The Trouble with Flying Read Online Free PDF Page B

accents.
    DO NOT SAY THAT OUT LOUD!
    “I guess I like weird too,” I mumble.
    “And you like biscuits from the zoo—whatever those may be.”
    “What? No, okay, zoo biscuits are not biscuits you get at the zoo. They’re vanilla biscuits with a brightly coloured layer of hard icing on top of them and a white icing animal on top of that.”
    “Sounds healthy.”
    “They’re not. My mom tells me my teeth are going to fall out every time she sees me eating them.” I shrug. “I try to restrict my zoo biscuit intake. It’s tough, though.”
    “You see?” Aiden says, his eyes twinkling. “Intriguing.”
    I groan. “I think I need to get you a dictionary for Christmas.”
    “Oh, we’re exchanging Christmas presents now, are we? I was under the impression our relationship was going to last one flight—two, if we’re on the same plane from Dubai to Durban—and then I’d never see you again. But if you want to get me a Christmas present—” a sexy grin slides onto his face “—we may have to arrange a secret rendezvous on Christmas Eve.”
    My breath catches somewhere between my lungs and my mouth as my brain processes Aiden’s words. He’s also going to Durban? What if I bump into him? What if he really does want to arrange a secret rendezvous? Would I say yes?
    “Sarah? That was a joke.”
    Right. Of course. And there are more than three million other people in Durban, so bumping into him is unlikely. And a planned meeting wouldn’t be a good idea because I’d just have to say goodbye to him in a few weeks when he returns home.
    And there’s Matt.
    Possibly.
    UGH!
    Aiden leans over to pat my arm. “Relax. I won’t force conversation on you any longer than I have to.” He checks his watch. “Only a couple more hours.”
    “I’m also flying to Durban,” I blurt out.
    “Oh, great.” His face lights up. He winks. “If you’re really unlucky, we’ll be on the same flight.”

 
    As it turns out, luck has it in for me: Aiden and I are on the same flight to Durban. Our seats are far apart, but if Aiden has anything to do with it, he’ll figure out a way to fix that. Which means my conversation nightmare will continue for another eight hours and forty minutes. Only … it hasn’t been a nightmare at all. More like one of those odd dreams where you wake up feeling happy and you can’t figure out why because the vivid wisps of dream are already fading, but you know there was something amazing about it.
    “Okay, we’ve got about two and a half hours to shop up a storm before we need to board the next flight,” I say to Aiden as we ride the final escalator up into Dubai International Airport’s duty-free shopping area. We join the throng of passengers pushing trolleys, pulling suitcases, and perusing electronics, scarves, nuts and a hundred other things for sale. Different accents and languages weave through the air around us, mingling with the overpowering scent of too many perfumes.
    “Is it always this busy?” Aiden asks. His backpack is slung over his shoulder, and he’s pulling my wheeled carry-on suitcase behind him.
    I tuck my handbag securely beneath my arm; this is a pickpocket’s paradise. “I think so. I’ve only been here once before—on the way to England—but it was just like this.”
    We weave our way between a group of Americans and an Asian family and head towards an electronics stand. “This stuff doesn’t look that cheap,” Aiden says, eyeing the price next to the demo model of the latest Kindle.
    “It isn’t. At least, not when I convert it to rands.” My hand hovers over a sleek new tablet, but I decide against touching it when I notice the multitude of fingerprints covering the screen. I tuck my hands into the safety of my hoodie’s pocket. “What does work out to be cheaper, though, are some brands of chocolate. So I’ll probably be spending my remaining English money on that.”
    “Good plan,” Aiden says. “I hear chocolate can solve just about any