PRINCE CHARMING: A Secret Baby Stepbrother Romance (38 page)

At that instant, the aircraft dipped a few feet, surprising them and making Claire forget whatever response she had meant to give her mother. They looked at each other with horrified expressions. Some of the other passengers were whispering.

The plane started moving up and down haphazardly. The passengers were talking loudly and beginning to panic. The shaking continued, and some of the passengers began screaming as oxygen masks fell from the overhead compartments.

“What’s happening?” Claire asked as she looked out the window. She could see nothing but blue and white. Her heart hammered in her chest. The blood rushed to her head, and she could feel it flowing inside her as her palms grew clammy. She started hyperventilating. “We’re crashing!”

“Ladies and gentlemen, please make use of the breathing masks in front of you,” the flight attendant called over the microphone.

Claire tried to remember the instructions given before take-off.

“Come on, girls,” Willow told the girls as she began strapping on the device. Claire could see terror written all over her face, but her voice remained calm.

“Hey, what’s going on?” a man behind them shouted. “Is the plane going to crash?”

“No, far from it,” the flight attendant tried to reassure them. “We are experiencing some turbulence because of high pressure winds in the area. Please, remain calm and do as you are told. The pilot will issue an advisory shortly. Remain in your seats and fasten your seatbelts.”

There was a chorus of clicking as everyone on the plane simultaneously snapped their seatbelts. The plane rocked continuously, and Claire grabbed Amy’s sweaty hands as they clung to each other for support.

“She’s lying. This is it,” Claire said under her breath as she struggled to put the mask over her face. “I should have stayed home.”

“Calm down, Claire,” Willow said. Her eyes were closed and her head rested on the seat. She seemed to be breathing heavily as she held the mask over her nose.

The captain’s voice came over the intercom: “Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We are experiencing major turbulence at the moment. We are going to make an emergency landing. Please remain seated and calm as we get you to safety. Everything will be okay.”

The tension did not abate after the cabin grew silent. The plane made a sharp swing to the right, and Claire swore everyone in the cabin screamed. The screams were unnerving as the aircraft battled against the pressure outside. For the moment, Claire was temporarily distracted from her brooding as she focused on her life flashing before her.

After a few more bumps and jerks, the plane levelled off, landed, and rolled to a stop. Most of the passengers hastened to exit the plane before the captain or flight attendant made any announcements.

“Man, where are we?” a young man, a college student from the looks of him, asked as he looked outside. “This ain’t no airport.”

There were other murmurings to the same effect until an elderly man spoke. “Would you have preferred to stay in the air while the captain found a nice long runway?” he asked the man, then turned to address others still streaming from the plane. “Just be grateful we landed safely.”

“Yes to that,” a woman agreed. The young man shrugged his shoulders and dug his hands into the pockets of his shorts and put on his headphones.

When everyone realized they were all alright, the question resurfaced: where the heck were they? The flight attendant announced they could stretch their legs outside of the plane as long as they stayed nearby and didn’t wander off.

“Let’s get out of here,” Amy said to Claire and Willow. The other women nodded and followed her out of the plane.

As soon as they got out of the plane, Claire looked around, noticing that the airstrip was professionally done, but they weren’t at an airport either. They appeared to be somewhere in the Caribbean; she could make out a forested area behind them with the beach in front. There was a jet at the end of the runway, not far from what she assumed to be a hangar.

“I think this is a private island,” she said to Amy.

“Why?” Amy asked.

“Well, it has to be,” she said. “Look at the layout. If this place had an official airport then that’s where we would be. Not here. This is probably some old rich asshole’s private airport.”

“Makes sense,” Willow chuckled. “I better go find that old rich man then.”

The women laughed, and for a few moments, Claire forgot her sorrows. “I’ve never seen one of those,” Claire said and pointed to the jet. “Wonder what it looks like inside.”

“Probably nice,” Amy responded. “So if there’s a private island and a private jet, there’s hopefully a young, sexy billionaire close by.”

“Amy! You’re one crazy….” Claire laughed, but she didn’t complete her comment as they saw the pilot walking toward them. There were other people gathered around.

“Everyone, I have an announcement,” the pilot trumpeted over the voices. “We had to make an emergency landing on this island for obvious reasons; the owner was gracious enough to respond and allow us to land here. He will accommodate us until we can get back into the skies. In the meantime, stay close. Don’t wander around and get into trouble. We don’t want to leave anyone behind.”

“How long will we be here?” an old woman asked. “Someone was expecting me in Castries by a certain time. I need to get to my appointment.”

“Ma’am, I cannot tell you that with any certainty, but I’ll get you to your destination as soon as it’s safe to fly. I do apologize for any inconvenience, but this is out of my control. Once the weather clears and I am sure our plane is safe to fly, we’ll continue to our destination.” He smiled at her and joined the flight attendants in discussion a few yards off.

“Great! We’re stuck on a stupid island,” Claire said as she folded her arms. “Why can’t things ever work out in my favor?”

“Hey, it’s not like you were in a hurry, right? Let’s look around. Maybe we will find something interesting. Or someone interesting.” Amy said. “Come on, be glad we’re all alive.”

“I guess so,” Claire said.

“You want to explore the island?” Amy asked.

“Why not? You coming, Mom?” she asked Willow.

“No, I think I’ll stay here for a while. You girls go ahead.”

The island was beautiful, lined with coconut and palm trees as far as the eye could see. A path led them to an incline, and they lowered their heads as they wound their way into the mini-jungle. Not far up the path, they spotted a couple making out, and Amy hurried Claire so she wouldn’t start moping again.

“You didn’t need to do that,” Claire said when they passed the pair. “It’s not like I care.”

“Do what?” Amy asked innocently.

