Redeye
Redeye
Open Skies, Book Two
Becca Jameson
Copyright © 2020 by Becca Jameson
Cover Artist: Originalsyn
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. And resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
Contents
Newsletter
About the Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Epilogue
Author’s Note
Also by Becca Jameson
About the Author
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About the Book
Christa
A harmless blind date with a buff Alpha formerly with Delta Force.
But then he kissed her, and rocked her foundation.
A week later when her apartment lease falls through, she’s in his home. In his life.
But she’s not the only woman who has her eye on him, and her competition doesn’t play fair.
Plus, the man throws mixed signals every time she’s in his arms.
No matter how hard she's fallen for him, she’s not sure she can tolerate much more.
Meanwhile, her airline has put all flight attendants on alert for human trafficking.
When a suspicious group of teen girls catches Christa’s attention, she must act fast.
The last thing she expects is to end up as a hostage in a tense situation.
* * *
Mack
He agreed to take her out because she was smoking hot.
He hadn’t meant to fall for her.
She’s far too innocent for someone like him. The very definition of vanilla.
It takes every ounce of restraint to keep himself from taking things too fast.
How long can he deny his Alpha tendencies? What if he tamps them down and never tells her?
When it all blows up in his face, he’s not sure she will ever speak to him again.
Before he has a chance to beg her forgiveness, she falls hostage to a madman on her flight.
Rescuing her is his first priority.
Convincing her to give him another chance is second on the list.
Chapter 1
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Christa asked as she stood in her bedroom, staring at herself in the full-length mirror on the back of her door. “I don’t even know this guy.”
Libby laughed from where she sat on Christa’s bed, leaning against the headboard. “You’ve asked Jason to set you up with someone on more than one occasion. Now that it’s tonight, you have cold feet?”
Christa sighed, wondering if the dress she’d chosen was too much for a first date. They were just going to dinner. Would he think she was working too hard to impress him if she wore this black dress? Maybe she should change into jeans.
“You’re overthinking it,” Libby said. “I can see your mind working from here.”
Christa spun around. “You know how I am. I’m an introvert. Yes, in theory, I want to go out with this buff, sexy, military friend of Jason’s, but in practice I’m nervous. Plus, we’re in the middle of packing, and I have to work three shifts still this week, all of them are redeyes, and I’m a horrible conversationalist.”
Libby spun around and sat on the edge of the bed. “You’ll be fine. Jason says Kraft is an extrovert. He can carry the conversation. Besides, you’ve technically already met him. You danced with him at Destiny’s wedding.”
Christa groaned. “That doesn’t count. I can’t even remember it well. Just some large guy who swung me around the floor. We didn’t exchange many words.”
Libby glanced around. “Well, don’t worry about the packing. It’s mostly done. We don’t move out until Saturday. You’ll have the days to stuff the last few things into boxes. And then you can nap and get to the airport.”
Libby made it sound simple. Christa felt a bit overwhelmed. Why had she agreed to a blind date on a Monday night with so much going on? In addition, she felt bad about leaving Libby home alone to pack. Between Christa, Bex, and Shayla, they usually made sure their schedules included never leaving Libby alone. If Jason couldn’t be with her, one of them always was.
Ever since a crazy man she’d gone on one date with abducted Libby and held her in his basement, they all worried she might freak out if she stayed in the townhouse by herself for any length of time.
Christa felt guilty leaving her. “You sure you’re okay with me going out? I could cancel. There’s no reason I need to go on a blind date tonight of all nights.”
Libby waved a hand through the air. “Don’t be silly. I’m fine. I’m just going to watch old reruns and finish packing the kitchen.”
The doorbell rang.
Christa took a deep breath. “You’re sure?” she asked again.
“Positive. Get your shoes.” She pointed at Christa’s feet.
Christa headed across the room to grab her heels. Half the reason she’d chosen a dress was so that she could wear heels. She was five-foot-six, but she remembered Kraft was six-foot.
“I’ll let him in.” Libby slid off the bed and rushed from the room, bounding down the stairs two at a time, the way she often took the stairs.
Christa took a deep breath and wandered back into the bathroom. She stared at herself in the mirror again. Her pale blond hair was almost white. She was wearing it down tonight because she knew it was one of her best features. It was wavy and long and always attracted attention. She wondered how long it would take Kraft to ask her if it was natural.
