Up for Love in London

By Willow Bonaire

International flight attendant Lauren M. decides to work flights to London in December as a way to forget her cheating pilot boyfriend and their romantic trips together to Paris. But she is not lonely for long when she meets a young, handsome billionaire who sweeps her off her feet and into the penthouse suite of his own luxury hotel.
Will these sexy rendezvous heal her broken heart or will the presents under the glittering designer tree hold only empty promises?
Up for Love in London is a contemporary adult romance, set in the exciting world of international aviation. Written by a former flight attendant, it’s an insider’s view of love and life at 39,000 feet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Willow Bonaire
• Release date: Apr 18, 2014
• ISBN: 9780991930944

Willow Bonaire

Willow Bonaire is the pen name of a former flight attendant. Willow’s personal experiences make her uniquely qualified to craft romantic stories about the lives and loves of airline crews. Her background in travel writing helps to create a memorable sense of place as her Up for Love romance series takes you around the world.

Book preview

Up for Love in London

A Flight Attendant Romance

Smashwords Edition~Copyright 2014 Willow Bonaire

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All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, photocopy, recording, scanning or other—except for brief quotations in reviews or articles, without written consent from the author.

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This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only and may not be re-sold or given away. If you wish to share this book, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1 ~ Champagne Dreams

Chapter 2 ~ Up in the Air

Chapter 3 ~ Loving London

Chapter 4 ~ Dinner and Dessert

Chapter 5 ~ Afterglow

Chapter 6 ~ Anticipation

Chapter 7 ~ His Christmas Secret

Chapter 8 ~ The Morning After

Chapter 9 ~ Now or Never

Chapter 10 ~ A New Year’s Resolution

About the Author

Up for Love Romances

It’s late on Tuesday night and I’m checking my schedule for next month. I’ll be flying to London every weekend in December, which means I’ll be away on both Christmas and New Year’s Eve. How many flight attendants want to be away from their loved ones on those special days? Just the juniors and ones like me that are travelling solo. But I don’t care. If I’m serious about forgetting my most recent romantic misadventure, London is a good place to be. The lights and decorations will be a pleasant diversion, and might help to relieve my post-breakup blues.

CHAPTER 1 ~Champagne Dreams

It’s been two months since Brad and I split and the sting of it has mostly passed. I remember the times we spent together spent in Paris, the most romantic city in the world – our long walks through the Luxembourg Gardens, snuggling on the Bateaux Mouche as we cruised along the Seine or frolicking in the crisp white sheets of our five-star hotel, just a block from the Eiffel Tower. We never had layovers together in London, so I won’t have to worry about memories haunting me. And even though he’s a pilot, I doubt I’ll ever see him on that route.

I’m a bit surprised that I’ll be working in the first class galley, or kitchen, every trip. That’s what I get for drinking while bidding for my schedule. A slip of the finger on the keyboard and you could end up in Yellowknife. And I suppose being a flight attendant for less than three years might have something to do with it. Most senior crew members avoid the galley like the plague.

It’s not exactly a hardship to work first class, though it does require more discipline and finesse. It might even be fun, especially on the weekends, when a more relaxed crowd is on board. I like the British upper crust as long as they’re not too crusty. And if they are, the in-charge flight attendant, or purser, aka my boss-on-board, can soothe their ruffled feathers.

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After checking my mailbox in the crew lounge, I clear security and buy a coffee airside. I reach the gate early, but the bridge is hooked up and the groomers are finished cleaning the aircraft, so I’m free to board.

It’s a super sleek Boeing -777 or a Triple-Seven as we call it. It’s only recently been delivered, so it still has that new-plane smell. I love that everything seems sparkly and shiny. I’m afraid it won’t take long till the crowds in coach beat it into submission. First class seems to stay fresh for a lot longer. Maybe it’s the passengers, maybe it’s the materials. Nonetheless, I’m starting to feel good about being here tonight.

The catering truck pulls up and when the driver opens the front galley door, a blast of frigid air sweeps through the aisles. I quickly press a button to warm up the coffee maker and scoot out of the way.

Before the rest of the crew arrives, I’ve counted the meals, put the champagne on ice, brewed a pot of coffee and tossed two pilot snacks, two bottles of water and a garbage bag into the flight deck. I’m lounging on a sleeper seat when I hear, Good God, it’s as cold as the nuts on a polar bear. Someone call Control Center and get the heat turned on. The purser hardly catches his breath before he grabs me and plants a kiss on either cheek. Lauren, darling, I’m thrilled to see you! Thank Christ you’re working the galley and not some cockpit queen who spends most of the flight on the captain’s lap.

Richard my love, the pleasure is all mine. I give him a big hug. Coffee, double double?

Don’t you know it, doll face.

Richard is my one of my favourite people to work with. We’ve been friends since before he came out of the closet two years ago. Cover-boy-handsome with a dancer’s lean build, he flirts shamelessly with both men and women. I know it will be a fun flight. I bring his coffee and ten crew snacks and lay them out in the mid-section of first class.

Hello, everyone. For those who don’t know me, I’m Richard, your purser for this cycle. Our galley girl, Lauren, has made coffee, so help yourself. We’re still waiting for one more crew member but we’ll start the briefing. Anything you’d like to add Lauren?

Yes, thanks. Please don’t leave any crumbs on the seats and don’t crush the pillows. You’re welcome to any leftover first class food, just wait until after our passengers have finished eating.

Richard examines the flight manifest and then checks his watch. It should be a full flight. Boarding starts in 15 minutes, so let’s review our emergency procedures and tonight’s service.

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It’s show time. Two flight attendants take boarding cards and two more help in the first class cabin, hanging coats and stowing passengers’ bags. I’m in the galley, pouring Champagne into delicate flutes when the captain and first officer breeze by into the flight deck. The F/O pops his head out, but before he can say anything, I tell him their snacks and water are on the observer seat and the trash bag is looped over his armrest. Neither one wants coffee, so I continue to fill the glasses.

I adore the smell of Champagne almost as much as I adore drinking it. It’s a shame we