Lola

 

The rest of the ride went smoothly, and a stomach full of crackers seemed to help. Still, Lola was grateful that the landing was an easy one, and she was eager to get her feet back on real land as the plane taxied to the terminal. She glanced out the window. “Do you see that?”

 

“What?” Brittany had fallen asleep for the last hour of the plane ride, and she stretched her arms up over her head and blinked her eyes.

 

“Look at the airport.” Large glass windows faced the runway. It wasn’t unusual to see several passengers standing there, watching the planes as they took off and landed while they waited their own departure time. But a crowd had assembled. They pressed themselves against the glass, jumping, waving, and holding signs that said, “We Love You, Lola!” and “Welcome Back!”

 

Brittany’s jaw dropped. “I guess they really like you around here.”

 

“You’re missing the point,” Lola replied, irritated. “Nobody should have even known that I was coming here today. The very last thing I need is to have an audience when I go to the hospital to see my dad.” She couldn’t even imagine just how much it would piss him off to have the paparazzi hovering right outside his hospital room door.

 

The seatbelt sign had yet to turn off but Butch was already on his feet. “You stay here while the plane unloads. I’ll get inside, find someone with security, and get this taken care of. Come with me, Chris.”

 

“I think I should stay here with Lola,” the younger man volunteered. “You know, in case any of the crazies make it onto the plane. Besides, the other passengers are bound to recognize her now.”

 

Butch hesitated but finally gave a curt nod. “All right. Ladies, don’t come off this plane until I tell you to.”

 

Lola nodded obediently, pissed that this had happened once again. It didn’t help that she was stuck here with Chris. He had a job to do, and she wanted to trust that he would do it properly no matter what other ambitions he had, but she was beginning to doubt him. She glanced around nervously at the other travelers, looking for anyone who was watching her too closely or seemed to recognize her. But most of them were busy putting away their books and electronics and checking their seats to make sure they had everything with them before they got off the plane.

 

The other passengers filed slowly off once they had retrieved everything from the overhead bins, leaving the plane eerily quiet. Butch must have said something to the stewardess because she came back to their seats with a smile. “I just wanted to let you know that we have some time before we have to take off again, so you can stay here for a while until it’s safe. We’ve closed the door, so even if they get past security at the terminal, nobody can get in.”

 

“Thank you. I appreciate that.” Lola let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. The fans shouldn’t have bothered her so much, and maybe they wouldn’t have if one of them hadn’t tried to shoot her before. But having just one extra person on her side made a big difference.

 

The stewardess leaned down, her eyes bright. “I’m not supposed to ask, but could I have your autograph? It’s for my daughter. She loves you!”

 

Lola wanted to ask just how old this daughter was and if she really ought to be listening to songs like she sang, but she just smiled and nodded. “Of course.”

 

As soon as that was taken care of and the stewardess had returned to the front of the plane, Chris came around from his seat and gestured with his head for Brittany to get up. “I need to work out the plan with Lola, if you don’t mind.”

 

Brittany shrugged and moved across the aisle, leaving Chris free to sit down right next to Lola. It was a sudden habit of his that was beginning to drive her crazy. “You should have just gone with Butch.”

 

“Testy, testy,” he clucked. “I couldn’t exactly leave you here all by yourself. We know what happened the last time.”

 

“What do you want?” Lola didn’t have the time or the energy for this.

 

“You know exactly what I want. I thought I’d see if you’d thought about it anymore.” His eyes were intense, and he leaned over so that his face was only a few inches from hers.

 

She leaned away. “I haven’t,” she replied, “because I already told you the answer is no. There’s nothing to think about.” She should have fired him as soon as he’d explained his plan to use her. Even if he actually loved her as he claimed, they shouldn’t be working together. But she was stuck with him for the moment.

 

“I can see how you might have thought that before, but the circumstances have changed now.”

 

“How so?” Lola felt a wave of horror wash over her. Had he figured out she was pregnant? Was he going to propose that they claim the baby was his? She felt nauseous all over again.

