by Anne, Melody
“No. I fly commercially some, and I’m not a superfan of turbulence, but I get through it,” she said.
“Well, we couldn’t have picked a better day for a nice flight. The skies are clear, and the winds calm. We have about a two-hour flight since we’re going to take a scenic route. We can speed it up on the way back.”
“Where are we going? I know there were a few places.”
“I researched the ghost towns, and the best one is Shaniko, Oregon. It was abandoned in the mid-twentieth century, but several of the old buildings are still standing, including the jail, city hall, water tower, chapel, and more. It’s definitely a tourist destination, and they’ve revived the town in recent years to encourage visitors, but they protect it, so if we start at the beginning, we will have a good idea of where to go from there,” he said.
“I think that sounds perfect. I’ve never been there, and I’ve made it a mission to visit as many historic places around the United States as I possibly can,” she said, feeling instant excitement. “Let’s go.”
He chuckled as he faced forward and began messing with the controls on the plane. There were so many of them she wasn’t sure how he could keep them all straight. It seemed like an impossible task to her.
He started the plane, and she was pleasantly surprised how quiet it was. She’d heard that small planes could be obnoxiously loud. He handed over her headphones and then began taxiing out toward the runway.
“Hold on tight, and prepare for takeoff,” he said through the headphones.
“Aren’t you going to demonstrate the safety features?” she asked with a smile. She was getting more and more excited, even enough to not let his leg pressing against hers distract her . . . too much. She was always aware he was touching her.
“Hmm, you might have to play the flight attendant and demonstrate those for me,” he said as he faced her for a moment and gave her a wink.
“Your mind went straight to the gutter, didn’t it?” she said, trying not to smile.
“Yep,” he admitted, his lips turning up into a huge grin. She had a hard time not enjoying the flirtation and easy banter with him.
Sadly she decided she’d better stop now before the conversation got too out of hand. They were only at the beginning of their trip, and the sexual tension was already almost too much for her to take. They didn’t need to add in wordplay and make it worse.
It didn’t take long for him to reach the head of the runway, and then they were lifting up into the sky in one smooth motion. Her lips spread wide as she watched the ground grow smaller beneath them.
She might fly commercially for work and pleasure, but never had she been in a small plane. There was freedom inside one that she could see could grow addictive. She wanted to see everything below them. It was magical, and she was a person who believed magic was something everyone needed in their life. It had gotten her through some difficult times.
“Are you having fun?” Noah asked. She glanced at him and saw he wore a matching grin.
“This is amazing,” she admitted. If she could always travel this way, she might enjoy going places a heck of a lot more.
He didn’t turn away from her, and their gazes locked together. The pull was so strong she wanted to close the slight gap between them and run her tongue across his bottom lip, as he himself had done earlier that day. It was amazing how quickly this man made her want. She could go from eager excitement to burning desire in the blink of an eye. He opened those beautiful lips to say something, and she finally had the strength to turn away from him. Her hormones were positively out of control.
“If you keep looking at me like that, I’m likely to crash,” he warned in a low growl that had her stomach clenching.
“I’m working on it,” she told him. There was no use in denying it. There was something to be said about a person protesting too much.
He let the subject go, and she focused instead on the ground below them. She wasn’t sure how high they were, but the animals in the fields underneath seemed like tiny ants, so it was high enough that if they did crash, it wouldn’t go well. It was safer for both of them for her to keep her eyes glued to the window.
After several minutes of silence Sarah began to relax again. Yes, his leg was still pressed against hers, but he was a skilled pilot. She’d never even thought to ask him how much time he had flying or what had made him decide to get his license before she’d hopped into a plane with him. Maybe that was because she trusted the man more than she cared to admit.
“What made you decide to become a pilot?” she asked, thinking talking would be wiser than this intense silence between them.
“I had several friends who flew, and it always looked fun, so I decided to give it a try,” he told her with a shrug.
“And, of course, anything you try, you excel at,” she said with a smile.
“Of course,” he answered cockily.
“Isn’t it expensive to become a pilot?” she asked.
“I had friends who helped me, so it didn’t cost much at the time,” he told her.
Money would never be a problem for him again, as he was an Anderson, but she knew he’d grown up as poor as she had. His family was even more impressive because of their humble beginnings. Each of the brothers had made something out of their lives when the odds had been stacked against them. There was a lot to be impressed about when it came to Noah Anderson.
“I think it’s something I wouldn’t mind attempting,” she told him, feeling a bit unsure as she said the words.
“I can give you a lesson right now,” he said.
She looked at him, and he was still smiling, but he looked serious. The funny thing was how tempted she was. But she wasn’t an impulsive person. She’d have to study it first and see if it was something she truly wanted to do.
“No.” She felt a bit of panic at how much she wanted to take him up on it. “I’d have to read everything about it first,” she said more calmly. She needed to remember that. Noah made her want to do things she’d never have thought about doing before. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Was it a good or bad thing?
