20. Jake
Twenty
Jake
“I can’t believe you have to leave soon,” I say, watching as she packs her small suitcase, dressed only in her bra and panties after our long, hot shower this morning.
Taylor smirks at me. “You gonna miss me, Jake Campbell?”
I chuckle. “You know I am,” I reply, winking at her.
She smiles as she stops her packing, twisting strands of her long hair around her fingers as she walks toward me. “I can’t believe you aren’t coming with me,” she says quietly, as she stops by the side of the bed where I’m sitting, a towel still wrapped around my waist.
“God, I wish I was,” I murmur, sliding a hand around her thighs and pulling her closer. My hands move to her hips, thumbs brushing against her hip bones as I lean in and press a kiss to her bare stomach.
“It feels weird to fly without you now,” she says quietly, her hand smoothing my wet hair back.
I look up, a smile on my face. “You going to miss me too, Captain?”
Taylor nods, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth as she looks down at me.
My smile widens, even as my heart thuds in my chest. How is it possible that I’ve already fallen so hard for this woman?
“Call me when you land, we’ll have phone sex. It won’t be the same as the real thing, but I can still be pretty smooth over the phone.”
Taylor laughs, her hand brushing across my cheek. “Okay,” she says. “Sounds good. When are you back in L.A.?”
I slide my hands around to her arse, pulling her between my legs. “A week from tomorrow,” I tell her. “You?”
“I get in the day before you.”
“I’m already counting down the minutes,” I say, pressing another kiss to her stomach.
She takes a deep breath, letting it out in a long, slow exhale. “Are we…” she pauses, swallowing hard before trying again. “Is this…”
I stand, my hands sliding up her back as I pull her closer. “Mmm hmm,” I murmur, leaning down and brushing her nose with mine.
She stares up at me, a look of uncertainty on her face. “But it’s…it’s just us in this, right?” she asks, and I instantly know what she’s really asking me, what she’s worried about.
I brush my lips against hers in a soft kiss. “Taylor, yes, we are doing this and yes, this is real,” I tell her, answering the questions she couldn’t ask me. “And I’m not looking to do this with anyone else,” I whisper, my mouth against hers. “I really hope it’s the same for you.”
Her forehead falls against my chest. “It is,” she whispers.
“Tell me what’s bothering you?” I brush her hair back, cupping her face as I tilt it up. I watch as her eyes search mine, a look of uncertainty on her face.
Taylor shrugs. “I don’t know. I guess I just don’t know where we stand,” she says, slipping her arms around my neck. “What this thing between us is?”
My grin widens. “Taylor,” I murmur. “I pashed you in front of the entire crew,” I say. “I’m pretty sure everyone knows what this thing between us is.”
“Pashed?” she asks, an eyebrow cocked. “What’s pashed?”
I chuckle. “This,” I tell her, before lowering my mouth to hers and kissing her deeply, just like I did when we walked out of the airport yesterday morning.
Taylor’s lips part beneath mine and I slip my tongue inside her mouth, tasting and teasing her, making her moan as her body sags against mine, her arms tightening around my neck.
I pull her even closer, her body now flush against me as I gently suck on her bottom lip, nibbling it before kissing her again.
“I want you,” I murmur against her mouth. “And I want this thing between us,” I tell her. “Exclusive and out in the open.”
She smiles, her pupils dark, and her cheeks flushed. “I want that too.”
Grinning, I pull her with me as I fall back onto the bed. “Good thing we’re on the same page then, isn’t it?”
After Taylor and I have said our goodbyes, I head home to my shitty little rental to do some washing and take care of a few things. I collect my mail, ignoring the large manila envelope with my lawyer’s address in the top left-hand corner because I just can’t face what I know it contains right now.
The house feels empty and quiet, the rooms sterile because I’ve hardly been here since I moved in over a year ago. It’s nothing like Taylor’s place and I suddenly have an overwhelming need to be back there with her.
As my thoughts flash back to the past twenty-four hours, it occurs to me that this is the first time since I started this job that I haven’t spent the day with Taylor. It’s a strange feeling and I’m surprised by how much I miss her. Pulling out my phone, I check the time knowing she’ll be at the airport by now, before sending her a quick text.
Me: got your new co-pilot yet? Make sure you give him hell if he’s late!
