Even after two conversions, the place still held an industrial feel from the outside. When they reached the corrugated-sided building, Mason held the door for Lily. Still a gentleman, she noticed.
Inside, it looked like a typical restaurant, dimly lit with a scattering of tables spread throughout the room. A chalkboard sign on the wall indicated the Saturday special was clam chowder. Even though it was still early, the place was beginning to fill up for dinner.
They chose a table in the corner, away from the hustle and bustle of the dinner rush. Mason ordered a sandwich and Lily chose the lasagna. It was what she always got when she came to Hoonah, which wasn’t very often.
After they ordered, they sat there in silence. Lily was still thinking about the drama workshop with an absent-minded smile plastered to her face. Teaching the art of acting fulfilled her so much more than she’d ever expected. She couldn’t stop grinning. And Mason couldn’t take his eyes off her. He noticed every detail about her, now. The light shining in her eyes. The way her skin glowed. She was everything he remembered… and so much more. She’d grown into a beautiful woman, possibly the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.
“What are you looking at?” Lily asked when she realized he was watching her. “Do I have something on my face?”
Mason laughed. It was a good, hearty sound. One he hadn’t heard for a long time. He hadn’t felt like laughing for years, but now the haze of gloom around him seemed to be lifting. He felt… good.
“No. There’s nothing on your face.”
“Then what?”
“You just look so blissful. It’s nice to see that. Nice to know you have a good life, that things turned out well for you, that you’re happy.”
“I am,” she said. “It’s a good life. I enjoy working at the pub and every year I get to run the fall production. I have everything I ever wanted.”
Mason cocked his head and looked at her skeptically.
“Everything you ever wanted?” he asked. “What about New York? You wanted that pretty badly. Don’t you regret not going?”
Lily shook her head.
“No,” she said, and she meant it. “That was a childhood dream. I grew up. Some things changed and some things stayed the same.”
“Like what? What stayed the same?”
“Well, I still live at home with Dad, for starters.” She took a drink of water and waited to see how he’d react to the fact that she was a grown woman still living with her father.
“Up until a few months ago, it was still all three of us. Me, Jake, and Dad. I was thinking about getting a place of my own, but then Jake got married and moved out. With him gone, the place is a lot quieter. Doesn’t seem right for me to leave home now. I don’t like the idea of Dad living alone in an empty house.”
“That’s one of the things I always liked about you. Your dedication to family.” Mason paused for a second, contemplating. “You know, there’s nothing wrong with sticking around to take care of your dad. As long as you’re doing it for the right reasons.”
“I am. I don’t want him to be alone. Mom left more than a decade ago, and he’s still hoping she’ll come back. He keeps the house in perfect condition for her, even though she only visits twice a year. He’s holding out hope for an impossible dream. Someday, he’s going to wake up and realize it. When that happens, he’s going to need someone there to take care of him.”
“And since you’re mom isn’t there, you’ve stepped in. You’re trying to take her place, to be his companion.”
Lily looked at him, a scowl on her face. “No.” She shook her head. “That’s not it at all.”
“That’s what it sounds like to me. You’re afraid.”
“Maybe I am. I’m afraid that he’ll waste away, pining for her. It could happen.”
She was getting defensive now. Before it escalated into an argument, Mason knew he needed to diffuse the situation.
“I’m just saying, you don’t have to fill that void in his life. How is he ever supposed to move on if you’re always there? Sometimes the best thing you can do is step back and let the pieces fall as they may.”
“Easier said than done.”
“As long as you’re happy, that’s the only thing that matters.”
“I am. I have everything I want,” she said again. Almost everything. But she wasn’t going to launch into her feelings about him. It had taken too long for Lily to get over Mason. But she had. She’d moved on and she really was content with the life she’d built.
“What about you? Are you happy?”
“I’m working on it.”
The look in his eyes said there was more to it than that, but Lily didn’t press him. Too much time had passed between them. They’d both grown up and moved on with their lives. Whatever problems he had were his own. It wasn’t Lily’s place to pry into his personal life.
A moment later, the waitress served their meals.
Chapter 7
“I always wanted to learn to fly.”
They were back aboard the Beaver and Mason was focused on the pre-flight check. But when Lily said those words, he stopped what he was doing and looked over at her, surprised.
“You never told me that.”
Lily shrugged her shoulders. “You don’t know everything about me.”
Certainly not. While Mason was gone, Lily grew up. Mason wasn’t stupid enough to think she’d put her life on hold for the past ten years. So, of course he didn’t know everything about her. But she said she’d always wanted to learn to fly. That implied she wanted to fly all her life. It seemed odd that she’d never told him about that dream when they were younger.
“It’s just that you never mentioned it before,” Mason said, returning his attention to the pre-flight check.
It was one of the few things Lily had never told Mason. Back then, she thought she had good reason for keeping it from him. She feared that, like her father, Mason wouldn’t approve of her wanting to fly.
“Well, it’s not something I broadcast to everyone,” she said simply.
