.

I felt him smirk against my lips, and I paused for a second. ~No, no smirking.~ Smirking meant that he might stop kissing me, and I really didn’t want that to happen.

Never taking my lips from his, I got up on my knees and pushed my chest into his, basking in the sparks that came wherever our bodies met.

My hands went up into his hair and tugged his face closer to mine.

He groaned approvingly.

Suddenly he squeezed my hips tightly, then lifted me onto his lap so that my knees went on either side of him. I pushed my chest against his, and he deepened our kiss, plunging his tongue into my mouth.

His hands kneaded my hips and then slid up under my shirt to grip my waist, his thumbs touching the underwire of my bra.

~Oh my God, is it getting hot in here?~

Someone cleared their throat next to us, and it was like they’d flipped a switch in my brain: I suddenly realized what we were doing.

I jerked backward, but Grayson tightened his grip, keeping me firmly on his lap.

I looked at the flight attendant who was standing next to us.

“Sorry, miss, but I’m going to have to ask you to return to your seat and put on your seatbelt. The plane is about to take off.”

I nodded my head quickly, feeling my face turn bright red. I scrambled to get off Grayson’s lap, and, thankfully, he let me go this time. I sat down in my seat and quickly buckled my seatbelt.

The flight attendant watched as Grayson put his on too, then she nodded and walked away.

~Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.~

I placed my hands on my face to cool my burning cheeks.

~I can’t believe I just did that. What is wrong with me?~

I was so embarrassed, I couldn’t even bring myself to look at Grayson. I had crawled into his lap and pressed against him like some hooker begging for him to get into my panties.

“Hey, hey, hey,” I heard Grayson say. “What’s wrong?” He touched my arm.

I jerked my arm away, ignoring how much I wanted him to keep his hands on me.

“Don’t touch me,” I snapped.

Grayson made a startling growling noise in the back of his throat. I looked at him and saw an intense expression on his face. His jaw was clenched and his breathing was deep, his chest rising and falling quickly. And, oh yeah, his eyes were pitch black. The pupils, irises, and the whites of his eyes were all black.

I gasped and scrambled backward until my back hit the wall behind me.

“Oh my God. Your eyes.”

His eyes widened and then snapped shut. He took a deep breath, and when his eyes opened again they were back to normal.

I was going insane. That was the only logical explanation. The death of my father and the fear of seeing my mother again were finally getting to me.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just… You can’t tell me not to touch you.”

My heart started beating faster. Maybe he was the insane one. “What do you mean?”

He leaned forward, an intense look in his eyes.

“Oh, baby girl, have you forgotten already?” His hand clasped my knee and rubbed up and down my leg. “You’re mine, remember?”

My blood boiled. That was the third time he had called me his property. Who did this guy think he was? Sure, he was good-looking. I had thrown myself at him and was extremely attracted to him, but that didn’t mean I belonged to him. I was my own person. I belonged to no one.

I especially didn’t belong to some man who I’d just met and who knew no personal boundaries. I opened my mouth to give him a piece of my mind, but stopped when I felt the plane suddenly move.

I must’ve completely missed the part where they explained where all the exits were and how to buckle your seatbelt. It was probably for the best though: that just would’ve only made me more nervous.

As the plane picked up speed, my heart beat hard against my ribs and my hands began shaking. I grabbed hold of Grayson’s hand that was still clamped onto my leg and squeezed my eyes shut.

I tried taking deep breaths to calm myself down, but they came out more like quick, gasping pants.

~Oh my God… Am I hyperventilating?~

“Belle,” I heard Grayson say. “Belle, baby, what’s wrong?” I felt his hand come up to grip my shoulder.

I shook my head frantically, unable to find my voice. I was afraid that if I spoke, I would cry.

“Belle,” Grayson’s voice said to me. It came out calmer this time.

“Look at me, Belle. I need you to look at me, gorgeous. Let me see those beautiful blue eyes.”

I just shook my head again. The plane jumped as it lifted off the ground. I let out a whimper and pushed myself further against the wall.

“Belle, I swear to God, if you don’t look at me, I will kiss you again, and who knows where that will lead…”

~Did he actually just say that?~ I was basically about to have a heart attack, and he was threatening to kiss me?

I opened my eyes. Grayson’s face was about a foot away from mine. He smiled.

“There are those beautiful eyes.”

My breathing slowed a bit. He was so unbelievably beautiful. How could someone possibly be so good-looking?

~And charming, and sweet, and comforting, and such an amazing kisser…~

The plane suddenly shook again—harder this time—and most of the passengers gasped.

The pilot’s voice came over the cabin speakers to apologize for the turbulence, saying that the weather seemed more serious than was originally expected.

I glanced out my window and saw that it was pouring rain, and the sky was filled with lightning.

“Oh my God, this is how I’m going to die,” I said. My entire body was trembling.

