“I’m hoping I’ll be written up.”

“You’re lucky I’m in a good mood today.” She glared at him. “The next time we fly together, I can guarantee that I won’t be.”

“Looking forward to it.” He glared back at her until she turned away and resumed her over-the-top farewells.

Unlike the other pilots I’d flown with, he didn’t chime in with us to wish the passengers well. Instead, he stood there silent and brooding, as if the passengers couldn’t get off the plane fast enough.

When the final passengers departed, I expected him to say something, to at least look at me, but he addressed the first officer, then he addressed us all.

“Until next time, ladies.” He pulled on the handle of his luggage and said a few more words to the first officer before heading down the jet bridge.

I grabbed my bag and rolled it far behind him, catching bits and pieces of the lusty compliments the other flight attendants were throwing his way.

We all walked through the terminal and to the ground transportation dock where a designated white van was waiting for us. The first officer and Miss Connors shared the front row, I claimed the middle, and Jake sat behind me with Janet and Elizabeth.

“So, Captain Weston...” Elizabeth purred, keeping her voice low so Miss Connors couldn’t hear. “How long will you be staying in London?”

“Just tonight.”

“Oh!” Janet cleared her throat. “Since you only have one night, would you like to join us at the bar this evening?”

“I’ll think about it.”

“What’s there to think about? Did you already have plans?”

“I did,” he said, and I could feel him staring at me. “But the arrangement seems a bit too challenging, so I may have to completely cancel.”

“I see. Well, that’s good for us then.”

I felt a sudden pang of jealousy as he spoke to them, something I’d never felt when seeing my previous lovers or boyfriends casually talk to women. Hell, Ben had entertained an ex-girlfriend twice a year via his polo club reunions, and back then I never even gave it a second thought. Never felt a remote sense of concern or envy.

But now, this man who had only been inside of me twice, was pushing me closer and closer to the edge of turning around and saying something.

For ten minutes, and five highway exits, I sat and helplessly listened as my coworkers laid their charm on thick. As he practically returned their charm with equal interest.

The second the van pulled in front of the hotel, I opened the door and nearly jumped out. “I’ll check us all in,” I said, rushing inside the door with Miss Connors rushing to catch up to me.

“Something wrong, Miss Taylor?” She sounded genuinely concerned. “Are you okay?”

“No, just really tired. That’s all.”

She furrowed her brow, but she didn’t say anything further.

The desk agent quickly located our crew packets and checked our IDs before handing us our room keys.

“Sunday at ten, Miss Taylor,” Miss Connors said. “If you’re so much as a millisecond late, I’ll make sure you regret it.”

“Got it.” I walked away just as Jake and the rest of the crew walked through the hotel doors. I headed straight for the elevators, but since I didn’t want to have to deal with seeing any glances exchanged or hear any sexual innuendos, I walked across the hotel’s atrium and headed toward the emergency steps.

Passing through a windowed hallway, I rolled my luggage to the first flight of steps and suddenly felt someone gripping my waist from behind, someone spinning me around.

“I need to set some rules and conditions of my own for this shit.” Jake’s blue eyes stared into mine, wanting and possessive.

My back hit the window and my luggage fell to the floor.

“If I agree to this,” he said, his jaw clenched. “There will be no late night emotional talks, no mention of the words ‘more’ ‘us’ or ‘relationship’, and I won’t be taking you out on any dates.”

“I didn’t ask you to take me out on any dates.”

“I don’t want to know a goddamn thing about your life outside of the bedroom.”

“That makes two of us.”

“I won’t be the guy you think you can call when you need to talk to someone.” He paused. “Unless it’s about how wet your pussy is, I don’t want your name on my call log, and I don’t need you thinking we’ll ever be friends.”

I started to fire back, but he kissed me roughly, preventing me from getting a single word out.

“You don’t get to ask me questions about anything more than if I can go harder, longer, and deeper, and I won’t ask you anything outside of ways I can better please your pussy.”

My nipples hardened against my bra and my panties were sticking to my skin. As if he could sense it, too, he slipped his hand beneath my dress and tugged at the silk, slipping his fingers beneath it.

“We’ll share our bodies, not our lives.” He lowered his voice as his thumb softly stroked my clit. “That’s all I can ever give to you. That’s all I ever will give to you.”

He slid his other hand down my waist and squeezed my ass. “Are there any other conditions on your end?”

“Yes...” I managed as he tore off my panties.

“What else could there possibly be?”

“Three things.” My gaze went to his hands as he unbuckled his pants and pulled down his zipper, but the start of my sentence hung suspended in the air as he pulled out his cock.

“You were saying?” He tilted my chin up so my eyes were on his.

“Being your only one,” I said. “You didn’t mention anything about the women in other cities. You need to promise that they won’t be in the picture.”

“It was already implied,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I agree to fuck you and only you for however long this—whatever the hell this is, lasts. Happy?”

“Very.”

“What’s the second thing?”

“I want you to—” I sucked in a breath as his hand slid up my back and unclasped my bra in one smooth motion. “I want you to promise not to burn me.”

“Burn me?” He repeated.

“Hurt me.” I nearly stuttered. “I need you to promise that you won’t hurt me, Jake.”

He was silent, looking somewhat confused, but then he circled his thumb around my nipple and spoke slowly. “Gillian, I’m not going to burn or hurt you, unless you ever want to try that type of foreplay.” He pushed my dress up my waist. “That said, since we’ve agreed to no emotional entanglements whatsoever, you would have to fall for me in order for me to hurt you.” He ran his hand up and down my sides. “I’ll be sure that you don’t, and I guarantee that I won’t. What’s the third thing?”

“The third thing is that we do need to talk.”

“I just said that we don’t need to talk. Ever.”

“It doesn’t have to be anything serious, just cordial and friendly. You have to give me that...”

“Why?”

“This is new for me, no strings-attached sex. I’ve never done this before.”