Wild Suspicions (Romantic Suspense) (3 page)

She stood quiet for a moment,
reminding herself to thank Parker for inviting her to share in a bit of this lifestyle.

“
I’m sorry, Miss Nichols, I thought the pilots were here.”

Joe
came up from behind, pulling an industrial cart he’d borrowed from one of the hangars. It was piled high with her new suitcase and shopping bags. The wrapped dresses, still on hangers, were draped across the top to keep from wrinkling.

“
It’s all right, Joe. I don’t mind waiting out here.” A cool breeze pushed her hair back. “It’s a mighty big plane, isn’t it?”

Joe laughed.
“Any bigger and you’ll be floatin’ across the ocean.”

She agreed
with the exaggeration. It wasn’t anywhere near as large as a commercial jet, but it was certainly big enough to carry a group of twenty.

Liddie suddenly realized that others might be traveling with them. Perhaps
some people from headquarters. Even Parker’s father was a possibility. The thought of him in particular made her sick. Maxon Sr. would ignore her for sure, just as he had each time they’d met. She hadn’t liked him then and, after hearing Parker talk about his father’s feelings toward children, she liked him even less now.

As
she and Joe walked across what Liddie could only identify as a parking lot for planes, a man appeared from behind the tail section of the plane.

“
Who’s that?” asked Liddie.

Dressed in
well-worn jeans, a T-shirt and open khaki shirt, the dark-haired man looked like an explorer from the pages of
National Geographic
– if that explorer could kick your ass.

“
That’s Mr. Maxon’s pilot, Garrett Wade. I think this is his third flight for the company.” Joe moved forward to greet the man and Liddie followed.

“
How are you, Mr. Wade?” He reached out and shook the pilot’s hand. “This is Miss Nichols. She’ll be flying with Mr. Maxon.” Before the pilot could respond, Joe continued, “I’m going to place her things on the plane, if that’s all right with you?”

Garrett
nodded toward the short set of stairs that led up to an open door. The driver turned to pick up fists full of the various bags. It was almost imperceptible, but Liddie caught the pilot smirk at the sight of them. His reaction made her feel a little embarrassed by it all.

“
It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Wade,” Liddie smiled politely and put her hand out, hoping to draw his attention away from the fashion-bag booty. Almost as tall as Parker, but with dark brown hair and a more muscled build, it was obvious that Garrett spent a lot of time outdoors. Not a surfer vibe like Parker; more like one of a construction worker. He wore the word “rugged” like a body lotion.

T
he pilot didn’t respond to her greeting. Liddie withdrew before realizing it was an attempt to intimidate her. She quickly squared up and pushed her hand forward. “I said I’m pleased to meet you, Mr. Wade.” The dark lens of tortoiseshell sunglasses camouflaged his eyes.

There was an
other uncomfortable hesitation before his hand came up to touch hers. It was heavier and more weathered than Parker’s. His head tilted and she got the impression that he was sizing her up. It wasn’t lewd, but definitely judgmental. This man didn’t like her, and he wanted her to know it.

“
Miss Nichols.” Garrett took and held Liddie’s hand tighter than was customary, then firmly shook it with a subtle aggression that caused her to wobble on her heels.

“
I’m sorry,” he said in a low sarcastic drawl, “Shoes too high to handle?”

Before she could respond,
Garrett released her hand and walked away.

Seriously? Did a Maxon employee just treat Liddie like a paid escort?

“
Excuse me!” She called out, expecting him to stop and turn around. Instead, Garrett disappeared behind the front of the plane. Liddie followed.

“
I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to be talking to me that way.”

Ignoring her, h
e motioned toward the cockpit and gave the thumbs up when bright lights lit up on the right wing. Picking up a clipboard and pen from the ground, he wrote something down and began to move past her.

Liddie stepped into his path
, and Garrett made no effort to keep from bumping into her.

