"Nothing. Just stepped wrong, that's al . Let's go and get this over with. I'd like to get reacquainted with my planes. I want to take the Piper up this morning. It's been too long since I've been in the cockpit."
"You don't have to do this, you know." She pointed toward the plane in the field. Or what was left of the plane.
He gritted his teeth. "Yes. I do. Then you can make the cal and get the bal rol ing on the clean-up detail while I make that first test flight."
She saluted. "Yes, sir. Anything you say, sir."
"Don't I wish?" He stared into her green eyes and touched her cheek. She stood passive beneath his caress, before blushing and ducking away.
Yet an answering fire burned in the emerald depths and a longing so strong, it stole his breath.
The woman was a contrast between innocence and seduction. If they didn't make love soon, he wouldn't be held accountable for his subsequent actions.
****
After walking around the crashed plane twice and inspecting every dent and cranny, Tyler slowly climbed into the crumpled cockpit. He eased himself downward until his feet found purchase, then hunkered behind the flight control panel. No way could he sit in the pilot's seat. The plane was tilted at an angle almost paral el to the ground. Caitlyn stayed outside the opened door, peering into the cockpit.
"It's a miracle you got out alive, isn't it?" she said in a hushed voice. "A miracle al three of you survived."
"Yeah. A miracle." He swal owed the bile rising in the back of his throat. A sudden chil slid along his spine and his palms felt sweaty. Damn, he hadn't thought he'd have such a strong reaction like this. The accident had happened months ago. A lifetime ago.
As he crouched there, it al came rushing back. He wiped his damp palms on his jeans and looked up at the concerned face above him. "Give me a minute, wil you?"
Understanding gleamed in the sympathetic eyes. "Sure. I'l be right outside. Take as long as you need." Caitlyn disappeared from sight.
Tyler inhaled deeply. For months, he'd determinedly blocked out the sequence of events preceding the moments leading up to the crash. During the daylight hours, it hadn't been so difficult. Nighttime was a different story. He'd told no one about the nightmares that invaded his dreams.
He reached out to grip the yoke and closed his eyes. Immediately, images played behind his eyelids. Better to al ow the memories to wash over him, get them out of his system and cleanse him. He needed to get rid of them so he could move on. Flying was his life; he couldn't let himself be weighted down by such cumbersome cargo.
Tyler remembered the bright December day as if it were yesterday. At Kelsey's instigation, he'd agreed to fly Theresa--who hadn't been his sister-in-law at the time--to Houston to visit her folks for Christmas. Theresa had been Kelsey's favorite teacher back then. Now, she was his niece's new stepmother.
A lot had changed over the past nine months. Some for the better; some not so much.
That cold winter day, he'd performed a thorough pre-flight inspection. He might be the happy-go-lucky McCade brother, but he was a damned good pilot. Conscientious and responsible. Safe and careful.
After the inspection, he remembered hurrying to the passenger door to help Theresa board the plane.
"Thanks." She took his hand and climbed in.
"Here, Miss Rogers," Kelsey said. "Let me help you buckle."
While Kelsey helped her teacher with the buckles, Tyler made one more ground check before climbing into the cockpit.
Opening the door, he caught the tail end of Kelsey's buoyant chatter. " . . . he insisted.
"Who insisted on what?" he asked, as he eased his tall frame into the pilot's seat.
Kelsey giggled. "You did. You figured if you were going to fly Miss Rogers to Lubbock, you might as well fly her all the way home to Houston."
"What can I say? I love to fly." He flipped switches and checked gauges. "Besides, it saves time and trouble. And it's a hell of a lot more fun than driving!"
"It doesn't save you time and trouble," Theresa said with a frown. "I feel like I'm imposing on your goodwill."
"No such thing. Hotshot back there will tell you I'm never happier than when I'm flying one of my babies."
Kelsey leaned forward. "That's true, Miss Rogers. Uncle Tyler lives to fly. Don't you, Uncle Tyler?"
"That's right."
"Well, I appreciate it all the same."
"No problem. Just sit back, relax and enjoy the ride."
