The flight back didn’t have quite as many passengers but it went smoothly as long as Shayla ignored the fact that she had an increasing feeling that Heather was glancing at her more and more frequently, and a few times it seemed like the other woman might say something. Shayla walked away before she could speak both times.
Finally, the shift was over. The plane landed. Shayla did everything she needed to do and headed for the exit. Just as she was leaving the jetway, someone reached for her arm.
Shayla glanced over her shoulder to find Heather looking at her. “Hey, can we, uh, talk?” she asked in a quiet voice.
Shayla sighed. She didn’t want to be rude, but she also didn’t want to hear what Heather had to say. Something about the look on Heather’s face made her pause though. Maybe the woman wasn’t going to belittle Shayla. It wasn’t like her anyway. She wasn’t the confrontational sort.
“Sure,” Shayla looked around, orienting herself with what was near this gate. She pointed at a bar a few gates away. “You want to get a drink?”
Heather blew out a relieved breath and smiled. “That would be great.”
Shayla felt bad as they made their way to the bar, chose two seats at a high-top, and ordered two glasses of wine. Heather looked nervous. She was fidgeting.
As soon as the waitress brought their chardonnay, Heather took a sip and then a deep breath. “I wanted to talk to you, and I didn’t want to do it at work.”
“Okay.” Shayla leaned her elbows on the table. “I assume this is about the fun rumors spreading like wildfire about me.”
She licked her lips and then nodded. “Yes. But not what you think.”
Shayla furrowed her brow.
“I know everyone is whispering about you behind your back. I hear it too. I also know it’s Hawke Richman who’s spreading the gossip.”
Shayla nodded acknowledgment.
“You were dating him, right?”
Shayla shrugged. “If you want to call it that. More like I made bad choices and became a cliché booty call. Dating would imply the man took me out to dinner or movies.” Shayla knew she sounded snarky, but she felt every inch of that sarcasm.
Heather looked down for a moment and then lifted her gaze. She was playing with the stem of her wine glass. “He did it to me too.”
Shayla froze. “What?”
Heather nodded. “Yeah. He did the same thing to me a few years ago. I was so embarrassed that I never told anyone.”
Shayla leaned closer. “Oh my God.”
“I know. I feel so bad and I’ve been kicking myself for not talking to you. I know how alone you must feel. He’s very slick. He manipulates people into thinking they did him wrong and then tells everyone who will listen.”
Shayla was shocked. “That’s exactly it. How did you get him to stop?”
“I didn’t. I got lucky. He found someone else, so it didn’t go on very long.”
Shayla sat back, absorbing what Heather was saying. She felt an incredible sense of relief and camaraderie. It was just like Jake had said—no way was Shayla the first victim.
“The woman he moved on to, was she also a flight attendant? Are there others who work for the airline?”
Heather shook her head. “No. Not in that case at least. She was with airport security. Renee Delgado. I can’t say if he’s dated other flight attendants or not. If you can call it dating. Did he…uh…” Heather’s cheeks turned red and she glanced away.
Shayla set a hand on top of Heather’s. “I know this is a difficult discussion. Trust me. How about I tell you what happened to me and then you can share whatever you want.”
Heather nodded. “Okay. Sorry. I’m nervous. I’ve never told anyone still.”
“I get it. I do. I’m just as embarrassed. I didn’t even tell my closest friends until a few days ago. And that’s only because I happen to be friends with other flight attendants. Libby, Christa, Raeann, and Bex noticed I wasn’t myself lately, and they heard the rumors.”
“Right. I don’t have that many close friends at work, so there was no one to corner me,” Heather murmured.
Shayla drew in a breath, deciding to tell Heather everything. “The first night we were together, we had gone out with a bunch of people after the first leg of an overnight. He and I stayed later than everyone else at the bar. He’d asked me out before, but I always turned him down. That night, I fell for his charm. I’m not proud to admit I went back to his room and slept with him.”
