At the sight of Crenshaw’s triumphant face, Mattie choked back her denial. The odious charmerwantedher to appear cowardly. Leo had warned her that her brother’s rival might come after her. She’d thought it was just another product of Leo’s tendency to worry. Clearly, she’d been wrong.
“Having second thoughts,RockolMattie?” Crenshaw sneered out the words. “Afraid you can’t win in arealrace against arealman who isn’t sweet on you?”
Mattie bristled at the patent insinuation that Leo had allowed her to beat him. “Mr.Ward is twice the aviator and four times the man that you’ll ever be. And I won those competitions fair and square!”
“Then prove it.” Crenshaw bent forward slightly, his voice booming through the room, causing a murmur to rise through the entranced crowd. The man had the charisma of Vera but none of her kindness.
Mattie felt a nudge against her foot. She glanced down to find Leo watching her. For once, he didn’t try to mask his emotions. She understood his silent message immediately. He was trying to tell her that she didn’t need to do this. She had no obligation to take Crenshaw’s bait.
But Leo was wrong.
She did have a duty. To herself. To female aviators. To little girls like Alice’s daughter who wanted to take to the skies themselves.
Until now, the press had been relatively kind to her, but there were still those comments about her “womanhood” and “femininity” that pervaded almost every article. Even in the most flattering pieces lurked barely veiled hints that Mattie’s flying was more than just unconventional; it was perversely abnormal. She faced so many probing questions about her personal life and her wardrobe choices—inquiries Leo never received.
“Miss McAdams?” Crenshaw’s voice had gone as smooth and as thick as a Walgreens malted milkshake. “We are all very interested in whether you’ll keep your promise, especially Mr.Pringle here, who covers sports for theOceanbreeze Chronicle’s parent newspaper.”
Mattie turned away from Leo and headed toward the stage. She made certain neither to stalk nor to flounce. Instead, she walked with utter confidence, a broad grin on her face. She acknowledged the crowd, strolling among them, not through them. Earl Crenshaw wasn’t the only aviator in the room who could play to the audience.
“Why, Mr.Crenshaw,” Mattie said loud and clear as she stepped onto the wooden stage, “I would never do something so unwomanly as to renege on a commitment. That would make my words mere fabrications, and I believe a body should be nothing but honorable.”
Crenshaw’s self-satisfied sneer drooped for a shadow of a second before he covered it with greasy obsequiousness. “We’ll see you bright and early at the racecourse tomorrow, then?”
Mattie refused to allow him to shake her any more than he’d already done. “Yes indeed. I’ll be there at...?”
She arched her eyebrow as imperiously as Vera did. Crenshaw didn’t squirm much, but he twitched just a little. Unfortunately, his next words drained her slight satisfaction.
“Six a.m. with a start time at six thirty a.m.”
That was a little over five hours away. Although pilots often rose that early, especially when attempting distance flying, it wasn’t necessary for a closed course. It would cut down on the spectators too.
But clearly Crenshaw didn’t want to give Mattie a chance to study the setup of the pylons or test-fly the unfamiliar Fabin. For all his bluster and confidence, the man was doing his utmost to make sure she couldn’t beat him.
But shewould. Soundly. Mattie did her best when faced with low expectations and no support.
“Afraid of too many people watching me trounce you?” Mattie asked, keeping her voice light and airy when she wanted to haul back and slug the man in the kisser.
“But, Miss McAdams”—Crenshaw’s pearly whites flashed, and his perfectly sculpted lips tilted upward into a sickening smile—“you were the one to request that time. I told both theChronicleand Fabin Flyer that you specifically wanted to begin at the crack of daylight to show the world you were ushering in the dawn of female aviation. But we’ll see whether it is you or me who greets the sunrise with success.”
As soon as he tossed the verbal gauntlet, the room exploded with noise. She could hear illegal bets taking place. Odds werenotin her favor.
Mattie seethed, but she would unleash her anger on the field tomorrow. If she did so on this stage, she would look like the unhinged fool—and Crenshaw the sane, calm one. She might have allowed the odious reprobate to maneuver her into this particular skirmish, but she wouldn’t let him win the campaign.
“How do you think theChronicleand Fabin Flyer would react if they knew you made this all up?” Mattie hissed under her breath as she waved to the crowd like a beauty pageant contestant on the beach.
“Fabin Flyer would never believe it, especially since they said that their secretary had been receiving calls from you when I mentioned your name. I have no idea why you were actually contacting the company, but they think it was because of this competition between us.” Crenshaw waggled his hands like a returning war hero at a parade heldin his honor. “If you try to call me a liar, everyone will just blame it on fickle female nerves.”
“Howdidyou get Fabin Flyer to agree?” she asked through gritted teeth, although she somehow still managed to form her lips into a winning smile. Not only was the bastard putting her endorsement with Rockol in jeopardy, but he might have just ruined her opportunity to pitch the RadioNavigator to Fabin.
“You’ve made quite a name for yourself,MissRockol.” Crenshaw flashed his deep dimples as one of the women winked at him. “At first Fabin Flyer wasn’t happy about having a dame at the controls of one of their birds. Then I pointed out the attention they’d get. What really sold them, though, was the fact that they could market their planes as being so safe that a doll could operate them.”
“Oh,didthey?” Mattie wanted to smash something. Instead, she gave a flirtatious tilt of her head.
“You know, Miss Rockol, you haven’t asked me how I knew you’d agree.” Crenshaw slipped his hand around her waist, as if they were best of chums. Mr.Pringle, who must have gotten permission to take a photograph inside the speakeasy as long as he didn’t show any illegal activity, snapped a picture.
“Obviously, you realized that I was more courageous than you.” Mattie tossed her head just as Lily and Vera had taught her when the flash powder ignited.
“Hardly.” Crenshaw scoffed. “Your brother was a hothead, and I knew any twin of his would be an unholy terror of a wildcat.”
