Chapter 17
GWEN
Sitting in a cockpit was a totally new experience for me, and I wasn’t sure I liked it.
And worse, we hadn’t even left the ground yet.
Watching Harrison go through all of the pre-flight prep had me stressing out, big time.
Even though I knew he had his pilot’s license, he still hadn’t answered my question about how often he flew.
And there were so many damn buttons, knobs, and screens on the control panel in front of us.
Any one of them could malfunction and send us crashing back to earth.
I had to tape a note on the bottom of my alarm clock to remind me how to reset it for daylight savings time, and that was a hell of a lot less complicated than this. If Harrison only flew occasionally, did he really remember what every button and lever did?
I much preferred being in a seat in the back, where I could pretend it was magic that got us to our destination, not a human who might sneeze at the wrong moment and fly us into a mountain. I didn’t like seeing how the sausage was made.
“Stop,” Harrison scolded me.
“Stop what?”
He nodded to my hands, and I immediately stopped picking at my cuticles.
“You’re scared,” he said as he continued his pre-fight process. “But you shouldn’t be. There’s no reason to worry.”
“Can you give me a little credit?” I griped. “I’m getting used to this new version of you. Harrison Ashford, pilot.”
“I’ve been a pilot since I was eighteen,” he pointed out. “You’ve literally never known any version of me who wasn’t a pilot.”
“Yeah, well, no version of you has ever been a pilot of a plane I’ve been on before.”
Harrison paused with his hand on a lever and studied my face. “Do you not want to do this?”
I considered the question. Yeah, part of me wanted to rip off the safety harness and run.
On the other hand, there was also a part of me that was enjoying watching him in his element.
I couldn’t deny that the man looked more than competent as he got ready to take off.
And beyond that, he looked happy, primed and ready to do something he loved.
He also looked sexy as hell, but that was normal.
Harrison seemed to be following a well-established pre-flight routine, along with a few superstitious behaviors thrown in, like the brief pat on the body of the plane before we boarded and the way he referred to it like a pet and not a piece of machinery.
I actually heard him mutter “atta girl” after pushing a button and getting a beep in response.
I tried to force myself to relax, which didn’t help at all.
But then…then he slid on his headset and started speaking a different language to the control tower. And we started to move.
“Last chance to bail,” he joked as we headed for the runway. “I can drop you off right here.”
Harrison was always a commanding presence, but this version of him was next level. I was in awe of him as he took control of the gorgeous jet, which I’d barely had a chance to check out before taking my seat in the cockpit. He was as casual as if he was steering his car onto the 101.
I focused on his hands as a way to ignore the fact that we were moving faster and faster down the runway. Big hands, slightly tanned, with short, tidy nails. Competent hands. Hands that knew what they were doing.
No matter whose buttons he was pushing.
I squeezed my eyes shut at the memory of Harrison’s fingers dancing between my legs. With that thought taking over my mind, I was definitely less worried about the fact that the wheels were lifting off the runway, but now I was stuck in an endless loop of horny memories.
Like Harrison clasping my wrists and pinning them to the bed above my head, then making me beg him not to stop. Harrison dropping to his knees in front of me and taking all of four minutes to make me come on his tongue. Harrison inventing positions that would put the Kama Sutra to shame.
The rapid change in cabin pressure forced me to refocus on the fact that we were in the air, and it was all Harrison’s fault.
“Look, there’s the office,” Harrison said as he pointed out the window at the gleaming city below us. “Would you rather be there? Or here with me?”
We were leveling off, surrounded by clouds. I was still freaked out, but that didn’t change my answer. There was nowhere I wanted to be more than right beside him.
“Okay, I admit it. This is nice.”
“Nice?” Harrison pretended to be indignant. “That’s it, I give up.”
He took his hands off the steering wheel thingy and held them up.
“Harrison,” I clutched the armrests and screamed. “Don’t!”
“We’re fine,” he chuckled. “Don’t worry, George’s got us covered.”
