As the aircraft started up, she asked him curiously, “Can you really pilot this thing?” Didn’t most rich guys have a pilot?
He shrugged. “Of course. It makes it more efficient to get around. I have a pilot for my jet, but I generally fly myself in the helicopter and small planes. I might not be the hotshot pilot that Tate is, but I’m competent enough.” He started doing checks, and communicating with what she assumed was some kind of air traffic control center.
Ellie had no doubt Zane was skilled at everything he did. When they finally lifted off, her stomach felt like it had dropped to her feet. “Oh, God. I’ve never flown before.” She put a hand to her belly.
“Are you going to be okay?” His voice sounded concerned.
When they leveled off, Ellie’s fear started to drift away as she looked down at the scenery below after they left the Denver metro area. “Yeah. I mean, I’m not going to get sick or anything. This is just…different.”
“Hang in there. It’s not that long by helicopter.”
“Take your time,” she said breathlessly, overwhelmed by the experience of viewing Colorado from so high up. “It’s kind of amazing.”
“You’ve really never flown before? Not even in a commercial plane?”
“No. I’ve never been out of Colorado.” Honestly, she’d never gone far from her hometown. “When things got really bad and I was sure I was going to die, one of my regrets was that I never got to see much outside of Rocky Springs.”
“What other regrets did you have?” he asked hoarsely.
That I never got to kiss you!
Ellie wasn’t about to reveal all of the epiphanies she’d had when she thought her time on Earth was done. “Lots of things. It’s strange what you think about when you suddenly realize how little you’ve done in your life, and you’re pretty sure you’re going to die.”
“What?” he persisted.
Ellie sighed. “I was just starting a small side business when James abducted me. It wasn’t doing a lot, but it was slowly growing. I was sorry I hadn’t started it earlier so I could see how people liked my products.” She paused before adding, “And I’ve never really been in love, or had a guy who was crazy enough about me to actually romance me.” She’d never gotten flowers or even a romantic dinner. “And I’ve never been kissed so passionately that I could forget the rest of the world and come out of it breathless,” she admitted reluctantly.
“You’ve dated,” Zane argued.
“Some,” she conceded. “But it was all pretty casual. I was overweight, so I wasn’t exactly attractive enough to turn many heads, and the guys who wanted to go out with me got bored pretty quickly. I don’t exactly lead an exciting life, and I was usually more interested in working on my new business than going out.”
“You’ve always been beautiful, Ell. What kind of business?”
There was that intimate nickname again, and his casual comment about how she looked surprised her.
“Just a little online thing. I make candles, essential oils, lotions, and soaps. I dabble a little with personal fragrances, but most of it revolves around aromatherapy.” She looked out the window, noticing that they were getting into areas with sparser populations, and she was awed by the view of the snow-covered peaks of the front range of the Rocky Mountains. Even though she saw them all the time, they looked different from the air.
“You believe in the healing powers of scents?”
Ellie couldn’t tell if Zane was laughing at her or just curious. “To a point,” she answered honestly. “I don’t think it’s actually a cure for diseases, but I think certain scents can affect moods and create a sense of well-being. It’s something I’ve been interested in for years, and everything I know is from self-study. But I love making the products. I love making people feel…happier.”
“You did all that from that tiny apartment?” Zane started to descend once he reached the valleys in between the peaks.
“Yeah. It wasn’t easy. I’m pretty sure all of my supplies and equipment are gone now.”
“They will be at my house,” he assured her. “Nothing got thrown away.”
“I’m sure I got hammered in emails by a few customers since there were some orders that I didn’t deliver since I was…” She swallowed hard. “Unavailable.”
Zane expertly maneuvered the aircraft onto the small airstrip and set them gently down on the ground.
“Everything will be okay,” he said confidently. “Give it time, Ellie.”
She pulled off her headphones, wondering how Zane always seemed to know what she was thinking. Her insecurity must be showing, because she still felt lost. And for some odd reason, Zane seemed to sense it.
Someone must have dropped off his vehicle, because he shifted her directly from the seat of the helicopter into a black SUV.
Reflexively, she briefly flinched as he swept her into his strong arms, a knee-jerk reaction that she hadn’t been able to completely lose when anybody touched her. Her heart lurched as she relaxed and put her arms around his neck, her face so close to him that she could get drunk on his masculine scent. “I am capable of walking, you know,” she told him nervously. The feel of his powerful body cradling her in his arms felt way too good, way too safe.
He scowled down at her. “In those flimsy shoes? Not happening.”
What she was wearing was little more than slippers, but there was no snow on the runway.