After Theresa settled into her seat, Tyler pointed to the headphones. She put them on and he did the same, as did Kelsey.
"Everybody ready?" He glanced around at his passengers. He adjusted Theresa's headset, then started the engine. It rumbled to life. The propeller turned slowly at first, gaining speed until it was only a whirling blur on the nose of the plane.
Tyler maneuvered onto the airstrip. "Hold on," he said, as he prepared to take them up in the air. The small plane sped down the runway, lifting effortlessly into the clear blue West Texas sky.
"Wow!" Theresa smiled at him then looked out the window at the diminishing ground below.
"I told you it was great." Kelsey's voice piped in over the headsets. Theresa turned in her seat and smiled. Kelsey gave her teacher a thumbs up.
Suddenly, the plane jerked, the engine sputtered, then died.
"Oh, hell." Tyler tried to stabilize the aircraft. While he fought for control, he felt more than saw Theresa reach back and grab Kelsey's hand to offer comfort.
The plane dropped fast. He tried desperately to hold steady and ease out of the drop, but no luck. With teeth clenched and mouth grim, he looked at Theresa. She stared back at him in stark terror, realizing there was nothing he could do to save them.
The ground rushed toward them, and Tyler braced for impact. Kelsey screamed or maybe it was Theresa. Time stood still for a moment, before the plane crashed to a grinding stop. A loud sickening crunch of metal and breaking glass surrounded them. Tyler was thrown into the instrument panel and pain wrenched through his body. Theresa and Kelsey tumbled forward and landed on top of him. He tasted blood in his mouth. Then everything went black . . .
****
"Tyler! Tyler, are you okay? " Caitlyn's near-frantic voice broke through the fog of memories.
No, not really. "Yeah. I'm fine."
Blinking away the dark mists, Tyler shook off the recol ections and straightened from his crouch. He pul ed in a deep reviving breath only to catch it halfway in his lungs when his left leg throbbed painful y from the uncomfortable position he'd maintained for the last few minutes. Probably not what the doctor had meant when he'd ordered him to take it slow and easy.
"Move back. I'm coming out." He caught hold of the sides of the door and hauled himself out of the tilted cockpit. He rubbed his thigh trying to ease the pulsing ache. He stil had a long way to go before he could leave behind the injuries caused by the crash.
One thing he could do was to get rid of the evidence, the constant physical reminder of the accident. Caitlyn was right. He should have done it months ago.
"Make the cal ," he told Caitlyn, ignoring those wide concerned eyes. "I'm going to go prep the Piper and take her up."
Caitlyn stared at him with her mouth hanging half open.
Tyler frowned. " What? "
"Are you sure you're ready to do that? A solo flight, I mean."
"I won't know until I try, wil I?"
"Let me come with you. For moral support."
It was Tyler's turn to stare. "You don't think I'm capable? Two weeks ago, I wasn't physical y capable. Today, I'm perfectly capable. I assure you."
Caitlyn shook her head. "No! No! I didn't mean that at al . Of course you're capable. It's just . . . you've suffered a terrible ordeal. Flying alone for the first time might not be the best thing to do. I'l just go along for the ride. You'l pilot the plane. You'l have the controls."
Tyler frowned at her. He didn't expect to have a negative reaction in the cockpit of the Piper like the on
e he'd just experienced in the Maule.
Inspecting the Lady Hawk had brought back the memories of that day. Natural y, he'd be uncomfortable thinking about the accident in which he'd been critical y injured.
Examining the crashed plane was total y different from taking up the Piper. He was itching to fly. He'd been grounded way too long. He lived to fly, didn't he? Flying was his life. Once he was behind the controls and winging over the countryside, he knew he'd be completely over the accident.
And about damned time, too.
If it made Caitlyn feel better to go up with him on this first flight, he would humor her. He liked her, liked being around her. He wouldn't mind the company. Being with the pretty lady and flying one of his planes . . . what more could he wish for?
Besides sex, of course.
And he planned to take care of that in the not-so-distant future, too. With or without Caitlyn. Although, with Caitlyn would be the ideal scenario.
