Flight Read online

“I’m not sure about today.”

  “All right. I’ll see you if I see you, then.”

  “Okay.”

  “If I don’t see you at lunch, I’ll see you tonight?” He asked. “We’re meeting Becky and her date at seven, right?”

  “That’s right.”

  “What time are you ready to leave?”

  “I’ll be ready at six-thirty.”

  “Okay, I’ll come to your office then.”

  “Fine.” She agreed. “I’ll see you then.”

  She hung up the phone, but instead of getting straight to work, she couldn’t stop thinking about the incident at the track. And she couldn’t seem to get him out of her mind. Who was he? She had never seen him before. But with thousands of employees at PAL, and a good eighty percent of them men, she doubted she would see him again. And that thought bothered her somehow.

  Charlie felt the familiar rush as she approached the AIR230 for another flight test later that afternoon. Her love affair with aviation began with her love of flying. When she was a little girl, she would sit and listen intently while her dad described his work to her at her request. Before she even went to school, she would hear about his days at work as a pilot in the Flight Test Department at PAL. And she would dream about flying those jets with him. She looked forward to those Saturdays when he would take her with him into work. John Brison loved his work and he was very good at it. Back then, he was the senior manager of the FT Department, and Mike was his assistant manager. They were both very dedicated to their work, coming in on the weekends whenever they had time.

  The times when she was learning to fly and her dad took on those final flights on the jets were especially special to her; hearing the roar of the jets as they took off, soaring high through the sky. That cemented her love for aviation. When all her friends were studying and practicing for their driver’s license, she was getting her pilot’s license. She learned to fly before she learned to drive.

  It was her first love.

  Walking out to the ramp, she saw the ground crew was busy doing a complete preflight check, including a handful of the maintenance crew doing the FOD check. It snowed steadily since lunchtime and they were extra diligent to make sure there was no hidden debris. She did a couple rounds of her own preflight checks when one of the maintenance crew approached her.

  Dressed in navy overalls, she could still recognize him immediately. It was him; the guy from the running track. She frowned inwardly. How was it possible that he could make something like overalls looked sexy? She met the deep azure eyes and felt that unfamiliar sense of being knocked out of breath again as she did this morning.

  “Hey,”

  “Hey,” She murmured, her heart started speeding up for no reason.

  “I’m Ryle Sullivan.” He introduced himself. His voice was deep and warm. “I’m with the maintenance crew.”

  “Charlie Brison, flight test team.”

  “I saw you yesterday when you took the jet for a flight test.” He commented casually. “Are you taking the jet out again today?”

  “Yes.”

  “In this weather?”

  She glanced at the sky; anything was less unnerving than looking into those brilliant eyes. “This is not so bad. I’ve flown in much worst conditions than this.” She said with a little shrug.

  “You’ve done this a lot?”

  “Enough times.” She answered.

  “You’re not in Mike’s team.” He said. It was not a question.

  “I’ve worked in Mike’s team for several years.” She said. “I’ve been on the AIR230 program for a longtime; I’ve been with it since conception. We deal with all the preliminary testing and making sure it passes all the safety certifications first. Mike’s team will be doing the long haul flight testing when we’re done.”

  “Isn’t the preliminary testing more dangerous?”

  “It could be.” She admitted.

  “Are there a lot risks in the early stages?”

  “Not really. We’ve eliminated as much risk as we could during the prototype phase and the assembly of each part, we put it through a serious of testing and certifications before building the whole aircraft.”

  “And you like to take it up alone?”

  “It’s a single pilot jet.” She said. “In any case, we’re been running the testing program for many months. At this stage, it’s almost good to go.”

  “Do you need a special license for it?”

  “The single-pilot license is more stringent and harder to pass.” She agreed.

  “I haven’t seen a single pilot jet before. I imagine a single-pilot jet’s design requirements are different from a two-pilot jet?” He asked.

  Charlie looked at him and he seemed genuinely interested. He had a way of making her talk and she didn’t realize she was talking so much.

