Page 22 of Only for Tonight (Only For #1)

seventeen

Ariella

Slinging my carry-on bag over my shoulder, I slowly make my way over with my phone in my hand.

The minute I stop walking is when the phone rings and I look down and close my eyes.

Why is he calling me? I said I was going to be early.

I send him to voicemail right away, thinking he’ll give up, but of course he doesn’t.

Himeros: I know you’re awake, I can feel it.

I shake my head and try not to laugh at him but the smile fills my face.

Me: I’m trying to sleep and you are disturbing me. I’ll call you tomorrow.

He got home at one in the morning and slept until noon, which was three my time. He then sent me some crackers and ginger ale after I told him I was nauseated. He thinks I’m arriving tomorrow morning but I was able to snag a ticket on the red-eye tonight, landing at midnight.

Himeros: If you don’t pick up the phone, I’m going to call someone to do a wellness check on you. I have a certain Bat’s number in my phone. My father knows some of the Bats he flies with.

I think about what to answer him when the phone rings. I pick it up and wonder if I can hurry him off the phone without him knowing I’m not home.

I look around and see the airport is literally busting with people. Why are there so many people in this airport? “Hello,” I whisper, putting the phone to my ear and trying to block out the noise by rubbing the phone on my cheek.

“What are you doing?” he questions and I can hear the water in the background.

“I’m trying to sleep, I’m tired,” I tell him, hoping he gives it up and lets me go.

“What time do you have to get up?” he asks me.

“I have to be at the airport at four a.m. since the flight is at six,” I inform him. “Now, is that all?”

“We are now inviting those passengersin zone one to board,” the lady says and I close my eyes.

“I have to go,” I tell him.

“Are you at the airport?” he shrieks.

“You are the fucking worst, Jaxon Stevenson,” I hiss into the phone, “and all coupons are null and void.”

“What are you doing at the airport?”

“I’m getting on a jet plane,” I retort, walking toward the desk. “I think Paris is pretty this time of year.”

“Are you coming here?” I swear I hear him jumping up and down.

“It’s supposed to be a surprise,” I tell him as I smile at the girl behind the counter, as I mute him and then turn my phone to scan my boarding pass. “Thank you,” I tell her when she nods at me to walk toward the plane.

“What do you mean a surprise? Are you seriously coming here now?” The happiness in his voice makes me a little less mad than I was.

“I am,” I hiss. “I was going to surprise you.”

“What time do you land?”

“I think it said like eleven forty-five,” I reply as I walk into the plane and smile at the flight attendant. “I’m in three A,” I tell her, moving the phone from my mouth and she instructs me to walk to the left.

“P.M.?” he shrieks.

“No, tomorrow morning. I’m on a plane taking the long way.” I roll my eyes as I make it to my seat with the lie-down bed.

“Ariella, are you telling me that you are going to arrive at midnight?”

“Um, yeah,” I say, picking up the blanket they put on the seat and placing it beside me before sitting down.

“In the middle of the night?”

“It’s midnight, that’s not considered the middle of the night.”

“You have a car service picking you up?” he asks me and the excitement is gone from his voice.

“No, I was going to either take a cab or grab a ride.” I look around, seeing people everywhere now.

“You were going to grab a cab at night?”

“Are you done?” I shake my head. “I sort of have to go.”

“Text me the flight information.”

“Or I don’t and I come and see you tomorrow. I’m thinking maybe even in two days,” I hiss at him. “I’m thinking, I'll get off this plane.”

“Don’t you dare,” he snaps. “No, send me your stuff.”

“You’re lucky you are hot and I’m carrying your child, or else you would seriously not be worth it,” I grumble at him.

“You think I’m hot.” His voice gets rumbly and my stomach flutters, but I blame it on the baby and not the softness of his voice.

“I’m hanging up on you.”

“Send me the information,” he repeats. “Fuck it, don’t. I’ll just show up at eleven thirty and wait for you.”

“Wait, you’re picking me up?” I ask him, confused.

“Goodbye, Ari,” he says and he hangs up on me. I take the phone from my ear and see if maybe the call disconnected, but it shows my screen saver of the ocean from the last time I was in LA.

I open my phone and text him.

Me: Did you hang up on me?

Himeros: Yup, didn’t want to piss you off and make you get off the plane. Found your flight. See you soon.

Me: You didn’t want to piss me off, so you hung up on me?

