by SJ McCoy
He checked his watch before stepping into the shower. He'd need to get a move on if he was going to get to Dan's on time. He was still trying to find a balance between work and social life. He liked to keep the two separate. It had been easy when he was based out of Miami and Houston. Even the short while he'd been in Santa Monica, he'd have a beer with Jack and Pete now and again, but that was all. They were old friends, but he'd never wanted to become 'one of the gang', with all that entailed. He smiled as he soaped himself down—he'd kept his social life 'nice and easy'. That seemed to be changing up here, though. It was such a small town it would be hard for it not to. Breakfasts at the Boathouse, nights listening to the band, dinner at each other’s houses, everyone hung out together and they were trying to draw him in to the circle. Even Dan, whom he hadn't known that long, was becoming a real friend, and had insisted that he come tonight.
He stepped out of the shower and toweled himself down. All week he hadn't been able to take a shower without thinking about Laura. Standing there naked with the water running behind her. I'll forgive you this once...If you'll make it up to me right now. He would have done, too. If she hadn't said, Work can wait. That had pushed all his buttons, set alarm bells ringing. Taken him back in time. He could hear the echoes in his mind now.
Work can wait, Smoke. I won't.
I think you love that plane more than you love me!
He shook his head to clear it as he got dressed. No. It was for the best that Laura had left. That she hadn't called him. It just wasn't worth it—on so many levels. He wasn't capable of the kind of relationship a woman wanted. It seemed he wasn't capable of keeping it to strictly sex with her either. So it really was for the best. So why was part of him clinging to the hope that she might be at Dan's tonight?
***
Missy's son Scot answered the door. “Hey, Smoke! Are you going let me come fly with you again soon? I've been practicing on the simulator, I was making missed approaches at McCarran!”
Smoked grinned. He liked the kid. “Sure thing, Scot. You can come up with me whenever you like.”
Scot looked warily over his shoulder. “Will you tell my mom that? She says I'm not supposed to bug you about it.”
Smoke laughed. “Leave it to me,” he said with a wink.
A big grin spread across Scot's face. “Awesome! Thanks, Smoke. Come on. Everyone's out back.”
He followed the kid through the house. It was a nice place. They went through a big kitchen and out a set of French doors. All the gang were there, and a whole bunch of other people. He checked his watch. Was he late?
Jack came over and shook his hand. “No worries, bro. You're not late. It's just that we've all been dying to get invited over here and showed up way too early.”
Smoke smiled, relieved. He was never late.
Pete came to join them. “S'up, partner? How you doing?”
“Doing okay. How about you?” As he spoke, Smoke's gaze traveled over the groups of people standing by the pool, sitting at tables on the brick patio.
“I'm good. I wanted to talk to you. We're coming up on the lease renewal. What do you think? Shall the three of us sit down sometime next week to go over it?”
This was typical Pete. He had no boundaries between the work and social aspects of his life! “Sure,” Smoke replied. “I think it's best we get to it early. I've got a few ideas for some changes I'm thinking about making.”
Pete's brows came down. “What kind of changes are we talking about?”
Smoke was still scanning, he couldn't see Laura anywhere. He looked back at Pete with a grin. “Don't worry. I'm not talking about charging you more.” Pete looked so relieved, he couldn't help but add, “Well, not too much more.”
Jack laughed at Pete's expression. “Come on, bro. You know he's only winding you up.”
Pete glowered. “I can never tell with you, Hamilton.”
“I know,” Smoke laughed. “That's why I do it so much.”
Pete shook his head. “At least give me a clue what we're talking so I don't spend the whole time fretting and wondering if we need to start leasing a plane from someone else.”
“You'd soon find you wouldn't get half the plane for twice the money.”
Jack gave him a worried look. “And we wouldn't want twice the plane for half the money. Leasing Papa Charlie from you works for all of us, doesn't it?”
“Yeah. It does. I'm just taking stock. I might hire another pilot, free myself some time up.”