She applied another coat of lip gloss and pinched her cheeks. Her pale skin lacked color, but that wouldn’t last long because soon she would be embarrassed for any number of reasons and then her cheeks would flush a deep shade of red. There was nothing she could do to stop it.
Finally, she spun and headed for the stairs, praying this blind date wasn’t about to be the worst decision of her life.
Chapter 2
“She’ll be right down,” Libby told Mack as soon as she let him into the condo.
Mack glanced around the room full of boxes. “Looks like you guys are all packed.”
“Mostly. Just a few last-minute odds and ends, and the kitchen. I promise it will all be organized by Saturday morning. I really appreciate you guys helping us move this weekend. I’m trying to make it as seamless as possible.”
Mack shrugged. “No worries. Getting your stuff to Hatch’s place will be easy. It’s not that far. How far away is Christa moving? Hatch didn’t tell me.”
“It’s not far, either. About twenty minutes.”
He smiled at her and lifted a hand as she approached. “Mack Carter.”
When she returned the smile, the sexiest dimples came out on her cheeks. “Ah, good. I was worried your name was actually Kraft.”
He chuckled. “Nope. It’s Mack. Call me whatever you want.”
“Dare I ask where the nickname Kraft came from?”
He rolled his eyes. “The guys on the team liked to harass me for the amount of mac and cheese I eat. Not just any mac and cheese mind you, but the kind out of a box. My favorite food. Even funnier since my name is actually Mack. At least the guys thought it was humorous.”
Another adorable smile from Christa. “Thank God your favorite food isn’t something like Jell-O or kumquats.”
He chuckled. “Good point. You ready?”
She nodded and picked up a small black purse from the end table.
“You guys have fun,” Libby stated cheerfully. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” she added with a giggle.
Christa groaned as Mack shut the door.
Mack set a hand on the small of her back, leading her toward his SUV. “I know Jason pretty well. We’ve been friends for years and worked together for most of those years. If we are limited to only things they would do, I’d say we are wide open for the evening.”
Christa lifted her gaze to meet his. Her expression was pale. Her eyes were wide. She chewed on the corner of her bottom lip.
He felt like a heel. “I was kidding.”
She nodded. “Oh. Okay.” She blew out a breath as he helped her climb into his SUV with a hand on her biceps.
He rounded the car, chastising himself for being so crass. Hatch had told him she was shy. He shouldn’t have started the evening with a joke filled with innuendo. After settling behind the wheel, he turned toward her. “I promise I’m a good guy. Sorry about that.”
She smiled at him, though it was forced. “No worries. I’m just nervous. I don’t usually date strangers.”
He reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze, partly because he wanted to touch her skin. Soft. Smooth. “Well, I’m not technically a stranger. I mean, we’ve at least met. And we have mutual friends, so you know I’m not an ax murderer.”
She smiled again, warmer this time. “True.”
For the first time Mack could remember, he was actually nervous. Him. Nervous. On a date. He couldn’t shake it. He kept gripping the steering wheel as he drove. By the time they arrived at the restaurant, he was a ball of nerves.
The only explanation he could come up with was that he kind of liked this woman. Even though he’d only met her one other time and danced with her for one song at Trent and Destiny’s wedding, he’d thought about her several times since then.
Over the past few months, Hatch had mentioned setting Mack up with Christa several times, but Mack hadn’t wanted to appear too eager, so he’d waited for Hatch to officially set something up.
Mack also knew that Christa had mentioned him several times. That seemed promising, but the woman sitting next to Mack in his SUV was beyond nervous. Painfully shy. Nothing like any woman he’d ever dated.
At least Mack could contain his nerves, shove them down, fake like his heart wasn’t beating faster than usual. She, on the other hand, fidgeted all the way to dinner, spinning her rings around her fingers, shifting in her seat, and taking deep breaths.
Hell, maybe he hadn’t hidden his nerves, either. After all, he was aware of what his fingers kept doing to the steering wheel. He’d switch from gripping tightly to tapping to sliding his hands up and down.
Mack parked, exited the SUV, and rounded it to open her door. When he took her hand to help her down from the elevated seat, she squeezed his fingers. She also let him continue holding her hand as they entered the restaurant. He didn’t let go until they were seated, and then only because it would have been awkward to continue clutching her from across the table.
