2. Jake
Two
Jake
Taylor and I don’t talk anymore during taxi and takeoff, except to run through the pre-flight checks and calls as we barrel down the runway. Airline protocol is pretty strict about the conversations that take place during what is probably the most dangerous part of flying, and even I’m not that much of an arrogant arse to risk fucking about.
I’m kind of glad she let me do this takeoff seeing as it’s my first in this new role. I wasn’t sure given her pissy attitude when I’d shown up a few minutes late. Was positive it wouldn’t happen after the overshare on being in the bathroom, which had more to do with being a little nervous about my new role and less to do with drinking coffee. Not that I was about to admit that to Taylor. But then she surprised me anyway by letting me run the show.
As we level out at cruising altitude, I pick up the mic to announce the seat belt sign has been turned off and all the usual stuff about staying in your seats, our flight time, expected weather, as well as introducing all the flight attendants on board. This part is so routine, it gets boring after pretty much the first time you fly, so there’s always a little in-flight competition going to see who can slip the cheekiest shit into their mic time.
I’m going to have to try and come up with some gems on this one, just to keep my new captain on her toes a little.
Our flight today is to Sydney and while most of it will be covered by the autopilot, I like the fact that we’re heading back to my hometown for my first flight as a first officer. Even better, we have a three-night break before we head back too. Three nights off means two nights of non-stop drinking and partying. Exactly what I need.
“Well,” I say, flicking on the autopilot and turning to face Taylor, “you officially just popped my cherry.”
Her eyes widen as her mouth falls open a little and I can’t help but grin.
“What?” she asks.
“My cherry,” I reply, gesturing toward the instruments. “First time doing takeoff as a first officer at Crescent Airways.”
Taylor rolls her eyes before ticking off a few checkpoints in her logbook and stowing it beside her seat. “Well, it was pretty good,” she says, not looking at me as she reaches for her coffee.
“Pretty good,” I repeat, chuckling. “Please. That was smooth as silk.”
“If you say so,” she murmurs.
I lift a brow. “I’m open to feedback,” I say, grinning at her. “I do actually take constructive criticism well, so hit me with it, Captain.”
She shakes her head at me, as she aims a well-manicured finger in my direction and says, “You do realize that ‘popping your cherry’ as you call it, is totally inappropriate cockpit talk.”
I nod, even as I have to bite my lip to stop the smile. “Of course,” I say.
She waves her finger around. “And that this stuff is being recorded.”
“What, on the black box?” I ask, knowing that’s the least of our worries. She nods, her face serious. “Well,” I continue, reaching for my coffee. “If the worst should happen Captain Patterson,” I say, “I just want to have it on the record that I’m thanking you for making my first time such a memorable one.”
She rolls her eyes again, before looking away and reaching for the passenger manifest. As she looks over the list, I take the opportunity to check her out, now she isn’t scowling at me like she has been since the second I met her.
She’s actually really attractive, in that strong woman, power suit, take no shit kinda way. It’s actually a look I find incredibly appealing and one that got me into some trouble in my past life.
She’s got this beautiful long blond hair that’s pulled back into a tight bun. It’s so slick and neat that I have a sudden urge to reach over and undo it, watching as her hair falls around her shoulders.
She’s also got a pen stuck between her perfect white teeth as her brown eyes scan the passenger list. When she finally looks up, those brown eyes peg me with a hard stare and I can’t help but grin, wondering what it would feel like to have those teeth biting me or those lips wrapped around my cock.
I have to swallow hard just to stifle the groan. Taylor continues to stare at me as she reaches for the microphone, lifting it to that totally fuckable mouth of hers.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, my name is Captain Taylor Patterson and I’d like to welcome you all aboard Crescent Airways flight CA325 from L.A. to Sydney. Our flying time today is a little over fourteen hours and we are expecting smooth skies all the way Down Under,” she says, ever so slightly cocking a brow in my direction.
Shit, is she flirting with me?
“Temperatures in Sydney are forecast to be 35 degrees Celsius or 95 degrees Fahrenheit, with blue skies and lots of sunshine.” She pauses now, as though she’s finished her spiel, but doesn’t lower the mic.
This time it’s me cocking a brow at her and with a small smile tugging at her mouth, she continues. “I’d also like to take this opportunity to congratulate my new first officer, Jake Campbell, who successfully put on his big boy trousers today and executed a near-perfect takeoff on this beautiful new Boeing 777. Please join me in congratulating First Officer Campbell.”
You cheeky bitch.
The applause of two hundred and twenty-five passengers and crew can be heard from inside the cockpit. And if I was wondering what Captain Patterson looked like when she finally cracked a smile, I no longer have to.