He chuckled. “If you can drive a car, you can fly a plane. It looks a lot more complicated than it is,” he assured her.
“I’ll take your word for it. You go ahead and fly us for now. I’ll read up on it and see if it’s something I actually want to do.”
“Your loss,” he said, sounding slightly disappointed. It surprised her that that bothered her. She found she didn’t want him to be disappointed in her. “But if I get knocked out, you’re going to have to figure it out real quick.”
She turned and glared at him, and he chuckled again. “I’m glad to see you amuse yourself so much,” she huffed.
“I’ve learned that life’s too short to not laugh often, especially at ourselves.”
“I actually agree with that. I still have a hard time letting go sometimes,” she said with another sigh.
“Yeah, that can be difficult,” he told her, seeming to understand.
“Well, at least I’m getting an adventure while we’re working on this project,” she said. This might not be nearly as exciting as the adventures he took on a regular basis, but for her it was pretty great.
The more relaxed she became as they continued to fly, the more she noticed their bodies aligning. The back seats had a bit of space between them, but these front seats seemed made for lovers to cuddle. That didn’t seem the wisest idea for the person responsible for keeping them all alive.
She turned, finding his eyes on her again. She pulled in a breath, inhaling his musky scent. How long had they been in the air?
“I’ve warned you about that look,” he said in a husky drawl.
Maybe if she were on a true adventure, she’d lean in and run her tongue over his bottom lip before gently biting down on it. Maybe if she were a seductress, she could take pleasure in making his pants tight and his body throb. But she wasn’t that. All she was currently doing was torturing her
self.
She turned away and let out a shaky breath. They’d been in the air a long time. “How close are we?”
She could feel the grin he was wearing as he answered her.
“We have about thirty minutes,” he told her after a significant pause. He’d waited long enough to let her know he wasn’t completely letting her off the hook. He was so much better at playing these games than she was.
She tried focusing on the outside of the plane, but the longer they went without talking, the more she internalized in her own head, and right now that wasn’t a very safe place for her to be.
“I am grateful to get this new perspective, Noah,” she finally told him. “I know I was resistant to the entire plan, but I need inspiration. I don’t know what’s been going on with me lately, but I’m not doing my best work. Thanks for not giving up on me. This job truly does mean a lot to me.”
He reached over and squeezed her thigh. It was an assuring touch, a friend comforting her. But there was no time Noah touched her that it didn’t make her burn. She didn’t look him in the eyes this time, or she feared they really would crash, because the simplest touch from him had her insides burning, which she was sure would reflect in her expression.
“I needed the inspiration as well, so I’m glad we came up with it together,” he told her. “Don’t thank me. You were hired for this project because Joseph knew you were the right person for the job. He knew we’d make a good team. And we do. We push each other, and we expect as much greatness from ourselves as from each other, so that means we’re going to give the best facilities these men can possibly have and deserve. Besides, I hate sitting all day. It’s much better to move.”
“Thank you,” she told him, meaning it. She wanted to reach out and squeeze his arm, let him know how much his words meant to her, but she was already tense enough at the sexual tension between them.
She wondered if the two of them would actually be friends if that tension wasn’t there. She did like the guy. She could tell herself all day long she didn’t, that he was a playboy Casanova, but she’d been around him long enough to know that wasn’t the case at all. He was a great friend. Maybe she’d get over her hormones, and they could have a friendship.
But if they did, that meant she’d have to deal with watching him with other women, and that wasn’t something she thought she’d ever be strong enough to handle. Maybe. The world could also quit spinning.
“Are you still glad you became an architect?” Noah asked.
“Sometimes I annoy myself at my poutiness when I should be grateful for the fact that I graduated college and I get to work in a career I want. I shouldn’t need anything more,” she told him.
Noah laughed, and the sound was so carefree she couldn’t help but join him. He was just so easy to be with most of the time. She could almost imagine what fun it would’ve been to grow up in his family. The love and laughter must have always freely flowed.
“It’s okay to not be satisfied all the time. We’ll never push forward and try to achieve more if we get too comfortable with where we are,” he said.
“I can agree with that,” she said. “And I like looking at it that way a whole lot more than my way.”
“Good. We’re starting our descent now, so be prepared for some ear popping.”
She hadn’t realized so much time had passed. It really did fly by when she was with this man. He made everything else melt away. That was the thought that popped into her head more than anything else.
He was quiet as he guided the plane smoothly closer and closer to the ground. Maybe if she could climb out of this small space and have a little bit of distance from this man, she’d be able to think more clearly once more.
Maybe not.
She wasn’t sure she’d ever be the same person again—not after knowing and making love with Noah Anderson. She had a feeling he was the type of man who impacted a person for the rest of their life.
