12. Jake
Twelve
Jake
Inside the hangar, I watch as Taylor takes the six girls through the pre-flight safety checklist. She’s meticulous and thorough and exactly how you need to be, especially when training. I don’t say anything, just stand back and watch her in action, admiring the way she runs things. It’s clear these girls have a lot of respect for her too, their attention unwavering as they listen to her instructions.
“Alright,” she eventually says, turning to smile at me. “We have two pilots here today, so that means two girls up at once.”
The girls all cheer as they jump up and down, clapping their hands. Their excitement is infectious, and I can’t stop my own smile as I remember back to what it was like learning to fly. The rush you get every time the plane lifts off, which is always mixed with that tiny bit of fear that it isn’t going to make it.
Then, before I can ask how this will all play out, the girls move into formation and start a complicated round of rock-paper-scissors with each other.
I glance up at Taylor, who only smiles as she shrugs and says, “This is how they decide.”
I chuckle until I’m assigned three girls, with Sofia, the one who schooled me on boy bands earlier, being my first co-pilot.
“Alright, ready to rock and roll?” I ask her as we reach the end of the runway.
She looks up at me, a serious look on her face as she nods once and says, “Punch it.”
I have to stifle the laugh as I power up the throttle and get us rolling. It’s a short runway, but that’s all that’s needed in these tiny planes. Taylor had given me the rundown on where we were at in training, and so far, these girls were only doing level altitude stuff, with me responsible for takeoff and landing.
When we finally level out at ten thousand feet, I turn to my co-pilot and ask, “You ready to take the reins?”
Sofia nods once and even though I will still have full control of the aircraft, when her hands grab the yoke and she squares herself in her seat, I release my hands and make a point of resting them in my lap so she knows she is the one flying the plane right now.
And I have to hand it to her and to Taylor’s training style because this kid is nothing but professional. There’s no unnecessary chatting, no fucking about, she is on point with her technique and her radio calls.
After about twenty minutes, I move my hands back to my yoke as I make the call to air traffic control, asking for permission to land. Sofia hands back the plane to me before settling back in her seat again.
“So you wanna fly commercial planes someday?” I ask as I make a turn and head back toward the airport. “Like Taylor?”
“Nope,” she says, shaking her head. “I’m gonna be a fighter pilot.”
I grin. “I used to be a fighter pilot,” I tell her.
“You did?” she asks, eyes wide as she sits up a little straighter. “Like in F-16s?”
I chuckle. “Yep, F-16s. Is that what you want to fly?”
Sofia nods enthusiastically. “Yes,” she replies. “It would be awesome!”
“You should go for it,” I tell her, smiling. “You’ll have to study hard in school and really like math and physics. But don’t let a bit of hard work put you off because I promise you, it will all be worth it the first time you go up in the air in one of those jets.”
I reduce the speed as we start our descent into the airport. From the corner of my eye, I see Sofia monitoring the dials and checking the horizon for anything unusual. She’s amazingly observant and well-trained, and I’ve got to hand it to Taylor for the fantastic job she’s obviously doing here.
When we finally touch down and reach the end of the runway, I let Sofia steer us back to the hangar for the next girl’s turn. When she finally shuts off the engine, she pulls off her headphones and turns to me.
“Is Taylor your boss at work?”
I nod. “She is.”
She furrows her brow as though she’s deep in thought. “And you’re okay with that?”
I glance over to where Taylor is waiting in her plane to switch out her co-pilots. She looks up and meets my gaze, and I grin and give her a thumbs up. “Yep, of course I am,” I tell her. “Your gender makes no difference to whether you can do your job. Why do you ask?”
Sofia shrugs. “Some boys don’t like it,” she says, a trace of sadness in her voice.
I turn in my seat to face her, a hand on her shoulder as I say, “Sofia, let me tell you something important. And I want you to remember this, okay?” She nods at me, and I continue. “No boy who questions whether a woman should be in charge or can do their job is ever worth a second of your time.” Sofia stares up at me, her eyes wide as she takes in my words. “And if a boy ever gives you shit about it or ever makes you think or feel that you’re not good enough to be in charge, you know what you should do?”
Sofia grins now, and I’m not sure if it’s because I dropped a swear word or because of what she’s about to say.
“Kick him in the nuts and walk away?”
I burst out laughing, throwing my head back at the thought of this tiny little spitfire doing exactly that. “Yep,” I say. “That sounds like the perfect response.”
Taylor and I spend the next couple of hours taking each girl up in the air. All of them are just the right mix of excited and professional, well-prepared and nervous enough that they take what they’re doing very seriously.
After each girl has had a turn and we’ve run through the final checklist when you bring a plane back in at the end of the shift, we shake hands with each of them and watch as they all mingle and laugh while waiting for their parents to come and pick them up.
“Well?” Taylor says, standing beside me, her hand shading her eyes from the late afternoon sun. “What do you think?”
I grin, my eyes still on the group of girls. “Amazing,” I say quietly. “I can’t believe you created all of this,” I add, turning to her.