“I knew you enjoyed the ride,” I whisper, shaking my head, even as I’m grinning back at her.
Taylor cocks her brow even higher. “Alright, please settle back and enjoy your flight. If there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask.”
At that, she lets go of the mic and returns it to the console.
“Anything?” I ask, half turning in my seat to face her.
Taylor smiles tightly. “Well, I wouldn’t mind a sandwich and a Diet Coke, so thanks,” she says, waving her hand toward the door as she looks away from me, as though that brief glimpse of her playful side never even happened.
Shaking my head, I get out of my seat. Pausing for a second, I look down at the captain as she studiously ignores me while she flicks through a dog-eared copy of some gossip magazine.
Chuckling, I make my way out of the cockpit. This is going to be fun.
We don’t talk a whole lot for a huge portion of the flight, Taylor taking the first break to get some shut-eye while I run things inside the cockpit, before we swap roles. When I climb into the reclining chair in the crew’s quarters, it’s still warm, the faintest trace of her perfume lingering, and it surprises me when my cock twitches in response to her smell and warmth.
I close my eyes to an image of Captain Taylor Patterson lying back in this very chair, her shoes off, the buttons of her blouse undone, her hair loose. I feel my dick twitch again, as my hand brushes over the bulge at the front of my pants. Thoughts of what it would be like to fool around with someone, her even, at thirty-five thousand feet flash through my brain. It’s not something I’ve ever done before, but it’s a thought that sends me to sleep with a huge smile on my face.
When I head back to the cockpit to re-join her, we’ve still got two hours of flying time and I decide to use the opportunity to get to know the woman I’m going to be spending a lot of time with now that I’ve got a permanent gig at Crescent Airways.
“I brought you a coffee,” I say, as I head into the cockpit.
Taylor looks up at me, a strange look on her face.
“What?”
“I don’t drink that shit,” she says, a look of disgust on her face. “Do you know how disgusting the tea and coffee is onboard an airplane?”
I glance down at the two cups in my hand, mentally tallying the number I’ve already had. “Well, shit, you could’ve told me that earlier,” I say, immediately dumping them in the small trash chute we have.
She raises an eyebrow, a small smile on her face as she indicates the can of Diet Coke she has. I roll my eyes and head back to the galley at the front of the plane to grab my own Coke.
One of the flight attendants stops me as I do, her hand sliding onto my arm as she leans in and whispers, “You fancy some company when we get in tonight?”
She blinks, her heavily made-up eyes and face making it almost impossible to see what she looks like underneath. It’s not that I’m so shallow that I only fuck attractive women, but I’d at least like to know who it is I’ll be rolling over and facing the next morning.
I grin down at her. “Maybe,” I say, even though I’ve got no inclination to sleep with this woman. “Guessing we’ll all be heading out, so who knows what might happen,” I add, winking as I turn and head back into the cockpit before she can say anything more.
I slide into my seat, re-doing my seat belt as I crack my can of Coke and take a long sip. We’ve probably got thirty minutes before we have to start our pre-landing checklist.
I turn to Taylor. “So, first time to Sydney?” I ask.
She shakes her head, not looking at me as she continues to read what looks to be a crime novel.
“I’m from Sydney,” I add. “Be great to go back home for a bit.”
Taylor nods now but still says nothing.
Frustrated, I take another sip of Coke before saying, “Maybe I could show you around while we’re here. All the non-touristy places?”
Taylor finally lifts her head and fixes me with a pointed stare. “What, like the ceiling of your hotel room?”
I grin. “The ceiling, the floor, the bathroom,” I say. “There’ll be plenty of interesting sights, I can guarantee you that.”
She rolls her eyes before turning back to her book. “All riveting, I’m sure,” she says sarcastically. “But I think I’ll pass.”
“Come on,” I say, driven by a sudden urge to find out what this woman could be like without the confines of her job and the pressures that come with having nearly three hundred lives in your hands. Would she still be this serious and uptight, or is there something else hidden underneath? A wild woman just waiting to be let out?
“I promise I’ll make it worth your while,” I add, maybe a little too eagerly.
She looks up at me again, her eyes meeting mine. Her face is unreadable, her stare never wavering, and for just a second, I almost think she might say yes. But then she smiles, a tight smile that doesn’t reach her eyes as she says, “I don’t think so.”
I exhale, a strange feeling of disappointment washing over me. How weird to think just seconds ago I was ignoring the easy offer of no-strings-attached sex from a potentially beautiful young flight attendant, yet now, I’m practically begging my uninterested but very attractive boss to spend time with me.