The plane landed with barely a bump. She was stuck inside her head as they taxied up to a small building where a large SUV waited for them. He’d thought of everything for their trip. She hadn’t had to do a thing. It was pretty nice to be taken care of, actually. She was so used to being the one who had to be responsible; she could understand the appeal of being with a man like Noah, who she was completely confident would get things done.
He stopped the plane and then looked at her. She began to fiddle with her seat belt, needing to get out into the fresh air. But he laid a hand against hers, and she stopped, looking at him and the intense expression he was wearing.
“I’m trying desperately to give you the space and time you’re asking for, but there is something special between the two of us, Sarah. The sooner you quit fighting it, the more we can explore it. I’m a patient man, but we all have a breaking point.”
Sarah inhaled sharply as her gaze was lost in his. She didn’t know how to respond to him, and she didn’t think her throat would loosen enough to do so, even if she did have words to say.
Their stare lasted a long time before he finally looked down, breaking the spell. She finally took in a breath, realizing she was a bit light headed. Her belt finally unsnapped, and she desperately reached for the handle on the door.
He was throwing out a new challenge to her.
And she wasn’t so sure she wanted to turn it down.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Noah could be a gentleman if he needed to. But most of the time he chose the other route. Being the good guy was dull and didn’t offer much. His patience in waiting for Sarah to realize they were made for each other was growing thin.
He’d enjoyed their plane ride together, but it had also been pure hell in another sense. Her leg pressed against his for nearly two hours had left him hard and terribly uncomfortable for the entire ride. When she sneaked those sexy glances at him, it had taken all his control not to grab her and kiss her like her eyes were begging him to do.
He climbed from the plane and walked over to help Sarah out, but she was on the ground before he could. It might be better not to touch her for a while. He needed to get his body in control again, or this was going to be one hell of a long day.
There was no one at this small airport, and he had some fantasies about taking her right there against the side of his plane. He’d never wanted to bring a woman to his plane before, had never fantasized about all the positions the two of them could try in and on it, either. But Sarah made him want it all. Hell, thoughts like that weren’t helping the bulge in his pants disappear.
It wasn’t like he was some hormonal acne-riddled teenage boy. He could control himself a hell of a lot better than he’d been doing. But dammit, that kiss the night before had nearly done him in. It had been months since he’d had her beneath him, crying out in pleasure as her body clenched around him.
That kiss had reminded him of everything the two of them were missing out on because she was being so damn stubborn. He never would’ve chased after a woman so hard—never before Sarah, that was.
Maybe it was the intensity of their relationship, and maybe it was the fact that she was a treasure all by herself. But whatever it was, his hormones weren’t evaporating as he’d like them to, and he simply wasn’t interested in anyone but her.
Noah didn’t try saying anything else as he moved to the back of the plane and grabbed their bags, moved over to the SUV, and found the key right where it was supposed to be. He loaded their things inside the vehicle, then moved away from it. They’d been cooped up in the plane for nearly two hours. He needed to stretch his legs before climbing into another box, even a roomy one.
“Where are you going?” Sarah asked when he walked farther away.
“I need to walk for a minute. We have about an hour drive from here, and I want to stretch my legs for at least ten minutes,” he told her.
She moved up beside him. “That’s a good idea,” she said with a happy sigh. She stood a good two feet away from him, but he could still smell her sweet perfume and pract
ically feel the heat coming off her body in waves. He picked up his pace—she easily matched it.
“You’re a really great pilot. I didn’t have one moment I was afraid at all,” she told him.
“I’d never want to scare someone who goes up in the air with me. I have an awe and respect of flying.”
“I can see that.”
The two of them went silent again, and Noah felt his fingers twitch with the need to reach out and clasp her hand in his. She was so easy to be with. If she’d quit fighting this feeling between the two of them, they could so be making magic together instead of having all of this tension between the two of them.
After about ten minutes Noah turned to move back to the vehicle. They only had so much time in the day to get things done, and they’d get to walk around plenty in the ghost town they were headed to.
They got to the SUV, and Noah pulled out his map and looked.
“Don’t you have GPS?” she asked as she checked the bars on her phone, then looked at him with confusion.
“Yes, I have GPS, but it doesn’t hurt to study a map. It’s becoming a lost art,” he told her.
She laughed a bit sheepishly. “It’s easy to get lost in technology,” she said.
“And then no one knows what to do when the electronics go down,” he replied.
“That’s true. I can read a map, though,” she said with a shrug.
“Good, then you can be the navigator,” he said as he climbed into the driver’s seat. She pulled out her phone. “Without the phone,” he added.
“Seriously?” she said with a wry grin.
“I like maps,” he told her.
“Fine.” She picked up the map with a slight roll of her eyes. He’d mapped out the roads they’d need to take, making it very easy for her to give him directions.
“I get the need to do this, but it’s ridiculous when the car can just tell us where to turn,” she said after they’d been driving for about five minutes.
“I plan on exploring many areas that don’t have access to satellites and navigation.”
“I don’t know if I ever want to be quite that remote,” she said with a shiver.