“To do what?” Jack was all over this.
Smoke shrugged. “That's what I'm figuring out.”
“What are your options?” asked Pete. “I know I can be an asshole, but I don't want to lose you.”
Smoke laughed. “You sound like I'm your girlfriend, Hemming! Don't worry, I'm not breaking up with you, honey.”
They all laughed at that.
“So come on,” said Jack, refusing to let it go. “What are you thinking?”
“I'm thinking I'd like to get back to doing some flight instruction.” He watched the shock register on Jack's face. Even Pete looked surprised. “At the same time, part of me thinks I should get back in the long haul business. You know, bigger, faster planes, more exotic locations.”
Pete nodded. “You getting itchy feet again? I suppose it's a bit different for you, limiting, now we're both based here?”
Smoke nodded. “It is...different. Like I said, I need to figure out what I want.”
“Fair enough,” said Jack. “How about you take some time? You let us know when you want to have that meeting?”
The way Pete frowned at Jack made Smoke smile. Jack was being all understanding because he thought this had something to do with Laura. But it didn't. Did it? He spotted and Dan and made his excuses. He'd had enough of this conversation—and of this train of thought.
***
As he stood chatting with Dan, Missy came to join them. Smoke liked her, she was a little pistol. He leaned down to kiss her cheek. “Congratulations, Missy. I was just telling Dan what a lucky guy he is.”
She smiled up at him as Dan wrapped an arm around her. “Thanks, Smoke, and thanks for coming. It's nice to be able to talk to you when I'm not scared stupid for once.”
Smoke laughed. Missy was deathly afraid of flying, but she was a tough little cookie, she always braved it out. “The offer always stands. I'll take you up anytime you want to go. You can sit up front with me, see what goes on. It's a great way to get past the fear.”
She didn't look at all convinced. “Thanks. I'm still thinking about it.”
“Whenever you're ready, just say the word. I'll tell you what though, would it be okay if I took Scot up again soon? He really enjoyed it.”
Missy wrinkled her nose at him. “Did he put you up to this?”
Smoke didn't want to snitch on the kid, but he didn't want to lie either. So he answered without answering. “Actually, I'm thinking about getting back to instructing. He'd be a good practice student for me. It's been a while.”
“Hey, if you need students, you know I'm in,” said Dan. He smiled at Missy, “And Scot will be too, right, Miss? It'd be good for him.”
Missy groaned. “So I'm going to have to worry about both of you hurtling around the sky?”
“I'll keep 'em safe. I promise,” said Smoke.
“Okay,” Missy gave him a sly little smile. “Since I've decided I trust you.” Smoke got the idea she was telling him something else too, but he didn't know what—until she added, “Have you seen Laura?”
He shook his head. “Not since last weekend.”
Missy grinned. “Well, let's find her. She's around here somewhere.”
Smoke's throat went dry. “She is?”
Missy scanned the crowd then her face fell. “Maybe she's not,” she said a little too quickly. “Let's go get a fresh drink, shall we?”
Smoke checked the dock where Missy had been looking when her face changed. Laura was down there talking, flirting by the looks of it, with som
e guy. She was leaning back against the railing. The guy stood facing her, leaning towards her, one hand on the rail beside her. Smoke's chest constricted painfully as he stared at them.
Missy tugged on his arm. “Drink?” she asked apologetically.
He shook his head. “Thanks. I need to get going, I have a date. I just wanted to stop by and congratulate you both. I'll see myself out.” He turned on his heel and left.
***
Laura walked back up to the house. Michael was fun, but she'd left him to it when some of his old school friends had joined them on the dock. He was a serious flirt—and quite appealing too. He wasn't exactly bookish, but he had the brown hair and green eyes. He was much more her usual type than Smoke was, but unfortunately nowhere near as appealing. Where was Smoke anyway? And why couldn't she get the damned man out of her head?
She found Missy and Dan on the patio. They'd know where he was. “Hey, guys.” She smiled.
“Hey,” said Dan. He looked troubled.
