“And now you’re telling me more things to work on.”
“Hey.” I massage her shoulder the way Vincent is always doing to me. Though her bones are much tinier. “It’s your first trip. Of course you have more to work on. I’ve been flying for years, and I can’t beat Cap at landing yet.”
“Good landing,” a guy in a Rockies ball cap compliments on cue.
“Thanks, man.” I release my hold of Claire to lean toward the cockpit. “You got a point, Cap.”
“Just one?” Vincent’s deep voice challenges from where he’s writing up an indicator light for maintenance.
“So far. That turbulence on the way out of Denver might be affecting the number of compliments.” The turbulence caused by the Rocky Mountains probably also affected the number of compliments I received on my previous landing, so it’s only fair.
Claire’s shoulders sag. I think she’s relaxing, until she continues her previous rant. “I feel as if I’m just annoying Desiree. She’s also introducing me to passengers now as ‘a cute little thing with a boyfriend.’ Like my work is being affected by all the sports stars hitting on me.”
Oh, Desiree. She takes her overprotectiveness too far. “Well.” How do I spin this one? “Colorado Springsisa training center for Olympic athletes. She was probably doing you a favor.”
Claire rolls her eyes, but what appears to be a genuine smile tugs at the corner of her lips. I’d enjoy seeing more of those. As she waves to the last departing passenger, a plan forms.
Vincent emerges to crowd the front galley. “You still here, Nathan? Get outside and do your walk-around so we can head to the hotel.”
I shoot my thumb over my shoulder to motion toward our captain. “See? I still get told what to do too.”
“Yeah, and you should try listening.” Cap barges between us to retrieve his luggage, but I know it’s out of love.
And I love him too. I just feel Claire could use a break from his wife.
I back toward the door and wiggle my eyebrows at her. “Wanna get away?”
She wrinkles her nose playfully. “Wrong airline slogan.”
“Oh, we’re going to get above the clouds without an airplane. Just you wait.”
We arrive early in Colorado Springs, so there are still tickets available for the incline. We only need two tickets anyway. Desiree’s bad knee and all.
She tries to convince her husband to join Claire and me, the way I knew she would. But apparently the air-conditioning in his hotel room wasn’t working in San Antonio, so he didn’t sleep well last night and needs a nap.
I shrug at Desiree, and she shakes her head at me. But she should shake her head at herself for how she’s been treating Claire.
We check in, then Claire and I change into hiking clothes and meet in the lobby to request a rideshare. Once our Uber rounds a bend, the peak covered in green trees with a trail cut straight to the top is revealed.
Claire leans forward to see better from underneath the SUV’s roof. “We’re climbing that?” Though her heart sunglasses make her appear like a cartoon character in love, the rest of her face doesn’t seem as excited as I hoped she’d be.
“Takes average hikers two hours to get to the top. Your toe can handle it, right?”
“It’s not my toe I’m worried about.” She flops back against the leather seat and frowns. “I haven’t been dancing for a year. I’m out of shape. Not to mention the low oxygen levels at this altitude.”
“We can go slow. We’ve got all day and a backpack of snacks and water.” She underestimates herself. She may be out of shape for a prima ballerina, but when compared to the rest of America, she’s fit. “Worst-case scenario, we don’t make it to the top and take the easy trail back.”
“Worst-case scenario, I break an ankle and emergency workers have to climb a straight mile to carry me down.”
I refrain from telling her they already do that almost every day. Rather, I counter with, “Worst-case scenario, one of the firefighters asks you out because Desiree isn’t here to tell them you’re taken.”
She finally grins. “Nah. That won’t happen, because people will just assume I’m with you, the way they did at the Alamo yesterday.”
I catch our Uber driver sizing me up in the rearview mirror. He’s probably wondering why the two of us are hiking together when she’s dating someone else.
“Flight crew,” I tell him, then point to us each in turn. “Pilot. Flight attendant.”
He nods. “Nice.”
