Chapter 182: Flying Private
Half an hour later, the car pulled into the airport.
In a smaller place like Ashford, a Rolls-Royce would have been enough to turn heads. But this was New Orleans, a sprawling cosmopolitan city where luxury cars were hardly unusual.
Most people barely glanced at it before going about their business.
Then Luca stepped out with Naomi.
Almost immediately, heads turned.
It wasn’t the car that caught everyone’s attention this time.
It was the two people standing beside it.
The man was handsome, the woman beautiful. With their fingers intertwined and their natural closeness, they looked like a couple straight out of a movie.
"Who are those two? Are they celebrities?"
"Look at them. They’re holding hands, and the girl’s eyes are practically glowing."
"They’re so sweet!"
"That woman looks familiar. I swear I’ve seen her somewhere before..."
Luca couldn’t make out every comment, but he could certainly feel the attention.
Years ago, that kind of attention might have made him uncomfortable.
Now, he’d grown accustomed to it.
Naomi was even more unfazed.
She’d been beautiful since childhood and had spent most of her school years as the campus belle. If she cared about every pair of eyes following her, she probably would’ve stopped leaving the house altogether.
Just then, hurried footsteps approached from nearby.
Luca looked over.
A group of formally dressed people was walking toward them at a brisk pace, followed by two large, serious-looking bodyguards.
At the front was a middle-aged woman wearing a white blouse and a pencil skirt. She adjusted her glasses out of habit as she scanned the area.
Her assistant pointed toward Luca.
The moment she spotted him, the slight urgency in her expression disappeared.
A warm smile quickly replaced it.
The group approached and stopped respectfully in front of Luca.
Only then did the surrounding onlookers realize what was happening.
The woman who appeared to hold a high position had come specifically to welcome this young man.
"Hello, Mr. Hale. I’m Stephanie Bliss, head of the cabin department at New Orleans International Airport. On behalf of the entire airport staff, I’d like to welcome you, Mr. Hale."
Luca was slightly puzzled by the reception, but he remained polite. He nodded and shook her hand.
The scene immediately attracted even more attention.
Several people nearby had already pulled out their phones to take pictures.
After all, Rolls-Royces were common enough in New Orleans.
But an airport executive personally coming out to welcome a passenger?
That was something else entirely.
Even the staff accompanying Stephanie were visibly surprised.
Yesterday, she’d told them they would be accompanying her to welcome an important guest.
Naturally, they’d imagined someone much older.
At least fifty.
Maybe even an influential businessman in his sixties.
Instead, the person they were welcoming was a young man who looked barely thirty.
And he was ridiculously handsome.
The admiring looks from the young women nearby were proof enough of that.
But handsome or not...
Could someone this young really be that important?
’Maybe it’s his father who’s the real big shot.’
’Or his grandfather.’
They kept those thoughts firmly to themselves.
When Luca shook Stephanie’s hand, she maintained the perfect professional smile, though the excitement in her eyes was impossible to hide.
She treated him with even more enthusiasm than she usually showed her own superiors.
Eventually, Luca boarded the private jet that had been prepared for him and Naomi.
The staff remained outside, watching as the aircraft gradually lifted into the sky.
Its dark silhouette climbed higher and higher before becoming a tiny speck in the distance.
Only after it disappeared did someone finally speak.
"Ms. Bliss..."
The employee hesitated before asking, "Who exactly is Mr. Hale? Why would you personally come to pick him up and see him off?"
Everyone else immediately perked up.
Clearly, they’d been wondering the same thing.
Stephanie smiled.
"Do you remember the short-haired woman who was with him earlier?"
"Yes. I assumed she was Mr. Hale’s assistant, but she didn’t board the plane."
"Does anyone recognize her?"
The employee who’d asked the question stroked his chin.
"Her identity..."
He frowned.
"She does look familiar."
Suddenly, another employee’s eyes widened.
"I remember now! Isn’t she from Starline Airways Group? She’s Morgan Mertens’ secretary. I’ve seen him bring her to several banquets."
Someone immediately came to a conclusion.
"Could Mr. Hale be related to Morgan Mertens? That would explain why he carries himself with such authority."
Stephanie shook her head and laughed.
"You’ve got the relationship backward."
Everyone stared at her.
"Mr. Hale is indeed connected to Morgan Mertens."
She paused for effect.
"But he’s not Morgan’s relative."
"He’s Morgan’s direct superior."
Silence.
"What?!"
"How is that possible?"
"Isn’t Morgan Mertens the executive president of Starline Airways Group?"
Everyone looked at Stephanie as if she’d just told them the sky was green.
Even her assistant stood there with her mouth hanging open.
She’d only learned about Luca a couple of days ago. At the time, she’d assumed he was merely a minor shareholder in Starline Airways Group.
She had never imagined that he was the person actually calling the shots.
"Ms. Bliss, you’re not joking, are you?"
Stephanie raised an eyebrow.
"Do I look like I’m joking?"
No one answered.
She understood their disbelief.
When she’d first received the order from above and been given Luca’s information, she’d been just as stunned.
Starline Airways Group wasn’t really controlled by Morgan Mertens?
The man she’d always regarded as one of the most powerful figures in the aviation industry was actually working for someone else?
Just how powerful were the people standing behind the scenes?
Stephanie couldn’t help laughing quietly.
’Why am I even worrying about this?’
People like Luca existed in a world far removed from theirs.
Their lives were simply beyond the imagination of ordinary people.
For her, being able to shake his hand today was already something worth remembering.
...
Luca, naturally, had no idea that the airport staff were still discussing him.
By then, he was already stretched out comfortably on one of the private jet’s sofa chairs, with Naomi resting beside him.
That was the beauty of flying privately.
There were more crew members than passengers.
This particular flight had only two passengers: Luca and Naomi.
Yet there were six flight attendants.
Luca glanced around the spacious cabin and couldn’t help sighing.
’Being rich really is nice.’
Then he remembered something.
’Wait.’
He owned an airline.
Yet somehow, he didn’t even have a private jet of his own.
This aircraft had been arranged by Morgan Mertens. It was one of Morgan’s personal jets.
Luca’s expression slowly darkened.
’Does Morgan spend every day living like this?’
He pictured that bastard enjoying private jets, luxury meals, and extravagant trips whenever he pleased.
Luca couldn’t help grinding his teeth.
"That bastard Morgan..."
Naomi looked at him curiously.
"What?"
"Nothing."
Luca leaned back into the sofa, staring at the luxurious cabin around him.
’This level of extravagance is definitely unacceptable.’
’Fortunately, Morgan has more than one private jet.’
A faint smile appeared on Luca’s face.
’I’ll just let this one suffer a little on his behalf.’