Chapter Two
From the moment her boyfriend—make that ex-boyfriend—closed the door on her after so coldly ending their relationship, Katie Kaswell wouldn’t have thought that her shitty day could take a turn for the better. But it had, in the form of a gorgeous guy who was hotter than Hades, with a devastatingly sexy smile that made her stomach flutter in sensual awareness because everything about him was so easygoing and charming—the exact opposite of Brice’s more uptight and narcissistic personality, which she’d seen in all its glory earlier today.
As they walked side by side through the airport terminal and toward the Westin Hotel, she cast a surreptitious look at the man who’d generously offered her a place to stay for the night without any expectations. She’d only known Connor for an hour, but there was nothing egotistical about him that she’d detected so far, nor had he come off as a player looking for a snowstorm hookup, which had been her first thought when he’d asked to sit at her table.
Instead, he’d been kind and sympathetic while she’d shared her humiliating situation with him, listening attentively to her story, whereas most guys would have been completely uninterested in the reason behind her unpleasant mood. He’d even managed to make her feel better about the whole mortifying experience, calling Brice a selfish prick with a pencil dick. Remembering his comment almost made her laugh out loud all over again.
They wove in and out of the crowd of people stuck at the airport, and Katie didn’t miss the way a lot of women eyed Connor appreciatively as they walked by, even a few who appeared to be with a significant other. Not that she blamed any of them for admiring what a gorgeous, virile male he was. He was big and tall, with thick, dark brown hair, stunning blue eyes, and a rock-hard body built for sin. And that light scruff on his jaw? So. Damn. Hot.
The man was sex on two legs, though he seemed completely oblivious to the ogling stares, whereas most guys would have upped their swagger to try and further impress their female audience. No, there was nothing cocky or arrogant about him, and she found that was incredibly appealing, too.
During their meal together, he’d pushed up the sleeves of his navy blue Henley, treating her—and every other woman in the vicinity—to his strong forearms and the sexy tattoos that covered one of his arms all the way down to the back of his hand. That intriguing ink increased his hotness factor by at least another ten points. It also made her wonder what he’d look like with his shirt completely off and what his skin would feel like sliding against the tips of her fingers and how the muscles in his chest might react to the caress of her hands all the way down to his stomach.
Her pulse skipped a beat, and that spark of attraction that had been missing with Brice, especially over the last few months, came back with a vengeance, showing her body just how wonderful, how exciting, desire could feel. That heady awareness tightened her nipples and curled seductively through her belly, then settled between her thighs, surprising her.
Oh, hello, arousal. That’s where you’ve been!
A small smile touched her lips as they headed into the Westin. After the spectacular way Brice had humiliated her, along with making her feel as though their lackluster sex life had been her fault, she didn’t even experience a sliver of guilt for her physical reaction to Connor. No, she found it exhilarating and, oddly enough, empowering. Kind of like a big ol’ fuck you to Brice, that it had taken mere thoughts of another man to make her body feel like a woman again.
Connor walked to the sitting area in the lobby and put her luggage and his duffel next to a vacant chair. “Mind hanging here with our bags while I check in? No sense both of us standing in that long line when you can be comfortable sitting here.”
Her gaze traveled from the crowd of people waiting to register for their rooms, then back to Connor as she gave him a smile, appreciating his courteous gesture. “No, I don’t mind at all.”
Yeah, she was totally fine with that decision, especially when he walked away and she got her first good look at his backside. Broad shoulders. Narrow waist. And a firm ass hugged by a pair of fitted jeans. The man was an Adonis. Physically flawless and thoughtful, to boot. Which made her wonder why some woman hadn’t already snatched him up . . . unless he liked being a bachelor.
Forty minutes later, Connor returned and handed her a keycard of her own, just in case she needed it, he told her. They rode the elevator up to the very top floor, and she followed him to their room, then inside once he had the door open. The suite was wide and spacious, with a living room and kitchen in the middle and a master bedroom with an adjoining bathroom on either side of those main rooms.
