by Kimberly Fox
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” I ask Dex. We’ll be flying together everywhere. We’re both control freaks, and I don’t know how we’re going to fly a plane with our two completely different styles, but I just know that it’s going to work.
“You said it yourself,” he answers with a grin. “The FAA requires that all jet air transport aircrafts have at least two pilots. I may be as smart and sexy as two people, but I’m still only one.”
“Are you going to be able to share the controls?”
This is going to be so much fun!
He flicks off Marv’s headset and I chuckle.
“Just remember,” he says, turning to me with a heated stare. “In my cockpit, you follow my rules.”
“Our cockpit,” I correct, raising my chin in the air. “Our rules.”
“Better brace yourself.”
“For what?”
He looks at me and smiles. “For some heavy turbulence.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Riley
“You can have these back,” I say, slipping off the rings and placing them in Dex’s palm. He looks surprisingly sad to see his fake marriage end in a fake divorce.
We’re in a private hanger at the airport the next morning, about to go home. Marv’s Bombardier Global 8000 jet is sitting behind me like a sleeping giant. As horrible as some of the moments were on this trip, I’m sad to see it end.
As low as the lows were, they were all worth it for the highs. Falling in love with Dex has raised me higher than that jet ever could.
“Okay,” Dex says sadly. He slips the rings into his pocket and sighs. “These rings are cursed by the ice queen anyway. I’ll give you real ones someday soon.”
My chest flutters at his words. “Would you really marry me?”
His face is intensely serious. “In an instant.”
I’m suddenly very aware of my own heartbeat. It’s pounding.
“Would you say yes?”
“I don’t know,” I say, teasing him. “You’ll have to ask me to find out.”
“Maybe I will,” he whispers as Marv and Kara enter the hangar.
Kara still looks pissed. I’m still here, which means that she didn’t win, which means that she’s throwing a temper tantrum, which means that I’m trying to hide my happy smile.
She storms past us without saying a word and marches up the stairs into the plane.
Marv walks over to us with a big smile on his face. He’s still thrilled about the hundred and twenty million dollars he made. Not bad for a weekend’s worth of work.
Dex warned me that by Wednesday he’ll be back to his usual sour self.
“Check your online banking,” he says to me with a grin.
My pulse is racing as I dig into my purse and pull out my phone. I thumb through my apps and sign into my bank while I hold my breath.
“Oh, my God,” I whisper, staring at the screen with disbelieving eyes. It has to be some sort of trick. There are way too many zeroes on there.
“How much you got in there?” Dex asks, leaning over my shoulder.
“Six hundred thousand and thirty-six dollars,” I say, still not blinking. The thirty-six dollars was all I had in there before. “Marv,” I say, feeling dizzy as I look up at him. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
He shrugs his shoulders as he smiles at me. “Don’t. You deserve it. I couldn’t have made the sale without you two.”
“Does that mean I have a surprise too?” Dex asks, pulling out his phone.
Marv bursts out laughing as Dex looks down at it with hopeful eyes. “Hell, no,” Marv says, chuckling. “We made a deal, and I never go back on a deal.”
Dex sighs as he shoves his phone back in his pocket. He steps beside me and wraps his arm around my shoulder. “I have all that I need here.”
“Good,” Marv says, turning toward the entrance of the plane. “Because you’re not getting a cent from me! Now get this jet started. We have to get back home. I have a big deal in the works.”
“Please tell me it’s in Hawaii,” Dex mutters.
“Close,” Marv says, turning back with a grin. “Tajikistan.”
“That’s not close at all!” Dex complains. “Wait,” he whispers to me. “Where’s Tajikistan?”
I have no idea. But I’m about to find out.
“It’s going to suck without you,” Dex says with a sigh.
I smile as I watch Marv climb into the plane. “Maybe I’ll tag along for one more trip before I leave for flight school.”
“Really?” he asks, looking thrilled.