In her lap, Lily held a Styrofoam take-out container half full with leftover lasagna. She always ordered the large portion and it was always too much for her to finish, but it made for a great snack later on. Absent-mindedly, she opened the take-out container and picked at a corner of the lasagna. She popped a small morsel into her mouth.
“Besides, it’s not like you mentioned your love of flying, either,” she added.
“I didn’t know I wanted to fly, not back then. After we moved to Anchorage, a friend took me up and let me fly for a bit. That’s when I decided.”
Lily looked over at him, surprised he was actually volunteering information.
Intentionally, he turned away from her. It was easier to talk if he didn’t have to look her in the eye. “When my dad pushed me to join the military,” he continued, “I joined the Air Force.” So it didn’t look like he was avoiding her, he grabbed a small clipboard from the dash and jotted down a note about the door latch he just discovered was a little loose. He would need to repair it as soon as he got a chance. “Didn’t know if I stood a chance of becoming a pilot, but I figured it was my best bet.”
“So, how hard is it to fly this thing?” she asked, taking another nibble of the lasagna. It was uncommon for Mason to open up. Now that he was talking, she wanted to keep the conversation going.
“Not as hard as you’d think,” Mason started to answer. Then he made the mistake of glancing over at her. The tip of her thumb was in her mouth. She’d been licking the lasagna sauce off her fingers. It was an innocent gesture on her part, but the sight of her lips gently sucking…
The image drained all other thoughts from Mason’s mind. His breath caught in his throat for a second and he remembered how easily Lily could distract him. He was experiencing it first-hand.
With great effort, he turned back to the task at hand, priming the choke on the floor of the cockpit. Keeping his eyes averted, he cleared his throat. If only he coul
d get that indecent image of her out of his mind and turn his thoughts toward a more appropriate subject.
“Landing on the water can be tricky at times,” he continued, furrowing his brows as he concentrated on getting the words out. How in the heck was he supposed to focus on anything when Lily looked so tempting? “But this baby’s a work horse. She can handle just about anything.”
By the time he finished speaking, his voice had turned gruff, throaty.
Lily mistook the tone of his voice, suspecting he didn’t appreciate the distraction of conversation. In silence, she let him continue the pre-flight preparations. She also resisted the urge to take another bite of lasagna and, instead, closed the take-out container.
They were in the air before she spoke again, ascending over the waters of Port Frederick.
“Could you teach me?” she blurted out before fully thinking it through. “I mean, if you’re licensed to instruct.”
She held her breath for a second, expecting him to say no.
“I am,” he said. He reached up and turned a knob on the roof of the cabin just a hair to the left. “Certified, that is. But, do you really want to learn to fly? It’s not for everyone.”
“You just said it wasn’t that hard.”
“Well, it depends on the person. Not everyone’s cut out for flying. You need to be able to concentrate on more than one thing at once and be able to react quickly if a problem arises. You have to stay calm under pressure. Piloting is serious business.”
“And you don’t think I’m serious enough?” She should have expected that much. But just because she liked to have fun didn’t mean she couldn’t knuckle down and focus on more serious endeavors. After all, hadn’t she written an entire play? That had taken some real dedication, and Lily knew from experience that writing wasn’t nearly as fun as performing on the stage, even if it was far more rewarding. But the point was that she’d set her mind to something and she’d accomplished it. Lily was just was capable as the next person of taking on a challenge.
“That’s not what I meant,” Mason corrected, sensing he was treading on a sore subject.
“Look, I really want to try,” she said, turning in her seat as much as possible to face him. The seat belt prevented her from turning very far. Mason, on the other hand, remained facing forward, both hands on the controls, his attention focused on the horizon. “I’ve always wanted to learn, but Dad wouldn’t let me take lessons from Gus.”
He glanced over at her. She was looking back at him with a hopeful expression.
“Why didn’t your dad want you to fly?”
“I don’t know,” Lily said, getting frustrated. “Go ask him.”
Mason shook his head, reluctant to go against her father’s wishes. “I’m not comfortable teaching you to fly if Samuel’s opposed to it.”
“Leave my father out of this, please. I’m a grown woman. I can make my own choices. And I think I can do it,” she insisted. “I really do.”
The look in her eyes told him she was serious.
How could he turn her down? The simple fact was that he couldn’t. He couldn’t say no to Lily any more than he could will his heart to stop beating. Besides, it would be the perfect opportunity to get to know her again, not the girl that he’d left behind, but the woman she’d become.
“Okay,” he said, relenting. “First lesson starts now. If you’re ready for it.”
She grinned. “I am.”
“You’re sure?”
“Stop it, Mason. I already said I was ready.”
“Okay. We’ll start with the basics.”
Lily grinned, barely containing her excitement. “Great! How does the steering wheel work?” She had so many questions.
