For His Desire(28)

“Please be okay. Please be okay,” she chanted, the words a mantra. Michael had become so important to her and she had no clue what might have happened to him, about what might have frightened him.





Chapter 4



She picked up her suitcase and headed for the doorway, needing to do something. When there was a sharp knock on the door, she jumped. Michael’s order to not answer her door ran through her head and her heart was nearly coming out of her chest with fear.



“Elena, it’s me,” Michael said through the door and Elena raced to answer it, tearing it open. She was so relieved to see him standing there and apparently unharmed.



“Oh, thank God you’re okay,” Elena said, wrapping her arms around him. Just seeing his face made her feel better and she buried her face in his chest. His scent was familiar and comforting to her and Elena nearly forgot her anxiety from earlier in the evening.



As she squeezed him, Elena heard Michael moan and he winced beneath her touch.



“Oh, Michael, you’re hurt!” she exclaimed. She noticed a faint bruise on his face, but he shrugged it off.



“I’m fine,” he insisted. “It is mostly just my ribs. No big deal. We have to go,” Michael said, grabbing her suitcase with one hand and guiding her out the door with the other.



“Where?” Elena as she followed him. “Back to your place?”



“No,” Michael said. “We definitely can’t go back there. We’re going to my jet. I’ll explain it all later.” Even with his injuries, Michael was moving very quickly and Elena hurried to keep up with him. She saw immediately that the car he was driving was not the vehicle she was used to seeing. What happened to his car?



They piled into his car and Michael picked up his phone to make a call. Elena saw that it was not the usual cell that he carried and she wondered what had happened to that phone – and to Michael.

Elena tried not to eavesdrop, but she could not make out much from Michael’s side of the conversation anyway. She had so many questions, but she held back, waiting for Michael to talk to her. Her lone suitcase was packed and in Michael’s backseat and Elena did not have any idea where they were going.



Elena couldn’t detect anything out of the ordinary about his demeanor now and she heard the words “security” and “danger.” Michael drove quickly and Elena felt her heart racing as she still didn’t know what was happening. She tried to focus on the road ahead of them, tried anything to keep the thoughts from racing through her head as she wondered again what was happening.



They arrived at a runway where a plane was waiting. Elena looked around, seeing only one other car near the runway. Elena knew that Michael owned a jet and she was sure that must be what she saw before her. Michael led her to the small plane and they climbed on board. Where they were going, she had no idea. What had happened, she had no idea. She just knew that she needed to trust Michael, as she was trusting him with her life.



Elena was overwhelmed by the situation and by the luxury around her, but she did not have a chance to take it all in. Instead, she tried to force herself to relax. After all, no matter what had happened, Michael was okay. As soon as he settled in, she would find out what had happened.



It was chaotic on the plane with Michael talking to the pilot. “We have to go. Now,” Michael said and Elena heard the urgency in his tone. She tried to take in everything that was happening and she sat on a plush maroon seat near a window; she looked out but there was nothing happening outside. All of the excitement seemed to be going on right there inside of the jet.



The pilot disappeared into the cockpit and Michael seated himself in the plush maroon seat beside Elena. “I’ll tell you everything,” he promised, his hand in hers. “I’ll feel better when we’re off the ground.”



Indeed, Elena was aware that Michael’s hands were shaking, though he was not showing any other sign of nervousness. Fortunately they did not have to wait long until they were in the air and each moment was spent with Michael looking out the window as though expecting someone to appear.

Elena had only flown twice in her life – both short distances and never in such a small plane -- and she gripped Michael’s hand tightly. He squeezed her hand in return and she noticed that the shaking had eased, though she knew that he must still be ruffled. Whatever had happened had to have been bad. She couldn’t quite read the expression on his face and she decided to wait for him to speak.



When they were completely airborne, Michael sighed and Elena studied him. Whatever it was, it had to be bad. Now that she was really looking at him, she saw his anxiety. She had never seen such worry etched into his face. Once they were in the air, however, he seemed to relax noticeably and even smiled at her, though Elena suspected that was meant to reassure her.