Heather set a hand on Shayla’s this time. “Don’t beat yourself up. I did the same thing. He’s just so…charismatic or whatever. He flirted with me mercilessly for a month before luring me to his room.”
Shayla nodded. “That’s exactly what happened.”
“He didn’t call you the next morning, did he?”
Shayla smirked. “No.”
“Same here.” Heather sat straighter, emboldened now. “A week later, we did the same thing. By then I had red flags, but I was so under his spell that I ignored the warning bells.”
“Me too.” Shayla smiled. “God, it feels good to know I’m not alone.” She leaned in closer. “And he’s a shitty lover. He never once cared about taking care of me. Just got his rocks off and went to sleep.”
Heather giggled, nodding. “Yes! Drove me bonkers. But I didn’t have a lot of prior experience to compare him to, and he’s so gorgeous and everyone loves him. I thought I was the crazy one.”
Shayla groaned and rolled her eyes. “Same here.” She was smiling broader, feeling lighter than she had in months.
Heather sobered. “Did he hit you?” she asked in a low voice.
“Yeah,” Shayla admitted, glancing down. “And I’m pissed that I let it get that far. He’d already been abusing me verbally before that night, and I knew he was different. I could sense it. It’s like he’s got two personalities or something. He got angry sometimes and would yell at me and then apologize.”
Heather nodded. “Exactly.”
“I had decided I was done. I didn’t want to go another round with him. So, I let him come to my room as I broke things off. He didn’t like that and slammed my head against the wall. That was it. The last straw. Really that was past the last straw, but after that, I knew definitively he was an asshole. Somehow the verbal abuse didn’t register fully as abuse, but after he put his hands on me…”
Heather grabbed Shayla’s palm again and squeezed. “I was a bit more naïve than you and younger at the time. I didn’t leave quite as quickly.” She glanced away and then back. “Not that it’s any excuse. It’s not. But my parents didn’t model a good relationship, so I naively thought all men lost their tempers and yelled at women. It wasn’t really odd to me.”
“How did you end up leaving?” Shayla asked.
“Like you said, the red flags were piling up. He never contacted me between flights. He never took me on real dates. And this became more obvious over the course of two months. A few times I asked him to do something outside of work with me, and he made excuses. The physical abuse started small. Little things like being too rough with me in bed and then one time he slapped me and said it was an accident.”
“I’m so sorry.”
Heather drew in another breath. “The final straw was one night when he was particularly angry. I decided to go into the bathroom for a while so he could calm down. I think he’d been yelling at a game on TV. It wasn’t even about me. But he grabbed my arm and jerked me back into the room so hard it took my breath away.”
Shayla cringed.
“Even that wasn’t really enough. I might have gone back still if my roommate hadn’t seen the bruises on my arm. She knocked some sense into me. I texted him that I wanted to stop seeing him, and that’s when he started the rumors.”
They stared at each other in silence for a few moments before Shayla spoke. “I can’t believe we both went through the same thing.”
“The rumors aren’t even different. You’d think he would get creative.”
“
No shit. And you never told HR?”
Heather winced. “No. And I feel bad about that now. Maybe I could have saved you from all this pain.”
Shayla shook her head. “Don’t beat yourself up. I didn’t tell HR either. I still haven’t. I kept hoping it would end and he would stop harassing me.”
“I think I dodged a bullet when he found someone else to abuse. That was the end of his texts.”
“Honestly, I’m sure you would agree, I’m afraid if I tell HR, I’ll be the one who ends up hurt. Somehow, I’ll end up fired and he’ll be the victim. He’s got a lot of seniority with the airline. Why would anyone believe me over him? It would be a he-said, she-said. That hasn’t been going well in this country lately.” Shayla cringed at the memory of several prominent members of society who had been slandered by men like Hawke and ended up abused all over again in the court of public opinion.
“Exactly. I really don’t want my face all over the news. I don’t feel like I would win. I’d just ruin my life.”
Shayla had a thought. “But…there are two of us now. There must be others.”