  “Very different. Without a co-pilot, all the flight controls, switches and essential items need to be located in a way that a single pilot can see and reach them easily.” She told him. “Like the landing gear handle, it needs to be within reachable range from the left seat.” She relaxed as she talked about the jet.

  It was strange. She had never felt nervous in a man’s presence, and yet here she was almost trembling just talking with him. It was not the scared nervous, but the excited nervous. Not unlike how she felt when she first took the AIR230 up into the air.

  “Very interesting. Maybe you can give me an inside tour some time.” He suggested.

  Her eyes narrowed. There it was clear as day, he was looking for a hook up. Her sensuous mouth compressed, even as her insides heated in response. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible. It’s not available to anyone without special clearance.” She answered coolly now. “Excuse me.”

  Ryle watched Charlie Brison walk away coolly without a backward glance. He grinned. After what Jack told him, he wasn’t surprised by her reaction to his open suggestion. He hadn't been subtle, but then he was a man who always went after what he wanted.

  Close up, she looked even more beautiful. She didn't wear much makeup, and she didn't need it. Her skin was flawless. Her cheeks had a dewiness of fresh bloom petals. Her mouth soft and luscious. Her eyes were a very clear silver color, flecked with dark grey. They were fringed with long thick and black eyelashes. When she talked about her work, her eyes flashed with excitement and energy. Watching her, it was surprisingly arousing. She looked so sexy he had to suppress the urge to just grab her and screwed her hard.

  But although she had turned immediately cold towards him when he made the play to pick her up, he could see she was not as repulsed by the suggestion as she made it sound. He had seen her interest at the running tracks earlier. The way she had looked him over, as if she wanted to devour him. It was all he could do not to respond to that hungry look in her eyes. She had tried to hide it, but she wasn’t a very good actress.

  He couldn’t stop the smile that touched his lips. Linwood was going to be a lot more interesting that he thought it would be.

  Charlie had trouble focusing on work after her encounter with Ryle Sullivan. She couldn't stop thinking about him and the involuntary response she had. She had never felt such instant desire before. Somehow, he had gotten to her and that was a scary thought. He didn't seem much different from many of the other good looking guys that had come through PAL at one time or another. Other the years, she had learned to handle all kinds of would-be-Romeos and their pick up lines without losing her sense of humor. So what was it about Ryle Sullivan that was so different?

  She had lost track of time. By the time Jeff came knocking at her office later, she was surprised to find how late it was. It was Friday night, and most people had already gone home. Nevertheless, Charlie put some space between her and Jeff as they walked toward his car, making sure it didn’t look too intimate in case anyone was there to look. Jeff had noticed it, but he seemed resigned to it and didn’t make any comment.

  “Do you want to put your laptop in the trunk?” Jeff asked her as
they approached his car.

  “Yes, thanks.” Charlie agreed.

  They were heading straight to dinner and she didn’t want to leave her laptop out in the open. There were too many important files on it for her to risk losing it.

  They were meeting Becky at the Luigi’s Bistro, Becky’s favorite neighborhood Italian restaurant in Chicago. When they arrived, Becky and her date were already there.

  “Hey guys,” Becky got up to exchange a hug and kiss with Charlie.

  “Hey Becky.” Jeff smiled warmly at her.

  Becky introduced her date, Ben Harrods. They sat down and ordered food. The evening was very enjoyable. After dinner, they went to a jazz club for drinks. It was well past midnight when they left the club.

  “Are you still coming to my parents’ for dinner on Sunday?” Charlie asked her best friend as they stood outside the club, saying goodbyes.

  “Oh, yeah, I wouldn’t miss your mom’s cooking for anything.” Becky grinned. “And I’ll see you there too, Jeff?”

  “Yes, I’ll be there.” Jeff grinned.

  “Cool. Have a good night guys.”

  “You, too, Becky.”

  Becky pulled Charlie in for a hug, whispering against her ear. “And I want all the details.”

