21. Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

Josh

"Did you pack an overnight bag?" I ask Layla as I lean against the frame of her front door.

She picks up a black bag from the ground by her shoes. "Overnight bag is packed."

She closes the door and locks it. As soon as we're settled into my truck, she grabs my cheek and pulls me in for a kiss.

I don't think I'll ever tire of her lips or the way my heart flutters every time they touch mine.

"Now, can you tell me where we're going?" she asks as she pulls away.

I put the truck in reverse and back out of her driveway.

"Nope. Sorry, Freckles. It's a surprise all the way to the very end."

I've been setting this up for a couple of days. My friend owns a huge beach house in Charleston that he rents out in the summer months. He is letting us stay there for the evening. But we are not driving the two hours to Charleston, we are taking another form of transportation.

When we pull up to the gate of the private airport, she looks at me strangely.

"What's going on? Are we flying somewhere?" she asks.

I find a parking spot in the front and cut the engine. "We are indeed."

I grab both of our bags and walk into the building. Carter is waiting for us at the opposite side of the building by the sliding glass doors.

"What's up, man?" I ask, placing our bags on the ground and shaking his hand. "Thanks for letting me do this."

"Not a problem. I think you've earned yourself a solo trip."

"You ready, Freckles?" I pick our bags back up, following Carter outside to the small aircraft that's being inspected at the moment.

"This guy is flying us somewhere?" she asks as the wind whips through her hair; looking like a movie star with her sunglasses.

We walk up the stairs and into the aircraft. I place our luggage in the closet and then sit down in the cockpit.

"Not exactly," I tell her. "Come sit down."

I motion for her to sit in the co-pilot seat, but she continues to stand in place.

"Josh, what the hell is going on?" she crosses her arms over her chest .

Her small white tank top pushes her breasts up and makes me want to take her right here in front of anyone who wants to watch.

"My buddy Carter is letting us borrow his plane. I'm flying us to Charleston, where we have a beautiful mansion on the water waiting for us."

"Be serious, who's flying us there?"

I chuckle. "I am serious. I've been flying planes for two years now. I took lessons, clocked my hours, and Carter has been teaching me. This is the first time he is letting me borrow his plane. This thing ain't cheap. But he trusts me and has been flying with me for a year, so he offered the other day when I was telling him that I wanted to do something special for you."

She still doesn't look very convinced.

"Josh, you've never talked about flying planes before."

"Well, Freckles, I'm not sure you and I sat down and had much small talk in the last couple of years."

She can't deny it, we've been dancing around these feelings for years, avoiding getting to know each other.

"How come Asher's never mentioned it?" she asks, still not completely convinced.

I shrug my shoulders. "I'm assuming Asher hasn't felt the need to bring it up to you. It's not like I've flown with him before. I generally have only flown with my instructors and Carter. It's not like I have a plane of my own to jet out with my friends all the time. "

I pat my lap. "Come here. Sit down." I grab her hand and slowly pull her down to sit on my knee. "I'll explain all of this to you. I want you to feel comfortable."

I spent the next couple of minutes going over all the controls I will be using for the flight, showing her the communication I will have with air traffic control throughout the entire flight. She listened intently the entire time, her body slowly relaxing into mine.

"Most importantly," I tell her, "is that I would never allow anything to happen to you. If there is anyone in this world I would die before I let anything happen to, it would be you. Trust me when I tell you, I wouldn't do this if I didn't know it was safe for you."

"Okay," she turns around and looks at me. "I trust you."

I smile and squeeze her side. "Good. Now, you can go in the back and enjoy the trip. You can take a nap on the couch or watch a movie, or you can sit up here with me."

She bites her bottom lip as she looks behind me at the luxury jet and all its features. I really won't be offended if she chooses to sit in the back. I just want her to feel comfortable. But she smiles and leans down to kiss my lips.

"I think I'd like to be your co-pilot, Captain Crawford."

I suppress a groan. "Fuck, that sounds hot coming from you. We'll be exploring this name in the bedroom tonight."

She laughs as she hops off my lap and takes a seat next to me in the co-pilot chair. I give her her own set of headphones so she can listen to anything that comes through on the radio.

"This is so cool," she claps. "I can't believe I never knew this about you. You are full of surprises."

"Just something I've always wanted to do. Not that impressive."

She turns her head to the side in confusion. "You really don't understand how amazing you are. Stop downplaying how incredible this is. But just so you know," her face turns serious, "you would be equally amazing to me without any of this." She motions to the plane and everything around her.

My heart skips a beat. I think that's all I've ever wanted to hear from her. That I'm good enough just as I am, without any fancy accomplishments or skills. I smile at her, knowing words can't convey what that means to me.

I turn back to the controls in front of me and start the engine. It comes roaring to life, like the love I have had in my heart for this woman since our trip.

