Ryan Saunders meets the beautiful Annette Lund while stranded at Heathrow Airport, and is almost instantly drawn to her. When she leaves, he's convinced he has lost her forever, but when fate guides him back to her, the truth behind the mysterious beauty begins to unravel.
Will love win, or does her past destroy their chances?
Excerpt
Part of Chapter 1.
Ryan Saunders opened the white, laminated security door with his keycard to enter the public side of Heathrow Airport. He carried his uniform, resting it on his forearm in a neat flexible canvas holder. The company rules stated that he had to change into civilian clothes if not on duty, and as he was about to deadhead back to New York, he had changed his attire.
Not that there was any hope of taking off soon though. At best of times Heathrow was an extremely busy airport, the busiest in Europe, but today the place resembled a war zone. Thick fog, so typical for London, had descended over the area, showing no signs of clearing. He had checked the METAR’s, and the forecast didn’t show any mercy either. Dense fog clung to the ground, preventing all traffic, and was predicted to do so up until very late that night.
So, he had two options; to check in to an airport hotel and wait for the fog to clear in comfort, or stay at the airport, and hope the forecast was wrong. Experience told him that the previous option was the only feasible one.
The mass of people stranded at the airport showed signs of extreme frustration. The irritation of the crowd was almost tangible, and the din that filled the large waiting area carried a distinct note of impatience, of annoyance.
Small groups of people gathered together, and from the body language, and the comments he heard as he passed the irate customers, he determined he was lucky he had changed into his civilian clothes. If he had strutted around wearing his co-pilots uniform, the milling crowd would have probably lynched him. He shot a pitying glance at a couple of female airline clerks who were desperately but professionally trying to cope with the hoards of dissatisfied people.
Need for caffeine made him stop by a café. Surprisingly the queue wasn’t too long, so he decided to join it, thinking he’d buy a take-away for the journey to the hotel. It wasn’t far, but his addiction to coffee ruled his life.
He observed an elderly couple in front of him, trying to decide what to eat, holding up the queue. They seemed to be arguing about the cost of a tuna sandwich.
A frustrated woman’s voice behind him made him turn to look.
“How hard can it be, to buy a sandwich?”
Her face, although frowning, was sophisticated, one of a classical beauty. Symmetrical, a kind of Grace Kelly look with a modern hairstyle; honey color with highlights of lighter, sweet cream - full, wavy, shining, shoulder length and neat, indisputably shaped by a highly professional hair dresser. The clothes she wore were tasteful, a business woman attire - a dark beige jacket, a sparkling white blouse and over knee length, straight skirt. Shapely legs clad in nylon stockings ended in a pair of classy high heels.
Her hazel eyes held a frustrated look as she stared at the old couple, obviously willing them to move on.
“I’m not in a hurry, so please, go ahead.” Ryan gestured with his hand, offering her a chance to pass him in the queue.
Her gaze connected with his, and a smile so beautiful he’d never seen appeared on her face, spreading into her eyes. “Oh, no, thank you so much, but I’m not in a hurry either. Just a little annoyed that people can’t make they mind up before they join the queue.”
Ryan smiled back. ”Well, it’s all this choice that confuses them. If these places only served say, dry doughnuts, we wouldn’t have this problem.”
“My God, wouldn’t that be awful.” She laughed heartily.
“Please, I insist.” He took a step back to let her past.
“Oh, alright. Thank you so much.” She moved in front of him and peered at the selection of salads.
“Don’t mention it. The fact is that we’re stuck at this airport for the next five to ten hours, so it makes no difference whether I stand in the queue for another minute. Letting you pass isn’t that great sacrifice for my personal convenience.”
“Ten hours? What makes you say so?” The woman stared at him, clearly disturbed.
“It’s my job to know.”
She lifted her eyebrows in a silent question.
Perfect eyebrows, he thought. “I’m a pilot.” He leaned closer to her and whispered, grinning,” But please, don’t tell anyone, or I get lynched.”
Ryan Saunders is a pilot and has found himself stuck in Heathrow Airport just like the rest of the masses, only he has access to the VIP lounge, which he is hoping will make the wait more endurable. Not to mention, he has just met the most beautiful woman ever and is instantly under her spell.
Annette Lund is traveling home to Italy for her grandmother’s funeral when she is stuck like many at Heathrow Airport. She happens to meet Ryan in the airport café and they form a connection almost instantly. Yet, she knows that nothing can come of it. She just cannot let that happen.
After going their separate ways, Ryan cannot help but feel that he, somehow, lost out on the great love of his life; but when fate steps in and offers them a chance at happiness, will they both take the chance or are they just left to wonder what might have been?
Mystery and romance, just what I love in a book! The False Identity offers you a trip around the world and lets you in on a ton of adventure and intrigue. Toss in a splash of danger and a steamy romance with great characters and you have a great story waiting to be read. Enjoy!
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