Heather sighed. “Maybe. And then what? Even if there were ten. How many does it take? We both know from the news that ten or twenty or thirty isn’t enough. It’s a huge risk. I’m not sure I feel strong enough to stand up for myself. That might make me a total bitch.”
Shayla shook her head. “You’re not a bitch. I hear you. It’s not like I disagree. But it bothers me on a different level now that I know I’m not alone. If there are two of us, there are more. And what about the next woman? What if he really hurts someone.”
Heather cringed. “You’re right. Ugh. Now what?”
Shayla thought about Jake and what he might be able to do.
Jake. Shit. She hadn’t texted him to tell him she’d be late. She reached for her purse and pulled her phone out. “Sorry. I just realized I need to let my, uh…this guy friend, know where I am.”
Heather giggled. “Guy friend?”
Shayla chuckled as she shot off a text.
Hey. Sorry. I’m having a drink with a coworker. Interesting story. I’ll be home later.
Jake responded immediately.
K. Be careful.
Shayla put her phone away and turned back to Heather who was smirking. “Everything okay with your, uh, this guy friend?” she teased.
Heather laughed. “Yeah. I started to call him my boyfriend and then realized he’s not really. Not yet anyway. I don’t know what he is yet.”
“But he’s expecting you.” She wiggled her brows. “I’m glad you’re moving on. I haven’t exactly managed that yet. Men make me nervous and I’d rather not be alone with them.”
“I’m so sorry. That really sucks. Not all guys are such assholes. I promise. You just haven’t met good ones.”
“That’s for sure.”
“Anyway, Jake is a computer geek. He’s been digging into Hawke a bit. Trying to find some dirt on him.”
Heather’s eyes widened. “Wow. That’s nice of him.”
“He’s a bit overprotective. I’m actually staying with him too. He’s worried about Hawke coming to my condo.”
“I totally get that. I was scared for months. His damn texts can be brutal. I felt genuinely threatened at times.”
Shayla nodded. “I’ve known Jake for a while, but we just hadn’t quite hooked up yet. When he found out about this shitshow, he came to me worried.”
“I’m glad you have someone in your court.”
“Me too. Now, if I could just get him to sleep with me…” Her voice trailed off before she realized she’d said that out loud. “Shit. Sorry. TMI.”
Heather chuckled. “Interesting problem.”
“Tell me about it. He’s being all chivalrous and shit. Saying he really likes me so he doesn’t want to be a douche and sleep with me on the first date.”
“And you’ve been staying with him for how long?” Heather asked.
“Since Saturday.”
“I’d say you are past the first date then.”
Shayla giggled. “We have a very strange seven-day agreement. I’ve tried my damndest to get him to budge, even traipsing around his house in almost no clothes. He hasn’t budged.”
Heather laughed again. “Sounds like fun though. I’m not sure I’d ever have the balls to flirt like that, especially half-naked. I’d be mortified.”
“Yeah. I’m not a particularly shy person. Plus, I’ve wanted Jake’s hands on me for a while. I’m a little over the chivalry. I’d rather move on to the good parts now.”
“Maybe try totally naked next time,” Heather suggested, still laughing.
“It’s not a bad idea…”
Heather sobered. “Well, this conversation went better than I thought. I’ve wanted to confront you for a while. I couldn’t think what to say and I was nervous. Thank you for listening, and I’m sorry the same thing happened to you. Let’s exchange numbers. If anything else develops, let me know. I’m not eager to go to HR, but I won’t leave a gal hanging if you decide to do it.”
“Thank you. I’m in no hurry and I won’t do anything without talking to you first. I promise.” Shayla smiled. “I’ll call you next time my friends and I go out. You can join us if you want.”
“Thanks. That’d be fun.”
They both slid off their barstools, dropped a few twenties on the table, and headed for the exit.
“Thanks again,” Heather said as they parted ways to find their cars.
“You too. I’ll call or text soon.” Shayla felt much lighter as she headed to Jake’s house. She was not alone.