“Who’s George?” I demanded.
“That’s what we call the autopilot system,” Harrison said. “Gwen, we’re all good. I’d never let anything happen to you. I promise.”
He reached over to give my hand a squeeze, and suddenly I was having an amazing time.
“So what do you think of the new baby?” I gestured around the cockpit.
“She’s absolutely perfect. An incredible addition to our fleet.”
“Are you bonded yet?” I teased.
Harrison cocked an eyebrow at me. “We’re getting there.”
Hold on. Which “we” was he referring to? Was there subtext to his comment, or was that just wishful thinking on my part?
I looked out the window at the transforming landscape below us. The crowded city faded away behind us as our view opened up to mountains with dots of green. The bright sky stretched on for so far that I wondered if the tiny buildings in the distance were the skyscrapers of San Francisco.
“It’s not the best landscape,” Harrison said, apologetic.
“No, it’s beautiful,” I argued. “I’m awestruck.”
I felt Harrison watching me. “Maybe we’ll take one of the smaller jets out sometime, and I’ll fly us along the coast. Now those are some impressive views.”
“I’d like that,” I said softly.
But would it be business or pleasure? Because it sure felt like we were veering closer to date territory than anything work-related.
“You want to try it?” Harrison nodded toward the steering apparatus in front of me. “Flying?”
“No!” I squeaked out, shocked and horrified at the suggestion. “Absolutely not!”
“Aw, come on. You can do anything. You’re Gwen Fucking Ackland, certified badass. I’ve seen it firsthand,” Harrison said, taking his eyes off the horizon to stare at me, which made me nervous for a bunch of reasons. “You make the impossible happen. I bet you could even land this thing.”
I shrieked out a laugh. “Uh, no freaking way. You’re lucky I’m even sitting here.”
“Yeah,” Harrison rumbled. “I am.”
I wasn’t mistaking it. He wanted me too.
“You look good as first officer,” he said softly.
I wasn’t about to let the opportunity to flirt back pass me by.
“You look good as a pilot,” I replied. “I’m impressed.”
“Seriously?” Harrison asked. “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say that.”
“Oh, come on,” I leaned over to punch his unsurprisingly hard bicep. “I said it after your After Dark appearance! I’m sure I’ve told you that a few times.”
He smiled. “Maybe I just like hearing it.”
“You like it when I stroke your ego, bossman?” I teased.
He raised an eyebrow but didn’t answer right away. Yeah, talking about stroking anything definitely put us in dicey territory, and I sort of wanted to punch myself for saying it.
“As I recall, you’re particularly good at stroking,” Harrison finally said. He glanced over at me.
Oof. We really were doing this.
“Why thank you. Why don’t you give me some specific feedback about my…abilities?”
I felt my cheeks go hot at my boldness, but I wanted to see how far he’d take it.
Harrison shifted in his seat, and I had to force myself not to check if he was already hard.
“Happy to weigh in,” he said. “Miss Ackland, your grip is perfect. Firm, but not too much so. The rhythm? Impeccable. Enthusiasm for the work? Next level. Your skills make it impossible for me to, shall we say, remain focused for longer than a few minutes.”
I could almost see his cock in my hand as he described it. Now it was my turn to adjust myself in my seat. Would George still be able to fly the plane if I unzipped Harrison’s pants and swallowed him whole right now?
“Are there any areas that need improvement?” I asked.
Harison tipped his head as he considered it. “I’d say the frequency of the job needs adjusting.”
“Okay,” I nodded thoughtfully. “I can certainly address that. Do you have a timeframe in mind, so I can make sure this additional work gets the attention it deserves?”
I held my breath, waiting for him to answer.
His only response was to maneuver the jet, which banked dramatically. He tapped a few buttons and spoke pilot code into his headset, then finally turned to me.
“We’re heading back now. How about the second I land this thing?”