 

“Just look out the window.” Chris gestured behind her, where a crowd was still fighting hard to get her attention. “You’ve got fans galore here, but it’s not as crazy as it is back in LA. This would be the perfect place to debut our relationship.”

 

“What did you just say?” Brittany had just shot out of her seat and back across the aisle. She stood over them with her jaw open. “Lola, why didn’t you tell me?”

 

“Because it’s not true.” She slapped Chris on the arm. “See what you’re doing? You’re already spreading rumors about me without even trying.”

 

“You can’t blame her if she sees something between the two of us,” Chris argued. “Everyone else does. We’ve got good chemistry together. Stop fighting it.”

 

“I’ll fight it as long as I have to.” Lola stood up, inching around Chris and charging down the aisle of the plane.

 

The stewardess came out of the cockpit, lines of worry around her smile. “Excuse me, Miss Lennox, but we haven’t yet received word that it’s safe for you to de-board.”

 

“I appreciate your concern, but I’m getting off this plane if it’s the last thing I do. Please open the door.” She stood with her shoulders back and her chin out, her feet planted solidly on the floor. She didn’t feel very confident, but she could act like it.

 

“If you’re sure.” The uniformed girl swiftly undid the hatch and let her out.

 

Lola was only alone in the loading bridge for a moment before Chris and Brittany came tumbling out of the plane behind her. They shouted at her, but Lola only walked faster. She strutted right toward the crowd that waited in the terminal. They would all see her, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. This was just her life now. Security personnel fought to keep the crowd in control but Butch was nowhere in sight. No matter. This wasn’t such a big town that she couldn’t handle it herself. Hell, she probably knew half these people.

 

But as she tried to shove her way through the crowd, Lola realized that she just might be wrong. They pressed in around her, waving cameras and autograph books in her face. Nobody had any consideration for personal space or the fact that she was a person, too. They weren’t nearly as respectful as the original gathering at The Dive had been, which just went to show how her fame had skyrocketed. And the crowd seemed endless, with every square foot of floorspace taken up by fans. Security at a small-town airport wasn’t enough to handle this, and she had been foolish to think she would be fine with just the two bodyguards and a half-assed disguise.

 

Suddenly, Lola noticed a friendly face in the crowd. It was a familiar one, and he wasn’t clamoring for her attention. He stood aloof near the far wall of the terminal, leaning back with his arms folded across his wide chest. She would recognize that dark hair and those faded tattoos anywhere. But the fans closed in around her even as she tried to work her way toward him, and she lost sight of Bishop.

 

Chris and Brittany were nowhere near her. Chris had probably stopped to sign autographs, whether the fans wanted him to or not. Brittany was a tough girl and she would be all right. Lola just needed to get free of the crowd before it crushed her.

 

A strong hand took her elbow. She jerked her arm to get free, but when the grip refused to let go she looked up into Bishop’s eyes. “Come with me.”

 

Lola couldn’t hear the words, but she understood them as they came from his lips as though he had spoken directly into her mind. As he pulled her close and pushed through the chaos, the people parted before him like a sea. It was then that she noticed bikers stood on either side of them, their big bodies forming a channel through the rabid teens and giving them a clear passage to the door. Lola grinned at them as they flashed by, Bishop’s footsteps carrying her faster and faster until they burst through the glass door and out into the fresh air of Rolling Hills.

 

A herd of motorcycles waited outside, the bikers on them revving their engines. Bishop escorted her to a gunmetal gray ride at the center of the crowd, threw his leg over, and held out his hand. “Are you coming?”

 

She didn’t have to think about it. She didn’t stop to wonder what had happened to Butch or if Chris was still following her. Lola threw her leg over the back of the bike and settled in behind him. She felt the engine roar to life underneath them as she wrapped her arms around Bishop’s trim waist. They were surrounded by Cobra Kings as they made their way out of the parking lot and onto the highway, the roar of them buzzing around her. Lola had never felt so free in her entire life as she clung to Bishop.