Free Love All Out - Part 3 (A Stepbrother Romance) by Alice Ward Page A

overhear.”
    I’d planned on filling James in on my evening with Bradley on our way to pick up Matt and Lucas that morning. But Renee had insisted on driving us to the airport, so we hadn’t had a minute alone together.
    “If nothing else, we can talk when we get to our room,” he whispered back. “Just tell me, is it good news or bad?”
    “It’s terrible,” I warned.
    A blonde flight attendant pushed a cart out of the galley behind us. “Good morning, and thanks so much for flying with us today,” she greeted us with a syrupy smile. “My name is Susan and I’ll be taking care of you during the flight. Can I offer you refreshments or a hot towel?”
    “Is it too early for a mimosa?” Matt asked with a mischievous smile on his face.
    “Not at all, sir,” Susan assured him. “I have champagne right here.” She took a large green bottle from the cart, poured a generous portion into a plastic cup, and added a splash of orange juice. Lucas ordered the same and Susan turned to me and James.
    “Just coffee, please,” I told her. “Black is fine.”
    I hadn’t slept well the night before and I doubted I’d be able to sleep on the plane. In fact, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had a peaceful night of rest. So many things were going on all at once, and I was overwhelmed with conflicting emotions. I was excited about the race, but I was too terrified of Bradley to relax and enjoy myself. I knew at any given moment, he could release the pictures and ruin my life.
    But the emotions stirred up by the race and Bradley’s threats were nothing compared to what I felt when I looked at James. In my head, I knew that James leaving the ranch would be best for both of us. Things between us were too complicated to ever work out. But when I thought about my life without him, a suffocating panic spread through my chest. I didn’t know what the right thing was anymore, and I was beginning to think I’d go crazy before anything was resolved.
    “I’ll have the same,” James told Susan as she passed me a cardboard mug. She poured a second coffee, passed it to James, and continued down the aisle. There were only a handful of other passengers in the first class cabin. Soon, Susan had attended to everyone and the captain announced that we’d been cleared for takeoff.
    “Look, Willow,” Matt said, pointing at an airline pamphlet. “Secretariat is the in-flight movie. Isn’t that what you watched on your way to Kentucky?”
    I nodded and smiled at him. “It sure was.”
    “We all have to watch it, for luck,” he insisted.
    We taxied down the runway and the airplane lurched forward, its nose lifting off the ground. My heart dropped to my stomach as we soared into the air. A few moments later, the cabin leveled and the captain announced that we’d reached our desired altitude. The fasten seatbelt lights turned off and the opening credits of the movie flashed across the screens mounted to the seatbacks in front of us.
    “I’m serious guys, this has to be good luck,” Matt said again, tapping the screen in front of him. Lucas gave him an indulgent smile and put on his headphones. James and I did the same and, satisfied, Matt turned away from us.
    I watched the first five minutes of the movie, shot a cautious glance across the aisle, and slipped off my headphones. I nudged James on the arm and he did the same.
    “I deleted the pictures from Bradley’s phone.”
    “How did you manage that? And how is it terrible news?” he whispered back.
    “He went to the bathroom and left his phone on the table. But it was a setup. He expected me to delete them. He checked his gallery as soon as he came back, and cracked up laughing. He’d already back them up on his cloud storage. He said it was hilarious that I thought I could beat him so easily.”
    James let out a long sigh. “That’s bad news all right, but nothing I wasn’t expecting.”
    “We’ve got to come up with a new plan,” I told him. “Last night was