Twenty minutes later, Harrison had me by the hand and was leading me to his small office in the Ashford hangar at LAX. We’d spent the remainder of the flight speaking in dirty double entendres, and by this point, I was so freaking starved for the man I had to fight to keep from jumping him.
He shut the office door, and I was on him before he could say a word, pinning him against the wall. I pawed at his clothing as our mouths crashed together.
“Oh my God, I’ve been dying for you,” Harrison rasped in between kisses. “I want you so fucking bad.”
My response was to get to work on the buttons of his shirt.
I was so clumsy with need that my fingers couldn’t work properly.
Meanwhile, Harrison’s hands were racing up beneath my shirt, cupping me over my bra.
He wrenched up my blouse and dropped his mouth to my breast. I arched into him as his lips found my nipple.
We both ripped off our clothing in between kissing, and our hands traced every bit of exposed skin. I didn’t know if the door was locked, and I didn’t care. All I wanted was to feel Harrison on top of me. If we wound up with an audience, so be it. Maybe they’d learn something.
Harrison spun us around so that my back was pinned to the wall with my skirt up around my waist and underwear down around my ankles.
He explored between my legs, teasing me with light fingertip circles on my clit then plunging inside of me.
Between that and the way he was kissing, nipping, and nibbling, I was ready to explode, and we’d barely been at it for a few minutes.
Was it possible for the entire human body to be covered in goosebumps? Because Harrison had me hot and cold at the same time, like even my skin was freaking out at the way he was making me feel. Horny, desperate, happy, pushy, nervous…it was a delicious mix of sensations.
I finally managed to focus on something other than what Harrison was doing to my body.
“Hold on, I have a job to do,” I whispered in his ear as I slid my hand down his body to grasp him.
He closed his eyes and groaned as I started to rub his hard length. “Fuck, Gwen.”
“You like that? Then how about this?” I dropped to my knees and took him in my mouth, as deep as his impressive girth would allow, and he pounded the wall with his fist.
I’d barely slid him in and out of my mouth before I felt him lifting me up and into his arms. He carried me over to the desk I hadn’t even noticed until now and set me on the edge of it.
“My turn,” he said, then placed his hands on top of my thighs and spread my legs wider.
I leaned back to grasp the edge of the desk behind me to steady myself, because Harrison was devouring me with a tongue that I swore could work magic.
What I remembered from our time in Aspen didn’t come close to the reality I was now experiencing.
I threaded my fingers through his hair and pushed against him greedily as he licked and sucked every bit of me.
The orgasm came out of nowhere. I’d definitely been revved up, but the sonic boom that ripped through me had me letting out a gasp of surprise given that he’d only just started.
When I finally collected myself enough to look at him, he’d already grabbed a condom and slipped it on.
“C’mere,” he said, snaking his arm behind me and pulling me closer to the edge of the desk.
It was the perfect height for our bodies to join, and Harrison paused with his dick just barely touching my heat.
“Don’t tease me,” I pleaded.
He answered by plunging inside of me. We both paused to savor the sensation of him filling me up.
It was even sweeter than I remembered. Harrison cupped my face and leaned in to kiss me softly, then began to move against me, half grinding, half plunging. I let my head drop back when he reached down to caress my clit, all too aware that I was going to come again.
Multiple orgasms this close together wasn’t something that ever happened with a partner. Even in Aspen, despite the nonstop fuckfest. But this time, everything felt different with Harrison.
Harrison leaned close to whisper in my ear. “You’re close, but so am I. I’m trying to hold off, but your pussy is so fucking incredible that it’s impossible.”
He slowed down, but even that was enough to push me over the edge.
I let out a low moan as I came, which signaled Harrison to pick up his pace.
With the stimulation from his pumping, it felt like my orgasm wasn’t ever going to end, but before I could consider the chance of going for a third, Harrison leaned back and cried out.
He collapsed on top of me, panting. I looped my arms around him and held him close.
Best meeting ever.