Tyler broke into a wide smile as he approached them. He pulled Adam into a bear hug and they slapped each other heartily on the back. When they parted, Tyler removed his sunglasses and slipped them into the front pocket of his shirt, his gaze shifting to Shani.
Adam couldn’t help but beam with pride. She looked so pretty in a long, flowing skirt with a sleeveless top that hugged her perfect breasts, her feet in slingback white sandals. “Shani, meet my old friend, Tyler Williams. Tyler, this is Shani Youngblood.”
Tyler pretended to do a double-take, his face scrunching with fake confusion. “Okay. No way is this beautiful woman with you, Hawk.” Fixing her with a comically stern gaze, he said, “Are you here under duress, ma’am? Do I need to call the authorities?”
Shani laughed, her large, dark eyes tilting into half-moons. “Completely voluntary,” she said, slipping her arm through Adam’s. She extended her other hand to Tyler. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Thank you so much for this.”
Tyler took her hand. “Trust me, the pleasure is all mine.” He grinned, adding, “Just kidding about Adam. He’s a great guy. We go way back.”
“He was just telling me,” Shani said. “Your jet is awesome. I’m excited to make the trip.”
Predictably, Tyler beamed. Sometimes Adam wondered if Tyler loved that thing more than his wife and kid. “It’s a Cessna Citation CJ4,” Tyler said proudly. “Flies like a dream. You’ll barely know you’re airborne.”
He led them to the jet, the stairs of which were already lowered. “We’re cleared for takeoff. Come on up. I’ll give you a quick tour and we’ll be on our way.”
Adam had been on the jet before, but he was still impressed with the state-of-the-art cockpit and the six-passenger cabin. The seats were set up so that the first two faced forward. The two middle seats faced the back of the plane, creating a four-seat conversational grouping with the last two seats in the back row.
“You can sit anywhere you like,” Tyler said. “Feel free to help yourselves to wine, beer and soft drinks. There are also plenty of packaged sandwiches, fresh fruit and various snacks in the galley. Lavatory is just there. There’s a second emergency exit in the back. You can buzz me on the intercom if you need anything or have any questions during the trip. Flight time should be just under six and a half hours, give or take, depending on the wind. We’ll be traveling a distance of twenty-two hundred nautical miles at a cruising altitude of thirty-nine thousand feet and an average speed of four hundred ten knots.”
“Knots?” Shani asked, flashing Adam a secret grin. He grinned back.
Tyler, oblivious of the subtext, happily explained, “A knot is equal to 1.15 miles. The history of the knot as a measure of speed has its roots from when ships on the water used knotted ropes tied to logs thrown overboard to measure distances.”
Shani’s grin widened. “You don’t say.”
“Yes,” Tyler said eagerly, no doubt delighted at what he took to be her encouragement to know more. “Nautical miles and knots are still used today in both the marine and aviation industries. The way it works is, if we sliced the globe exactly in half vertically, then divided the half globe into degrees—”
“I know Shani can’t wait to hear this,” Adam interrupted with a good-natured nudge of his elbow, “but did you say we were cleared for take-off?”
Tyler glanced at the large watch on his wrist. “Shit. You’re right. I need to get into the cockpit.” He gave a small, self-deprecating laugh. “Sorry. When I get going on aviation topics, I’m as bad as Adam when he’s talking about different varieties and grains of leather.”
“Touché,” Adam said with a laugh.
“Make sure to buckle up until I turn off the sign,” Tyler said. He smirked at Adam. “Behave yourselves.” He disappeared into the cockpit, closing the door behind him.
They settled into two seats and buckled their seatbelts. “This is so exciting,” Shani said, looking out the small round window next to her. “I’ve never been on a private jet.”
“It’s a great way to travel,” Adam agreed. He slid his hand under Shani’s skirt, stroking her smooth, bare thigh. “Especially when we’re alone.” He moved his hand lightly up her leg to cup her mons. He could feel its heat beneath the thin fabric.
“Hey,” Shani said, color rising up her cheeks. “He said to behave.”
“He did,” Adam agreed with a grin, not moving his hand away. “But he didn’t say how to behave. Trust me, Tyler is totally cool about this sort of thing. He once told me the reason he opted for leather is it’s easier to clean off any jism left behind by his mile-high clients.”
“You’re kidding,” Shani said skeptically.
“Nope. He says even on so-called business flights, folks get up to all kinds of things back here. It’s part of the fun of traveling privately. Check this out.” Using his free hand, Adam reached into the side pouch on his seat and pulled out a strip of condoms.