She stood before him with concern and anxiety dimming the brightness in her beautiful eyes. What would she do if he closed the distance between them, took her in his arms and kissed her like he'd been dreaming about for weeks?
Not now, McCade. First things, first.
"Okay," he said. "Make the cal , then meet me in the hangar."
****
Caitlyn watched him walk away, his limp more pronounced than earlier. He'd stayed inside the tilted cockpit for quite a while, squatting on his haunches the whole time. She'd respected his need to be alone, knowing he had his demons to face. But something urged her to go with him on this first solo flight. Facing demons while on the ground was one thing; facing them up in the air was something else.
She shook her head and sighed. Digging her cel phone out of the pocket of her shorts, she punched in the numbers and arranged for the bul dozers to come out to the airfield. Then she ran to catch up with Tyler.
She found him standing in front of his Piper staring at it. Just standing there. Staring. Making no move to conduct a pre-flight inspection. His fingers curled into his palms squeezing into tight fists. He stood with his legs apart as if braced for a fight. What was going on in that brain of his? Was he fighting demons? Was he afraid?
Should she offer comfort? Or should she egg him on? Push a few buttons? Challenge Mr. Do or Die McCade?
Best just to play it by ear. Go with the flow.
Caitlyn walked to one of the huge sliding doors of the hangar and pushed it al the way open. Tyler turned at the sound of the grating noise. "Just don't stand there," she told him. "Open the other door. The sooner we get this baby out of the hangar, the sooner we can take to the skies. It's a gorgeous day to fly."
Of course, she could be imagining al of this about him being afraid; she hoped she was imagining al of this . . . Tyler not wanting to fly was too scary to contemplate. The man was a legend, for crying out loud.
Several weeks ago, she had Googled fear of flying in pilots, and it wasn't that uncommon for some to develop a phobia of either crashing or fal ing or both. Tyler hadn't actual y said anything about being afraid. Perhaps she was just transferring what she might feel if she were in his shoes . . . or cowboy boots in his case. Manifesting her imagined fears if their situations were reversed.
Early on, she'd learned to trust her gut feelings or pay the consequences. She wasn't going to let him fly alone this first time. No matter what.
Tyler turned on his heel and slowly walked toward the other sliding door. Gripping the metal handle, he pushed it open al the way and locked it in position. He looked at the windsock in the middle of the airfield, noting it wasn't flying straight out, but hanging almost paral el to the pole. The sky was clear with no clouds as far as the eye could see. Caitlyn had said it was a perfect day for flying, and it was.
So why was he stal ing? He knew it was best to gird his loins and just do it. That old adage about fal ing off a horse applied to flying as wel . If you get thrown off, climb back on. He'd done it before; he could do it again.
He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Are you ready?" Caitlyn's voice was low and soft.
Tyler looked down at her. "As ready as I'l ever be. Let's go."
They did a thorough pre-flight inspection with Tyler double-checking everything. After his last circuit around the aircraft, he stopped on the pilot's side and stood before the door.
Just open the damned thing, McCade. Should be easy enough.
Should be, but wasn't. Just do it!
He jerked open the door and climbed into the cockpit. Caitlyn was waiting in the passenger seat, buckled in and ready.
Tyler looked at her. "You're going to have to get out."
She turned those eyes on him and they narrowed. "Excuse me? I don't think so. I'm not letting you do this alone."
Tyler gritted his teeth. "I have to do this my way. I have to do it alone."
She crossed her arms across her chest, the movement making her breasts rise against the soft fabric of her tank top. She stared straight ahead.
"No. I'm not leaving."
He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. "Listen to me. You're a distraction. I want you so bad, I hurt. There. Are you satisfied? I've tried to ignore this chemistry between us, but it's not working. Right now, I have a plane to fly. I won't risk your life or mine, okay? I need al my concentration focused on flying. I can't afford any distractions. Besides, you owe me."
"Owe you? I don't understand."
"You're the one who planted that seed of doubt in my mind. So you owe me, big time."
Her eyes widened and her lips formed an O. "Me? I did no such thing."