“Depends,” I say, looking at him sideways. “Is there anything fun to do in Tajikistan, or are we going to be stuck in our room all week?”
“I think we’ll be stuck in our hotel room all week.”
“Perfect,” I say with a wide grin. “Then I’ll definitely go.”
We head to the plane and I stop Dex before he walks up the stairs. There’s something I don’t feel right about.
“I want to split the money with you.”
“No way in hell.”
“You earned it too,” I argue. He did do half the work, and he was the one who finally got Prince Kalib to finalize the sale. “I want you to have half. You deserve a fortune too.”
He looks me up and down with the most content look that I’ve ever seen on his face. “I have a fortune, Riley. A priceless fortune.”
My cheeks heat up as my heart skips a beat. I feel the same way.
“I’ll tell you what,” he says, cupping my cheek as he steps in close. “Normally I would never agree to this, but you can buy dinner on our first official date.”
I nod as he leans in and gives me a soft kiss on the lips.
“You got yourself a deal,” I say, licking his delicious taste off my lips when he pulls away.
“Good,” he says, taking my hand and walking me up the stairs into the plane. “Better bring it all because I’m going all out. I’m talking appetizers, steak, wine, dessert, and enough breadsticks to make you sick.”
“As long as you don’t get too full,” I say with a raised eyebrow. “I want you nice and agile afterward.”
He turns to me with a furrowed brow. “Putting out on the first date?” he asks with a smirk. “I didn’t expect you to be the type.”
“Is that going to be a problem for you?”
He laughs. “As you long as you still respect me in the morning.”
“We’ll see,” I tease, laughing as we walk into the plane.
He gives me a kiss and grabs my ass before heading into the cockpit. I linger by the door and watch him as he sits down in the captain’s chair and puts his hat on. He looks so damn hot in his pilot uniform as he takes command of the plane. I could watch him all day.
I reluctantly pry my eyes off of him and walk to the galley to prepare everything for take-off. About twenty minutes later, we’re in the sky and flying back to LA.
I bring Marv his glass of scotch, purposely ignoring every nasty call that Kara throws my way, and then grab two champagne flutes that I fill with ginger ale.
Dex would rather have a beer, and although I’ve chilled out a lot on this trip, I’m still not about to give a pilot a beer while he’s at work, especially if I’m in the plane.
“Thirsty?” I ask as I sneak into the cockpit. I place the two glasses on the middle console and slip into the co-pilot’s chair.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Dex asks, looking at me with a smirk. “That seat is reserved for a licensed, qualified pilot. FAA regulations.”
“Yeah, well, someone has to keep an eye on you,” I say, flicking off the switch for the seatbelt light that he missed.
“Hey,” he says, jerking his head over. “I kept that on for a reason. I don’t want Kara or Marv coming up here to bother me.”
“Great idea,” I say, flicking it back on. “What about me? Can I bother you?”
He chuckles as he looks out the windshield at the floating clouds. “You ca
n always bother me.”
“You might not say that when I retire this ridiculously tight stewardess uniform and become a pilot. You’ll be the one getting the drinks for me soon.”
“Don’t count on it,” he says with a playful grin.
“I’m counting.”
“And that stewardess uniform is way too hot to be retired,” he says, looking down at my legs. The short skirt is hiked up high on my thighs. This time I don’t mind him looking. “You may not have to wear it to work, but we’ll definitely make use of that in the bedroom.”
“I can’t wait,” I say, getting wet just thinking about it.
“Then don’t,” he says, breathing heavily as he turns to me. “Come on over and help your sexy pilot out with his joystick.”
I’m really tempted, but I’m not that wild and reckless. Yet.
Something tells me that Dex will get me there eventually.
“Remember,” he growls. “My cockpit. My rules.”
The clanking of approaching stiletto heels echoes from down the hall.
“Where the hell is my champagne?” Kara shouts. She’s snarling in the entrance to the cockpit. Her eyes are pure evil as she glares at me.
