The Mighty Quinns: Ryan Read Free Page B

conversation when she ought to just go back to her seat and sleep?
    “How did you get talked into taking this job?” she asked.
    “I guided Thom on a climbing trip last year. He thought I was the right man for the job.”
    She laughed softly. “I can imagine,” Serena murmured. Thom was a crafty sort, she mused. He could have sent some gruff, middle-aged security sort, but instead, he’d sent someone young and hot, the kind that her four single bridesmaids would find irresistible. “You’re going to be the hit of the party.”
    Serena reached out and grabbed his glass from the table in front of him, draining the last bit of whiskey and water from the bottom. “I’ll get you another,” she said.
    “I’m fine,” Ryan replied.
    “I’m not,” Serena said.
    She crawled out of her seat and made her way to the small galley near the cockpit door. After she filled two tumblers with ice, she grabbed the whiskey bottle and returned to her seat next to Ryan.
    “So, why don’t you tell me all about yourself,” Serena said, pouring him a glass.
    He pointed to the whiskey, filled to the brim. “Are you trying to get me pissed?”
    “It’s a long flight. We have a lot of time to kill. And I’ll get bored if you don’t tell me some interesting stories. I’m just getting you relaxed.”
    “I’m always relaxed,” he said.
    “Lucky you,” she said. “I never am.”
    He pushed the glass in her direction. “Why don’t you drink it, then?”
    She’d already had too much champagne and was beginning to feel the effects of a hangover. But she picked up the glass and took a sip, then set it down. Serena’s gaze met his, and for a long moment, she couldn’t look away. Would she be so attracted to him if she loved Ben? Her heart said no, but there was so much riding on this wedding now, she had to be sure. Letting her impulsive nature take over, she leaned forward and kissed him.
    It wasn’t a passionate kiss. Nor was it platonic. It existed in the strange space in between. She drew back, her face warming with embarrassment. Thankfully, Ryan didn’t seem to be offended by her brazen nature.
    “Sorry,” she said.
    “For what?”
    “I just...” she murmured. “I couldn’t help myself.”
    “Aren’t you supposed to be engaged?” he asked.
    “Yes,” Serena said, frowning. “I am. Don’t you think it odd that I’d feel the urge to kiss you?”
    “I can’t say. Do you usually kiss men you barely know?”
    Serena nodded. “All the time. I mean, I do on-screen. That’s part of the job. But you’re not...” She sank back into the seat. She had her answer. She hadn’t just enjoyed the kiss, she was desperate to kiss him again. And she didn’t want to stop there. She imagined tearing off his shirt and touching his body, kissing him in places that only she could discover.
    She reached for the whiskey and took a big gulp, wincing as the liquor burned a path down her throat.
    “I always wondered how that worked,” Ryan said. “How do you kiss someone when it’s just for show?”
    “Are you asking if I get turned on?”
    He shrugged. “I would think that would be one of the dangers.”
    “That’s why so many actors end up together after they’ve worked on a film. At some point, the kissing starts to feel real.”
    “Is that what happened with you and...”
    “Ben,” she said. “Ben Thayer.”
    “Right. Ben.”
    “I suppose that’s how it started. He was a really good kisser. And I got a bit swept away.” But she’d never felt quite so infatuated as she was feeling now, sitting next to Ryan Quinn and imagining the next kiss they might share.
    “I don’t expect he’d be happy that you kissed me.”
    “Hmm.” She smiled at him. “I suppose not. If you don’t tell, I won’t, either. We’ll just make it our little secret.” She needed time and space to be able to figure out what all this meant, and right now she had neither.
    “Secrets can be very dangerous,” Ryan said.
    Serena took