Chapter 32 - Gage
I tip my head back and zone out from the noise around me at the Edmonton airport as I wait for my next flight.
I’ve been on this rotation for eight months, and as much as I love the big paychecks, I fucking hate being away from Luna.
Especially at times like this. I’m really starting to consider looking closer to home for a different job.
Thankfully, being a heavy-duty mechanic is in demand pretty much anywhere in the province these days.
I might take a hit to my hourly rate by losing the isolation pay, but it would be worth it to be home all the time.
Luna saying she’s ready to start dating makes me want to be home even more because if she’s going to date anyone, it will be me.
I’ve been in love with my best friend’s little sister since she was sixteen.
She wrapped her little fingers around my heart and hasn’t let go since.
Of course, I never acted on it. For one, I’m two years older than her and two, she’s Atlas’s little sister.
Both of those issues meant she was strictly out of bounds.
But things are different now. She's twenty-one, so the fact that I'm a couple years older doesn't matter anymore. I miss Atlas and I still think about him every day, but I’m positive he’d give me his blessing to be with her, keep her safe and loved. The only resistance I might face is from the other guys, who I know damn well are also in love with her. I love all of them like brothers, but I love Luna more, and I think she’s finally ready to know that.
This whole harem thing is a nonstarter for me.
That might work in her romance books but not in the real world.
No, Luna’s going to choose me, I’m sure of it.
The agent for the private terminal I'm flying out of motions to me that the plane is ready, so I heave my duffel bag up over my shoulder and make my way out the doors to the tarmac and the stairs of the private jet owned by the mining company I work for.
I fucking hate flying in this tin can of a plane, but the airstrip at the mine is too small for bigger planes.
“Strickland? Didn’t I just bring you back here a few days ago?” Chuck, the pilot, asks me in surprise when I step onto the plane.
I nod my annoyance. “Sure did. I got called back early. As much as I enjoy your company, I really didn’t want to see you again so soon, Chuck.”
He reaches to take my duffel with a grimace. “Damn, that’s too bad, son. But just think of the overtime on your next check. That should cushion the blow.”
I hand off my bag for him to stow with a slight nod and move further into the plane to take a seat in one of the six passenger rows.
I nod a greeting to two other passengers in the first row, both of whom are wearing suits, telling me they’re from corporate.
I walk past them and settle into the last row for the flight.
I glance at my watch and sigh at the late hour, knowing I won’t make it to camp until after the kitchen closes and I’ll have to settle for a crappy microwaved meal.
I jam my earbuds into my ears and let my favorite playlist help pass the time as we take off.
I’m in that sweet middle of asleep and awake with the hazy image of a smiling Luna looking over her shoulder at me.
Her gorgeous cinnamon colored hair shines in the sun with all the reds and golds blazing as her pretty green eyes dance at me in amusement, when all of a sudden, my stomach heaves as the plane pitches to the side violently.
My eyes fly open when the men in front of me yell and I yank my ear buds out to find out what the hell is going on.
I lean forward and crane my neck to see just as the front of the plane drops down way too fast for normal.
One of the suits staggers from his seat and rushes to the cockpit, diving forward like he’s going to tackle Chuck, but as he shifts, I see him yanking back on the controls.
The nose of the plane comes up slightly but we’re still going down and my heart feels like it’s going to beat out of my chest as the man turns his head to look back at us with terror.
“The moon! The fucking moon!”
I lean the other way and look out the small window.
My mouth drops open as all I can see is the moon, ten times bigger than it should be, and with a massive crack in it.
Harsh scraping noises vibrate under my feet and I know it’s trees.
Everything slows right down as the air ripples around me in a haze.
I know we’re going down, I know we’re crashing, and then we hit something so hard, I know nothing.