She sees our two glasses of champagne and snatches them off of the middle console. “The champagne is for us royals,” she snaps. “You’re the help. You drink water.”
Dex grins at me. “Do you want to do the honors, or shall I?”
“Let’s do it together,” I say, grabbing hold of the yoke in front of me.
We both smile as we yank the yokes back, jerking the plane up toward outer space.
Kara screams as she flies back, doing a backward somersault as the two champagne flutes full of ginger ale spill all over her.
We’re both laughing as we straighten the plane back up.
“Oops,” I say, stifling my laugh as I look back at her. She’s on her ass with her back against the wall, looking wide-eyed as sticky soda pours down her face. She’s soaked.
“Didn’t you see that the seatbelt sign is on?” I ask cheerily. She rushes forward, but I quickly grab the door handle and slam the door in her face.
She kicks, screams, scratches, and claws the locked door while I sit back and put my feet up on the window.
“I like this new Riley,” Dex says, nodding in approval.
“What can I say?” I ask, grinning as I put my hands behind my head. “You taught me to embrace my inner bad girl.”
He reaches his hand out to me and I hold it, smiling at him. I couldn’t be happier than I am right now.
I’m in love with Dex.
I’m not fighting it anymore. I’m embracing it.
He has my heart, and instead of fighting for it back, I’m letting him keep it.
It’s in his hands, right where it belongs.
“Is this what a happily ever after feels like?” Dex asks, smiling at me. He looks so happy and at peace. “Flying off into the horizon with the sun at our backs?”
“Straight out of a fairy tale,” I say, squeezing his hand. “An X-rated fairy tale.”
It was a joke, but it feels like the truth. I wouldn’t trade places with any of the Disney princesses, and none of the princes have shit on Dex.
He smiles and then his face turns serious. “I’m really happy that I met you, Riley.”
My cheeks flush as warmth radiates through my body.
“You’ve been my co-worker, my fake wife, my friend, my girlfriend, and I have loved you in each. You’re the one for me, Riley. I know it through and through.”
I still haven’t said that I love him. Not because I don’t feel it-I feel it radiating in every cell of my body-but because it wasn’t the safe thing to do.
Fuck being safe. Fuck being cautious.
It’s time for a little adventure.
“I love you too, Dex,” I say, locking eyes on his baby blues.
“Yes,” he says, squeezing his hand into a fist. “Does this mean I won?”
I laugh as I shake my head at him. “I think we both won.”
He smiles and looks ahead. “I think you’re right.”
Epilogue
Riley
A year and a half later…
“You’re in my seat.”
“Correction,” I say, grinning up at Dex as I stretch out in the Captain’s chair. “It was your seat.”
After an intense year of classes, non-stop practice, all-night study sessions, roughly sixteen hundred logged flight hours, and a whole lot of aced tests, I’m officially a licensed and certified Airline Transport Pilot.
And a damned good one.
“I like you better in your stewardess uniform,” Dex says, still standing over me. “I miss that short skirt.”
“I don’t,” I say with a laugh. “I hated showing the bottom of my ass cheeks every time I bent over. These pants are much more professional.”
“Not if they’re crumpled up on the floor,” Dex says. Uh-oh. He’s getting that look again; the one that he gets right before my clothes end up crumpled on the floor.
I swallow hard as I look out the windshield. We’re in Marv’s jet that’s still in the hangar. It seems to be empty, but any airport personnel can walk in at any time.
“Don’t get any ideas,” I warn, feeling my heart speed up. “Marv will be here soon.”
He looks at the watch that’s strapped to his thick tattooed forearm and grins. “In an hour. We have time to settle this properly.”
“Settle what?” I ask, feigning ignorance.
“Who gets the Captain’s seat.”
I make a show of looking down at the seat that I’m sitting on. “I think that’s already settled, Mr. Co-Pilot.”