Himeros: I can’t wait to see you.

I shake my head when I hear the flight attendant come on and start her verbiage. I turn and look out the window as the plane starts to move. I put my phone down and see another text has come through.

Himeros: I can’t wait to redeem all my coupons.

I shake my head as I power down the phone and turn the airplane mode on.

Two hours into the flight, I finally lie down on my side and close my eyes.

I didn’t expect to sleep the rest of the flight, but I’m jostled awake when the flight attendant tells me it’s time to put my seat in an upright position.

I blink the sleep away from my eyes as I sit up, with a minute to spare before the wheels hit the ground.

I turn my phone off of airplane mode and wait for it to connect while the pilot tells me what time it is locally and what carousel my luggage will be on.

The airplane comes to a stop and the seat belt sign is turned off.

The minute it is, everyone springs out of their seat.

I stand up, stretching my legs before grabbing my bag and waiting for the door to open.

Once I step off the plane, I head toward baggage claim.

I follow the signs until I’m standing on the escalator going down.

The huge sign saying Welcome to LA is in front of me.

The minute I’m past it, I see him, standing there wearing sweatpants and a sweater with a baseball hat.

He’s holding a bouquet of flowers in front of him and his eyes immediately light up when he sees me.

I shake my head and look to the side, so he doesn’t see my face beaming with a smile, before turning and looking back at him.

My hand goes to my stomach that is fluttering even more now, and I have to wonder if I’m feeling how happy our baby is that he’s here.

He advances to me once I’m stepping off and I’m expecting him to hand me the flowers.

What I’m not expecting is for him to hug the shit out of me, the flowers crushing on my back.

“You’re here,” he whispers in my ear as I wrap my arms around him, settling the side of my face on his hard chest. “I’m so happy you’re here. ”

“You don’t say.” I look up to him and he bends his head to kiss my lips.

“Let’s get your bag and get out of here,” he urges, the smile never leaving his face. So much so that his eyes are crinkling on the side. He slides his hand into mine as he walks over to the carousel. “How was your flight?”

“Fast, slept through the whole thing.” I look up at him as we stop at the carousel where it shows my flight number. I spot my bag and I’m about to step forward to get it when he pulls my hand back to him.

“Hold these.” He hands me the bouquet of different shades of pink and purple roses and flowers. “I don’t know what flowers are your favorite, so I got an assortment.”

I don’t say anything because I can’t, all the words are stuck in my throat. It’s also so big I have to use two hands to hold it. He grabs my bag before coming back to me. “You only have one bag?” he asks me and I nod my head, “For two weeks?” His eyebrows go up.

“I have packing cubes,” I tell him. “They’re a game changer. Besides, I didn’t think I needed a ball gown and seventeen pairs of shoes.”

“We can buy you more shoes, if you like.”

“Flowers and shoes?” I say as he walks out of the terminal with me, and I spot a couple of paparazzi people waiting for someone to walk through. “You definitely want to redeem a coupon.”

“Baby,” he says as he makes his way to the underground parking where the valet is. His SUV is waiting at the curb. “You have no fucking idea.”

“I kind of do,” I admit to him and his eyes lust over when we get to his SUV and he opens the passenger door for me.

“Get in,” he orders me, “and buckle up.” The order earns him a death stare as I do what he says. He comes into the cab and kisses my lips before shutting the door and going to the trunk, putting my bag away. I am buckled in when the driver door opens, and he gets in.

He pulls off right away. “You hungry?” he asks me and I shake my head. I look out the window as he makes his way over to his house. “You tired?”

“A little,” I admit to him, “it’s like three a.m. for me.”

“We’ll get you home and in bed.” He reaches over and puts his hand to slide it into mine.

He presses the garage door opener and drives in.

“I have a surprise for you,” he states once the SUV is in park and he presses the button to close the door.

The light in the garage dims as he reaches over to grab the flowers resting on my lap and tossing them in the back seat without a second thought.

He’s got his seat belt unbuckled. I’m about to tell him he shouldn’t do that when my face is in his hands.

“Fuck, I’ve missed this,” he swears, his voice heavy with need as his head tilts to the side and he kisses me.

It’s not like the kiss he gave me in the airport, that was just a brush of lips.

His tongue slides into my mouth as one hand moves away from me and he’s unbuckling me and pulling me over the middle console and into his lap.

It’s a tight squeeze and the steering wheel is now in my side. “We should get you inside.”