He dropped his bag on the couch, then rolled her luggage into one of the bedrooms and parked it next to the bed before facing her with an easy smile that belied the flicker of heat in his eyes as his gaze briefly dipped down to her mouth. Now that they were alone, really alone, something in the air between them seemed to shift, bringing with it a seductive pull she was suddenly finding difficult to resist. Connor was that temptation, and she couldn’t stop from wondering what would happen if she stepped closer and touched him. If she lifted her mouth to his for a kiss just so she could see what he tasted like and what it would be like to have him not be such a gentleman.
He pushed his fingers into the front pockets of his jeans, as if he was having an equally difficult time keeping his hands to himself and needed to keep them restrained. “Here you go. A soft, comfortable bed for the night and that hot shower you wanted,” he finally said, his voice a bit rough around the edges despite his polite words. “And if you just want to crawl into bed and fall asleep, I totally understand. But if you’d rather have some company and you’re interested in taking me up on that offer of cheesy movies and junk food, I’ll be hanging out in the living room.”
He turned to go, and she stopped him before he could leave. “Connor?”
He glanced back, his expression unreadable. “Yeah?”
“I just wanted to thank you, for listening when I needed to vent,” she said, needing him to know how much she appreciated him being so kind and caring after her craptastic afternoon. “You’re a really nice guy, which is hard to come by these days.” She ought to know, considering her track record with the wrong kind of men.
The corner of his mouth twitched with a wry grin that mocked the compliment she’d just given him. “Yeah, well, sometimes being a nice guy is way overrated.”
He exited the room and closed the door quietly behind him, his parting remark revealing that keeping his hands to himself might not be as easy as he made it look. That he was quite possibly struggling between being respectful because of her breakup with Brice and giving in to the attraction they both clearly felt.
She understood the physical tug-of-war, because she was experiencing it, too.
Exhaling a deep breath, she grabbed her toiletry bag and headed into the adjoining bathroom and stripped out of her clothes. Turning on the shower, she pinned up her hair, then stepped beneath the spray, letting the hot water wash away the last of the day’s hurt and anger. Brice wasn’t worth the emotion, and if she was honest with herself, her heart wasn’t broken, because in her gut, she’d known for at least the past two months that her relationship with Brice was heading toward the end.
As always, the foreshadowing had been there. Him working longer, later hours. Canceling plans at the last minute. Being distracted on his phone when they were together and telling her it was business when she asked who he was texting with. But instead of heeding those signs, Katie did what she’d always done. She’d given Brice the benefit of the doubt, hoping that for once, her intuition was wrong. She’d hung in there, never wanting to feel as though she didn’t at least try to make things work, because she’d always sworn she wouldn’t treat relationships like her parents did—like they were disposable.
But in the end, Katie’s efforts and determination never paid off, and she was always the one on the receiving end of an it’s not me, it’s you speech, for one reason or another. Just like her previous two relationships before Brice, she’d been dumped once the excitement and shininess wore off, and it always left her feeling as though she wasn’t worth the effort. That she wasn’t enough.
That was the painful part, because she’d grown up feeling that way with her mother and father. She’d been used as a pawn in her parents’ divorce, depending on what either of them wanted from the other at any given time, but once they managed to achieve their objective, their attention abruptly ended until the next time one of them needed her for some kind of leverage.
From the young age of four, that continuous push-pull had been her life with her parents, until she finally graduated high school and could move to another state for college and neither one of them could manipulate her emotions any longer. Unfortunately, that childhood had carried over into adulthood and her relationships with men. She was always too eager to please, even at the expense of her own happiness, and it always came back to bite her in the ass.
Clearly, she couldn’t trust her judgment when it came to the opposite sex. And clearly, it was time to reevaluate her life and focus on being content without a man who would eventually disappoint her like all the others had.
