Chapter Ten Nathan
Chapter Ten
Nathan
As aerodynamic engineers ‘proved’ many years ago, the bumblebee cannot fly! Fortunately, the bumblebee doesn’t know that and goes right on flying.
—MARY KAY ASH
We get reflowed. I should have known to expect it, since our late departure from San Antonio would naturally lead to a delay on our flight to Green Bay.
Crew Scheduling gave our flight to another crew already at the airport, meaning we’ll be working the one they’d originally been scheduled to fly to Colorado Springs.
I’m disappointed at first. I’d been looking forward to eating cheese curds and buying an authentic cheesehead hat that resembles a triangle of Swiss.
But the cool thing is that we’re still getting paid for a 930-mile trip when we only have to work 63 miles.
Plus it’s a beautiful time of year to be in the mountains.
Vincent flies the eighteen-minute leg from Denver to Colorado Springs. Eighteen minutes may sound easy, but you don’t get a break the way you do on longer flights. You go up, then come down, and those are the hardest parts of the job.
I just enjoy the view, and Colorado has quite a view to offer.
The Garden of the Gods is a national landmark and has the kind of landscape you’d expect to see in a fantasy movie.
Jagged red rocks stick out in awe-inspiring formations that are even more stunning against the backdrop of today’s blue sky.
“Are we hiking?” I ask.
Vincent doesn’t answer right away, and I remind myself he’s working.
Some trips are nightmares, with barely a ten-hour layover to eat, sleep, shower, repeat.
You make more money that way, but it’s good to also have trips that feel like vacations.
The three of us have overnighted here a few times together and usually go hiking when the weather is nice.
Though last time I climbed Manitou Incline without them because of Desiree’s bad knee.
Back in the early 1900s, the incline started out as a tram going straight up the mountain. Once it was removed, the railroad ties left behind made the place a gym for some and a church for others. It had been both for me.
Hiking the Garden of the Gods offers a different kind of beauty from relatively flat trails. The views from the top of the incline are absolutely heavenly, but I doubt Claire would want to climb the equivalent of two Eiffel Towers. And I know the rest of our crew doesn’t.
Cap puts the plane down in the kind of landing that will definitely earn him the winning points in our game, and we taxi to the gate without delay.
“It’s a gorgeous day to hike,” Vincent finally answers. “Has Claire ever seen Garden of the Gods?”
“I’ll ask.” I have to do my walk-around of the plane anyway. It’s not like I’m jumping at the chance to talk to Claire. Though we did have a great time yesterday, heart glasses excluded.
Vincent unlocks the door. “Any compliments you get on the landing are my points.”
I pause to scoff. “As if I need to cheat.”
“Only if you want to win.”
Chuckling, I step out of the cockpit.
Claire doesn’t meet my gaze. She stands in the galley, hands clasped behind her back, nodding goodbye to passengers as they exit. No easy smile. No friendly banter.
I nod goodbye to passengers too but guide my eyes sideways to check on their flight attendant.
Since flying here was a quick leg, I wouldn’t think much could have happened to upset her.
And since she didn’t even know who Andrew James was, she can’t be as upset as I am about missing her chance to see an iconic football stadium.
Of course, something could have happened in the previous leg, since I didn’t get a chance to talk to her in the layover chaos that was Denver’s catering and cleaning crews. She’d been in the back with Desiree, which I figured was a good thing. They’re connecting again.
The last first-class passenger exits, creating a lull in traffic.
“You okay?”
She nods but doesn’t look at me.
“Really? Because I could put a soda in a sock and take someone out for you.”
That gets a small upturn of her lips. “I know why Desiree isn’t talking to me.”
My belly drops as if we’re in a barrel roll. Did Desiree tell Claire that she’s trying to save me from another broken heart? That would be humiliating, but it also doesn’t sound like Desiree. She’s too protective to gossip.
Claire sighs forlornly. “It’s because I’m a terrible flight attendant.”
I rock back on my heels. Claire is a people pleaser, so passengers probably love her. “I’m sure that’s not true.”
“I poured orange juice on a woman in a white blouse on our last flight.”
I cover my mouth, turning laughter into a coughing fit. “I’m sure she had it coming.”
Claire pivots toward me, but only to drop her chin and look up with misplaced derision. “There was someone else I would have preferred to dump juice on. But not her.”
A middle-aged couple rolls their bags our way.
The older woman reaches to grasp Claire’s hand. “Great service.”