She shrugs as though it’s no big deal, but I can still see the pride in her eyes. “I wanted them to know that nothing was out of their reach,” she says. “And regardless of your background or your gender, you can be anything you want to be.”
I nod, both impressed and turned on. “It’s working,” I tell her, our gazes locked. “They are an incredible bunch of girls. You should be really proud.” One of them squeals and when I look over, I see Sofia jumping up and down at something. I grin. “And that one,” I say, gesturing toward her. “She tell you she wants to fly fighter jets?”
Taylor smiles at me, and I swear it does something to me as electricity shoots down my spine in a way I’m not sure I’ve ever felt before. “Why do you think I sent her up with you?”
My grin widens as I step closer to her and sling an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into my side. I feel her body stiffen a little before relaxing, her head half-leaning on my shoulder as I press a kiss to the top of her head.
“Thank you for inviting me here today,” I whisper. “I had a lot of fun.”
She pulls back a little, looking up at me. “Thank you for coming,” she replies, a tiny smile curving her lips. “It’s good for them to see that not all male pilots are assholes.”
I chuckle. “Ha, so I am growing on you,” I tease, running a fingertip down the bridge of her nose.
“Taylor, Jake!” a voice calls out, and we both turn. “We’re gonna grab some dinner,” Carrie says, smiling as she walks toward us. “Managed to get a sitter. You want to join us?”
Taylor pulls herself from my arm as she turns to face me. I smile at her as I reply, “Sure, sounds great,” without giving her a chance to question it.
We head down to Marisol’s , a Mexican place at the end of the Santa Monica Pier, where the four of us grab a table by the window overlooking the Pacific Ocean. As much as I love Australia and will always consider it my home, I can’t deny this place is pretty spectacular too.
“So, Jake,” Carrie starts, after we’ve all ordered some margaritas. “Your accent is kinda…strange,” she says, smiling apologetically. “Where are you from?”
I laugh. “Grew up in Australia,” I tell her. “But moved to the States when I was eighteen. Joined the military and moved around a bit with that, so I guess it’s kind of a hybrid accent.”
She nods as she gives Taylor a sideways glance. “And now you’re at Crescent with Taylor?”
“I am,” I nod. “She’s actually my boss.”
Carrie’s eyebrows rise as she takes a sip of her drink. “How long have you been there?”
“Not long,” I say, also taking a sip of my drink, relishing the cool liquid. “Was a reserve pilot for a long time, but finally got a permanent gig.”
“Where are you flying to next?”
I chuckle at the fifty questions she seems intent on asking me, even as Charlie shakes his head and murmurs, “Ease up on the questions, babe.”
“It’s okay,” I tell him. “But next up is Hawaii,” I tell her. “Head out the day after tomorrow.”
“Seriously?” Taylor asks, turning to face me, obviously surprised.
I grin at her, cocking an eyebrow as I reply, “Yep, seriously. Why’s that?”
She swallows hard, her fingers fidgeting with the straw in her drink. “I am too,” she says. “I didn’t realize you’d be my first officer.”
I chuckle as I give her a wink. “Can’t get rid of me that easily,” I tell her, even if I don’t bother admitting I actually requested this flight. It surprised me how easy it was, especially given the destination, but apparently, her original co-pilot wanted Vancouver so he could go skiing. Who was I to argue?
“You ever been to Hawaii?” she asks, her eyes wide.
I nod, still smiling. “I have,” I tell her. “A while ago now, but yeah, I love the place. Great for surfing,” I add, grinning.
Carrie laughs. “Or sitting on the beach and watching all the hot boys surf,” she says.
“Oh no,” I tell her, nudging Taylor’s shoulder with mine. “Taylor here is a pretty good surfer. Gave her a lesson when we were in Oz. She’s a natural.”
“Where?” Carrie asks, a confused look on her face.
I chuckle. “Oz, Australia,” I tell her. “We went surfing together.”
Carrie’s brows raise even higher as she glances quickly at her husband, a small smile on her face as she turns back to us, her eyes now flicking between Taylor and me. “Is that so?” she murmurs.
Dinner passes with a lot of chatting and laughter. Both Carrie and Charlie are great fun and really easy to be around. It’s not hard to see why Taylor is friends with them or why she’d choose these two to operate her flying program with her.
By the end of the night, though, we may have all had a few too many margaritas, and while Charlie and Carrie elect to leave their car, I turn to Taylor and say, “Fancy a walk?”
I watch as she bites her bottom lip again, a habit I now know stems from nervousness. It’s fucking adorable, though, and I can’t help but grin as I once again tug it from her teeth.
“Taylor?” I prompt when she doesn’t answer me.
She glances over at Carrie, but I don’t turn around, instead watching her face as she silently communicates with her friend over whether this is a good idea. Eventually, she turns back to me, her eyes dark as they look up at me in the muted lights of the pier.
“Sure,” she whispers.
We say our goodbyes to Charlie and Carrie, and then I grab her hand and we walk along the still-busy pier. When we come across an ice cream shop, I pull her inside.
“Want one?” I ask, turning to her.
She looks over the tubs of ice cream, licking her lips as she takes in the different flavors. I squeeze her hand, which is still in mine, and she turns to me.