Pushing all those thoughts from her head, she finished up in the shower, rinsing the frothy body wash from her skin and turning off the water before she turned into a prune. Grabbing a towel, she dried off, then wrapped it around her as she walked back into the bedroom to get dressed.
But as she looked through her suitcase, she came across the lingerie she’d bought as a Valentine’s Day surprise for Brice, which was all she’d intended to wear for the weekend—that or nothing at all—other than her jeans outside of the hotel room. The risqué nightie in her hand mocked her for being a fool, and she suddenly wanted to forget about her embarrassing afternoon and erase Brice from her mind completely tonight.
She thought about Connor waiting in the living room for her, and her pulse beat slow and thick in her veins as his final comment came back to taunt her . . . being a nice guy is way overrated.
He didn’t want to be a nice guy. That much she knew. What he wanted was her, and after having her self-esteem take such a direct hit, the notion of feeling sexy and desirable, even for one night, was so tempting. The last thing she wanted right now was a commitment or forever promises when that clearly was not her forte, but hot, mindless sex with a gorgeous, hot-as-hell stranger she’d never see again? Yeah, that sounded absolutely perfect and exactly what she needed.
Gathering the fortitude to go through with her plan, she let the towel drop to the floor and put on the red lace baby-doll top and matching panties before she changed her mind. She unclipped her hair and let it fall to her shoulders, then ruffled her fingers through the strands to give her a more tousled, just-rolled-out-of-bed kind of look. She touched up her makeup and dabbed her lips with a tinted moisturizing balm.
Her stomach was a bundle of crazy wild nerves, but there was also something incredibly exhilarating about being so spontaneous when she was the kind of woman who’d always planned things out. But look where that had gotten her . . . stuck in a snowstorm in Denver after finding out her ex had been screwing someone else.
But it had also gotten her stranded with Connor, and for once in her life, Katie was going to be impulsive and enjoy whatever tonight and the nice guy out in the living room had to offer.
* * *
Connor scrolled through the list of movies on pay-per-view for the tenth time, not sure what Katie might be in the mood for. He’d raided the mini bar as promised, and all the junk food loot was on the coffee table awaiting their impromptu slumber party. He was just waiting, albeit impatiently, to find out if Katie was going to join him or not. After her emotionally draining day, he wasn’t sure she was going to be up to hanging out, and as much as he’d understand that decision, the thought mostly disappointed him.
When he heard the door to her bedroom open, a flood of relief coursed through him. “So, what are you in the mood for?” he asked, anxious for her to join him and hoping that she sat on the same sofa as he did instead of the single chair opposite the couch—Jesus, what was he, fourteen? “We’ve got our choice between a romantic comedy, action adventure, or a horror flick.”
“None of those,” she said, her voice soft and husky as she approached from his peripheral vision. “The only thing I’m in the mood for is . . . you.”
Certain that he’d heard Katie wrong, he turned his head to glance at her. His jaw dropped open in shock as he stared at the stunning, erotic vision standing a few feet away from him, dressed in a sinful red ensemble that screamed fuck me, please. Unsure as to what was going on—was he being cruelly punked right now?—his entire body went rigid, including his dick, as he desperately tried to clear the lust that was quickly fogging his brain.
He managed to close his mouth, but that only made his jaw clench achingly tight as he fought off the urge to do something stupid, like push her down to the couch and give free rein to the attraction they’d both been skirting. Jesus, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her and the see-through lingerie that exposed more than it covered, teasing him mercilessly. The sheer underwire cups pushed her generous breasts up like an offering, barely containing all that mouthwatering fullness, and her tight, rosy nipples pushed against the thin, lacy fabric. The skirt of the short gown draped over her midsection like a veil, sheer enough for him to see the indentation of her waist and flare of her hips, and a pair of tiny red matching panties he wanted to tear off of her with his teeth.
