Page 3 of Air Affair

His smoldering coffee-colored eyes sparked with dangerous interest for a moment. Then he shook his head as if to clear it. “You look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”

Oh hell. He recognized her. It was only a matter of time until he realized who she was.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said, heart pounding a mile a minute. “Just let me go, and pretend you never saw me. It’s all a dream. I’m not really here.” Sweat trickled down the back of her neck as she waited to see how he would respond.

He put the flashlight down on the bottom wing of a nearby biplane and stepped close. Their shadows stretched larger than life against the far wall of the hangar.

“You know a high-class girl like you really shouldn’t spend time in an empty hangar at midnight with a guy like me.”

She stayed still and silent, praying he would let her go, though some part of her relished the danger. The heart-pounding rush of courting peril had always held an undeniable appeal for her.

“So why is a nice girl like you sneaking around here like a burglar?”

“Who said I was a nice girl?” The words came out before she could stop them. God, she must have lost her mind to blurt out something like that to a stranger in the night.

“Hmm,” he said with an appreciative smile. “You do look like sin wrapped in silk.” He leaned in, and his breath tickled her neck. Something electric crackled between them, and she could hardly breathe. Then he took a step back, holding his hands up again. “But on the off chance I’m not dreaming, I’m going to keep my hands off you and behave like a gentleman.”

She wasn’t sure whether to flee or lean in. This was all so unreal, and her head was so addled by the heady mix of hazard, attraction, and champagne. “Thank you. I’m having a very bad night, and I would greatly appreciate it if you would let me go.”

His gaze softened. “You’re free to go any time you like, but I really would prefer to take you back to wherever it is you came from. It isn’t safe for a girl in diamonds to wander around at night like this. Where did you come from, anyway? Gorgeous socialites don’t exactly come wandering into my hangar every day.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Your hangar? I thought it was the Belmont family’s hangar.” Oh dear. She shouldn’t have said that.

“Shit.”

And there it was. His eyes widened with realization, and his body froze. She was no longer his mystery angel in the night.

“You’re Aurora Belmont.”

“I prefer ‘Rory.’ Only my father calls me Aurora,” she said, struggling to keep her composure.

“You’re the daughter of August Belmont Jr., the financier who owns the land we’re standing on, not to mention half of New York City. You’re that Aurora Belmont.”

He backed up several steps and stared.

“Yes, I’m that Aurora Belmont.”

“Worse yet, he’s an army major now, from what I’ve heard, which makes him my superior officer.”

She should have been relieved that he was backing away like he’d seen a ghost. Why was she disappointed by his sudden distance? “Are you going to let me go back to my party at the Turf and Field Club?”

He looked like a man enthralled by a cobra.

“Yes, Miss Belmont.”

“Call me Rory.”

“No, thank you, Miss Belmont. I’d prefer not to be overly familiar with a woman whose father could have me hanged for looking at her wrong.”

She rolled her eyes.

“That’s absurd. My father has never hanged anyone. Shot, yes. He’s serving in the war, after all.” She backed away and started heading for the barn doors without him, determined to make her escape.

“On the other hand, anything could happen to you out there alone in the night. I’d better see you safely back to your party even if it does mean risking my neck.” He jogged after her.

“I assure you it’s not necessary.” She picked up the pace.

“And I assure you, it is,” he said, easily catching up with her. “What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t look out for a damsel in distress?”