The bubbles pop up immediately as I stand in the kitchen, staring at my phone, waiting for her message.
Taylor: Ugh, he was late and a total smartass too…kinda reminds me of someone else actually ;)
I laugh out loud, quickly typing out a response.
Me: Tell him if he tries anything, he’ll have me to answer to!
Taylor: Don’t worry, I’ll put him in his place. I’m not afraid of cocky men…
Me: Don’t I know it…just as well I’m not afraid of powerful and sexy women.
Taylor doesn’t respond immediately, but when her message does finally come through, it makes my heart surge.
Taylor: You have no idea how much that means to me.
I swallow hard, knowing the hurdles Taylor has faced to reach this point in her career. How she still battles just to be taken seriously or to convince people that she hasn’t slept her way to the top like they all assume.
Me: You mean a lot to me, Taylor. Travel safe and call me when you land so I can talk dirty to you while we both jerk off.
A part of me wishes I could see her face as she reads my message, see her response to me telling her something so honest and true. I have a feeling it might scare the shit out of her actually, which is why I add the second part.
Despite our earlier conversation about what this thing between us is, I get the feeling she is still afraid. Either of the relationship itself or people knowing about us. Maybe both.
I know I need to convince her that none of it bothers me. Not her past or people knowing we are seeing each other, or that she is my boss. I’m pretty sure we are getting there; I just hope this time apart doesn’t change things.
Eventually, I grow bored and restless. All of my friends are at work and I don’t feel like hanging out at home or the beach like I’d normally do on a day off. As I sit staring out the kitchen window though, I see a plane cut across the sky and it gives me an idea.
Forty minutes later, I’m walking into the hangar at Santa Monica airport, not exactly sure there’ll be anything for me to do but figuring it’s worth a shot anyway.
“Hey,” I say, as I walk into the office.
Carrie and Charlie both look up at the same time. “Hi,” Charlie replies as Carrie narrows her brows at me.
I grin at both of them. “So, I have a day off,” I start, trying for casual. “Thought I’d drop by and see if there was anything I could do to help?”
Carrie glances at her husband before turning back to me. “Taylor’s not here,” she says as Charlie chuckles to himself.
“I know,” I reply. “She left this morning.”
“So…” Carrie starts, a confused look on her face.
Charlie stands, kissing the top of his wife’s head as he says, “He’s trying to impress her, babe.” He holds out a hand to me and we shake. “Come on,” he says. “We have a group coming in for a session on maintenance in about an hour, you can give us a hand,” he adds.
I grin, winking at Carrie as I reply. “Cool, thanks.”
Charlie and I walk out of the office and over toward the hangar that houses the small planes Taylor uses to teach her students how to fly. The place is empty and quiet as we walk inside.
“We have a class that starts after they finish school,” Charlie explains as we walk over to the planes. “No flying in this one, we just take them through the mechanics of a plane, the importance of pre-flight checks, yadda yadda yadda.”
I nod. “Sounds good. You cool if I tag along and help out?”
Charlie turns to face me, arms crossed over his chest. “You can do the whole class if you want,” he says, smiling.
“Okay, sure,” I reply, shrugging.
He chuckles. “Working hard to impress her, huh?”
I grin. “Who says I haven’t already impressed her?”
Charlie lets out a loud laugh. “Cocky bastard. She said you were like that.”
I raise a brow. “Oh, so she’s talked about me now, has she?”
Charlie shakes his head, even though he’s still laughing. “There may have been some correspondence with my wife,” he says, holding his hands up. “Not that I’m privy to that information, of course.”
Now it’s me laughing. “Right, but if you were, you’d tell me now, wouldn’t you?”
Charlie grins, a wicked look on his face. “Maybe,” he says. “Or maybe I’ll just sit back and enjoy watching you try to win her over.”
I chuckle. “Whatever,” I say, jokingly dismissing him. “I’m pretty confident I’m already winning her over,” I add, running a hand along one of the propeller blades. “Pretty certain she’s unable to resist me, actually.”
Charlie leans against the nose of the plane, his arms crossed over his chest as he watches me, smile gone now. “Just don’t break her heart,” he says, his words quiet.
I stop and look over at him, our gazes meeting. “I won’t,” I tell him. “If anything, I fear she could break mine.”