He swore beneath his breath, and when she made a soft, uncertain noise in the back of her throat, he jerked his gaze back up to hers. He caught a quick glimpse of apprehension shimmering in those big brown eyes, which contradicted the bold, brazen woman currently standing in front of him.
“Maybe this was a really stupid idea,” she said in a voice that cracked with a wealth of doubts, right before she turned back around and rushed toward her bedroom in a blur of red material that swirled around her waist and thighs.
Realizing that she believed his hesitation was because he didn’t want her, Connor jumped to his feet and reached Katie before she made it halfway across the living room. He caught her around the waist with a strong arm and hauled her up against his body, her back to his front—and quickly realized what a huge mistake that was.
She valiantly struggled to break free of his hold, the curve of her delectable ass shifting and wriggling against the thick length of his cock already straining the zipper of his jeans. He gritted his teeth at the onslaught of lust racing through his blood, threatening to eradicate his self-control and any rational decisions he needed to make. And the situation definitely called for him to remain level-headed so he could think with his brain and not his unruly dick.
She tried to push away his arm one last time, but when it didn’t budge, she made a frustrated sound. “Just let me go, Connor,” she said, her voice defeated and so damn vulnerable. “Please.”
He wasn’t releasing her until he knew she was okay. “Katie—”
“Don’t make this any worse than it already is,” she said, cutting him off, her entire body still unyielding against his. “I must have misread your interest, and I don’t think I can handle getting rejected twice in one day.”
Aww, fuck. The very last thing he felt for her was disinterest, but he didn’t want to take advantage of her or the situation, either. He released her and turned Katie so that she was facing him, hating the wariness in her gaze. She looked like she was going to bolt again, and he wasn’t about to let that happen until they got a few things straight. With his hands gripping her hips so she couldn’t go anywhere, at least not easily, he backed her up a few steps, until she was trapped between him and the wall.
The impulse to run his hands up the indentation of her waist to the breasts nearly spilling out of her flimsy top was so strong and so distracting he had to place his palms safely on the wall on either side of her shoulders. She tipped her head back to look up at him, and he nearly smiled when he saw the earlier doubts that had been clouding her gaze were now replaced with a stubborn attitude that turned him on way too much.
“First of all, you didn’t misread anything,” he told her. “You surprised the fuck out of me, because I didn’t expect you to come out of your room looking like a goddamn sex kitten. And secondly, I’m not rejecting you personally.”
Her chin lifted obstinately. “Just what I’m offering?”
The corner of his mouth quirked at the impudent tone of her voice, and before he could think better of it, he touched one of the soft, blonde strands of hair that fell to the swell of her breasts. He rubbed the silky texture between his fingers, immediately imagining how it would feel to have his entire hand wrapped around the length. Tugging. Pulling. Her gasping. Moaning. Begging.
The heady images in his head fueled his growing hunger for her. “What, exactly, are you offering, Valentine?” he murmured, knowing he was torturing himself but beyond caring any longer.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Isn’t it obvious?”
He watched as her tongue dampened her bottom lip, spurring more dirty thoughts to fill his head. “Tell me,” he said, the words a gentle demand. “Just so it’s clear for both of us.”
She hesitated for a moment, as if gathering up the nerve, then spoke. “Remember that fantasy I told you about earlier? The sex-with-a-stranger-in-a-hotel-room fantasy?”
How could he forget something like that? “Yes.”
She exhaled a breath. “That’s all I want. No last names. No personal information. Just a night of hot, mindless sex.”
Yeah, that sounded damn good, except he was already coming to want so much more than that with her. “I’m not really a one-night-stand kind of guy.”
It was the truth. Unlike a lot of his friends, he’d never been the type to screw a woman just to get off, without the intention of ever seeing her again. It just wasn’t who he was. He liked getting to know the women he slept with, liked the intimacy of learning what gave them the most pleasure so the next time they fucked, it was twice as good because of that connection.