Once all systems are a go, I reverse the plane and start to taxi towards the runway. I make sure Layla is buckled up as I turn the plane, coming to a complete stop.

"This is it. You trust me, baby?" I ask, just wanting to hear the words.

She smiles. "I trust you."

"Here we go," I tell her as I get clearance for takeoff.

I push the throttle forward, and the plane begins to accelerate. As we gain speed, I steer the plane down the runway. Once we hit our rotation speed, I pull the controls back, and the plane lifts off the ground.

"Holy. Shit!" Layla screams next to me. "You're fucking flying a plane! "

I erupt into a deep laugh. Her excitement is contagious. A couple of minutes later, the plane is coasting in the air on the way to our destination. We should be there in thirty minutes. I'll be starting to descend in about twenty.

Layla keeps looking out the front windshield and side window with a big grin. Making her happy gives me more joy than I've ever experienced in my life. I could easily make this my mission for the rest of my life.

"Do you have any idea what you flying a plane is doing to me right now?" she says to me.

I bite my lip, just thinking about sliding my finger into her panties and feeling how slick and turned on she is.

I cover the microphone to my headset and whisper. "Having you sit next to me with that headset on is doing things to me, too, baby. You're, without a doubt, the sexiest co-pilot that has ever existed. If I weren't flying a plane right now, I'd have my finger so far up that cunt of yours, you'd be screaming my name."

Her skin flushes as her jaw hangs low. "Captain Crawford! Do you talk to all your co-pilots like that?"

I wink. "Only you, Freckles. You're the only co-pilot I want for the rest of my life."

Her eyes go wide. Shit. I think I just confessed I want to spend the rest of my life with her. Was that too soon? I know I should take my time, make sure we get this right, but it's so damn hard when it's the person I've pined over for a decade.

I turn back to the windshield, terrified to see what her reaction is once the shock wears off. Thankfully, air traffic control gives me the green light to begin descent. I just hope that I didn't ruin the whole trip by putting my damn foot in my mouth.

I take my time with the descent, sneaking a peek at Layla, who still seems enthralled by the entire process. As soon as the wheels hit the ground, I press my feet on top of the rudder pedals until the plane slows to almost a complete stop.

"What a freakin' rush!!" she claps next to me. "You did amazing!"

That's a good sign that the whole trip is not ruined. I breathe a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

As soon as the plane is parked, I cut the engine. The staff opens the door, and the stairs are ready for us to walk down within minutes. I go to grab our bags, but she unbuckles and jumps out of her seat.

She wraps her arms around my neck and throws herself at me, our lips clumsily crashing together. I pull her tight against me as her lips move along mine with fervor.

"Can they see us up here?" she asks breathlessly against my lips.

"Yes, it's not a commercial aircraft that's sixty feet tall. They can probably see us."

She pouts her lips at me, and I kiss her forehead gently. "Let's go. We can get to the house quickly, and I'll take care of you there, baby."

I grab her hand and our bags, then start to walk down the steps of the plane. I can't explain the feeling I get after flying. It's like my brain is completely calm and at ease. But with this beauty on my arm, it adds a whole new level .

I know every motherfucker in my vicinity is jealous of me, and they should be.

Just through the building, in the parking lot, is a black Ferrari Portofino waiting for us. I have several friends in the surrounding areas who have done very well for themselves, but I'm not very materialistic, so I've never reached out to them to borrow their things.

That's probably why they jumped at the opportunity to let me use their things because they know it's not the reason for our friendship.

"This is the car we're driving?" Layla stands in awe as I place our bags in the trunk.

Like promised, the key is on top of the back right tire. I grab her hand and lead her to the passenger side of the car, where I open the door for her. I hold out my hand for her to take a seat.

"It is," I reply, then walk over to my side and get behind the wheel.

"You didn't rent this thing, did you?"

"Ha! No, baby, I didn't. It's my buddy's car, the same one letting us stay at his place tonight."

"No one who owns a car like this owns a small little home in Charleston."

My lips twitch. "That's a very astute observation. I guess we will see if you are correct when we get there."

I grab her hand and place it on my thigh, holding onto her the entire time I drive along the roads. The neighborhood is secluded and nestled up against the water. I sent money to Tony and asked him to put together an array of items at the house for when we arrived.

It doesn't take Layla long to realize by the homes we're passing by that this house is gonna be huge.

"Okay, so you flew me by yourself in a private jet to Charleston, and now you're driving me in a Ferrari to spend the night in a mansion on the water?"

"It's not like I own any of these things and can provide them to you on a daily basis."

I don't know why I feel the need to downplay the evening, but I just want to make sure she knows this is not a typical weekend for me either. I can't do these things for her all the time. Just because I can physically fly a plane doesn't mean I have a plane to fly.

She sighs. "Giving you a compliment is like trying to give a kid a vegetable. It's nearly impossible."