Free Endless Nights by Karen Erickson Page A

London. Natalie played it cool, but Andrea could hear the disappointment in her friend’s voice.
    She was lucky. Her Vegas fling wanted to see her. Yeah, Declan had made promises to Reagan, but would he keep them? And who knew what was going on with Noah and Natalie…
    Seattle’s airport was huge. Or at least it felt gigantic since she was so eager to see Luke. It seemed she kept walking and walking, dragging her small rolling suitcase behind her, dodging the harried travelers rushing around her. She saw through the giant wall of windows that it was cloudy outside, not that she was surprised. Considering where she was from, the cooler weather would be a much-wanted break.
    After taking the escalator that led to baggage claim and various exits, she glanced around, pulling out her phone so she could text Luke. She had no idea where he was, where he might be waiting for her. Was he in the call area? Maybe circling the front, hoping she’d magically appear? She should just call him but she was sort of scared of hearing his voice purring so closely in her ear. Why, she wasn’t sure.
    Oh, you know exactly why. You’re afraid your knees will buckle and you’ll collapse to the floor. Or worse, your panties will dissolve…
    “Andrea.”
    She whirled around…and there he was. Tall. Broad. Casually dressed in a navy blue T-shirt and jeans, a smile on his face, his dark eyes sparkling. Oh, he looked amazing. She could hardly believe he was standing there in front of her.
    “Hi.” She hiked her purse strap over her shoulder, clinging to it like a lifeline. What should she do? What should she say? Did she have permission to throw herself at him like a lovesick girlfriend or was she supposed to act cool and composed?
    “Come here.” He grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her into him, giving her a lingering kiss. Then another one. His lips were warm and damp and when he pulled away, releasing her slowly, he looked about as dazed as she felt. “We need to get the fuck out of here, and quick. You have luggage to pick up?”
    She shook her head, stepping aside to display her suitcase. “This is all I brought.” Why did they need to leave so quickly? She didn’t understand.
    His smile grew and he rubbed his hand along the back of his neck. “Then let’s go.”
    Luke took her suitcase for her despite her protests, grabbing her hand with his free one as he escorted her out of the airport. He kept his head slightly bent, as if he didn’t want people to recognize him, and she followed his lead, glancing around as discreetly as possible to see if anyone recognized him.
    If they did, they gave him his privacy, and she was thankful for it. He seemed extra determined to leave unnoticed, practically dragging her outside toward a giant parking structure. They took an elevator up five floors, the interior of it freezing cold, and he slung his arm around her shoulder and held her close, his mouth at her forehead as he whispered to her.
    “I missed you.”
    She rested her hand on his stomach, noting the way the muscles tensed up at her light touch. “I missed you too,” she admitted. Damn it. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t make any sort of confession like that and there she went, not even five minutes into the visit.
    “You hungry?”
    “No.”
    “Thirsty?” He pulled away from her when the elevator came to a stop, his hand falling to her lower back as he escorted her out into the garage.
    “Um, no.” What was up with the weird questions?
    “Good. We’ll go straight to my place then.” The look he shot her was full of heat, his gaze running over her quickly, and she shivered as if he’d actually touched her. “You are a sight for sore eyes, I hope you know.”
    That saying had never made much sense to her, but that didn’t matter at the moment because he’d missed her. Looked at her as if he wanted to gobble her up, which she was a big fan of because the man had a very talented mouth. And hands.
    Hands that could