Page 24 of Rebellious Hearts

He took a sip of his.

“Ever been to Georgia?” he asked.

I shook my head. “No… I’ve never left the state.”

He frowned. “Why not?”

I shrugged. “Where would I go?”

“Hmm,” was all he said before he left the bar and walked back to his seat. I stood at the bar, feeling a little out of place, sipping my vodka tonic. I watched the hostesses set up a gourmet meal for the two of us, complete with shrimp cocktail, delicate sandwiches, and something that looked like sculpted sugar.

Yeah. We were getting a three-course gourmet meal on a plane that would only fly two-and-a-half hours.

When the food was ready, the hostesses announced it.

I walked to the table and sat down.

“I’ll have it in my seat, thank you,” Ben said to one of them without even looking at her.

“Yes, sir,” she said and put his food on a tray, taking it to him.

He didn’t want to sit with me at a table and eat a meal.

It was hard not to take it personally.

But I wasn’t going to let him ruin this trip for me. I was in the air on a private plane that was the most luxurious thing I’d ever seen, and I was about to eat a gourmet meal at a dining table in the sky.

This was the stuff dreams were made of.

I sat down. A hostess came and poured me still water, and when my vodka tonic was finished, she brought me another one.

She’d clearly watched while Ben had poured so that she knew what I was drinking.

These people were on the ball, waiting on us hand and foot, noticing even the smallest detail.

He didn’t enjoy this because he was used to it. I could imagine if he grew up with it that it was normal. But to me, it was incredible and I didn’t think I could ever get used to something so amazing.

“Is everything to your liking?” the hostess asked me when I tucked into the sandwiches.

“It’s perfect,” I breathed. “Will you send my compliments to the chef?”

“When I see him again, I’ll tell him,” she said with a smile. “He’s not on the flight, it was all prepared just before we took off.”

“Your work is like a dance,” I said. “You do everything with so much elegance. All of you.”

She looked surprised. “It’s part of the job description, ma’am. This is how it has to be when we cater to the elite.”

“Oh, don’t call me ma’am, please,” I said. “Call me Sofia. I know what you’re supposed to do forthembut I’m not the elite.”

The hostess chuckled softly.

“Hannah,” she said. “And the other hostess is Susanne.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said with a smile. “And this… is incredible.”

“I’m glad,” Hannah said. “Let me know if you need anything else. I’ll top up your drink in a minute.”

I wanted to say no but decided against it. How often could I just enjoy myself? Besides, the company was getting better by the minute. Ben could be grumpy by himself if that was what he wanted, but Hannah and Susanne were so nice, and the plane was everything dreams were made of.