“You really don’t have to be here,” Calista mumbled to Ranya, who sat across from her in the suite. Despite her distress, she felt a comforting warmth from his protective presence.

“And yet, here I am,” Ranya replied calmly. “We can’t exactly turn around and fly back just to drop me off.”

Calista averted her gaze, trying to piece together who could be behind the current situation. “You can fly back once I get to California. I’m sure the jet can make another trip.”

Ranya noticed her sadness and knew it was related to him. While they were heading to the aircraft, he had asked Linn to look into the...