10. Grant
Chapter Ten
GRANT
“Grant?” Skylar prompted, waving her hand in front of my face.
“Hmm?” I glanced down.
She looked up, her big blue eyes blinking at me. “You with me here, dude?”
“Oh yeah, sorry.”
Tucker, one of the other pilots and Skylar’s boyfriend, approached. “I have room.”
“For what?” I asked.
Skylar glanced at Tucker and then back at me, rolling her eyes. “You are seriously out of it today.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I just asked you how much room you had for that pallet.” She thumbed over her shoulder toward the pallet in question.
“Oh,” I said.
Tucker cast me a sideways glance. “Everything all right?”
“Everything's fine,” I muttered.
Everything was fine. Except Harley had blown my mind three nights ago, and I couldn't stop thinking about it.
We were both doing a bang-up job of avoiding each other since then, yet I couldn't stop thinking about her.
It was so bad. I even tried to hook up with Layla last night, but I couldn't even kiss her.
It was crazy. I felt like I'd lost my mind.
Tucker peered into the back of my plane, glancing over at Skylar as he straightened. “Let's put half in his plane and half in mine.”
I mentally kicked myself, glancing back and forth between them and offering, “Sounds like a plan. I can't take that whole pallet. What is it anyway?”
“Food,” Skylar replied. “Let's get to it.”
The three of us quickly loaded up both of our planes. When we were done, Skylar smiled. “Thanks, you guys.”
Tucker leaned down to kiss her. “See you tonight.”
I waved and climbed into my plane. My day started out with transport and then handling some local flights. Tourists required a little more conversation usually, so that would make my day easier.
Midmorning, I landed in Seldovia, where my friend Tom was waiting. He smiled at me, waggling his eyebrows. “What have you got today? The store is totally out of milk, so I hope you have some.”
“I don’t know what's in those crates, but probably some milk. Tucker will be here in a bit with more,” I replied.
He grinned. “I'm sure there is.”
He helped me unload, offering, “Make this flight back quick. I'm gonna be late for my doctor's appointment.”
“Am I late?” I asked.
“No. I'm late.” He chuckled. “I was supposed to take the flight with Nora earlier, but, well, I overslept.”
I laughed as I opened the passenger door. “Hop in the front, man. Nobody else is with me for this one.”
“Nice. Can we chat?”
“Of course.” Tom was a regular customer. Most of the locals were regulars.
That was one of the things I loved about my job.
I enjoyed flying and got to fly over the breathtaking landscape of Alaska every day.
We completed a variety of tasks, such as taking tourists out for sightseeing and handling transport for goods and locals.
It was a one-of-a-kind job, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Once we were up in the air, we began chatting on the private channel on the headset, discussing the weather, business, and the like. Tom commented that he needed to pick up a gift for his anniversary.
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah, this is wife number four, but she was also my first wife. So really, she's wife number one,” he offered with a chuckle. I couldn't help but laugh. “Hey, we figured it out in time,” he added.
“What are you going to get her?”
“I don't know. I'm really shitty at getting gifts. I am good at remembering that I need to get them, though.”
“Well, what does she like?” I asked.
“That's the thing. She's got everything. She always says I shouldn't worry about it.”
“Well, maybe you should do something for her.”
“What do you mean do something for her?”
“I don't know. There's that new spa in Diamond Creek.”
“Ooh, I could get her a gift certificate. She could get a massage and stuff?”
“Yes, exactly. They're in the place right beside Gemma's yoga studio.”
I happened to know he occasionally went to Gemma's yoga classes when he was over in Diamond Creek.
“I love this idea. You are good. If you ever settle down, you'll be good at gifts.”
I shrugged. “This was one idea. How long have you been married?”
“Well, if I count our first few years and now…” He quickly did the math on his fingers. “Twenty years.”
“How old are you?” I asked.
He waggled his eyebrows. “Only sixty-four. I figure we can hit at least our fortieth anniversary. I’m gonna make it to one hundred. I have goals.” I chuckled. “What about you? Are you serious with anybody?”
I shook my head. “Nah.”
“All your friends are getting married. Don't you think it's your turn?”
I slid him a look. “Are you serious, dude?”
“Well, no, but yeah,” he returned.
I burst out laughing. “Which one is it?”
He shrugged. “I don't know. How old are you?”
“Thirty.”
“It's about time you stop being stupid. That's when I started to figure shit out.”
Of course, my mind went straight to Harley because, well, she'd come all over my fingers the other night. It had been the hottest thing I'd ever experienced—her in my arms climaxing. Just now, even when I shouldn't be, I felt a stirring down there. That was how bad I had it for her.
I surprised myself with my question. “How did you know?”
“Know what?”
“When it was the right person?”
“I was stupid when I was young,” he announced in his typically direct manner.
“I actually knew with my first wife, but I was just not the brightest guy then.
We were young when we first got together.
I won't say I didn't love my second and third wives, but it wasn't quite the same.
With us, we just clicked. But it doesn't mean it's easy.
It really isn't easy with her. She's the one who challenges me the most. The simple part is the trust.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Just knowing that on a base level when shit gets hard, you're going to be there for each other and have each other's backs. Does that make any sense? We still argue. Hell, when we fight, it’s loud. She's kind of got a temper, and so do I. That’s how we ended up divorced when we were younger. We’ve mellowed now that we're older. Now, when we get going, we end up laughing.” He rolled his eyes.
“I don't think I'm explaining this well, but she's solid for me.”
I nodded slowly. “I think I know what you mean.”
“Why? Got somebody in mind?” he teased.
I cast him a glare. “No,” I lied. “Just wondering. I mean, like you pointed out, my whole family's freaking falling in love now except for Cat.”
“Well, she's way too young,” he offered. “She gonna fly planes too?”
“She used to say she wanted to, but she loves cooking at the lodge,” I stated.
“Then she should follow her passion for now. She can always change her mind.”
A short while later, we landed and climbed out of the plane. Just as he was about to amble off, Tom glanced back. “I think you do have somebody in mind. Don't be stupid like me.”
“What do you mean?”
“Get it right the first time.” He winked before waving and walking away.