“
Mr. Wade,” she began, standing firm on her heels after taking the slight hit of his rock-hard torso, “I’m a Maxon employee and I don’t think the company would appreciate you treating their workers so rudely.”

Garrett
sighed. A whip of wind kicked up a tussle of his uncombed hair.

“
I’m not paid to be nice. I’m paid to fly,” he spit out. “And judging by those shoes and short skirt, you’re paid to do something as well.”

High heels? Short skirt? Liddie
blinked and did a quick mental check of her workplace attire. Fashionable raincoat, tasteful white blouse, black pencil skirt and red pumps. Granted, the skirt was a few inches above the knee, but certainly acceptable for the city. And the heels? No more than two inches. Perfectly respectable.

“
There is absolutely nothing wrong with what I am wearing.” Liddie wanted to smack him, but he was standing so close it would have been an awkward move at best. She grit her teeth and pushed him back instead. “I expect to be treated with respect.”

Garrett
laughed, rubbing his tummy. “What are you doing with Maxon then?”

The question had her stumped
. She knew Parker had a reputation, but could it be so bad that this man would assume the worst of anyone in his company?

“
Liddie!” Parker’s voice cut through the awkward confrontation. Liddie hadn’t heard the second limo drive up. She wanted to respond to Parker, but the presence of the pilot intimidated her.

“
There’s your paycheck,” said Garrett.

Li
ddie opened her mouth to rebut, but the pilot turned and walked away.

“
You beat me,” exclaimed Parker strutting up to her with a comforting smile. “I hadn’t expected that.” He leaned forward to give her an enthusiastic kiss on the cheek. “Excited?”

Liddie
felt her pulse quicken. His excitement was contagious.

“
I am, Parker, I really am.”

He
was dressed far more casually than she’d ever seen before, and she couldn’t let it pass without comment.

“
Are those jeans?” she asked incredulously. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you out of regular suit pants.”

“
Well, get used to it.” He laughed and spun around. “What do you think? Do I look good out of the office? You should see me on a rip.”

Liddie ignored what she figured was a surfing
term and applauded. “You look great.”

Though
to be honest, Parker didn’t look quite right in jeans. Liddie giggled to herself. His butt was a bit flat. Unlike Garrett, who looked like he was born into denim, Parker appeared silly. She didn’t really want to make comparisons, but couldn’t help herself. Parker, she decided, was built for custom suits and slacks.

“
I saw Joe loading some bags. I assume you were able to get everything you needed.”

“
I’m all set. Thank you, Parker. It’s wonderful of you.”

He smiled and put an arm
around Liddie’s waist. “You deserve it, sweetheart.”

Liddie swooned. He
’d never called her “sweetheart” before. She felt his hand move up to the space between her shoulder blades and slide across the back of her bra.

Parker was erasing all doubts.

“Let me go say hello to Garrett.” He paused. “Did you meet the pilots?”

Liddie wasn
’t sure if she should say much, but decided to go for it. “I met Wade.” She glanced toward the direction of the pilot who was checking something under the nose of the plane. “He’s not very pleasant. He was actually kind of rude.”

Parker
frowned. “Oh, don’t worry about that. He’s old school. Was in the Berets and doesn’t like taking women on trips like this. Don’t take it personally.” He handed her his jacket. “I’ll go say ‘hello,’ and we’ll be on our way.”

Trips like this?

“
You still haven’t told me where we’re going.”

“
Does it really matter, Liddie? You’ll be with me.” He gave her a mischievous wink before going off to greet Garrett.

Liddie watched the two of them
. Parker was ribbing the pilot, like he was an old friend. Just great. Parker liked the guy. They both glanced in her direction, commenting on something that made them both laugh. Liddie suddenly felt like a stripper on a steel pole.

“
Let’s get settled inside,” said Parker, returning to her side. “We’re gonna get going.”