He couldn’t explain his strange reaction to her except to think they had chemistry. Physically, she was his dream woman. That didn’t hurt. But her shyness appealed to him on an inexplicable level, too.
He was used to women fawning over him for the last dozen years. Every time he went out with the guys on leave, especially if they wore anything that indicated they were Army, they were bombarded with female options.
Mack had never fully understood the appeal, but there was no doubt women loved men in uniform, even if they weren’t currently in said uniform.
He’d prided himself on not being an asshole over the years—keeping his bed partners to a minimum—but he’d been out with his fair share of pushy, eager women.
Christa was the polar opposite. She was shy and introverted. He knew his work was cut out for him if he was going to drag any conversation out of her, and he was up to the challenge.
He watched her closely as she carefully perused the menu and made her selection. He found it refreshing when she turned down the offer for a drink, so he ordered iced tea for himself as well. By the time they were left alone to face each other, he was half in love with her for a dozen ridiculous reasons, and they’d barely exchanged ten words.
She was fucking cute. The flush on her cheeks that came and went over and over made his cock hard. The way the thick waves of her blond hair fell over her shoulder made him want to run his fingers through it. He’d fought the urge to tuck it behind her ear about a dozen times.
She was also intent, focusing for a long time on the menu choices, nibbling absentmindedly on the nail of her pointer finger as she considered several options.
He figured she was about five-six, but she was thin and willowy, so she seemed smaller. Her breasts were real and normal-sized. They weren’t smashed together in a way that intentionally created cleavage meant to entice.
She was real. That was it. Real. Average amount of makeup. Her own nails, rounded and buffed, but not covered in thick fake acrylic. She had on jewelry, but it wasn’t dripping off her. Her earrings were dainty gold hoops. Her eyelashes were her own. He would bet money they were white and nearly nonexistent without mascara.
When she lifted her gaze to him, taking a sip of her tea, she froze. “You’re staring.”
He smiled. “Sorry. You’re gorgeous.” He set his elbows on the table and leaned forward.
That adorable flush returned. “You are, too.”
Progress. “Thank you.” He drew in a breath. “Tell me about yourself. Where are you from?”
“I’m from Pennsylvania originally.”
“Oh, wow. Is your family still there?”
“Yes. My parents and my two sisters. I’m the black sheep.”
He frowned. “How could you be the black sheep? I’m having trouble imagining that.” The last thing he would describe her as would be reckless.
She shrugged. “Depends on who you ask. In my family, everyone must stick close to home, marry a local guy, make lots of babies, and raise them within a few blocks of my parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I wasn’t interested in that plan, so I applied for universities out of state and attended The University of Texas at Dallas.”
He was mesmerized while she spoke. Every nuance in her expression caught his attention. “What did you major in?”
“Economics. I meant to go to law school.” She glanced down and adjusted her napkin in her lap. Something about her education bothered her.
He wasn’t sure if he should push her or not, but he went for it. “And then you changed your mind?”
She swallowed and met his gaze. “No. I ran out of money.”
He winced. He certainly understood how that could happen. “Shit. I’m sorry. Your parents d
on’t approve then?”
She shook her head. “Not at all. They thought it was ridiculous of me to leave the state in the first place. I chose UT Dallas because I had a scholarship, and I worked part-time to cover many of my other expenses. By the time I graduated, I had a small pile of loans though. I’d met Libby by then. She also went to UT Dallas, and she was applying for a job with Open Skies. I’d never thought about being a flight attendant, but there were openings, and I didn’t want to go back home with my tail between my legs, so I applied, got a job, and the rest is history.” She sat up straighter, smiling.
Her smile was infectious, but he wasn’t certain she was happy with how her life had turned out. “Do you still want to go to law school?”
She shrugged and waved a hand through the air dismissively. “Hah. Doesn’t really matter. I make a living. I’m not in Pennsylvania. I proved I could make it on my own. I’ve basically spent the last nine years doing the polar opposite of whatever my parents wanted.”
“Meaning you’re not married and you don’t have two-point-five kids.”
She rolled her eyes. “More like five kids, but yes.”
“Are you opposed to marriage in general?” He couldn’t believe he was asking her that question. He’d never asked a woman that in his life. Hell, he was seven years older than her, and he’d never even been tempted.
She narrowed her gaze. “What kind of man asks that on a first date?”