“Care to make an exception?” Holding his gaze, she brazenly slipped her hands beneath the hem of his shirt, her fingers grazing the taut skin right above the waistband of his jeans. “I just want to forget about everything that happened today. I just want to feel good.”
He tipped his head. “So, I’m your rebound guy?”
“Would that be so bad?” she asked, tempting him further as her hand dropped lower, finding his weakness and exploiting it . . . his throbbing, aching cock.
Her palm molded to that column of flesh, already as long and hard as a steel rod. And when she squeezed him through the too-tight denim, he had to bite back a strangled groan of need.
“I’m not asking for any promises, Connor. I just want you to fuck me,” she said, chipping away at all his good intentions. She raised up on her tiptoes so that her mouth softly, seductively brushed the corner of his. “And judging by the impressive size of your erection, you obviously want the same thing, so please, don’t tell me no.”
There was only so much teasing a man could take, and she’d just pushed him past his limit. Before he came to his senses—and Jesus, did he really want to deny them both at this point?—he thrust all ten fingers into her hair and around to the back of her head so he was now the one in control and sealed his mouth over hers. Her lips parted on a gasp of surprise, and he didn’t hesitate to sweep his tongue inside so he could thoroughly taste her. She was hotter and sweeter than he’d imagined, and as the kiss intensified even more, she gripped his shoulders and made the sexiest noises in the back of her throat. Heat rushed through him at the thought of hearing more of those erotic sounds as he buried himself eight inches deep inside of her.
She wanted to fuck? Fine. He’d give her what she wanted, what she needed, without making any personal demands tonight. But tomorrow, before they left Denver and headed home to Chicago, he’d have her last name and number in his cell phone. Because he already knew that one night with Katie wasn’t going to be enough, that he’d want more of her and everything her asshole ex had thrown away.
And by morning, she’d realize that, too. He’d make sure of it.
When he finally ended the kiss and lifted his head to look down at her, she was breathing as hard as he was. The desire etching her beautiful features enthralled him. Bringing one hand down to her jaw, he skimmed his thumb along her wet bottom lip, and when she licked the pad of his finger, he felt it all the way down to his cock.
He groaned, knowing if he didn’t slow things down, he wasn’t going to last long at all. “If we’re doing this, we’re doing it my way,” he told her.
She blinked languidly at him. “And what way is that?”
“I want to take my time.” He slowly traced a finger down the red lace framing her breasts, watching as her nipples furled tight and hard against the thin fabric. “We’ve got all night, and I want to enjoy this. I want to enjoy you.”
“Umm, yes, please,” she whispered in agreement.
Taking her hand in his, he led her back to the couch. He sat down and drew her closer. “Straddle my lap, sweetheart.”
With his help, she moved over him, settling her knees on either side of his hips and resting her bottom on his thighs. “Will you take off your shirt?” she asked, and he wasn’t sure why she’d even bothered to ask permission since her hands were already lifting up the hem of his Henley and shoving it up his chest, clearly eager to rid him of the piece of clothing.
He took over, pulling the shirt over his head and tossing it aside. He figured it was only fair that he was half-naked, because it wouldn’t be long before she was, too.
Her appreciative gaze took in his shoulders and chest as she touched him reverently, hands skimming along his pecs, her thumbs grazing his nipples and her fingers following the taut lines of muscle cutting across his abdomen. She licked her lips like she wanted to put that sultry mouth all over him but didn’t know where to start, though he certainly had plenty of ideas.
“God, you are so . . . everything,” she said, her voice filled with awe.
He slid his palms up her bare arms, her skin so incredibly soft beneath his more calloused, work-roughened fingers. “So everything?” he questioned curiously.
She nodded, those wandering hands of hers feeling up his firm biceps before moving down to his forearms, where her fingers trailed across the tattoos. “So hot. Hard. Gorgeous. Sexy. And big in all the places that count,” she added with a suggestive smile on her lips. “That is not a pencil dick in your pants.”
He laughed abruptly at their shared joke. “Not even close,” he said, taking credit where it was due.