Liddie shook off the anger and uneasiness.
Garrett will be up in the cockpit, and she’ll be able to settle back with Parker. A new world was presenting itself to her in the form of a handsome beau and luxurious lifestyle. She wasn’t going to let anything, or anyone, ruin it.

“
So who’s coming with us?”

“
What do you mean?”

Liddie gestured at the plane.
“It’s huge? Who else is coming?”

Parker shrugged.
“Just us and some staff.”

“
That’s it?”

Parker nodded.
“It’ll be fun. We’ll practically have the whole plane to ourselves.”

Twenty minutes ago, that would have pleased her.
Just before boarding, though, Liddie turned to look toward the nose of the plane. Garrett was standing there, clipboard at his side and sunglasses turned her way.

Garret
t felt a pinch
of guilt for insulting Maxon’s assistant. Who the hell cared if she was one of Parker’s playthings? He had to know if she was one of Parker’s puppets.

He replayed the image of Liddie
stepping out of the limo, dressed like a runway model for the Wall Street crowd. She’d grabbed at the hem of her skirt to keep it down, and then wobbled on her heels when standing. That was not a woman comfortable in such attire, as much as she wanted to pretend otherwise. What about that thick and wavy brown hair? It wasn’t smoothed to silky perfection, as was the style for Maxon family wanna-be’s. No, Miss Nichols was a surprising choice for Parker.

Truth be told, s
he was actually more Garrett’s type – at least physically. Morally, well, that was up in the air.

Disappointment
replaced amusement as he remembered his reason for being there. Could this woman turn into a real problem? Garrett leaned against the plane to think for a moment. Should he call everything off? Maybe postpone things until the next trip?

The consequences of such a decision were too awful to consider
. It’s taken too long to get this far in the investigation. While Garrett had no doubt that the presence of Lydia Nichols was going to make matters worse, it could not be helped at this point. He’d do what he could to get rid of her, but if something should happen, she had only herself to blame.

Garrett
tapped on the clipboard with the ballpoint pen. He couldn’t afford to spend too much time thinking about her. She may, or may not, be collateral damage. That’s all there was to it.

He paused to enjoy the blast of a
nother cool breeze. Drawing a deep breath, Garrett decided that he’d come too far to stop now. He stretched, tucked the clipboard under his arm, and gave a signal to a member of the airport ground crew.

This trip was a go.

Liddie could count on one hand the number of times she had flown
on any plane, let alone a private one. Moving around the inside of Parker’s private jet, she couldn’t believe the difference between flying private versus commercial.

T
he cabin could easily seat fifteen, though the only other people flying besides her, Parker, and the pilot, were two men and a co-pilot Parker introduced as Mike. He, unlike Garrett, was dressed properly in a white shirt, tie and slacks. Parker greeted the other two men as Jerry and Paco. Both were dressed in dirty khakis and acted more like reluctant teenagers than employees, lazily moving to wherever Parker pointed. They ignored Liddie before disappearing through a door at the back of the plane.

“
Where’d they go?”

“
Crew cabin,” explained Parker, before taking his jacket and tossing it onto one of two chocolate-colored sofas. Each had four bright pillows, all covered in an orange and white pattern that reflected his contemporary style.

Parker then
dismissed Mike, who appeared to be about Liddie’s age, twenty-seven or so. The co-pilot politely excused himself and retreated to the cockpit.

“
What do you think?” asked Parker, who plopped down to relax on one of the lush leather cabin seats. They were butter-soft beige and stood out against the dark woodwork that lined the walls of the aircraft.

Liddie
sat across from him. “I feel so strange,” she confessed. “I’ve never been in anything like this before. It’s like I’m sitting in a VIP room at a fancy nightclub or something.” She couldn’t say for sure, since she hadn’t experienced much of that world.

“
A nightclub?” Parker asked cheerfully. “I like the sound of that.” He looked around. “It’s supposed to be the best jet on the market, but I’d like to see more wood accents and a wider aisle.” He smiled. “It’s actually fitting that you mention a nightclub, because sometimes I like to dance.” He gave her foot a playful kick. “You’ll see.”