Tyler wanted to kiss those pouty lips. He needed to get his mind off Caitlyn and onto flying. He'd never make it if he didn't. "Yes, you did. Before this morning, the only thing I was afraid of was not being physically able to fly again. I never thought I'd actual y be afraid to fly. And I'm not. But I don't need you in here distracting me."
She wrenched her chin away from his clasp and took a deep breath. "I want to lend my support. Moral support. I just want you to fly again."
Tyler let his hand fal . The warmth of her skin lingered on his sensitive fingertips. The woman was a distraction al right. "Yeah wel , that makes both of us. Now get out."
"But I care about you. I don't want you to go through this alone."
"If you care about me, then you'l do as I wish."
Caitlyn searched his face. Tyler felt his groin quicken under her intense scrutiny. He wanted to grab her again and kiss her until they were both panting for breath.
Final y, her shoulders slumped in capitulation. "Okay, I'm leaving. But no aerial hijinks. Promise?"
"Cross my heart. I'm going to take this baby up, fly her around the airfield two or three times, then bring her in for a safe landing. I'l save the hijinks for the next flight." Or bed. With her. He would have her in his bed before this was al over. It had been too long; the chemistry was too strong to ignore any more.
She surprised him when she leaned forward and kissed him. "That's for good luck. I'l be waiting."
Tyler watched her unbuckle and climb out of the plane. She closed the door and moved out of his flight path. At last, he was alone. Just as he preferred. He ignored the little voice that whispered he was lying. That he missed Caitlyn's presence. Her warmth and encouragement. Her moral support. Her sexy body.
Shaking off those dangerous thoughts, he fastened his seat buckle and shoulder belts. Reaching for the yoke, he took a deep breath and blocked his mind of everything but the plane and himself. Just him and his plane going for a routine flight.
He started the engine and let the whirling of the propel er and the rumble of the motor vibrate through him, become a part of him until he was one with his plane.
Maneuvering the Piper out of the hangar, he taxied her over to runway three and revved the engine. He paused for a moment, checking his controls, examining his feelings.
Al systems seemed to be good to go.
Tyler started down the runway,
but before he pushed to ful throttle his hands started trembling and he broke out in a cold sweat. What the hell?
He reversed the engines and shut them down. Sitting there in the middle of the runway, he desperately tried to catch his breath and steady his suddenly twitchy stomach.
He couldn't believe it. Goddamn it! Son of a bitch! He couldn't do it.
CHAPTER SIX
Caitlyn held her breath as she stood watching Tyler taxi the Piper toward the runway. How could she have left him to do this alone, after vowing so stridently she'd go with him? Unfortunately, she was afraid she knew the reason.
It was simple.
Her brain had short-circuited when he'd grabbed her chin in his strong hand. She'd felt the imprint of each finger branding her skin. At that moment, she couldn't have denied him anything he requested. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.
He'd been so intense in the cockpit just now. Even though he'd said he wanted her to leave, his smoldering eyes told her otherwise. A thril ing chil had skittered over her skin. She hadn't been able to resist kissing him before climbing out of the plane. Her knees had wobbled when she'd hit the tarmac, but somehow she'd managed not to fal on her butt.
Caitlyn shaded her eyes and waited for Tyler to take the Piper up. For some reason, he'd stopped in the middle of the runway. It was hard for her to imagine what he must be going through. He'd said he hadn't been afraid to fly, only how could he have been total y immune to doubts after such a life-threatening crash?
So far, she'd never had a flying mishap. Please God, she never would.
Suddenly, the engine shut down and the door to the cockpit flew open. Tyler got out of the plane and strode purposely toward her. Dear lord. If she'd thought he'd been intense before, that was nothing compared to the thundering rage now marring the handsome features of his face.
He looked like he wanted to kil someone. He looked like he wanted to kil her.
Caitlyn stood her ground. She wasn't afraid. Not real y. She knew Tyler would never hurt her physical y. It was emotional y she had to guard against.
The man had suffered an internal upheaval when he'd revisited the wreckage this morning. Attempting the solo flight had probably been too much in one day. A person could only take so much conflict before floundering in sensory overload.
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