Pressing his hands between her shoulder blades, he brought her in closer so he could graze his teeth along her shoulder and nuzzle his damp, parted lips against her neck and inhale her arousing feminine scent. He sucked on her supple skin, loving the way she shivered and moaned and arched toward him so uninhibitedly.
His fingers found the thin straps holding up her lingerie, and he dragged them both down her arms. “Your turn to show me your chest,” he teased as he sat back against the couch cushion once again and slowly peeled away the lacy material.
His breath hitched in his throat when her perfect tits bounced free. “Jesus Christ, you’re stunning,” he rasped, and didn’t hesitate to fill his hands with all that beauty. He rolled her diamond-hard nipples between his fingers before giving in to the need to taste her. He licked one deliciously stiff peak, swirled his tongue around her areola, and she buried her fingers in his hair, gripping the strands and holding him there while murmuring the words more, more, more.
He obliged, his hot, wet mouth taking her deeper, sucking harder, his teeth scraping just enough to add a bit of pleasurable pain that had her whimpering with desire. Her knees locked against his hips, and she rocked against his confined erection, this time chanting please, please, please.
He dropped a hand between her spread legs, fully expecting to have to deal with the barrier of her panties . . . except, fuck, they were crotchless, and his fingers slid against her bare pussy, granting him immediate access. A possessive growl tore from Connor’s chest, because while Katie might have bought the sexy outfit and underwear for Brice, she’d worn it for him.
And Jesus, she was already slick with arousal, making it incredibly easy to sink two fingers into all that tight heat. He rubbed his thumb against her clit, stroking that sensitive flesh rhythmically. Her body shuddered, and she dropped her head to his shoulder, her increasingly erratic breaths blowing hot and damp along the side of his neck. With his free hand, he fisted her thick fall of hair and drew her head back so he could look at her flushed face as he fucked her with his fingers, as he brought her closer to the edge. Her mouth was slack with pleasure, her eyes heavy-lidded with heat and passion as they held his gaze and pleaded for the orgasm he wasn’t quite ready to give her.
“Such a sweet, naughty Valentine,” he said of the thrilling surprise that had greeted him between her thighs and the ease with which he could touch her and stroke her. “Tonight, this pussy is mine, Katie. All mine. I want to taste it and fuck it and make it feel so damn good.”
“Yes,” she moaned, moving her hips faster and grinding against his hand more desperately. “Make it feel good, please.”
Done tormenting her, he crushed his lips to hers, kissing her hard and deep. He increased the pressure and friction of his thumb while quickening the thrusts of his hand to match the sweep of his tongue ravishing her mouth. Her wild, unraveling groan vibrated against his lips, followed by a higher-pitched cry of erotic bliss as her sex pulsed around his fingers and she gave herself over to the intensity of her orgasm.
* * *
An annoying pinging sound tried to penetrate Connor’s sleep-fogged brain. One beep right after the other. Irritating as fuck and demanding his attention when he wanted to keep sleeping because, after an entire night of getting to know Katie in the most physical, intimate sense, his body was, quite literally, worn out. In the best possible way.
Forgetting what had made him stir in the first place, he buried his face back into his pillow, a slow, satisfied grin curving his lips as his mind replayed one of the hottest, sexiest, most fucking phenomenal nights he’d ever spent with a woman. After Katie’s first orgasm out in the living room, they’d taken things into the bedroom, where he’d stripped off her lingerie and the rest of his clothes and really gotten down to the business of making her feel so fucking good that no other man would compare.
Luckily, he’d had five condoms in his duffel bag, which had been left there from the last weekend trip he’d taken with his ex over a year ago. He’d been grateful to find them, and they’d made good use of each and every one until well after midnight . . . in the bed when he’d fucked her for the first time, then against the wall with her legs wrapped tight around his waist, on the dining room table after they’d taken a break to eat something substantial from room service, in the shower after they’d gotten carried away with the chocolate-covered strawberries he’d requested with their meal, and again with her bent over the mattress while he’d taken her from behind.