  “I have no idea what you mean.” Charlie murmured softly so only Becky could hear.

  “You know exactly what I mean.” Becky whispered back wickedly. Before Charlie could protest more, Becky was putting her arm through Ben’s and waving goodbye to them as they walked off in the opposite direction.

  It was closer to three a.m. when Jeff dropped Charlie off at her place.

  “Thanks for driving me home.” She said as he stopped his car in front of the house.

  “My pleasure.” He said, getting out and opening the passenger door for her.

  Charlie retrieved her laptop computer from the trunk, and he walked with her around the main house to the garage. She unlocked her door and turned back to face Jeff.

  “Thanks for tonight; it was great.”

  “I had a lot of fun tonight, too.” He said, looking down at her. He cupped her face, gently tilting it up as he bent his head to kiss her.

  Jeff was an expert kisser. As he parted her mouth and deepened the kiss, she returned his kiss passionately.

  “Charlie,” Jeff groaned, wrapping an arm around her and pulled her close against him. Through their clothes, she could feel his arousal. It was a thrilling feeling. It had been too long. She wrapped her arms around his neck, silently asking for more. And Jeff was more than willing to give it.

  “Charlie, let me make love to you.” He said huskily against her mouth.

  She wanted to say yes, but instead she pulled back. “I can’t…”

  He was breathing heavily, trying to control himself. Against her hip, she could still feel the hard bulge of his arousal, and she pulled away completely.

  “You should go.” She murmured.

  He gave a heavy sigh, “Yeah. Goodnight.”

  “Goodnight, Jeff.” She said softly.

  She showered and changed into her PJs before going to bed. Although she was sleepy, she was too aroused to sleep. She needed release. Slipping her hand inside her PJ pants, she rubbed herself slowly, closing her eyes, she sighed softly as her fingers brought herself to orgasm. As she was coming, an image popped inadvertently into her mind. But instead of seeing Jeff’s face, she saw his face with those brilliant azure blue eyes.

  She was confused, but she was also too tired to wonder about it.

  Weekend mornings were the only time when Charlie could sleep in. Most weekends, she goes to work a few hours and spent the rest of the time with her family or friends. This morning she decided to go visit Mandy’s floral shop. It’s in downtown Linwood. She parked her motorcycle in front of Joe’s Café and went inside to pick up some coffee and muffins.

  There were a dozen or so tables inside the café, and it was most filled with elder people having breakfast.

  “Hey Joe,” Charlie walked up to the counter where Joe was making coffee.

  Joe was a good looking man in his mid-thirties. Although he was always in worn T-shirts and jeans, his demeanor seemed more like a professional businessman. He had moved into town two years ago to open his café, no one knew much about him except that he had an aunt who lived in Linwood. He seemed friendly enough to his customers, but he usually kept to himself and was sometimes gruff and remote. Nevertheless, despite the gruffness, his café was becoming a local favorite for coffee and breakfast. Charlie preferred the simple gourmet coffee to those of the trendier big name coffee shops that was trying to take over the town.

  “Hey Charlie,” Joe greeted her with an easy smile. He seemed to be in a good mood today. “What can I get you today?”

  “I’ll have a large French roast and a Butter Toffee.” She said. She selected some muffins from the trays of fresh baskets behind the counter. One of Joe’s part time girls, a pretty redhead, was already putting the order together as Charlie made her selection. “Oh and a cup of warm milk. Not steamed, just warm please.”

  “Warm milk?” Joe asked rather dubiously, but shrugged. “Warm milk coming up.” He said, taking a container of milk from the fridge and pouring it into a little pot to heat it up.

  “Thanks Joe.” Charlie said, balancing the paper tray and the bag of muffins as she walked out the door.

  The door opened as she approached it, the man stepped back and held it for her to pass first.

  “Thank you…” Charlie stopped abruptly as she realized it was Ryle.

  “Someone is hungry this morning.” He commented, his eyes twinkling.

