Jack's Surrender (Holiday Cove 5)

Holly wanted me to figure my shit out. Fair enough. I could do that. God knew she wasn’t the only one that was being driven insane by my lack of direction.

I ate breakfast on the back deck while Princess ran back and forth in the yard, barking at the seagulls that dared to fly into her view along the edge of the fence. The sun came up nice and slow. It was the perfect day for a flight. I dressed and headed to the airstrip, Princess in tow. I couldn’t bear leaving her alone all day even though before Holly and Hunter came along, I’d left her alone all day long.

Player didn’t mind. He let Princess nap in his office and kept her well stocked on treats from the jar he kept in his desk. I stopped by his office and Princess ran to his couch and made herself at home. “You spoil her,” I said to Aaron.

He smiled at Princess as she bedded down. “Hey, you’re the one who named her Princess. I’m just following through.”

I chuckled. He knew as well as I did that I didn’t give her the name. She was a rescue dog and while the adoption team had told me I could change her name, she never took to anything else. Apparently unwilling to give up her Princess status.

“You’re in early,” Aaron said. He glanced at his computer monitor. “First tour isn’t till three today.”

“I know. I was hoping to take up that old Beechcraft. I won’t push her too hard.”

“Sure thing. Everything all right?”

“It will be,” I replied. I’d tell him the details later. At the minute, I needed to put some space between my feet and the ground. A few hours lost in the sky would be better than a week’s worth of therapy. Flying always made me feel at ease—even after all my close calls while on duty.

“All right, Boomer. Have a good flight.”

“Thanks.”

No one was at the museum yet. Weekdays were usually slow, except in the middle of the summer when Holiday Cove was crawling with tourists.

We only had two flight tours on weekdays, most of them retirees who had the luxury of being able to take advantage of the off-times to get longer, more relaxed flights. Normally, I’d spend a couple of hours working with Aaron, usually stuck doing maintenance work. Then I’d prepare for my flights. On the weekends, it was all flying. One after another after another.

I went to the hangar, grabbed a set of keys, and then jogged out to the airstrip. The plane was already waiting, fueled up and ready to go. I ran through my routine pre-flight check, then did it once more, making sure not a single thing was missed or out of place. Aaron kept all of his planes in perfect condition but it didn’t take much for something to go wrong. Diligence was essential.

Within an hour of arriving, I was up in the air.

The clouds were perfect, like puffy, white cotton candy, swirling through the clear blue sky. Flying over the ocean was always special to me. My mind wandered the higher I got, thoughts and memories, and daydreams all blurring together.

After a while, I started to relax and started mentally untangling my life. It had been such a long time since I had the luxury of a quiet flight—no tourists in my ear, wanting to know random facts about the different scenic points or asking how much longer till we’d be back on the ground. Even my flights testing things for Aaron and Nick weren’t quiet because somewhere in the back of my mind, I was constantly evaluating how much I trusted their combined mechanical skill when a weird noise would break the serenity of my thoughts.

There was still a residual ache in my chest I wanted Holly to be home waiting for me. Monday nights were our traditional night to go out to eat as she would usually have a hectic workday and not have the time—or the desire—to cook.

Sometimes we’d go to a movie or out window shopping afterward. Instead, I’d be going home alone, probably with a box of pizza and a six-pack. Or maybe Aaron would take pity on me and insist I stay over for dinner. He and Gemma were the reigning king and queen of takeout and would find something delicious. The idea of being their third wheel wasn’t appealing, though. It would just remind me how fucked up my life was.

I couldn’t go back to my old single life. That wouldn’t get me anywhere and it wouldn’t give me a snowball’s chance in hell of getting Holly back. No, I needed more. And she deserved more too. My thoughts tumbled through my mind over and over again like a broken record.

On my way back to the airstrip, a break in the clouds opened up the sky and a bright beam of sunshine came through, bathing the ocean in glittering light.