Missy was frowning.
Uh-oh. Not trouble in paradise already, surely? “Am I interrupting?” she asked cautiously.
“No.” Missy’s smile was unconvincing. “Not at all.”
Dan shifted from one foot to the other and didn't look at her.
She decided to ignore any tension—maybe that would help relieve it? “It's a great turn out and everyone is enjoying themselves.” She took a sip of her drink and looked out at the lake. “Is Smoke coming?” she asked as nonchalantly as she could.
Missy sighed.
Dan looked at her. “He's been and gone.”
“Oh.”
“He saw you with Michael and left in a hurry.”
Damn! “Did he say anything?”
Missy pursed her lips. “Yeah. He said he had a date.”
See! What did it matter that she'd been flirting with Michael? He was off with his new friend anyway!
Missy took her arm. “Do you want a fresh drink, hon? I could strangle Michael!”
“Miss, it's not his fault.”
Missy was mad. “It is! He's the world's biggest flirt!” She shot a look at Dan. “Isn't he?”
There was no mistaking the twinkle in Dan's eyes as he smiled at Missy. “He can complicate things, but he means well.”
Missy huffed at him. “You're too forgiving!”
Dan just smiled at her some more as she led Laura back to the house.
What Laura wouldn't give to have what these two shared. And where the hell had that thought come from? She could have had this. With Dale. This was what she'd run from. No. That wasn't true, what she and Dale had shared had been nothing like what Missy and Dan had. That was why she'd run.
“Seriously, Miss,” she said. “Don't worry about it. It's all good.”
Missy stopped and looked up at her. “You're not saying you like Michael?”
Laura laughed. “No, I am not. I'm just saying there's no point me liking Smoke either. We could never figure it out to be able to get together, and now he's dating someone else. It's cool. No problem. I came back to see you guys, not to see him.”
Missy wrinkled her nose. “Sorry, but I cry bullshit!”
Laura should have remembered. Missy was one shrewd little lady. She didn't miss a trick. “Okay! So I can't get the damned man out of my head! Satisfied? But we cannot get it together and even if we could there's nowhere for it to go. So it's for the best that he has a date with someone else.”
“We'll see. Now, let's go get you that drink.”
***
Laura slept late again. This was becoming a habit whenever she was up here. She lay in bed, looking out the window. She should feel relieved. She'd driven herself nuts all week, wondering if she should call him, wondering if she'd see him. Wondering if she'd be able to prove him wrong—how could she prove that they weren't going to finish what they'd started when she wanted to so badly? Now it was all moot. She needn't wonder any more. He'd answered all her questions with his little friend.
She groaned and rolled over, wondering if he was lying just the other side of that wall right now. Lying naked with that woman. That thought was too much to bear. She got out of bed and padded to the kitchen to make coffee. What had she been thinking coming back to stay here? She went to the bathroom and peeked through the little window that looked out on the parking spaces at the back. Eek! The airport pickup was there! He was on the other side of the wall. She tiptoed back to the kitchen and poured her coffee. She crept to the sofa and as she sat there sipping it she saw the funny side and started to giggle. This was ridiculous. He was just a man. Okay, a big, gorgeous, sexy-as-sin one, but even so just a dumbass man.
She was relieved a few minutes later to hear the cabin door slam and the truck start up. She flew back to the bathroom and peeked out. He was by himself. Relief flooded through her. But why? Knowing Smoke, it just meant he'd gone home with her, and sneaked out on her before morning. Knowing Smoke? Who was she kidding? She didn't know him at all. She took another sip of her coffee.
She just wanted to.
***
Smoke put his ladder away in the storeroom at the back of the hangar. Papa Charlie was the cleanest plane on the field thanks to Laura. He'd had to get out of the cabin this morning. He was sure she was there with that guy she'd been talking to.