Claire smiles and sweetens her tone to a lightness that doesn’t match her words. “You’re lucky we didn’t serve drinks on this flight.”
The woman frowns in confusion. Her husband nudges her forward.
I step in to usher her along. “Thanks for flying with us today.” Under my breath, I add, “Learn to accept a compliment, kid.”
She inhales sharply. “You too?”
I’m here to help. Not sure what I’m doing wrong. “Me too what?”
“The whole time we were in Denver, Desiree gave me lessons on service.” She nods and waves to passengers, keeping her tone low enough that only I can hear.
“I know she’s trying to help since they don’t train us how to properly puncture a carton of juice to keep it from squirting like a water gun.
But if I can’t even do that, how will I ever be able to evacuate the plane in a real emergency? ”
I rub a hand over my traitorous smile again.
“And now you’re telling me more things to work on.”
“Hey.” I massage her shoulder the way Vincent is always doing to me. Though her bones are much tinier. “It’s your first trip. Of course you have more to work on. I’ve been flying for years, and I can’t beat Cap at landing yet.”
“Good landing,” a guy in a Rockies ball cap compliments on cue.
“Thanks, man.” I release my hold of Claire to lean toward the cockpit. “You got a point, Cap.”
“Just one?” Vincent’s deep voice challenges from where he’s writing up an indicator light for maintenance.
“So far. That turbulence on the way out of Denver might be affecting the number of compliments.” The turbulence caused by the Rocky Mountains probably also affected the number of compliments I received on my previous landing, so it’s only fair.
Claire’s shoulders sag. I think she’s relaxing, until she continues her previous rant. “I feel as if I’m just annoying Desiree. She’s also introducing me to passengers now as ‘a cute little thing with a boyfriend.’ Like my work is being affected by all the sports stars hitting on me.”
Oh, Desiree. She takes her overprotectiveness too far. “Well.” How do I spin this one? “Colorado Springs is a training center for Olympic athletes. She was probably doing you a favor.”
Claire rolls her eyes, but what appears to be a genuine smile tugs at the corner of her lips. I’d enjoy seeing more of those. As she waves to the last departing passenger, a plan forms.
Vincent emerges to crowd the front galley. “You still here, Nathan? Get outside and do your walk-around so we can head to the hotel.”
I shoot my thumb over my shoulder to motion toward our captain. “See? I still get told what to do too.”
“Yeah, and you should try listening.” Cap barges between us to retrieve his luggage, but I know it’s out of love.
And I love him too. I just feel Claire could use a break from his wife.
I back toward the door and wiggle my eyebrows at her. “Wanna get away?”
She wrinkles her nose playfully. “Wrong airline slogan.”
“Oh, we’re going to get above the clouds without an airplane. Just you wait.”
We arrive early in Colorado Springs, so there are still tickets available for the incline. We only need two tickets anyway. Desiree’s bad knee and all.
She tries to convince her husband to join Claire and me, the way I knew she would. But apparently the air-conditioning in his hotel room wasn’t working in San Antonio, so he didn’t sleep well last night and needs a nap.
I shrug at Desiree, and she shakes her head at me. But she should shake her head at herself for how she’s been treating Claire.
We check in, then Claire and I change into hiking clothes and meet in the lobby to request a rideshare. Once our Uber rounds a bend, the peak covered in green trees with a trail cut straight to the top is revealed.
Claire leans forward to see better from underneath the SUV’s roof. “We’re climbing that?” Though her heart sunglasses make her appear like a cartoon character in love, the rest of her face doesn’t seem as excited as I hoped she’d be.
“Takes average hikers two hours to get to the top. Your toe can handle it, right?”
“It’s not my toe I’m worried about.” She flops back against the leather seat and frowns. “I haven’t been dancing for a year. I’m out of shape. Not to mention the low oxygen levels at this altitude.”
“We can go slow. We’ve got all day and a backpack of snacks and water.” She underestimates herself. She may be out of shape for a prima ballerina, but when compared to the rest of America, she’s fit. “Worst-case scenario, we don’t make it to the top and take the easy trail back.”
“Worst-case scenario, I break an ankle and emergency workers have to climb a straight mile to carry me down.”
I refrain from telling her they already do that almost every day. Rather, I counter with, “Worst-case scenario, one of the firefighters asks you out because Desiree isn’t here to tell them you’re taken.”
She finally grins. “Nah. That won’t happen, because people will just assume I’m with you, the way they did at the Alamo yesterday.”