Chapter 10
Jake was sitting on the couch, feet on the coffee table, enjoying a beer when Shayla walked in. He wiggled his brows at her. “Sexy uniform, sweetheart.”
She rolled her eyes as she dropped her purse on the end table and kicked off her shoes. “These are the ugliest uniforms on earth, and you know it.” She plucked at the front of her blouse and then tugged at the skirt.
He had to admit the skirts were a bit long for his idea of sexy, but not for a woman he was dating to be wearing to work. “Eye of the beholder.” He winked. “Maybe it’s the woman in the uniform.”
“Well, I’m going to take it off, and then I have information.”
“I do too. Shall I pour you a glass of wine while you change?”
“That would be amazing. I’m off tomorrow. I could use a drink.” She reached into her purse and pulled out her phone, handing it to him. “Three calls. Four texts. I didn’t listen or look,” she announced.
Jake sighed as he took the cell from her. “And you shouldn’t. No reason to subject yourself to his gaslighting. As long as you don’t mind me keeping tabs on the asshole. I can make sure he doesn’t say anything different or alarming each day.”
“And I appreciate it.”
He shoved to standing as she continued through the living room, dragging her suitcase. “Oh, hey,” he called after her, waiting for her to look over her shoulder. “When you say you’re going to take that off, I hope you mean to put on a sweatshirt and sweatpants in its place,” he teased.
She laughed hard as she continued out of sight. He was a bit concerned. The woman was not modest. She had no problem flaunting her assets in front of him, and she had plenty of assets.
He was back on the sofa with his beer and her glass of wine when she returned. Luckily, he didn’t have the beer tipped back to his lips at the moment, or he would have spewed it around the room.
His eyes went wide and he groaned.
“What?” She picked up her wine glass from the coffee table and dropped down on the other end of the sofa as if it weren’t the least bit strange that she was wearing a black negligee. It hugged every inch of her body. The lace dipped low between her amazing tits, and if he wasn’t mistaken, she had on a matching thong.
The imp even drew her knees up under her as she sat down. After taking a long sip of wine, she moaned. “Mmm. That’s good. Thank you.”
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His cock was hard, and he couldn’t decide if he wanted to pounce on her—to hell with the deal—or throw a blanket over her, or pull her over his lap and spank her. Two out of the three of those would cause him to lose their deal. A deal she clearly wasn’t thrilled with.
“What?” she said again, innocently before looking down at her chest. “Did I spill something on me?”
He chuckled and rolled his eyes before taking a long swig of beer. “That is not sweatpants.”
She shrugged. “Didn’t bring any. This is comfortable. I like it.”
“How the hell am I supposed to have a serious conversation with you dressed like that?”
“Hey, this whole waiting for Saturday to touch me idea wasn’t mine. It’s not my fault you’re struggling with your own rule. Besides, you’re lucky. Heather’s idea was for me to traipse out here naked.”
He forced his gaze to rise to her face but didn’t bother hiding the fact that he had to adjust his cock behind the zipper of his jeans. “Who is Heather?”
“Coworker. We worked the same flights today. That’s who I was with when I texted you. Turns out she’s also a victim of Hawke’s.”
Jake sucked in a breath. “No shit?”
Shayla shook her head. “Nope. Almost the same story. Only reason he stopped harassing her was because he met someone else and moved on. If only I could be that lucky.”
“No kidding. I’m sorry. But that’s interesting. I wonder how many others there are.”
“No idea, but Heather said his next girlfriend—if you can call any of us that—was with airport security.”
“Interesting. Did she give you a name?”
“Renee Delgado. I’m not sure who she is.”
He nodded. “Good. If there are others…”
Shayla shook her head. “Don’t get carried away. You have to see things from our perspective. Neither of us went to HR for a reason, and that isn’t going to change just because there are two of us.”
“You don’t think they’ll believe you…” He understood. It sucked, but she was probably right.
Standby (Open Skies Book 4) Page 6