“It’s called the yoke,” he corrected her. “It’s on a swinging base, so when you’re ready I can hand the controls over to you.” It rose up from the center of the cockpit and was angled to sit in front of the pilot. “It controls the pitch and roll.” He explained how rotating the control wheel moved the ailerons and the roll axis, rolling the plane to the left or right depending on which direction it was turned. Then he demonstrated how it also controlled the elevator and pitch axis. “When the yoke is pulled back, the nose rises. When you push forward, the nose lowers. Got it?”
“I think so.”
As they leveled off, he explained each of the gauges to her and he spent several minutes describing the basic operations of the plane. Then he detailed their 30-mile flight path for her. They had already passed over the waters of Port Frederick and were now flying over the main part of the island. A few small mountains loomed ahead, but they were far enough in the distance that they would be flying over flat terrain for a while.
“Alright.” He turned and looked at her. He picked the take-out box up off her lap and sat it down on the floor between the seats. “I’m going to hand the controls over to you.”
When Mason saw the look of surprise on her face, he suppressed the urge to laugh. He’d felt the same way the first time someone handed him the controls.
“Already? During the first lesson.”
“Might as well get your feet wet.”
“I think I’ve changed my mind.” A nervous feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. “Shouldn’t I have to study up on the basics of flying first?”
Mason chuckled at her reluctance.
“There will be plenty of studying. But right now, you need to get a feel for flying. If you can’t hold the yoke for a few minutes, there’s no point in wasting your time studying books about flying.”
She still looked anxious, but she understood. She was going to have to get over her apprehension and take her chances. It was now or never.
“Don’t worry,” he reassured her. “All you need to do is hold it steady.”
He talked for a few more minutes, helping her get over the case of nerves she was feeling.
“Are you ready now? Want to give it a try?” When Lily nodded, he flipped a switch to unlock the control column, then he slid the yoke over to the other side of the cockpit. He placed Lily’s hands on the controls and held his own there for a few seconds while she got the feel of it. “Remember, don’t make any sudden movements. It’s kind of like driving a car.”
“But, I’ve never driven a car.” She looked over at him in sudden panic.
Mason laughed. Then he saw the look on her face. “Oh. You’re serious.”
“Grew up on an island where there are no vehicles, remember?”
“But your mom lives in Juneau. You never learned to drive when you visited?”
“I didn’t really see the need for it. She lives right in town, so we walk most places. And when we go somewhere, she always drives.”
It had never even crossed Mason’s mind that Lily didn’t know how to drive. Sure, there were no cars in Heron, but most people still had driver’s licenses.
“That’s okay,” he said, trying to reassure her once again. “You have a boat, right?” It was a rhetorical question. He knew she had a boat. Everyone in Heron had a boat. It was the only way to get around, other than walking. “You’ve operated the boat a thousand times, probably. So you already have some skill operating a craft of some type.” He was trying to convince himself as much as her. “The concept is the same. Keep it steady. If anything happens, I’m right here. You can always hand the controls back over to me. Got it?”
Lily took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. She nodded. She was as ready as she was ever going to be.
“You’re going to notice she pulls a little to the left. You’ll be able to feel the force of the wind, too. It’s nothing to worry about. Just keep it steady.”
As he said the words, he released his grip on the yoke, letting Lily take over completely.
“Your controls,” he said.
“My controls,” she repeated, taking in a deep breath to calm her nerves.
When his hands left the yoke and Lily felt the plane in her own two hands, the anxiety she felt was instantly replaced b
y a whole new set of emotions. A wave of excitement coursed through her body. She was scared, and rightfully so, at the thought that both of their lives were in her hands. But at the same time, she felt electrified and invigorated.
As adrenaline pumped through her veins, Lily realized that she was actually doing it. She was flying. She could feel everything… the lift of the wind beneath them, the weight of the yoke in her hands. It was amazing.
Lily stretched forward, leaning to look out the window of the cockpit. Everything held a completely different feeling when she was the one holding the controls. How many times had she sat in the passenger seat, wishing she could pilot the plane? Now she was actually doing it.
Beside her, Mason sat pensively watching. She was focused entirely on flying, checking the instrument panel periodically as Mason had instructed her, concentrating on holding the plane steady. The controls were entirely in her hands and it was obvious she enjoyed every bit of it. She was having the time of her life. The light in her eyes warmed his heart. It was nice to know he’d given her that gift. Maybe he couldn’t go back in time and keep himself from breaking her heart, but at least he could do this one thing for her. Teaching Lily to fly wouldn’t correct the wrongs he’d committed, but it was a step in the right direction.
They coasted through the air, gliding over the gentle wind. The skies were calm and everything looked so peaceful below.
“Okay, we need to make a minor course correction,” Mason said finally. He was hesitant to interrupt Lily, seeing how much she was enjoying herself. But he’d been watching the instrument panel, as well as the horizon, and their heading was slightly off, taking them too far north.
With Mason’s guidance, Lily turned the plane until they were back on course. When Mason confirmed their heading, she glanced over at him grinning.
Sky High (Alaskan Frontier Romance Book 2) Page 7