Taking it from her, I clear my throat. “Yes?”
“There’s been a slight change of plans.” His deep voice comes over the line, turning me on with ease. “I need you to handle one more pickup before you head toward the jet.”
“Oh?” I say. “Do you have a secret son who I need to wait for?”
“I only have one child, Autumn.” There’s a smile in his voice. “And I don’t recall you ever asking if I had kids.”
“You never asked me either.”
“Because I already knew that you didn’t.”
Right.I roll my eyes. “What’s this other pickup?”
“It’s two things,” he says. “One is a set of custom pegs from the lost and found. It should be with an agent, under my last name.”
“And the second?”
“It’s throat-related.”
“I’m not swallowing anything for you.”
“Not until you’re in my bed, you mean,” he says. “Adeline would like a berry smoothie from Orange Julius. She’ll beg for a large one, but buy her a small one. Get yourself one, too. You sound like you’re on edge again.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.” He pauses, and Adele clasps my left hand. “She’ll show you how to get to the plane, and that’ll be it for your job today.”
“Wait a minute, Ryder.”
“Yes?”
“We need to talk in private once I get back.”
“I’m sure we do,” he says. “I’ll see you in five hours…”
End of Episode 1
Layers of Protection
EPISODE 2
Ryder
“Your daughter is the most disrespectful student who has ever attended our academy, Mr. Rochester.” Miss Temple, the headmistress of Adeline’s school, storms into the café where we always agree to meet.
For some strange reason, she finds it necessary to book a direct flight from London whenever Adeline heads home instead of picking up a phone.
She typically arrives an hour before my private jet lands, armed with a new set of infractions and insults. She’s a literal ‘layover’ conversation I have to endure, and each second tests my patience.
I can’t believe the school has the nerve to bill me for this shit…
“She has no regard for my authority.” She takes a seat. “If it weren’t for the fact that you’ve already paid her tuition for the next couple of years?—”
“While generously donating two libraries and a brand-new auditorium,” I interrupt.
“Yes, that too.” She rolls her eyes. “If it weren’t for those things, I’d tell you that she’s better off attending another school.”
“Well, since youcan’ttell me that, what would you like to say instead?”