The plane shook again at the same moment that a crashing roar of thunder came from outside. I let out a terrified shriek as tears started pouring from my eyes.

“Belle, baby, come here,” Grayson said in an agitated tone. I looked at him and saw that he was holding out his arm, encouraging me to lean on him.

“What?” I asked shakily. “N-n-no!”

Something gripped my hand tighter. I looked down to see that I was holding his hand with both of mine. I quickly let go and pushed it away from me.

~Why am I so touchy with this dude?~

He ran a hand through his hair as he watched me panic. He looked pained. “Please, Belle, just let me help you.”

I grasped at the wall behind me, hoping it would stabilize my shaking body. “How?”

Before I could get my answer, the plane was rocked by crashing loud thunder and a bright bolt of lightning that I swore must have hit us. People screamed as bags fell from the overhead compartments.

I screamed bloody murder and covered my face with my hands.

“Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God,” I sobbed. This was my worst nightmare.

“Belle,” Grayson said. His voice was clearer than before, and suddenly all other noises faded away. “Look at me.”

As if I was under his control, I removed my hands from my face and looked at Grayson. His eyes were black again. But this time, it wasn’t scary. This time, it was almost comforting.

“Come here,” he said slowly.

I nodded my head and practically dove into his chest, going as far as my seatbelt would let me. I wrapped my arms around his torso and gripped his shirt in my fists.

He wrapped his arms around me, too, lifting my shirt so that his bare skin was touching my back and stomach.

“What are you doing?” I asked, shivering from the feeling of his skin against mine, and the delicious sparks traveling down my spine once more.

I felt him nuzzle my hair. “I’m sorry, I know this must be weird for you. It’s just that the more skin-to-skin contact we have, the calmer you will feel.”

He removed my arms from around him, and, for a moment, I felt disappointed. But then he lifted his shirt and put my arms back where they’d been.

I could feel his abs…

“See? Better, right? Touching me is helping.” I felt him kiss the top of my head.

He was right. I could feel my heart rate slowing down and my nerves starting to calm. “How is this happening?” I asked. I was so overwhelmingly confused.

~What is happening?~

Before he could answer, there was another burst of thunder. I whimpered and pushed my face into his chest as far as it would go. His arms tightened around me, and his hands massaged my back.

“Shh, baby girl. Relax for me,” he whispered, his mouth touching my ear. I felt my shoulders slowly release their tension. His voice was so smooth, so comforting—it was like he had magical powers.

I would have done anything he told me to do as long as I got to keep hearing his voice.

“There we go. That’s what I like to see.”

More thunder shook the plane. I pressed my face deeper into his chest and gasped.

“Nuh-uh,” he said. “None of that.” His lips pressed to my ear, leaving a kiss.

“Pay attention to my voice. All you can hear is my voice, baby.” He trailed kisses down my neck.

He was right. Once again, the other noises faded away. The crying babies, the yelling passengers, the roaring thunder, the pounding rain—everything else went silent.

All that was left was him and me.

“The only thing you can hear is my voice. Isn’t that right?”

I nodded my head.

“Good. Now, slow your breathing.”

My breathing went from quick, gasping breaths to slow, deep sighs.

“Good girl.” His lips continued to move along my neck. “Don’t be scared. I’ve got you. I’ll take care of you.”

His kisses felt like magic. His voice was like magic. Everything about him was magic. I wasn’t on a plane anymore. I wasn’t anywhere anymore.

It was just me and Grayson—his arms around me, his lips on my skin. I was calm. And then his lips found a spot on my neck that made fire travel throughout my body. I gasped.

Grayson smiled against my skin. “Hmm…” He began sucking on the spot, his tongue running over my skin, leaving tingles that went to my toes.

His fingers were digging into my waist, and I felt something building up inside me—a feeling that I hadn’t had in a long time. My entire body shuddered, and I tilted my head to the side to give him better access. His deep chuckle vibrated through my body.

“Hmm… Like that, do we?” he whispered against my skin.

I couldn’t even respond. It felt like I was on drugs. Everything was moving so slowly. I let out a deep breath that sounded more like a whine because he had stopped kissing me. I didn’t know exactly what I wanted, but I needed something more—something I knew Grayson could provide.

I tilted my head some more, hoping he would keep kissing me.

He sighed. “I know, beautiful, I know. But not here. Not now.” He placed one more peck on the spot. “But I promise, I will make you mine. Soon.”

I didn’t understand what he meant. So I just moved closer to him, breathing in his heavenly scent. ~What kind of cologne does he use?~

“That’s right,” he said. “I’m here and you’re safe. Nothing bad will ever happen to you again. We’re going to create the most amazing life together. I’m never letting you go.”

~What did he just say?~

“But for now,” he said, “you need to rest.”

I looked up at him. His eyes were still black.

“Sleep.”

And my world went dark.