This time Jett didn’t have to worry about ground conditions. The airstrip would have been treated for ice.
Sure enough, she made a picture-perfect landing.
She taxied as close to the emergency vehicles as was safe, and cut the engine. Seconds later, Trask had the door open and EMS surrounded Richard. They immediately strapped an oxygen mask over his face, performed a number of other life-saving procedures, and carted him off in the ambulance.
Jett heaved out a breath she hadn’t even known she was holding. She and Trask had done what they could do, and now it was up to the professionals.
Trask came around to her door as she opened it, and she swiveled in her seat, toward him.
He pulled his earpiece out and put it in his pocket, then did the same with hers.
“Nice job, Jett.”
She grinned as he placed his hands on her waist and lifted her down.
“You, too,” she told him.
“Me?” he joshed. “I was just along for the ride.”
“Well, buckle up,” she quipped. “Because there’s plenty more where that came from, and it looks like you’ve finally volunteered to put up with all of me.”
“I have, indeed,” he replied.
The kiss they shared, under the cold, afternoon sun, was nothing short of epic.
EPILOGUE
Trask had never been happierthan he’d been in the last few months.
After getting his head screwed on straight, he and Jett had gone from zero-to-sixty with their relationship—and yes, he was calling it that, now—in mere seconds.
First, after they’d returned home to a hero’s welcome, they’d spent a few nights back in the Sothard house; Trask’s childhood bedroom. There, Trask lived up to his promise, and showed his stubborn woman just how naughty she’d been to disobey him.
Once they’d felt settled again, they’d moved into Jett’s tiny, one-room apartment for a few weeks.
When that had proven…interesting, with the dogs wanting to be part ofeverythingthat went on, they’d rapidly found a house that both of them loved, and had shelled out a hefty sum of money so that they could move in as quickly as possible.
Which meant they were now the proud owners of a handsome cape-style home, only two miles from their place of business.
Diver Downeast hadalsopicked up significant steam in the ensuing weeks, and it was all hands-on deck to keep up with the demands that were coming from far and wide.
Tabitha, thanks to Tex, now had her mini-sub decked out with all the latest gadgets, and it was in peak condition.
Sheila had been tasked with writing the man, the myth, the legend, a thank you letter, and they’d all been in stitches over it. Sheila, in her very dry way, had let him know that she would have eventually found everything needed, herself, but that his help was still much appreciated.
Tex, of course, had loved that letter, and told them all he was going to frame it and hang it on the wall in his office. He was also still angling for a ride, next time he came to Maine, which he would surely get.
The advent of their newly and fully outfitted “toy” had also added some fun to their days off.
They were all learning to pilot the sub.
Jett, to nobody’s surprise, had aced the lessons. But the Sothard brothers…not so much. Not because they lacked proficiency, but because they squabbled with each other, constantly, over how things should be accomplished.
It was subsequently decided that unless there was an emergency, Tabitha wouldalwaysbe the one in charge when they were submerged in her baby.
Trask, of course, questioned how that battle for top-dog status would play out once more Sothard brothers were involved?
If he had his way, they’d soon be getting the answer to that question.