Charlie shakes his head at me. “She’s guarded,” he says. “Tough and stubborn about letting people get too close to her. But when she does,” he adds, pausing as if to consider whether he should tell me this much.
I cock a brow in question but say nothing.
Charlie exhales, uncrossing his arms and sticking his hands into his pockets. “When she does let you in,” he continues, “she loves hard.”
I swallow as I take in his words, at the insight he’s just given me on the woman I feel intoxicated by. I want her to let me in, to show me that side of her that no one else gets to see. I really want to know what being loved by her feels like.
“Anyway,” he says, smiling as he pushes off the plane and gestures to a pile of manuals on the table. “We’re up to chapter three,” he says, continuing on as if the previous conversation never took place. “You should be able to get through it in the hour. It’s all pretty straightforward, just take them through each section in the chapter, running through the questions at the end together. Try and get them to give you the answers first, rather than just telling them.”
He’s at the door of the hangar now, a hand up in a wave before I finally speak. “Thank you,” I call out. “For this and…” I trail off, not sure exactly what else I’m thanking him for.
Charlie turns to face me, nods once. “She never brings anyone here, you know?” he says, our eyes meeting before he turns and walks out the door.
I can’t stop the smile that breaks out.
The next day, I head to the airport early. After parking my car in the airline’s parking garage, I catch the crew bus into the terminal, heading straight for the lounge. My eyes search the space for my co-pilot on our flight to Singapore, but it’s practically empty, no captains here yet.
So, grabbing a coffee, I head over to one of the seats and wait, pulling my phone from my pocket. I smile when I see the message icon indicating I have a new text. Opening it, my smile widens when I see Taylor’s name next to it. We’d already had a good session of hot phone sex last night, but I was absolutely not against continuing that via text.
Taylor: Wish you were here with me.
She’s sent a photo of her lying in a bed, white sheets against her bare skin as she smiles up at the camera. There’s nothing revealing about it, just her beautiful face and bare shoulders, but it still makes my heart skip a beat, my body hum with electricity.
Me: Fuck, baby, me too…lower the sheet and take another pic for me ;)
The bubbles come up immediately, and I feel myself grinning as I wait for her response.
Taylor: Cheeky boy! Dirty texts, phone sex, and now you want naked pictures??
Me: What can I say, I’m a man who likes to have his woman in each and every way possible…
Taylor: Tell me how you’ll have me when you get back to L.A.?
I let out a hard exhale, my smile widening as I start to type out a lengthy response in very, very explicit detail.
Me: Well, I’m driving straight over to your house when I get in, you should know that. The second I get inside your house, I’m backing you up against your front door. I really hope you’ll be naked already so that when I fall to my knees and put my mouth against your…
“Jake Campbell?”
I look up quickly, turning my phone over so neither the picture of Taylor nor my message to her can be seen. “Yeah,” I reply, standing.
He holds out a hand. “Theo Jameson. I believe you’ll be flying with me today?”
I nod, shaking his hand as I slide my phone into my pocket. “Sounds good,” I say, offering him a smile. “I’ve got all the paperwork here and informed dispatch already,” I add, holding it out to him.
His eyes flick to the folder in my hand before he takes it, slipping it under his arm without bothering to look. Then he nods once with a curt, “See you onboard,” before turning and walking off.
“Dick,” I breathe out, grabbing my coffee and bag and heading out of the lounge. I follow behind him, not bothering to catch up and make conversation, instead pulling out my phone and finishing off my message to Taylor.
It’s long, filling the whole screen with all the things I want to do to her, and when she finally replies, it’s brief, but very much the response I was aiming for.
Taylor: Shit, I’m wet just reading this.
I smile, quickly typing out a message.
Me: I knew I had a way with words Just about to get my flight…gotta go for a while. I’ll call you when I land so we can discuss this in a lot more detail. BTW, do you know a Theo Jameson? I’m flying with him and he seems like a total prick.
The bubbles pop up and disappear for longer than feels necessary. When the message finally comes through, my heart sinks because I know exactly what she will be thinking right now, and I instantly regret asking her.
Taylor: Remember in Sydney when I tried to find the courage to come to your room, but shit happened down at the bar? Well…that shit was Theo Jameson.
“Fuck.”