Chapter 38

38

Cody watched Paige from across the aisle, his heart doing a peculiar flip in his chest. The soft cabin lighting cast a warm glow on her face, softening the lines of worry that had been etched there for days. His gaze was drawn to her fingers as they absently traced her lips, and a jolt of electricity shot through him.

She was thinking about the kiss.

Him, too. The memory of her taste, the softness of her lips against his, flooded his senses. He shifted in his seat, suddenly hyperaware of the small distance between them and the charged atmosphere in the cabin.

"You good?" he asked, immediately feeling foolish. He'd just dropped a bombshell that would have sent most people into a tailspin, yet here she was, looking more relaxed than he'd seen her since this whole fiasco started.

And she loved him. The words still hadn't sunk in.

Paige turned toward him, her eyes meeting his. The clarity he saw there, free from the cloud of worry he'd expected, caught him off guard.

"I'm okay. Really," she said, her fingers absently toying with the locket around her neck. The simple gesture stirred something in Cody, a longing to reach out and touch her. He clenched his fist, resisting the urge.

"Lots to sort out, for sure," she continued, "but I can worry about that later. After I neutralize that virus."

"Copy that." The unspoken future hung heavy between them—after he and her team figured out a way to end the Consortium. Or at least deal them serious damage before he disappeared.

The thought of leaving sent a pang through his chest. Now that Paige knew the truth, now that he'd tasted what could be, the idea of vanishing felt like a physical ache.

But he had to leave. Until the Consortium was in ruins, he'd never be free.

As the plane settled into a lower altitude, the change in pressure making his ears pop, Cody found himself studying Paige's profile. Her determination, her resilience in the face of earth-shattering revelations, only made him admire her more. And, he realized with a start, it made the prospect of walking away that much harder.

But wallowing wouldn't help.

He tore his gaze away from her, forcing himself to focus on the view outside. A wide, mud-colored river, thick and corded, passed below them. The Mississippi, he realized, its murky waters a stark contrast to the crisp clarity of his feelings for the woman across the aisle.

They were heading north. If they were half an hour out, he figured they were making for the Carolinas. Maybe the Virginias.

The buzz of his phone in his pocket startled him, the vibration feeling unnaturally loud in the quiet cabin. He fished it out, thumb hovering over the screen for a moment before he punched the message open.

The first few frames of video played automatically, and Cody felt his stomach lurch. Bile rose in his throat, bitter and acrid.

The air in the cabin felt suddenly thick, oppressive, as if the luxury surrounding them had transformed into a trap.

The game wasn't over yet, and the stakes had just been raised exponentially.

His hand shook as he held the screen out, angling it so Paige could see.

"We have a problem."