Claire rolled her eyes at her. “I might be hurting, but it’s not like I begrudge anyone else their happiness.”

“I didn’t do anything. Okay fine, I’m sorry,” she said and laughed. “But look, we’re almost at the top.”

Claire followed closely behind Amy, appreciating the beauty around her along the trail. From the top, they could make out the expanse of the beach front, and to the north they noticed a stone pathway that led to one of the biggest houses they had ever seen.

“Now that’s a house,” Amy said and whistled. “A house and a half.”

“More like a mansion,” Claire said. She stared at the building that towered to the sky. It was white with a modern look about it. Its balcony faced the sea, and a wide and evenly manicured lawn surrounded it.

“I bet there is a pool or Jacuzzi or something up there,” Amy said dreamily. “Should we go find out?”

“We are not going up there,” Claire said as she tugged her friend’s arm. “We don’t even know who they are.”

“They can’t be too bad; they let us land on their island,” she said as she attempted to free herself.

“No,” Claire said and held her arm firmly. Her eyes involuntarily looked up, and she relaxed her hold on Amy.

“What?” She followed Claire’s line of sight.

On the balcony stood a man. He had golden hair and perfect skin that glistened in the sun. He gripped the railing with both hands, and she could make out his muscles against the black, tight shirt he wore. White shorts completed his outfit. He relaxed on the rails and looked around, and Claire found it utterly impossible to turn her eyes away. He caught sight of her, and she blushed as she grabbed Amy’s hand and hurried back to the beach.

CHAPTER 4

“What was that all about?” Amy asked as Claire tugged on her like a rag doll.

“Nothing. I just felt like I was intruding.” Her excuse didn’t even fool herself.

“Sure,” Amy said and folded her arms across her chest.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Claire said, blushing.

“I could see him just as easily as you,” Amy said, her eyes lighting up. “There is nothing to be ashamed of. He is hot!”

“Well, maybe you could go back and find out if he thinks the same about you, but I want nothing to do with men, no matter how hot they are,” Claire commented defensively.

“Oh, so you do admit he is hot, huh?” Amy said as she nudged her playfully on the shoulder.

“He is kinda cute, but that’s it,” Claire blushed and walked back to the plane. “Let’s go back and see if there have been any updates.”

The entire time it took them to get back to the plane, Amy messed with Claire, but she refused to entertain her.

“Why don’t you go after him? But then, that doesn’t make any sense. We are leaving by morning,” Claire said. She put her hands over her eyes as she squinted against the afternoon sun and looked further into the distance. “Do you see Mom?”

Amy also put a hand up to shield her eyes as they looked around, but there was no sign of Willow. “I thought she wanted to stay here.”

“That’s Mom for you. Changes her mind on a whim,” Claire responded. “Let’s look over there.”

Amy followed her to the other side of the aircraft, but Willow was nowhere to be found.

“Well, she couldn’t have gone far,” Amy commented. “It is a small island, after all.”

Claire was listening to her friend, but she had her eyes peeled for her mother. “I think that’s her,” she finally said. “But why is she that far away from…” Her words caught in her throat when she saw her mother was in the company of a man. She was laughing and blushing, and his hand was resting on her shoulder in a most comfortable way.

“Well, well, well,” Amy said. “Seems your mom has more nerve than you!”

“Shut up, Amy,” Claire said. “She didn’t just get jilted before her wedding. I’m out of here.”

“I’m sorry, Claire. That was insensitive of me. Wait for me.”

As Claire turned around to walk away from Amy, she noticed someone approaching them. The same man they had seen on the balcony.

“And the day keeps getting more and more interesting,” Amy murmured as she caught up to Claire and fluffed her brown hair. It caught on her shoulders and had a nice bounce to it, especially when she flicked her neck ever so lightly. Like she was doing now.

There was no denying the man was devastatingly handsome; his hands were still in his pockets, and as he neared them, she could make out eyes as blue as the ocean. When he was a few feet away, he smiled, boasting two rows of perfectly shaped teeth smack dab between two of the cutest dimples she had ever seen.

“Hi,” he said. His right hand left his pocket as he extended it to the girls.

Claire looked at it like it was a strange thing to do, but Amy quickly took it. “Amy,” she said as she batted her lashes at him.

“And you are?” he asked, looking at Claire.

“Do you personally meet and greet everyone who stops on your island?” Claire asked him.

“It’s the polite thing to do, wouldn’t you say?” he asked her as he held out his hand again. “I’ve already met almost everyone. My name’s Chance.”

“Claire,” she told him, taking his hand. She flinched like she had been burned by his touch and retracted her hand quickly. “So, do you live here?”

“Here and there,” he said casually, like it was a commonplace thing to do.

“Where’s there?” Amy asked him. “Where are we, by the way?”

“In the Caribbean, just below the Bahamas,” he told her. “Like I said, here and there.”

“It seems you have quite a few admirers,” Claire said, gesturing to the girls hanging further back, staring at him.

“I usually do. What can I say? I’m irresistible,” he joked as he turned and waved to the girls staring at him. As he turned to look at her again, he caught her eyes and held her gaze until she felt naked. She lowered her head and blinked several times as she tried to block his hypnosis.

“Well, it was nice of you to let us land on your island,” she told him. “I was looking for my mom, and I found her. I think we should go back.”

“Go back to what? There is nothing to do there. If you like, I could show you around. Play pool or other games?”

It sounded suggestive the way he said it, and though Amy was pushing her to go, she had reservations.

“I’ll pass,” she told him. “I’m not in the mood for dice and cards.”

“Come on, take a chance,” he cajoled. “I noticed you when you took a walk by the house, and I know you’re the kind of girl that likes games.”