With no more condoms left, they’d both collapsed on his bed, so spent and sated that they’d crashed from sheer physical exhaustion.
His cock twitched with the beginnings of a morning erection as he recalled how bold and shameless she’d been with him. At least in that respect, when it came to what she wanted sexually, she’d been open and honest and held nothing back. And because of that unabashed trust with her body, he already knew what she liked best, how her body responded to certain touches and well-placed caresses, and what it took to make her scream his name when she came long and hard—and took him along for the intoxicating ride.
Not by his choice, he’d played her game . . . no last names. No personal information exchanged. He’d let her have the whole sex-with-a-stranger fantasy, knowing he had the next morning to persuade her to see him again, and not just for a hookup but for a real, getting-to-know-you date.
Ding . . . ding, ding. That noise came again, rousing him for a second time. What the fuck? He rolled to his back and forced his eyes open. The shades on the window had been drawn so the room was dark, which made it difficult to tell if it was still nighttime or morning. He glanced at the space beside him on the bed, where he’d last seen Katie sleeping, but the spot was empty. He wondered if she was already up, or if at some point she’d moved to her own bedroom.
Ding.
More clear-headed now, he realized that the beeping sounds were coming from his cell phone, alerting him to texts. He picked up the device, and the first thing he saw was that it was after ten in the morning. Jesus, he never slept in that late. Unlocking the phone, he squinted against the bright screen as he read the texts . . . all of which were from the Denver airport with updates on the weather, and from the airlines letting him know that flights would resume early that afternoon. His had been rescheduled for 3:20 p.m.
Wanting to make sure that Katie was aware of the new time since they’d been on the same flight back home, he got out of bed and pulled on the jeans he’d left on the floor, then combed his fingers through his unruly hair as he walked into the adjoining living room. It was empty and quiet, and he headed to her bedroom. The door was already open, and when he glanced inside and saw that the bed was still neatly made and her suitcase was nowhere to be found, his stomach pitched with dread because he instinctively knew that she was gone.
A handwritten note from her that he found on the dining table where he’d fucked her only hours ago confirmed that knowledge. Connor, you were exactly what I needed and more. Thank you for an incredible night. Your Valentine, Katie.
No phone number. No contact information. Not even a goddamn last name to help him find her back in Chicago.
Jesus, he’d been fucking ghosted. He swore out loud, his chest tightening in disappointment and frustration as he stalked back into his bedroom, determined to find her before they left Denver, because he knew she’d felt that connection between them that had been more than just physical lust. Hell, she was probably still on his flight out, and it was that bit of hope that kept him relatively calm as he took a shower, packed up his things, and checked out of the hotel.
He returned to the airport terminal and headed straight to the new gate number where his plane would board at the designated time, once the runway was cleared of the snow that had fallen overnight, which hadn’t been as bad as the news had anticipated. Katie wasn’t there, but Connor was hours early for the flight, so he got something to eat, then sat down in the seated area and waited for her to arrive.
The time passed like molasses as he checked out every blonde woman who walked by—none of whom were Katie—until the announcement was finally made over the intercom that it was time to board the plane to Chicago. When his seat section was called, he didn’t get in line. In fact, he waited until everyone else had taken their seats on the plane and there was no one left in the terminal but the desk clerks and him.
“Sir, if you’re on this flight, you need to board the plane,” the woman at the ticket counter said to him. “They’ll be locking the doors in the next five minutes to get ready for takeoff.”
He nodded reluctantly and finally walked onto the plane, his gaze scanning all the passengers’ faces as he made his way to his seat, to make sure he hadn’t missed seeing her, but she wasn’t on the flight. After stowing his duffel, he settled into his chair and buckled his seat belt, and as the plane taxied down the runway, he was forced to face the fact that Katie didn’t want to be found.