Chapter Four
Audrey
One Month Later
I normally love to travel, there’s no doubt about it. But my plane changed last minute, giving a smaller first-class section, and since I was the last to book, I’ve been bumped to what I classify as steerage. It certainly gives me far more understanding of how uncomfortable it is to ride in the back of the plane in cramped spaces with loud passengers.
By the time I sink into my seat, clutching a lukewarm airport coffee, and already irritated by a fighting couple two rows behind me, I’m ready for this flight to be over. I have work to do, though, and no matter how cramped my tray table is, it’s going to get done. I’ve worked in worse conditions, and I’m sure I will again. Everything will be just fine. When I feel as if a moment will never end, I always assure myself that in twenty-four hours, I’ll have forgotten all about this moment, and everything will be just fine.
I pull out my laptop, boot up my notes on the little-known bed and breakfast in Beechwood Springs, North Carolina, and try to ignore the thick static of people settling in all around me. I love what I’m doing, love my reviews, and love even more that I get to work for myself.
I’m not sure what number this is on my blogsite, but I do know that I’m getting more views with each review I put up, and I’ve been getting calls offering jobs. I don’t want those jobs; I want independence, and I’m doing this out of love, not for money.
I’m excited to go to this bed and breakfast. The listing said the place has original doorknobs and creaky floorboards. Yes! That means it has character, exactly what I want to find when looking for places most people have never heard of.
I’ve received many letters from excited owners thanking me for putting a spotlight on their business and telling me how many reservations they’ve received. They’ve invited me back for free stays anytime I want to come. I’d love to take them up on their offers, but I have more places to find. I’m helping people, and that feels wonderful. I’ve yet to find a haunted place, but I’m hoping it will eventually happen... as long as it’s not too scary.
I’m deep into my work, effectively having tuned out all of the noise around me, when a flight attendant pauses beside me, holding a clipboard. I look up to see a polished smile on her painted red lips. She looks perky, clearly her first flight of the day. I can always tell the attendants who’ve been dealing with impatient passengers all day long. They’re at the end of their rope with no patience left.
“Ms. Beach?” she asks.
I’m confused. “Yes?”
“We believe some of your personal items may have been left behind at security. Nothing major, but we’d like to confirm your contact information in case we need to mail anything back to you.”
I pause as I gaze at her, wondering what I could’ve possibly left behind. I travel with almost military-like efficiency as I can’t stand misplacing items I might need. I think back, but they did swab my bag at TSA, so it’s possible something fell out that I wasn’t aware of. Maybe their cameras picked up on it. It’s amazing to me that they could figure this out with the sheer number of people who travel out of the busy Seattle airport.
“Do you know what I lost?” I ask before I rattle off my phone number and address. There’s no reason for me not to trust her.
“They didn’t give me that information,” she quickly tells me. “It could be something small. It happens all the time.” She thanks me and gracefully pivots, quickly disappearing down the aisle. That was strange, but I push it from my mind. I have self-imposed deadlines and no time to obsess about losing a travel-sized lotion.
I return to my computer screen and open my chat window with Chloe. We can’t go too long without speaking, even if it’s only through text messaging. We’ve both been busier than normal lately. Growing up sucks.
Me : Currently flying to Beechwood Springs. Smells like despair and peanuts in the cramped back of the plane. Remind me again why I’ve decided to make this my calling in life.
Chloe : Because you love mysterious places, and nothing makes you happier than helping others. You’re also looking for your first haunted place. Let me know if any ghosts get handsy. Sounds like a good time to me. I chuckle as I read my best friend’s words.
I close my computer for takeoff, then sit back and wait. As soon as the okay comes, I pull it back out and text some more with Chloe, ignoring the work I’ve been fretting over. She makes me laugh again, and I’m about to sign off to get work done when I feel my heart skip a beat.
My laughter quickly vanishes when someone steps into the aisle beside me, and I glance up. My ears start buzzing, and the cramped space becomes nearly claustrophobic, something I’ve never felt in my life.
The man I met a month earlier on another flight... Wolf Young... is standing before me, a wolfish grin on his beautiful lips... and he’s wearing the captain’s uniform. What in the world is going on?
“What are you doing here... and why are you wearing that?” I ask, clear accusation in my voice. His grin grows, that dimple more impressive than ever. He gestures at the seat beside me, that just so happens to be empty, a fact I was extremely grateful for a few moments earlier.
“I believe this is mine,” he says, his voice a mixture of smoke and velvet.
I nearly forgot how sexy this man is in the month since I’ve seen him last. I’ve been telling myself our entire first meeting was a fluke and I’d never see him again. With how hard my heart’s racing, I was clearly wrong about that.
“If you’re the pilot, how can this be your seat?” I counter, not wanting to let him in.
He waves his hand in the air. “I’ve got a good co-pilot,” he tells me. I don’t know what to say to this. Should I be worried that the plane is about to go down? This man seems to take away a few cells in my brain.
He lifts my computer, steps over me, then plops down in the seat beside me, his body fully connecting with mine in the super small space. How in the world do people do super long flights this cramped together without going up in flames?
My stomach is currently reacting to this man. The low swoop I haven’t felt since the last time I saw him makes my legs shaky. It’s a good thing I’m sitting. I try to compose my features, not wanting to give him the power of knowing how much he affects me.
“How did you know I’m on this flight?” I ask. I can’t imagine the pilots taking the time to look over the flight manifests of all their passengers.
“I saw you getting onboard,” he tells me as he leans back. “Then you gave me your number.”
