Page 18 of To the Moon
"We just passed your resort's ship," he reminded me. "It looked a little … less."
Lonnie killed the engine and cackled at us. "You two argue like an old married couple. I love it." I hopped out of the boat while Lonnie helped Gunnar find his land legs. After so long in space, we both needed to be checked out by a doctor.
"Have Dr. Monroe meet us on the runway," I said.
"She's already on her way. Don't I take care of you?"
Lonnie still held Gunnar around the waist. My wolf hated that. It took all my willpower to pry his hands from Gunnar without throwing him across the boathouse. I shoved him toward the door a little harder than intended.
He only laughed as he ushered us into the black Lincoln SUV waiting outside. I heard a commotionfrom somewhere further inland, but Lonnie shut us securely in the back and hopped into the front passenger seat before anyone reached us.
"Hey boss!" Clint, the resort's head of security greeted me from behind the wheel as the pane of tinted glass came down between us. "Don't worry, we'll?—"
The window sealed shut, and I was alone with Gunnar once more.
"What the fuck was all that?" he asked. "Are you a secret agent or something?"
"This is a pretty uneventful trip to the resort," I said. "You should see the place when my dad is here."
He blinked. "Who are all these people?"
"Lonnie was my roommate in college. He's my best friend. Clint's the head of the resort's security detail, but when I'm in town, he's my personal driver."
"And the doctor?" He frowned at me.
"Dr. Monroe will check us over on the flight. She's been studying astronaut data for the last few years, ever since my dad said I would be going to space."
"I take it they're not taking us to the local airport?"
Clint had already pulled to a stop at the airstrip outside the resort. "No. We're taking a private jet."
"To where?"
"I haven't decided yet." That wasn't true. I knew exactly where I wanted to take Gunnar, high into the Swiss Alps and far away from the demands of my father.
CHAPTER 8
GUNNAR
My brain struggledto catch up to the present moment. At Sebastian's prodding, I'd abandoned a multi-billion-dollar space shuttle capsule in the ocean. There was no way in hell Paskal Aeronautics would give me that promotion now.
On the speedboat, Sebastian couldn't keep his hands off me. As wonderful as he smelled, and as safe as I felt pressed against his side, I couldn't get used to it. He was Sebastian Paska, and I was nobody. Less than nobody, now that I'd abandoned my shuttle post and went AWOL. Did military terms apply to private space missions? I didn't want to find out.
Another fact I learned on the speedboat: I didn't get seasick when the boat was moving as fast as a car on the freeway, or maybe even faster. Yes, I knew boats could go that fast, in theory, but experiencing it for myself was as thrilling as it was disappointing. How much gasoline had we burned on that trip?
Not ten minutes later, we docked in a boathousebeside a fucking yacht, of all things, and now we were on our way to a private airstrip where we would board Sebastian's jet and fly off to who knew where.
Sebastian looked good in his flight suit, better in his compression gear, and best after shifting back from his wolf form, but this … if I had a type, confident, competent men would be it. Until now, I hadn't seen Sebastian as either. Power came with all that money, but I'd only seen him in the shadow of his father. Now, I saw the real Sebastian Paska, CEO of Paskal Entertainment. He was the sexiest person alive.
He was also my mate. My wolf wanted to sit in his lap and lick his face.
I couldn't explain it. He was still the man who infuriated me at every turn for being a spoiled nepo baby, but he was also seriously hot when he rushed me onto the sleek jet and ordered the pilot, "Wheels up, ASAP."
A beautiful Black woman in blue scrubs, her hair piled on top of her head in an intricate bun, greeted us in the main cabin. Sebastian surprised me by pulling her into a hug. "Good to see you, Amber."
He kept ahold of her elbow and walked her toward the back of the plane.
"I didn't pack you a bag," the burly islander named Lonnie called after them.
