He hadn’t seen or heard squat from Sabrina, which said everything. He’d taken a risk. He’d put himself out there. At least he could say he gave Sabrina everything he had.
Ryan made his way over to the main office, where Bobby jogged toward him. “Hey, man. Jennifer has some emergency at the clinic, and her staff is already gone. I’ve got a somebody already dressed to drop at sunset that I need you to take.”
“What about Caleb?”
“He’s got a group of class-B jumpers,” he said. “There’s no one who can take this one tandem.”
Ryan scrubbed his jaw. “Yeah, okay. I’ll take the jump. I need to make a quick phone call and I’ll be there.” The truth was, Ryan had hated the idea of going to that damn hotel again, so he’d called the Realtor for late showings, determined to buy something tonight.
“Great,” Bobby said, clamping a hand on Ryan’s shoulder. “Head to the training room when you’re ready. She’ll be waiting there. She wants to learn to jump on her own next time, so we let her sit in on the videos.” He took off running.
Ryan cancelled his meeting with the Realtor, and sauntered into the training room of the main building to find it empty. Caleb shoved through the back door.
Ryan held out his hands. “Where’s the tandem jumper?”
“In the plane,” Caleb said, rushing past him. “I have to make a call.”
“In the plane? What’s going on, Caleb? You don’t leave a tandem alone in the plane.” But the other Ace was gone.
Ryan grabbed a chute and the necessary equipment, and headed to the hangar. Well, whoever this jumper was, she’d be getting out of the plane and interviewing with him first. He didn’t jump with anyone he thought might freak out in the air.
He entered Hangar One and approached the plane. Joe Cantu, an ex-Army pilot, gave him a salute from behind the controls. Ryan returned the salute and then stepped to the side of the plane. The wind breezed through the hangar door, the scent of honeysuckle blasting him into a dead stop. He inhaled the scent, so familiar, so Sabrina. Then he ground his teeth and silently cursed himself for being such a lovesick puppy over a woman who obviously didn’t care about him.
He moved to the edge of the plane and found a petite female inside, facing the wall, her hair tucked into a flight suit, her straps already in place. Customers didn’t wear flight suits. That struck him as odd about a moment before a strange, familiar sensation prickled. The scent of honeysuckle once again teased his nostrils, making him abnormally impatient to get his job done for the day. He usually loved jumping.
“Ma’am,” he said, climbing into the plane. She was hunched slightly forward, clinging to the side guards. Great. She must be sick. This was going to be quick. They weren’t jumping. At least there was a bright spot. “Ma’am. Are you okay?”
The engine started, and Ryan cut his gaze to the front. “What the heck are you doing, Joe? No go! Turn off the plane.”
It moved forward. “Joe!” Still it moved. Ryan jerked the door closed, shutting out the force of wind and the noise.
“Ma’am. Are you okay?”
She waved a hand. Enough to let him know she didn’t need immediate medical attention, and Ryan headed to the cockpit. They were starting to taxi. “What the hell, Joe?” he demanded, bringing the pilot into view.
“Doing as ordered, boss,” he yelled. “Go to the back and enjoy the ride.”
Ryan froze, his eyes locked on the front window as they began to lift off. What was going on? And why did he still smell honeysuckle?
He whirled around to the main cabin, and there she was. Sabrina stood there, facing him, her long hair now free around her shoulders, a silky halo that framed her face.
“What are you doing here?”
She moved forward. “Jumping with you.”
“No,” he said, going to her, settling his hands on her waist. “No, you aren’t jumping.”
She kissed him. Pressed her lips to his. Ryan tried to resist. No, he didn’t. The minute her tongue touched his, he took what she offered and more. He’d thought he could walk away from her, never kiss her again, never feel the delicate, hungry stroke of her tongue against his. And maybe he could, maybe she’d make him, but it would be torture.
A buzzer sounded, the alert telling them they were at jump altitude. Sabrina pulled back. “I want to jump with you. I need to jump with you.”
“No,” he insisted, noting the way her bottom lip was quivering. “You’re terrified.”
“I’m with you,” she said. “I know I’ll be okay. And Bobby showed me everything. I know what to do.”
He stared at her, not sure what she was trying to prove. Suddenly angry at the idea that she thought a stunt like jumping out of a plane really solved anything. Or maybe it did. He was helping her find herself. Wasn’t that his job?