How romantic, to dance
while flying through the sky. Liddie couldn’t help but look forward to that. As for the wood accents, she couldn’t understand how much more could be added or for what purpose. That, however, was for Parker to decide. It was his plane and his expense.

“
I got a hold of our transportation rep and told him what we’d like, so we’ll probably trade this plane in. Maybe after a year or two.”

Liddi
e nodded, though it sounded ridiculous to trade in an airplane for any one of those reasons.

“
Do you always…”

Parker
’s cell phone rang and he held up a finger. “Hold that thought.”

Liddie continued to look around the plane
, but it was impossible to ignore what was being said.

“
Yes, Dad,” Parker rolled his eyes. “I know. I’ve got it under control.” He paused to listen, and Liddie could hear his father’s booming voice carry beyond the confines of the phone. He sounded angry, but she couldn’t make out why he was so upset.

“
It’s okay, Father.” Parker smiled at her. “Look, we’re already up in the air and on our way,” he lied. “Is there anything else?”

H
is expression turned serious. Liddie got up to walk across what Parker considered a tiny aisle and looked out the window. She didn’t want to appear as if she was eavesdropping on the phone conversation. That was something she never did at work, and she wasn’t about to start doing now.

The cabin door
shut with a slam. It startled Liddie. She turned to see Garrett secure it. While the cabin was large and roomy a second ago, she felt it suddenly become small.

He gave a wave to Parker
, then pulled off his sunglasses and focused on Liddie. “We’re taking off, you’d better sit.”

The sight of the pilot without shades sent an unexpected spark through Liddie. She hadn
’t expected such soulful brown eyes on a man so brash. He held her eyes for a moment, before perusing her body from head to toe.

“
Belt up,” he ordered with a frown. Then he turned to disappear into the cockpit.

Liddie quickly straightened up, and looked at Parker. Had he seen that? The way the pilot
eyed her? Garrett made her nervous, and their mutual dislike was threatening to ruin the trip.

She opened her mouth to say something to Parker about it, but stopped. He
was too busy juggling the phone with one hand while clipping his seat belt with the other. Liddie decided to let it go for now.

There were several places to sit. Two empty sofas, and eigh
t plush leather passenger seats. Liddie decided to settle down in a seat across the aisle from Parker and buckled up. As the engines began to rev, she felt her heart leap. It was really happening. She was being whisked off to an unknown destination with her workplace crush.

She
pulled out her own cell phone and sent a quick text to Melody, making good on a promise to keep her in the loop. A few short years ago, she would have shared this moment with her aunt, the woman who provided her with a familial port o’ call and a place to call home.

Growing up in
a small suburb of Wisconsin, Liddie had dreams, but nothing close to this. It was Aunt Sandy who pushed her to attend college in New York, and it was her aunt who encouraged her to stay and find a place in publishing. Four years of bouncing around from one lousy editorial job to another almost had Liddie returning to Wisconsin. There was too much competition in the city. After temping for a time with the Maxon Corporation, Liddie’s career took a change in direction. She was offered the full-time position as Parker’s assistant, and that was too good an offer to pass up. The pay was excellent, the benefits were good, and she worked for someone who was kind, handsome and generous.

It
’s funny, she thought as the plane taxied to take off, how changing a job could bring about such a change in life. Just look at where this job has taken her.

Into the clouds.

The ground faded away as the plane sailed through endles
s blue and white skies. Once it leveled off, Parker, still on the phone, released his seatbelt. Liddie did the same and walked to the back where Joe had placed all the shopping bags.

As Parker sat, scribbling notes
and listening intently to whatever his father was rambling about, Liddie reached for the new suitcase and placed it on a table between two seats. Bag by bag, she ripped off price tags and neatly packed each new item. The dresses had already been hung on a hook in the back. Somewhere, she decided, in a parallel world, another Liddie was packing her blue canvas duffel bag with jeans and tank tops from a Jersey mall.