“Okay.”
I smile and place my order before gesturing to Taylor to do the same. We both watch silently as the young girl scoops our ice cream into cones before I pay her, and we head back outside.
“Let’s go down to the beach,” I suggest.
Taylor follows me down, neither of us saying anything as we both enjoy our ice cream. When we reach the sand, we walk a couple of meters down toward the water before turning and now walking parallel to the shoreline.
“How’s the salted caramel?” I ask.
“Good,” she nods, licking her ice cream in a way that makes my mouth dry. “How’s your triple chocolate?”
“Ugh, so good, it’s almost orgasmic,” I tell her. “Here, try some.”
I hold my cone out to her, watching as her eyes flick to it and then to my face. I cock a brow, holding it closer in encouragement as I whisper, “Go on, you know you want a taste.”
Even in the darkness, I can see the blush on her cheeks as that bottom lip once again gets pulled between her teeth. Eventually though, she leans in, and I watch, riveted as she licks my ice cream. I have to swallow hard just to stop the groan from falling from my mouth.
“God,” she moans, her eyes closing. “That is so good.”
I slip my hand onto her hip, leaning closer so my mouth is against her ear. “Told you, orgasmic, right?”
She giggles and I swear her blush darkens. I move my hand up her back, draping my arm across her shoulders as we keep walking. I’m grateful it is dark, actually, considering the growing hard-on I’ve got going on down below.
“Tell me about your time at the academy,” she suddenly says.
I glance down at her, grinning. “You mean the learning to fly part or all the shit we got up to?” I ask, remembering our conversation that last night in Sydney.
She smiles. “The shit you got into.”
I chuckle. “God, where to start,” I say, my mind flashing back to all the stuff we did to our fellow cadets. It was a great time in my life, even being so far away from my home and family and everything I knew. I made friends for life during those years, guys I still catch up with now, whenever I can.
“Okay,” I reluctantly say. “So obviously nights off were a big deal, right?” I start, seeing Taylor nod from the corner of my eye. “And they usually meant we’d head into town to hit up a couple of bars.”
“Let me guess, in uniform?”
“Of course,” I say, laughing. “Best way to pick up girls,” I add, squeezing her shoulder. “But in any case, not everyone was considerate of their fellow dorm occupants when they came home blind drunk.”
“Hang on, that wasn’t you, was it?”
I finish the rest of my ice cream. “Me?” I ask in mock offense, a hand on my chest. “No, of course not. I was a very considerate and respectful drunk.”
Taylor chuckles. “Right,” she mutters.
“In any case, those who did come home, blind drunk and banging on doors, waking up everyone, tended to eventually pass out in their rooms, unaware of what they’d done or what was coming for them,” I say. “Which is why we used to grab the big rubbish bins on campus, wheel them into the dorm before filling them with water.” I glance down at Taylor, watching as she licks her fingers having finished her own ice cream.
I have a sudden urge to pull those fingers into my mouth, suck them clean before moving onto her mouth, her neck, her whole fucking body. God fuck, this woman drives me crazy, and I swear as she looks up at me, the want I have for her is written all over my face.
“What did you do with them?” she asks, our gazes locked.
I swallow hard as I smile. “Then we’d lean the bin against their closed bedroom door and go back to bed.”
Taylor’s brow narrows before it sinks in what happens next. “So when they woke up the next day, they’d get a load of water gushing into their room when they opened the door?”
“Yep,” I reply, chuckling. “Was a great payback, especially as they were super hungover.”
Taylor laughs and shakes her head at me.
Eventually, we turn around and head back toward our cars, both of us now sober enough to drive home. I walk her to hers, wait as she unlocks and opens the driver’s door before turning to face me.
“Text me when you get home,” I say, stepping closer. “So I know you got there safely.”
“I will,” she whispers, staring up at me.
“And thank you for today,” I say, closing the gap between us as I reach out and tuck her hair behind her ear. “It was a lot of fun.”
“Thank you for the ice cream and…” she whispers, just as I brush my thumb along her bottom lip, silencing the rest of her words.
Leaning in, I put my mouth to her ear. “I very much enjoyed watching you eat that ice cream,” I whisper, smiling as I hear her breath catch. I put my lips to the corner of her jaw, pressing the softest of kisses there before I move my mouth so it’s only inches from hers.
“I’d like to cover you in ice cream one day,” I say, my eyes on her mouth. “And then lick it off your entire body.”
Taylor groans and without thinking anymore, I close the gap, lowering my mouth to hers so I can finally have a taste. Her lips are incredibly soft against mine, parting ever so slightly as I brush my mouth against hers, forcing myself to take it slow, to not push it any further than this.
“Good night, Taylor,” I whisper as I pull back. “I’ll see you soon,” I add, smiling as I turn her toward her car.
I step back, watch as she gets in and fumbles with her seat belt before finally getting it on and the car started. She reverses out of the car park and it’s not until her taillights disappear from view that I turn and head back to my own car, my whole body humming with what just happened. With everything that I’ve now just realized.
I am totally head over heels crazy for this woman.