He grumbles. This is killing him. I love it.
“Grab a seat,” I say, pointing at the seat to my right. “My pussy pit. My rules.”
He crosses his arms over his massive chest as he stares down at me. “I’m the more experienced pilot.”
“Experienced at nearly crashing into the ocean,” I say, looking out the windshield and trying to ignore his narrowed eyes on me. “I still remember that little incident.”
“And I remember your naked ass being the cause of that little incident.”
I shake my head. “I don’t recall that part at all.”
“How convenient.”
“Agree to disagree.”
“Agree to get out of my seat.”
“Never.”
We stare at each other for a full thirty seconds before either of say a word.
“Looks like the war is back on,” I say with a grin.
“Was it ever off?”
I laugh. We’ve been dating for the past year and a half, and it’s been ah-ma-zing. Although sometimes we are at each other’s throats, we’re always quick to make up in the best possible way: with hot make-up sex.
Three months after our trip to Prince Kalib’s private island, we moved in together, and it’s been a dream ever since. I bought a cute little house with the rest of the commission money, and we both love it.
Dex has been so supportive during my flight training, helping me out and pushing me to be better and better.
One night he took me flying, and we were practicing landings. I was so frustrated at how hard he was pushing me, and I blew up at him, saying he was being too hard on me.
“You’re carrying the most precious thing in the world to me on any plane you fly,” he snapped back at me. “Of course, I’m going to ride you as hard as I can.”
I just smiled and tried again and again and again until I nailed the landing. Once I saw it through Dex’s eyes, it made me work a little harder. He was helping me become the best pilot that I could be for selfish reasons. He wanted to keep me safe.
I completed my training two weeks ago, and Marv held up his word and gave me a job as a pilot. This is our first flight together. I should have known we would be fighting before we even started the engines.
“We can settle this the hard way,” Dex says, l
icking his lips. “Or the fun way.”
“Ohh,” I say, rubbing my chin while I look him up and down. “I want the fun and hard way.” My eyes drop down to the front of his pants where he’s hiding my favorite joystick.
He grins as he loosens his tie and starts unbuttoning his shirt. “That’s why I love you,” he says, biting his bottom lip as he stares down at me.
“What’s going on here?” I ask, feeling my breath quicken as he takes off his shirt. “I wasn’t trained for this during my flight courses.”
“I hope not,” he says, leaning over me. I hold my breath as he places his hands on my arm rests, flexing his tattooed arms as his lips hover over mine. “The pilot with the best control should be the Captain. The one who comes first moves to the co-pilot’s seat.”
“Mmmm,” I moan, enjoying his hard body so close to mine. I’m already getting wet. I’m going to suck at this game.
But it’s a competition I’m going to love to lose, so I agree.
His lips come down hard on mine, getting me all worked up. I love kissing Dex. His tongue is like a roller coaster-gliding, plunging, thrilling. And of course, it always gets my heart pumping.
We’ve had sex hundreds of times over the past year and a half, but each time keeps getting better and better. Dex has become a master at pleasing my body, knowing exactly where to touch at the right pressure and speed. That’s why I’m probably going to be flying to Fiji in the co-pilot’s seat.
Like I care.
Dex unbuckles his pants and lets them drop to his ankles. I gulp as I stare at the huge rod in his boxer briefs.
“So, I guess it’s true that pilots get it up faster,” I say, shifting in my seat.
He pulls his boxer briefs down and grips his hard dick, sliding his hand up and down his long shaft. “And we can keep it up for hours too.”
“Prove it.”
The two of us work together to get my clothes off as quickly as possible. He pushes me back down on the seat, and I spread my legs for him as he kneels in front of me and comes forward, gripping his massive cock.
“Watch this smooth precision approach,” he says, grinning as he approaches.
I laugh until the head of his cock pushes against my opening, making me gasp. Then there are no more laughs. Just shivers of anticipation.