I shrug, even though she isn’t looking at me. “Okay, well, the offer’s there,” I say. “And trust me when I say I know some great spots to take you.”
Eventually we go back to being all business, Taylor taking care of the landing, while I run through the checklist and radio the control tower. As we circle over Sydney Harbour on our approach, I can’t stop myself from looking out the window at the place I once called home.
It’s bittersweet in some ways, coming back to the city that holds so many good memories but which I said goodbye to so long ago.
The landing is smooth and when the plane slows at the end of the runway, I make a final call to the radio tower as Taylor steers us to our gate. Then I pick up the mic.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to Sydney. The weather outside is a perfect thirty-five degrees Celsius, with clear blue skies and plenty of sunshine. For all the Aussies on board, welcome home and to everyone else, welcome to my beautiful home city. Captain Patterson and I have very much enjoyed our ride up here,” I pause momentarily, grinning as Taylor shoots me a quick glance before adding, “with you all and we hope to see you on board with us again soon. If you could please remain in your seats with your seat belts fastened until we come to a complete stop, that would be appreciated.”
I hang the mic back on the console and finish the landing checklist, chuckling to myself as I catch Taylor shaking her head at me from the corner of my eye.
We run through the post-landing debrief quickly before handing it over to the engineers on the ground. Afterward, Taylor and I both stand and gather our things, putting on our hats and jackets before heading out of the cockpit and off the plane.
The heat of a Sydney summer hits us as soon as we step onto the jet bridge, and I feel a strong sense of calm wash over me. Inside the terminal, the air-con is refreshing, and Taylor and I join the rest of the crew as we all power walk toward the VIP and airline crew customs and immigration line that will clear us through.
None of us have any checked luggage; we’re only here for three days and the expedited clearance through security is one of the many bonuses of working for an airline. Fuck knows how I’d ever go back to flying cattle class and joining the other stinky passengers, with their crying babies as they attempt to sweet-talk a customs officer that’s probably been working since midnight.
As we head out toward the crew bus that will take us to the hotel we’re all staying in, I hear a voice call out.
“Taylor!”
She stops beside me, turning to take in whoever is calling her name. I watch as the rest of the crew also stop and a smiling man, probably about my age and a cute blond, walks over to us.
“Hey, Taylor,” he says. “I thought that was you! How are you?” He smiles widely at her before turning and nodding to all of the crew and briefly at me.
“Dean,” she says, returning his smile. It completely changes her, the way she smiles at him, her eyes lighting up, her face practically beaming. “What are you doing here?”
He grins, tightening his grip on the blond woman. “Getting married.”
“What?” Taylor and several of the female flight attendants practically shout in unison.
This Dean guy chuckles, pressing a kiss to the temple of the woman beside him. “Yep, this beautiful woman agreed to marry me, so…”
I watch the smile fall from Taylor’s face before she forces it back on, turning to the woman and saying, “Congratulations, Kaitlin. You’re a lucky woman.” She clearly knows who this woman is.
The blond grins, her eyes bright as she turns and looks at her fiancé. “I know,” she replies quietly.
“So I guess it all worked out then?” Taylor continues, turning back to Dean. She looks sad now, as though she’s somehow missed out on something.
“It did,” he replies, his grin widening. “It’s amazing what can happen when you least expect it,” he adds.
Taylor nods. “Well, congratulations again,” she says, swallowing hard. “And enjoy your vacation.”
Everyone waves goodbye and then we all turn and continue making our way to the crew bus. Onboard, everyone takes their seats and starts chatting at once about plans for the three days in Sydney. I hear all the regular tourist spots mentioned and even though I know they’re missing out on seeing the real Sydney, I don’t say anything. Taylor sits at the front, ignoring all of us.
When we finally pull up to the hotel, we all get off the bus, eager to check in and get a shower and some clean clothes on. Just as I turn and make my way toward the elevators that will take me up to my room, I feel a hand on my arm.
Stopping, I turn and find Captain Patterson standing beside me, a strange look on her face as she glances over at the rest of the crew before looking back at me.
“Your offer,” she says quietly, her words barely audible.
“My offer?” I ask, just as quietly.
Taylor looks away, a slight blush on her cheeks as she mumbles. “To show me your version of Sydney?”
I study her for a second, wondering what’s prompted this sudden change of heart. Whether it’s got anything to do with that guy we ran into in the airport. “Yeah?” I ask, still watching her.
“If…” she pauses, swallowing hard before she looks up, her eyes meeting mine. “If it’s still available, I’d like to take you up on it.”