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TINA

February, eleven months later

I feel like a walnut rattling around in a mason jar up here in the expensive part of the plane The seats are a little too wide and the flight attendant a little too helpful He took ne and refilled my iced tea three times in the last hour All this subtle attention isn’t unpleasant, but it leavesanony at me

This is what happens when I let my boyfriend buy me plane tickets

Truth is, even flying home seems like an unspeakable luxury Every time I’ve made the trip down to Southern California fro Volvo or a ride that I picked up on a ride share foru with my boyfriend

But here’s the thing My boyfriend is Blake Reynolds

I sneak a glance over at him He’s tall and thin, but over the eleven months of our relationship, his thin has fleshed out into a h that he skipped shaving—and his stubble is a shade darker than the

He’s concentrating on his laptop

It isn’t school stuff If Blake spends e coursework a week, I haven’t noticed He’s doing Cyclone work Of late, he’s been tinkering with things for his dad’s coe part of his life It’s the source of the wealth that had hi these plane tickets without so much as a blink of an eye

Blake has lost hi on When he’s intent on a probleets this look of intense concentration in his eyes—this steel-blue well of determination that reminds ers against the armrest, as if he could vanquish whatever problele, well-placed curse word

The flight attendant brings warmed mixed nuts

“No, thanks,” Blake says absently

“Blake” Just one word A light touch of ainst his wrist

He blinks He co, looking around his surroundings alht back to consciousness He glances at me, then focuses on the ceramic container that the attendant holds out

“Uh, right I changed ht smile “Thanks”

He shuts his laptop, slides it into the seat pocket in front of him, and picks up the nuts He’s not really a picky eater, but he does take his ti precisely the right nut is a rave importance, and pops it in his mouth

“Habit,” he tells me

Habit indeed I canhabits by his wrists

“You doing okay? I didn’t nore you There was just a little fire to put out, and I got sidetracked into…” He trails off and frowns “Son of a bitch That’s whatinto my dad?”

I hold out a hand “Definitely not See? No shaking I’m not scared witless So you’re not your dad”

God, his sht splash of warmth that thawed all my secret fears When he smiles, I can’t help but smile in return

“Besides,” I continue, “I’ve ignored you for work, before, too”

“True” He shrugs “And it’s just a flight”

Just a flight “To you I’ve never flown first class before”

He shrugs “You still haven’t This is business, and it’s basically business lite Domestic business is sketchy as hell”

My eyebrows rise

“I’o, this hat econoapore Airlines first class, then we can talk”

I reach over and flick the pal to enjoy it”

“Oh” He blinks “Sorry Didn’t think of that” He frowns again “But this totally doesn’t count for the month, and you know it”

Doesn’t count I know exactly what he means by that Over the course of the last year, I’ve come to realize that, well…

That I play things really safe I don’t take risks Hell, I don’t even like taking mild chances

Last May, I decided I needed to stretchevery month

Soed two

“Even I would not classify flying first class as a risk,” I tell him “Especially since I didn’t pay for the tickets”

Two days ago, I’d mentioned that I was sorry I wouldn’t be able to spend Chinese New Year with my family We had Traditions, capital T Some were quintessentially Chinese Some were not They were all fun

Blake had looked at me quizzically “You can,” he had said

“But…” My protest had been both half-hearted and ineffectual

He’d called Patty—his assistant, because of course he has an assistant—and she’d booked us tickets before I could squeak out, “coach is fine!”

Here we are

“Even you,” he says with a smile

“No,” I tell hi classes on Monday”

He freezes, then his lip twitches He turns to rin of a man who doesn’t care about schoolwork “Tina”

“What?” I demand “I haven’t skipped class since…”

His lips twitch again, and I sniff

“Don’t leaveYou haven’t skipped classes since when?”

Since senior skip day in high school, and even then, Bethany had to threaten me

I fold rounds that it ht incriminate me”

“Have you ever skipped class in college?”

“I had pneumonia as a sophomore” I look across the aisle “They wouldn’t let ious”

“I thought so” He looks far too aestion You want to do so risky? Invite my dad to join your family this weekend”

Oh Shit All s evapor

ate

I look at hie to his sued about our parents It would be stupid to argue about our parents, because our parents are not capable of change

My dad, for instance, survived a brainwashing and reeducation caanized his escape and our flight froe my parents I don’t stand a chance

Blake and I have been together aled determination on enerated…tension

Here’s the thing So I did, e firstintimidated He’s officially the vice president of interfaces at Cyclone Technologies, a position that he adh a healthy dose of luck and a ridiculous amount of nepotism—naest shareholder Blake is se UC Berkeley, but at this point, he’s raduates

It’s not like he needs a degree He already has more money than God, stock options that I don’t want to hear about, and a ridiculous resumé

So I ith my life!” and what they really mean is they can choose whether they end up a stock broker or a school teacher

Blake could do literally anything He could buy small countries He could rule them, even If he did, everyone would love him

I can see how Blake Reynolds could beto someone who didn’t know him

But his father, Ada to everyone Adaies He stepped down froo, but he’s still—effectively—in charge of the co day-to-day operations Adam—he insists I have to call him Adam—built one of the world’s e, and he didn’t do it by being nice

I have heard stories about the man Cyclone e Reynolds”—and they joke that he has two modes: Crocodile and T-Rex If you’re lucky, they say, you only get the crocodile They love him They fear him

Ada