same commitment to success they’d show in raising a family. For a second she understood why her grandmother was so keen for Claire to marry another pilot.
“Yes, of course we’ve considered it.” She wondered how many opportunities they’d lost in the years that Frank had been running things. Refused to take refuge in blaming the former manager. “The truth is, we need to do more of that if we’re going to—” She stopped herself before she blurted out the word survive . Quickly changed it to thrive . She glanced over at him and found him gazing at her intently. He was really interested in how the business did, she could tell. He wasn’t simply making conversation or trying to suck up to the boss. She liked that about him. “We’re about halfway to the mine and a little ahead of schedule. How about I show you one of the greatest fishing spots in Alaska?”
“Really? Greatest?”
She chuckled. “Probably not even in the top twenty, but my grandfather loved to fish. He used to bring me and my grandmother up to this lake. We’d bring a picnic and he’d fish.”
“I’d love to see it.”
She felt the warmth of companionship. Knew she was falling for this guy and decided that she was okay with that. She’d make it clear to her grandmother that she wasn’t attempting to repeat history, she was simply enjoying the company of a man. Who happened to be a pilot, and happened to work for Polar Air. It did not mean that Lynette had found the perfect grandson-in-law.
Claire took them off course, enjoying the sunny day and the feeling of being with the most interesting man she’d met in a long time.
“Do you ever get tired of flying?” he asked her.
She was so shocked by the question she turned to stare at him. “Tired of flying? Are you kidding? It’s when I feel most alive. I look around and here I am, flying above the earth, defying gravity, seeing the glaciers and mountain peaks, the ocean and the trees from the sky. It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever done. I am grateful every day that I get to fly.” The second she stopped speaking she felt a little embarrassed. She’d given away something very personal. If he laughed at her— She glanced over at him, and found him looking back at her not with derision but in complete agreement. “You?” she asked.
“I always think flying is like sex. No matter how amazing a trip is, I can’t wait for the next one. Every flight is different, sometimes challenging, but I get to heights I never imagined and, well, it’s always a rush.”
And she thought, listening to him, that she hadn’t had enough good sex in her life. The thought flicked through her mind that Max might be able to change that.
“There’s the lake,” she said as it appeared, a silver sparkle below them.
As she took the plane lower for a closer look, a flock of geese came into view, sublimely uninterested in the fact that they were directly in front of her. She pulled up on the stick hard to get above the geese. Something she’d done many times in the past. When she tried to take the plane back down she realized she had a problem.
“The stick’s not working properly. I’ve lost my elevator.”
* * *
C LAIRE ’ S CALM TONE didn’t fool Max. “We’re still climbing,” he said, which was obvious. Soon they’d reach a stall point. He didn’t say what they both knew. Without the elevator they were seriously screwed.
He watched her work the throttle, back off on power. “I’m trying to time it so we stall out at the end of the lake. Near the shoreline.”
Her calmness in the face of disaster was working in their favor, as was her obvious skill as a pilot. But without an elevator their chances weren’t too good.
When everything worked in harmony, flying was the greatest pleasure in life. But one mechanical problem could turn a symphony into a death march.
“I’m going to try and flare out at the bottom,” she said. All she could do was try and delay the inevitable.
“Yes, of course we’ve considered it.” She wondered how many opportunities they’d lost in the years that Frank had been running things. Refused to take refuge in blaming the former manager. “The truth is, we need to do more of that if we’re going to—” She stopped herself before she blurted out the word survive . Quickly changed it to thrive . She glanced over at him and found him gazing at her intently. He was really interested in how the business did, she could tell. He wasn’t simply making conversation or trying to suck up to the boss. She liked that about him. “We’re about halfway to the mine and a little ahead of schedule. How about I show you one of the greatest fishing spots in Alaska?”
“Really? Greatest?”
She chuckled. “Probably not even in the top twenty, but my grandfather loved to fish. He used to bring me and my grandmother up to this lake. We’d bring a picnic and he’d fish.”
“I’d love to see it.”
She felt the warmth of companionship. Knew she was falling for this guy and decided that she was okay with that. She’d make it clear to her grandmother that she wasn’t attempting to repeat history, she was simply enjoying the company of a man. Who happened to be a pilot, and happened to work for Polar Air. It did not mean that Lynette had found the perfect grandson-in-law.
Claire took them off course, enjoying the sunny day and the feeling of being with the most interesting man she’d met in a long time.
“Do you ever get tired of flying?” he asked her.
She was so shocked by the question she turned to stare at him. “Tired of flying? Are you kidding? It’s when I feel most alive. I look around and here I am, flying above the earth, defying gravity, seeing the glaciers and mountain peaks, the ocean and the trees from the sky. It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever done. I am grateful every day that I get to fly.” The second she stopped speaking she felt a little embarrassed. She’d given away something very personal. If he laughed at her— She glanced over at him, and found him looking back at her not with derision but in complete agreement. “You?” she asked.
“I always think flying is like sex. No matter how amazing a trip is, I can’t wait for the next one. Every flight is different, sometimes challenging, but I get to heights I never imagined and, well, it’s always a rush.”
And she thought, listening to him, that she hadn’t had enough good sex in her life. The thought flicked through her mind that Max might be able to change that.
“There’s the lake,” she said as it appeared, a silver sparkle below them.
As she took the plane lower for a closer look, a flock of geese came into view, sublimely uninterested in the fact that they were directly in front of her. She pulled up on the stick hard to get above the geese. Something she’d done many times in the past. When she tried to take the plane back down she realized she had a problem.
“The stick’s not working properly. I’ve lost my elevator.”
* * *
C LAIRE ’ S CALM TONE didn’t fool Max. “We’re still climbing,” he said, which was obvious. Soon they’d reach a stall point. He didn’t say what they both knew. Without the elevator they were seriously screwed.
He watched her work the throttle, back off on power. “I’m trying to time it so we stall out at the end of the lake. Near the shoreline.”
Her calmness in the face of disaster was working in their favor, as was her obvious skill as a pilot. But without an elevator their chances weren’t too good.
When everything worked in harmony, flying was the greatest pleasure in life. But one mechanical problem could turn a symphony into a death march.
“I’m going to try and flare out at the bottom,” she said. All she could do was try and delay the inevitable.
Similar Books
The 30-Minute Vegan's Taste of the East: 150 Asian-Inspired Recipes--from Soba Noodles to Summer Rolls
Mark Reinfeld, Jennifer Murray
