Page 84 of Perfect Order

“How does a picnic sound?” I start the car and check traffic before I pull a U-turn.

“In LA? We’ll have the paps surrounding us in no time,” she scoffs.

“We’re leaving LA,” I announce.

Her jaw drops in surprise. “For real?”

“Yes. Now, no more hints.” I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile and follow the directions Beckett gave me this morning. “We have twenty hours.”

“For a first date?” she yelps.

“I’m out to make a hell of a first impression,” I inform her haughtily.

That’s when I hear her whisper, “You did that years ago.”

The pre-Grammy events are all abuzz, but Erzulie hasn’t been spotted at any of them. We wonder where she’s at or who she’s with.

— Sexy&Social, All the Scandal You Can Handle

“Where are we?” I gasp as I step down the stairs into the cold. I’m grateful Kane handed me a pair of his workout pants and told me to slip them over my shorts while we were on board the jet. Beckett Miller’s jet. I feel Kane’s arms wrap around me before I joke, “I know I’ve been living in an alternate reality. I just didn’t know it included a stop in crazy town.”

Kane laughs and guides me toward a familiar-model black SUV, as it’s the same model Beckett’s driven around in. A man nods at him before pitching the keys in his direction. Kane catches them one-handed. “Thanks,” he calls out.

The man jerks up his chin before disappearing inside the ante building.

“Do I want to know?” I ask because we both know that with a few minutes with my computer, I could find out everything.

Kane gets me settled into the front seat before jogging around the front. Although they’re a security nightmare, right now I’m saying a million thanks for keyless starters as the car is as toasty warm as the jet was. Kane slides in and immediately puts the car in gear. Once we’re on the main road, he answers, “One of Hudson’s guys is here on assignment. I called in a few favors.”

“For me?” I ask breathlessly, unable to tear my eyes away from his handsome face.

“No.” He reaches over and lifts my hand to his lips. He darts his eyes to the side. “For us. Is it too much too soon?”

I contemplate his words as he places my hand on his thigh. I immediately begin tracing the seam of his jeans with my fingers. “If it was any other man, yes.”

“Why not me?” he asks. And I know it isn’t because he wants an ego boost—he needs to know this is right for me, for us.

“Because I’ve been searching for you everywhere. Kane. Somehow, someway, you’re everything I ever needed and never knew I couldn’t live without. Even Kylie knew that.”

His muscles jerk beneath my fingers. “What makes you say that?”

“A few weeks before she died, she told me she wanted to introduce me to someone on Beckett’s security team,” I muse.

“That’s what you meant that night,” he recalls.

I nod. We drive for a while in silence before we pull off to a classic cabin that has enormous frontage to Lake Tahoe. “Wow,” I breathe as I slide from the car. “You do realize we have to be back in like twelve hours?”

“Sixteen. And I figured this was better than some hotel where you’d be recognized.” His arm circles my shoulder as he guides me toward the back deck, which boasts postcard views of Tahoe. While I gawk, Kane unearths a key from beneath a welcome mat and unlocks the sliding glass door. He joins me for a few moments before resting his chin on my head. “There’s no expectation for us inside. No pressure. I just want to give you the freedom to be you for a little while.”

I rotate so my head falls forward against his chest. “I’ve wanted you from day one, Kane.”

I feel his lips curve against my hair. “Since you realized who I was?”

“No, since the day we crashed outside of Free People.” I feel his hard body jolt. “I’m tired of pretending. I need you. Now.”

I tip my head back and find his ocean-colored eyes are hot on mine. He begins plucking at my borrowed sweatpants. “And I want these pants back.”

My head tilts coquettishly, and I peer at him through lowered lids. “You do? Then how am I supposed to stay warm?”