Free Bought: A Billionaire Romance by Sadie Keynes Page A

warming. With the new carbon taxes that are being introduced in two years it will end up more expensive to pollute than to not.”
    “That sounds wonderful,” yawns Kelly as she goes back to playing with her phone.             
    “Isn’t it time for you to go to work?” I ask. I could really do with some time alone to finish packing so I can get back to reading the project file through for what feels like the thousandth time.
    “Shit!” says Kelly when she checks the time, “OK I’m going, but I’ll be back to tease you about Kyan in six hours. Try not to miss me too much and please, relax!”
     
    ****
     
    It’s almost 8:30am and my taxi is only just pulling up at the airport. I throw some money at the driver and dash into the terminal.
    Dammit, you forgot to get a receipt! Now you’ll never be able to claim it back on expenses. Maybe I’ll just ask Kyan for the money.
    The plane is scheduled to leave in half an hour and I’ll still have to clear security. There’s no chance I’m going to make it on time. I hope Kyan isn’t too pissed off.
    I text Kyan to let him now I’ve arrived and race through the terminal towards security, my overstuffed suitcase dragging and bouncing along behind me. I have no idea what the process is for traveling on a private company jet but I figure I’ll see him on the other side of security.
    “Are you going to Beijing for a night or a month?” says a familiar voice from behind me.
    “Kyan?” I spin around to see him leaning against a pillar his cool demeanor a contrast against my red-faced bluster, “I was worried we were going to be late.”
    He checks his watch with a casual flick of the wrist.             
    “Nah, we’ve got plenty of time. You want a coffee?”
    “But how are we going to get through security on time?”
    He laughs and places a hand on my back, guiding me away from the line for checking in luggage.
    “You’re flying private now,” he says, “We don’t have to worry about queues. Wait here."
    Kyan disappears for a few moments before reappearing with a cup of coffee. I imagine it’s strong and black like he always has it.
    “Follow me,” he says.
    Together we walk around the main line to a small booth attended by two people.
    “Mr. Ellis!” says one of the attendants cheerfully, “Let me take your bags.”
    The process for checking in and going through security is all done in just a few minutes. So this is what it’s like to be rich.
    Once we are done with security we follow the attendants through the terminal and out onto the tarmac of the airport runway. There in front of us stands a jet bearing the insignia of Ellis Energy. I was imagining something a lot smaller. It’s huge!
    “She’s a beauty, isn’t she?” says Kyan, “the company jet. Great for traveling to meetings, even better for a weekend in the Bahamas or anywhere else I want to go.”
    We make our way over to the plane and start ascending the steps to the cabin. At the top of the stairs, Kyan greets the captain and the other flight crew.
    If the outside of the plane was impressive, the inside is even more so. Far from the rows of seats crammed together that would normally occupy a plane like this, it looks like the inside of a luxury city apartment. I feel like I’m entering someone’s home.
    As we walk through the plane I notice a small, plush kitchen and a bathroom with a shower that looks like something out of a five-star hotel. Eventually, we come to a space set up like a living room with comfortable chairs and a huge TV on the wall.
    “Normally a plane like this would seat a couple of hundred people,” says Kyan, “But we’ve got space for twenty or so to travel in luxury.”
    I run my hand over one of the leather seats. It feels as expensive as it looks.
    “Where can I sit?” I ask.
    “Anywhere you like.”
     
    ****
     
    Takeoff goes smoothly and a few minutes I’m looking out of the cabin’s large, oval-shaped windows at the