Being a single mother had never been easy for her, and she had to admit that she was tired. Hassan and Sophie helped her more than they needed to, and she was beyond grateful for them, but deep down, she longed to have a man that could make the decisions for her. She wanted to turn her brain off sometimes and just exist.
When she finally pulled up to the airstrip, she was fully in her feelings. This was not how she wanted to start her first day.
With a sigh, she got out of the car and grabbed her go-bag.
It didn’t take her long to check in at the front desk and make her way through the private airport. She realized a lot of wealthy people traveled through this airport, and it made her feel important, somehow, like she was able to rub elbows with the elite.
“Your assignment is jet seven. You can just walk right through TSA, show them your badge, and then go through terminal three’s doors. The jet numbers are marked on the ground in front of the aircraft,” the lady at the employee deskinformed her as she slid her a gold badge with her name and photo she had taken during orientation.
Iskyiah thanked her and went on her way. At TSA, they had her take off her black pumps, but that was it. It was easy, breezy as she walked through the metal detector and collected her bag.
The clicking of her heels was her soundtrack as she followed the steps the lady had given her. She noticed a few men gazing at her as she walked through the terminal. She smirked. She wore all black, which was the uniform, but her pants and shirt were professionally formfitting. Her wavy hair was piled on the top of her head, leaving some tendrils falling out and framing her face, and she put some light makeup on to set her look off. She wasn’t sure who she would be attending to for her first day, but she wanted to make a good impression.
When she finally made it back outside, she squinted against the sun and spotted her jet. She sighed in relief because, truthfully, the heels she wore bothered her feet. She would never let it show, though.
As she ascended the steps of the aircraft, she heard a voice muttering to himself. It was another flight attendant. From what she understood, there were normally only two to a flight, so this would be her coworker.
“Hi,” she said, extending her hand.
“Are you . . .” He looked down at his notepad, “Iskyiah Nathans?”
“That’s me,” she replied, now with a fake smile on her face. She didn’t like his energy at all.
“You’re late.”
She frowned before grabbing her phone out of her bag and looking at it. “I was told to be here at ten. It’s five minutes to ten.”
“But the owner of this jet is already here, so you’re late. Put your things down and bring him his drink. When you come back, I’ll give you the rundown on the flight. I’m Jake, by the way.”
She frowned but put her things down and grabbed the glass filled with ice and some kind of brown liquor, judging by the strong smell coming from it.
She’d already decided it was going to be a long ass flight. They were only going to California, which was a two-hour flight from Desmore Bay, but she guaranteed it would be the longest two hours. And then she would have to do it all again the following day.
After putting on another fake smile, because now her mood was completely in the drain, she squared her shoulders and walked through the curtains that separated the employee section from the passenger section.
The glass slipped from her hands when she spotted the man sitting alone in one of the seats. Her heart hammered in her chest, and tears filled her vision as she stared at the man who was something like a ghost to her.
“Moolah?”
“Iskyiah Nathans.” Moolah stood slowly, not believing his eyes.
It had been a few years since he’d seen her, and even then, he only laid eyes on her. It had been twenty years since he actually heard her voice, unless he counted the videos he’d seen on her social media, which he didn’t.
They stood in a sort of stare off. Moolah looked her from her pretty brown eyes all the way down to the stilettos she wore on her feet. When his eyes found hers again, he felt a flutter in his heart. He frowned. Since they were kids, she always had the means to have him acting like a bitch.
“Is it that b-bad to see me?” she asked as she shifted her weight from foot to foot. Her eyes left his gaze and bounced around the private jet he bought a year ago.
Without meaning to, he chuckled. Another ability Iskyiah had. Nobody made him laugh these days, but two seconds in her presence, and it happened naturally.
His movements were sudden. He closed the space between them in three long strides before he pulled her into him by her waist. She gasped but immediately melted into him. When her head hit his chest, everything in his world seemed to fall into place. His large hands rubbed her small back, and he breathed her in for a few seconds before he said, “It ain’t ever bad seein’ you.”
“It’s been a while,” she muttered.
He nodded, though she wasn’t looking at him. “And whose fault is that?”
Iskyiah pulled back. A frown etched across her face as she looked up at him. It seemed like she searched his eyes for something before she shook her head, now stepping completely out of his embrace. After clearing her throat, she looked at the floor where she’d dropped the glass with his whiskey in it. “I’ll get you another one.”
Moolah scoffed. His thumb flicked his nose, and his jaw clenched. “You playin’ wit’ me right now, Sky.”
