Cooper smiled as he started to taxi the airplane across the tarmac and toward the runway. “It’ll be all right,” he assured her, placing a hand on her exposed leg.
Stormy soon realized that she wasn’t the only one enjoying the moment as she moved her hand a bit farther up his thigh. It seemed her previous assumption about making him bleed might prove impossible, as all his blood seemed to be flowing elsewhere.
The glare of the setting sun over the end of the runway reflected on the slightly dull windshield as Cooper maneuvered the plane in perfect alignment with the runway centerline.
The brakes moaned as Cooper stopped to perform the final checks before takeoff. Once he was sure they were ready, he took Stormy’s hand and placed it on the throttle. With her hands cupped within his, in a single smooth motion he gingerly guided her arm forward, advancing the throttle to takeoff power.
The twin engines responded almost simultaneously to the rush of fuel, bringing them to a deafening roar. Stormy’s heart raced with anxiety over the task she was performing. Unlike the previous vibrations, the plane now shuddered and surged like a creature trying to break free from its bonds.
As if to free it from captivity, Cooper released the brakes. Responding with a leap forward, the rapid acceleration of the Cessna immediately pinned Stormy back into her seat. Trying to calm her nerves, she moved her gaze out the side window, where she watched the hypnotic pattern of the lights that lined the runway as they passed faster and faster under the wing and out of sight.
“All right, here we go,” Cooper said as he gently pulled back on the plane’s yoke.
Like an eagle flying high into the sky, the plane’s nose rose effortlessly above the horizon. The loud spinning of tires on pavement turned into the steady buzz of electric motors as the wheels retracted into their bay. Stormy likened the deafening sound of rushing air to the roar of water over a rocky edge.
Feeling her heart pounding in her throat, Stormy concentrated on the ever-dwindling landscape below. The rooftops that lined the runway became smaller and smaller, then faded from view.
“See? Not so bad,” Cooper shouted over the engine’s noise, while smiling a bit. Pulling back even farther, Cooper banked the plane to head out over the waters of Puget Sound.
Stormy’s fears began to melt away as Cooper flew the plane effortlessly over the shimmering water below them and they seemed to dance on the wispy clouds.
The flight deck was lit only by the subtle green glow of the instrument panel and the occasional bright surge of light from the wingtip strobes. Below her was a vast expanse of twinkling lights.
The tall office buildings, still lit up as people hadn’t yet gone home for the day, and the layout of surrounding suburbs created fantastic designs of light. Highways, side streets, and city roads were filled with white and red flowing lights of traveling cars like blood flowing through the city’s concrete veins.
Cooper made a large sweeping turn to the left and continued flying through the sky. The view below faded in and out of darkened countryside and small lit communities.
Stormy turned from the window, looking at Cooper, his tanned skin glowing with the dim flight deck lights. She watched as his muscles flexed with every correction he made to the yoke. She could do anything, face the scariest of her fears, with him beside her. That was a sobering thought. Maybe she was now forever lost to Cooper Armstrong. It might just be too late for her to ever let him go.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Stormy could no longer resist touching Cooper, so she placed her hand on his thigh, rubbing it lightly. Without saying a word, he grabbed her hand and placed it against his growing hardness, stroking her hand lightly against the bulge.
Hunger poured through her. Maybe she could make this flight a heck of a lot more fun, she thought, deciding she was going to be someone she normally wasn’t—for at least the next hour.
Using one hand, she unzipped his pants, releasing his impressive manhood. Frustrated by not being able to get close enough, she reached down to unbuckle her seatbelt. Finally, she had free rein on his body, and she wasted no time plunging her hand into his pants. Wrapping her fingers around his solid steel caused a soft groan to escape him, filling her with confidence to push forward. The plane suddenly dipped to the left, throwing her slightly back.
Stormy paused what she was doing. “What was that?”
“A bit of turbulence. It looks like a storm is headed in,” Cooper responded, moving her hand back with what looked like reluctance. “You should probably put your seat belt back—”
The plane suddenly dropped and rocked about like a boat on a choppy lake.
“Probably a good idea,” Stormy said as she sat back and instantly tightened her seat belt.
“Just a bit of turbulence, nothing to worry about,” Cooper said with complete calm.
The stars began to fade away as water droplets hit the windscreen and streaked down the side windows. Cooper showed amazing resolve as he gripped the yoke and concentrated on flying as the plane bounced up and down.
As they approached Portland, Cooper let her know they were arriving during the last push of flights for the evening. Like rush hour in Los Angeles, the sky above the airport was bustling with inbound jets from all over the country, and the chatter over the radio with air traffic control was uninterrupted. Stormy relaxed in her seat while she watched Cooper perform the magic act of talking to air traffic control, setting the instruments, and controlling the plane.
Flashing lights could be seen as they descended out of the clouds. The view below began to get closer as Cooper guided the plane in for landing. The runway was clearly in view, and to Stormy, it looked like a large freeway outlined by white, yellow, and red lights.