The conversation between Parker and his father seemed to be wrapping up. Liddie was surprised it lasted so long. She
’d never been privy to many of their conversations at the office but got the impression that Parker didn’t enjoy talking to Maxon Sr. much. Perhaps he was more deeply involved with the corporation than even she knew. It seemed unbelievable, considering all the free time she had to read books while at work.

“
Where’d you go, Liddie?”

She quickly shoved the last few items in
to a side pocket and zipped the case closed. There were several items Liddie didn’t want Parker to see just yet.

“
Is all okay with your father?” She gathered all the empty bags into two large ones, then tossed them aside and rejoined him.

“
It’s always fine, though you wouldn’t know it to listen to him.” He yawned. “Why don’t you change into some jeans or something? Get comfortable and relax. We’ve got about nine hours to Dubai.”

“
Dubai? Is that where we’re going?”

“
First Dubai. We’ll layover there for about ten hours. Then it’s off to…” He hesitated and smiled, withholding the next destination.

“
Where?” She begged. Parker was so much fun when he teased her. “Come on, Parker, tell me where.”

“
You’ll find out.”

He
got up and walked behind the small bar that stood at the front of the cabin, right before the cockpit door. A few seconds later, jazz music piped in through hidden speakers. He yawned again. “What would you like to drink? I figure we’ll have a cocktail or two and then take a nap. It’ll make the flight go faster.”

A nap? She wasn
’t particularly tired, but didn’t say so. Liddie was determined to be compatible.

“
Maybe a glass of wine, if you have it,” said Liddie. “White, preferably.” Her stomach rumbled, but she didn’t say anything. She’d eat whenever he ate.

Parker
handed her a glass of white wine and poured himself a large brandy. “To us,” he toasted and clinked his glass to hers. “May this be just the beginning.”

Liddie smiled and took a sip of the buttery Chablis. When she lowered her glass
, Parker took it and placed it on the bar.

“
Dance with me?” He wrapped an arm around her waist and held up one hand for hers. “You don’t have to worry about your toes, I’m quite good.”

Liddie lifted her hand to his.

“Wait a minute.” He reached behind her head and unclipped the barrette that kept her mane of hair in place. He tossed it on a chair. “That’s better,” he noted as she shook her head and let the curls fall around her shoulders. He reached for his glass on the bar and took another large swallow of brandy. “Let’s start again.”

After
a few moments rocking back and forth to a soothing beat, Parker pulled his hands from hers and wrapped his arms around her waist. He squeezed to close up the space between them. She felt his mouth against her neck, his nose nuzzle her ear. The dance had been a pretense, a tool to get her into his arms.

She let her head fall against his chest
. The wine and music combined with the heat of his touch and Liddie began to relax. When Parker’s hands began to play at the buttons of her blouse, it became obvious he wanted to do more than dance.

Excitement, or perhaps panic, gripped her. He
was moving too fast. When she felt fingers slide across to pull at the hooks of her bra, Liddie stepped away.

“
I should go change, Parker.” She said apologetically. “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves.”

“
Don’t we?” He smiled and took a deep breath, releasing it long and slow. “Okay, Liddie. Maybe that would be a good idea.” He grabbed the glass of brandy and emptied it. “You go ahead and get comfortable.”

Garrett flew the plane to a cruising altitude and then turned the controls over to Mike, whom he knew was a damn good pilot. The kid, he felt, deserved to get as many hours as possible under his belt. Many men thought they were good pilots, but when push came to shove proved to be somewhat lacking in the decisive qualities needed to properly care for a cargo of passengers. Mike, who Garrett investigated thoroughly, was smart with a good work ethic and Garrett trusted him implicitly.

He got up and walked over to
look out the small window on the cockpit door. Parker was dancing with his latest doll. Garrett watched until the willowy young woman with the massive head of hair pulled away.