Come To Me (Dare With Me #3) - J.H. Croix Page 0,30

area.” Elias pushed away from the plane wing and strode to the pallet, hefting another bag of dog food on his shoulder to stack in the back of the plane. “Let’s finish up so you can get rolling.”

We moved quickly and had the pallet empty in short order. I waved Elias off when his group arrived. Only minutes later, I followed him up into the air, steadying the plane once I could level out. The small planes were so much fun to fly. You could see the world from above the entire time, unlike the big commercial planes where you got so high there wasn’t much to see other than clouds.

Flying gave me a sense of freedom like nothing else did. I felt peaceful in the air, coasting along, savoring the view of the sparkling ocean below and the mountains in the distance. Mount Augustine, the volcano that stood sentry out in Cook Inlet had a halo of clouds encircling its peak. That volcano stood tall and majestic, a quiet reminder of its potential power at all times. It also served as the backdrop for some of the prettiest sunsets I’d seen in my entire life.

As I flew, Gemma came to mind. I meant to text her about dinner, but then Harley showed up earlier than I expected. I made a mental note to text her when I landed back in Diamond Creek today.

My mind shifted over to my little sister. Our family had always been close. We’d grown up blessed with two parents who loved each other. They’d fallen in love young, had kids and stayed in love all the way until they passed. I thought I was going to do the same thing until Deana notched a decisive scar on my trust.

I was more philosophical about it now than I’d been when it happened. I’d been too young anyway. Hell, I’d asked the girl to marry me when I’d enlisted in the Air Force. Deana had been Laura, my next youngest sister’s, close friend. Of course, I’d trusted her. As soon as she got her degree in accounting, my parents hired her to handle the books for my dad’s company. He’d done construction for years and ran a pretty good business. Deana embezzled a nice chunk, and they had to scrape by after that with my mom cleaning houses to make up the difference.

While I didn’t like admitting Harley was right about me, she had a point. I’d kept my distance from anything serious after I broke it off with Deana. In a weird way, what Deana did felt more personal than if she’d screwed around on me. Maybe because it took planning on her part and happened over time. It wasn’t a fluke, or a moment of reckless judgment. I was also intensely protective of my parents.

I kicked Deana to the curb in my thoughts. I didn’t want to dwell on her. Gemma was much more appealing to think about. That girl had cleared out an entire room in my brain. She was already furnishing it and didn’t appear to have any intentions of moving out soon. I’d replayed our encounter in her kitchen a few more times than I’d ever admit. The magnetic pull to her held strong regardless of whether she was nearby.

Chapter Fifteen

Gemma

“And, here’s the main room,” Daphne said, gesturing with a hand around the large open space.

I spun in a slow circle. “This is beautiful,” I said.

This was my first time visiting the resort. Although it felt as if we were truly deep in the wilderness, Walker Adventures was only twenty miles or so from Diamond Creek. The resort was a large octagonal shaped building with several stories. This main floor was an expansive open space with windows on all sides except one where it led into what I presumed was a dining area. The windows offered views of a field with flowers blooming under the late-afternoon sunshine, and evergreen trees mingling with cotton wood and birch. Beyond the field, the hill sloped downward, offering a view of the bay in the distance, and of course the mountains.

“It is, isn’t it?” Daphne commented when I looked back toward her. “I feel so spoiled to live here and see this every day.”

I smiled. “I get it. I feel lucky just to be here.”

“We were thinking you could do the yoga class upstairs. Follow me.” Daphne gestured toward the stairs.

Although the main room had an open layout, it offered several areas for relaxing and mingling.