He'd spent the rest of his evening sitting out on the deck. He hadn't exactly lied; he'd had a date with a bottle of Cab Franc. Seeing Laura with that guy had done a number on him, no question about it. But later on, hearing a car pull up at the cabin and hearing two doors slam before it pulled away again, had been the kicker. He'd gone to look out the bathroom window in time to see a cab leaving, but not in time to see who had got out of it. He hadn't expected her to come back here, but then Ben wouldn't have rented it to anyone else, so she must have. And two cab doors closing? There was only one conclusion to be drawn from that. Damn, if that was her way of telling him that it was game over, then she had won. Hands down.
He walked into the FBO. Maybe Rochelle would want to talk now instead of waiting ’til lunch. He needed to stay busy. Keep his mind away from Laura, and what she might be doing. The thought of her with that guy? Naked with guy? He pressed his lips together. He couldn't go there.
Rochelle was at the desk. “Hey, Smoke. I can't wait to show you what Jason has drawn up. Do you want to start now?”
“I would love to.”
Chapter Eight
Laura took the path up to the resort. She'd spent most of the morning in a fruitless effort to work on her new designs. She was getting nowhere. Maybe a walk and some lunch would clear her head. She spotted Ben coming out of the lodge and waved.
“Hey, Ben!”
“Hey, where are you off to?”
“I came to get some lunch, if it's not too busy.”
“It is busy, but give me a minute. I'll check with the servers, see who's got a table coming free outside, if you like?”
“Thanks. Have you got time to join me?” She didn't feel like eating alone and Ben was always good company.
“Sorry. We're crazy with check-ins and check-outs today. Is Smoke flying?”
“I wouldn't know.”
He gave her a puzzled look, but turned away when they heard someone shout, “Ben!”
Michael was striding across the parking lot towards them. “Who's up for lunch?”
Ben raised an eyebrow at Laura.
“You can join me, if you want,” she said.
Michael grinned at Ben. “Aww, are you too busy, mate?”
Ben nodded, giving Laura a questioning look. “Want me to get you a table?”
“Yes, please.” She gave him a reassuring smile. He was so sweet, looking out for her. And he didn't know that Smoke had already moved on to his next victim.
Once they were seated, Laura took a good look at Michael while he ordered. He was a good-looking guy, and that accent was sexy. He wasn't Smoke though, but she had to stop thinking like that.
Once the serv
er had gone, he grinned at her. “Missy gave me a right good talking to this morning, for flirting with you.”
Laura laughed. “I'm sorry.”
“No worries, darl', I'm used to it, she's always giving me grief for something. Always has. I'm the one that's sorry. I didn't know I was treading on some guy's toes, did I?”
She shook her head. “You weren't, though.”
Michael looked puzzled. “She said you were seeing that pilot guy.”
She shook her head again. “We went out a couple of times, that's all.”
Michael smiled. “That's not all though, is it? It's not over yet, darl'. It's written all over your face.”
She looked at him. Was it that obvious? “Okay, if you're so good at reading faces, what does this look mean?” She rolled her eyes then tried to glower at him, despite her lips twitching up into a smile.
“It means....” Michael rubbed his chin, pretending to think hard about it. “I know. It means you think it's over, but you don't want it to be. It also means that you can't decide if you should tell me to wrack off cos it's none of my business, or if you should pour your heart out to me cos you need to talk about it to someone.”
Laura threw her head back and laughed. “I wish I could deny any or all of that, but you really are good at reading faces!”
He smiled, a very genuine smile now. “I read people, darl'. Not faces.” A shadow crossed his own face. For a moment he looked sad, lost. Then the smile was back. “So out with it. Let's hear your troubles, see if we can fix 'em. What's he done?”
“He's not done anything. At least, he's not done anything wrong.”
The server returned with their food. Michael squeezed lemon over his fish before asking, “So, what's he done that's not wrong?”
“He started seeing someone else.”
Michael looked up at her. “You sure about that?”
Laura nodded and toyed with her salad. “Yeah. I saw him in town with a woman yesterday. Then last night he told Miss he wasn't staying cos he had a date.”