I’m seriously confused for a moment before I remember the flight attendant approaching. My eyes widen. “You had the flight attendant get my number.” It isn’t a question.
He waves his hand in the air again as if it’s no big deal. “Minor details,” he says with a chuckle.
“That’s got to be illegal,” I tell him, trying to be irritated. In reality, I’m quite impressed with the man’s persistence. Isn’t this what I said I’ve been looking for?
“If it is, I hope you don’t press charges until we land. My co-pilot will need me up there for that part of the flight,” he tells me.
My mouth gapes for a moment before I laugh. I can’t seem to help it when it comes to this man. It’s crazy. He’s infuriating and charming all at the same time. His appeal hasn’t lessened in the least in the time we’ve been apart.
“How in the world do you happen to be piloting the exact flight I happen to be on?” I ask.
His grin grows wider. “I wasn’t supposed to be on this flight. The captain got sick, and I filled in for him. I think fate has a wicked sense of humor that seems to be working in my favor.”
“Well, that was sure... convenient,” I finally reply, not knowing what else to say to him. How long can he sit here before he has to go back and fly the plane? Is he making all of the passengers around us nervous?
“It seems to be working out. I’m staying at this quaint little place that has rumors of being haunted,” he tells me with a wink.
My mouth once again gapes. He can’t know where I’m heading, can he? I then remember the flight attendant getting my number. She had to have glanced at my computer screen, which clearly showed the place. Would this be considered stalking? Even if it is, do I mind? Probably not. That might make both of us a little crazy.
“Where exactly are you staying?” I ask with suspicion.
“Beechwood Springs,” he says, utter confidence dripping from his tone.
“That makes no sense. Airplane crews stay in the cities close to the airport, like Charlotte or Raleigh.”
“I’m not the crew, I’m the captain. Besides, I’m a fill-in. I don’t have another flight for a while,” he tells me with a wink. “That means I have all the time in the world.” Heat flickers low in my spine with a thrill that shocks me. This man is truly getting to me.
I turn away from him to gather myself as I look out at the people sitting around me. No one is paying the least bit of attention to us. Maybe I’m the only one who feels this electricity zapping all around.
“You don’t give up, do you?” I ask, my voice a bit husky.
“Nope, not when I’m so damn intrigued by you.”
“I don’t do relationships.” We might as well get this out of the way now. “I also don’t take you as the type of man who rushes to the altar.”
He laughs, looking utterly relaxed. “Nope, not in the plans. That doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.”
I turn back and look at him. He intrigues me, no doubt about it, but he also seems just as into me. Of course, that could end as soon as I quit fighting this. Is that what I’m afraid of? Maybe I love the danger of it all.
“Are you going to sit back here and flirt with me for the entire flight?” I ask as I move my laptop a bit closer, using it like a shield.
“You seem busy, and we have plenty of time after the flight,” he assures me.
“You’re assuming you’ll see me when the flight ends,” I tell him, gaining back my confidence. I’ve sparred with him before and walked away the victor. I can do it again.
He simply chuckles as he leans his head back and closes his eyes as if he’s going to take a nap. I want to demand he go back to the front of the plane, but I’m sure if there’s a problem, they’ll come and get him... won’t they?
I turn my attention back to the screen, my heart hammering louder than my keyboard clicks. I can’t concentrate so I open my chat window again after checking that his eyes are still closed.
Me : He’s sitting next to me right now!!!!
Chloe : Who?
Me : Him!!!
Chloe : The hot guy who had you all aflutter from the flight a month ago?
Me : Yes!! And he’s the pilot of the plane so I really think he should be up front, but he’s here! He just slid in beside me like he owns the place.
Chloe : Jump on that man right now. Rip your clothes off, then jump on him. You said you’d go on a date if you saw him again. Forget the date and simply find a bed!!
Me : You’re a terrible bestie with even worse advice!
Chloe : I’m the best friend in the world, and it’s been forever since you’ve had a decent O. Jump on and ride the magic wand!
Me : Who are you!?!
“Tell Chloe I like her thinking, and I want to be besties with her now.” I freeze as Wolf’s words break through my muddled brain. I turn and look at him in horror as he glances at my computer screen. For probably the second time in my life, I feel my cheeks heat as embarrassment rushes through me. I quickly shut my computer screen, even though it’s far too late.
“You do realize that most men would’ve given up when I walked away the first time, right?”
“I’m certainly not most men,” he assures me. “It’s also clear you were impressed enough to talk about me with your best friend. That means you’re as intrigued as I am.”
“Clearly, you’re not most men,” I say, not knowing what else to come back with. I’m not touching the statement about what was said between me and the bestie. The plane hits a pocket of turbulence that has my stomach doing a swoop. The plane then dips, and I reach for the armrest, but get his hand instead. Electricity shoots through me. My breath catches in my throat.
Before I have a chance to analyze what this means, he stands. “Duty calls,” he says in a husky whisper that has me growing hot and wet. He steps over me but looks down and winks. “I’ll see you when we land.”
He finally walks back up the aisle and disappears into the cockpit. I don’t let out a breath until he’s out of sight. Will I wait for him, or will I run away again? I want to keep my promise to Chloe, but this man scares me. He scares me like no other man has ever done before.
I tuck my computer away, all ability to work long gone. The seatbelt light is firmly back on as the plane shakes in the turbulence. I’m too confused and intrigued by a certain pilot to have any anxiety in the flight itself. That shows how much Wolf muddles my brain. Being in his presence feels like being swept up in a tornado. The weirdest part of all is that I seem to love it.
This man is pulling at me... and the strangest part is I want to allow it.