  She gave him a mocking little smile. “Yes.”

  “Need any help with that?” He asked, watching as she shifted and the paper bag slid precariously on the tray.

  “No, thanks. I got it.” She said firmly.

  Charlie walked by. She was conscious of his eyes on her back as she crossed the street. The floral shop was just a few doors away, and she used her shoulder to push the door open to go inside. She was tempted to look back at the café to see if he was still watching her, but she managed to resist it.

  “Hey,” Mandy was sitting behind the counter playing with her daughter.

  “Hey,” Charlie put down the tray on the counter.

  “Charlie, you’re a darling. I was just thinking about getting a mid-morning snack.” Mandy said.

  “I got your favorite Butter Toffee coffee and Joe’s famous zucchini muffin for my favorite little girl.” Charlie said, walking around the counter. “Hello sweetheart,”

  Little Megan seemed to remember her, holding her chubby arms out to be picked up by Charlie.

  “Well, at least she hasn’t forgotten you.” Mandy grinned, watching as her friend cooed over the adorable toddler.

  Mandy took out a muffin, breaking it off a small piece and handing it to Megan as Charlie held her.

  “Mmm…this is just what I needed, thanks.” Mandy sighed happily, taking a deep drink of her coffee.

  “The small one is warm milk for Megan.” Charlie nodded towards the small cup.

  Mandy poured the milk into a sippy cup and handed it to her daughter. “So, what are your plans today? Where are you and Jeff going?”

  “We’re catching the play Freedom and then we’re heading out to a late supper at Voltare’s.”

  “Voltare’s? Wow, we’re certainly living it up.” Mandy teased. “I read that it’s one of the top restaurants. When Becky tried to make a reservation, they were booked up for months in advance. How did you manage to get in?”

  Charlie shrugged. “I guess Jeff had his way.”

  “Okay, you have got to take a picture of your food so I can post it on my blog.”

  Charlie laughed. Mandy wrote a blog about her daily experiences as a mother and owner of a floral shop.

  “I’ll probably never get a chance to go there, but at least I could say my friend went there.”

  “Okay.” Charlie
laughed.

  “So, is tonight going to be the night?”

  “Mandy, you’re as bad as Becky.” She shook her head.

  Charlie stayed the rest of the morning at the floral shop to keep her friend company and play with Megan. Although she enjoyed playing with her goddaughter, she was still feeling disturbed about last night. And it didn’t help that she saw him this morning. But although she and her two best friends are always honest with each other, telling each other everything, she couldn’t discuss this with Mandy.

  Her date with Jeff went very well. She enjoyed spending time with him. This time when he said goodnight, he held back. She knew he was trying to give her space and she appreciated his thoughtfulness. Although his pleasurable kisses ignited a passion in her that seemed long forgotten, she found herself holding back still. Jeff didn’t pressure her, merely giving her a long deep kiss before saying goodnight at the door and leaving.

  She went into work Sunday morning, and spent a good part of the afternoon helping her mom prepare for dinner. Dinner was set for five couples, including friends of her parents, Charlie and Jeff, and Becky and her date Eddie.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Brison; dinner was very delicious, as usual.” Jeff said as desserts and coffee were served.

  Everyone agreed. John Brison silently held his wife’s hand, a warm appreciative look in his eyes as he watched his wife. He was not a man of many words except when it was about aviation, but he showed it with his gestures. He lightly caressed his wife’s hand as he held it. Charlie caught the silent affection whenever her parents looked at each other, and wondered if she would ever share that kind of complete love and trust.

  “Eva, your pork roast was divine. I must get the recipe from you.” Mrs. Hamlin said.

  “Yeah, Mrs. Brison, I’ve never had pork so tender.” Becky agreed.

  “Thank you,” Eva Brison smiled graciously. “But I can’t take all the credit here, Charlotte helped with the cooking.” She directed this more at Jeff than anyone else.

  “Yeah?” Jeff grinned at Charlie, “You’re a woman of many talents.”