Grizzly Flying Home (4 page)

Emily continued talking and laughing with her new friends, drinking several more glasses of wine and enjoying herself more than she had in ages. The group continued to thin out slowly, until finally only Chance and Emily remained. Emily briefly considered leaving. She imagined how angry Scott would be right now if he could see her sitting alone outside with another man, even though she was sitting on the complete opposite side of a picnic table from Chance. Emily took a long sip to finish off her current cup of wine, and frowned. She hated the way Scott always made her feel like she was doing something wrong. She was a grown woman, for crying out loud. If she wanted to go have some fun with friends now and then, she should be able to do so without worrying about being interrogated when she got home.

“What’s wrong?” Chance asked, breaking into Emily’s thoughts.

“Huh? Nothing, why?” she asked. Was this guy a mind reader or something?

“You’re frowning like you just saw a puppy get killed,” Chance said, raising an eyebrow in her direction.

“Oh, yeah. I was just thinking,” Emily said, trying to force a smile onto her face. She didn’t want to ruin the magic of this night by talking about Scott. Thankfully, Chance didn’t push her.

“Tell you what,” he said. “Let’s each grab a slice of that strawberry shortcake. It would be a shame to let it go to waste. Then I’ll show you my favorite spot out here.”

Emily didn’t protest as Chance loaded up two small paper plates with generous servings of the shortcake. She had been curious to try it, and she wasn’t going to pass on the chance to extend this magical night for just a little bit longer. Emily carefully balanced her plate as she followed Chance. He walked toward the runway and her eyes widened as she watched him lie down in the grass on his back, with his knees bent and his feet flat on the hard cement of the runway.

“Is that safe?” she asked.

Chance laughed. “Yes. No one flies in and out of here except me. Besides, even if a plane landed right now it’s not going to run over your feet when they’re just barely touching the runway. Come on. Try it.”

Emily shrugged. “Okay, if you say so,” she said. She set down her plate and lay down on the grass next to Chance, putting her feet on the runway, too. When she looked up and saw the stars, she gasped.

“Beautiful sight, isn’t it?” Chance asked.

“It’s gorgeous. I can’t believe how bright they are. Even fifteen minutes away in Red Valley they don’t look like this.”

“Yeah. I think it’s because there are literally no lights right here when the runway lights are off,” Chance said. “Not even a porch light or something to distract you. We pretty much turn off all the lights in the bunkhouse once people are in bed.”

“Do all of you live in there?”

“In the bunkhouse? Yeah. It’s big inside, though. Everyone has their own space and privacy. It’s nice. You’re close to your friends but can get away when you need to. Still, this spot right here is my favorite place to be when I want to think. I like looking up at the sky while having my feet planted on the runway. It sort of reminds me of the importance of staying grounded, even when I’m flying high.”

“Sounds like something a pilot would say,” Emily observed.

Chance laughed. “I guess so.”

Emily sat up and started digging into her shortcake. Charlotte had been right. It was easily the best strawberry shortcake she had ever tried. Chance followed her lead and sat up as well, spooning bites of his shortcake into his mouth. Emily glanced over at him, feeling shy but strangely happy just to be sitting here with him. “How long have you been a pilot?” she asked.

“I’ve been flying since I was sixteen. Back home in Alaska I flew a lot more than here, too. I’ve logged over ten thousand hours in my lifetime. You could say it’s a slight passion of mine,” Chance said with a wry smile.

Emily smiled back. “Alaska, huh? Why’d you move here? Wanted to get away from the cold?”

Chance chuckled, but when he spoke his voice sounded sad. “Naw, there was a lot going on back home. I wanted space. I feel like it might be time to go back soon, though. I miss my friends there. My buddies Sawyer and Anderson were like brothers to me. It’s gonna be hard to leave the smokejumpers, though. They’ve kind of become like family, too.”

Emily didn’t reply. She was surprised by the sadness that filled her heart as she sat under the glittering night sky and thought about the possibility of Chance leaving. She shouldn’t care that much. After all, she had just met him. But the thought of not seeing him again depressed her a bit. She knew in that moment that she did have some spark of deeper feelings for him, and she felt guilty. Even though her relationship with Scott had basically dwindled down to nothing, she had no business thinking about another man romantically while she was still calling Scott her boyfriend. She was about to sit up and tell Chance she had to go, when he asked another question and broke into her thoughts.

“What about you? You grew up in California, right?” Chance asked, then set aside his empty dessert plate and lay back down on the grass again. Emily followed his lead.

“Yeah, although not in Red Valley,” she said, as soon as she was settled back on the cool grass. “I lived in San Francisco most of my childhood. My mom loved being in the city. I liked it, too. But I also like to be a little outside of all the buzz and chaos.”

“I completely understand that,” Chance said. “I’m not much of a city guy. I like to be out in nature, away from it all.”

“I feel that way more and more the older I get,” Emily said with a laugh. “I guess I’m getting cranky in my old age.”

Chance laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re not old.”

Emily shrugged. Chance was right. She wasn’t old, objectively speaking. But some days she felt old. She felt weary and like she had already lived the best days of her life. Her life had slowly become a series of one empty, meaningless day after another. This barbecue tonight had been the first time in a long time that she had felt truly happy. That feeling of happiness was quickly seeping away, however, as she realized that she would soon have to head back home to her empty apartment and her life with Scott.

“So what do you do for work?” Chance asked, his question bringing her back to the present moment and giving her an excuse to continue their conversation a little longer.

“I’m a photographer. I used to do weddings, but now I do family photo shoots. Although, honestly, I haven’t done much of anything lately. Business has been slow. I’ve been thinking of trying to break into nature photography. It’s hard, though.”

“You should go to Alaska if you want to do nature photography,” Chance said. “The scenery there is so gorgeous that the pictures practically take themselves.”

Emily laughed, but her laugh sounded hollow. “I don’t think my boyfriend would be interested in moving to Alaska.”

Chance didn’t reply, but when Emily dared to glance over at him, she saw his face was set in a stiff, irritated expression.

“Why do you stay with him?” he asked.

“He’s really a great guy. You just caught him on a bad day. Usually he treats me like a princess,” Emily said, sounding defensive and knowing that what she was saying wasn’t true. Scott wasn’t a great guy, and he didn’t treat her well.

“Look, you don’t have to defend your choices to me,” Chance said. “But I don’t care how bad of a day someone is having. There’s no excuse to hurt you like he did.”

Emily fell silent. She couldn’t argue with Chance. She knew that what he said was true. Besides, she
was
getting tired of defending Scott. She had thought that if she stayed with Scott she could help him, but it was becoming increasingly clear that the help he needed was beyond her ability to give. Maybe it was time to let go.

When she thought of actually telling Scot they were done, though, she felt a shiver of fear go through her body. She had a feeling he wouldn’t let her walk out without a fight. Maybe going far away to Alaska wasn’t such a bad idea, after all. Scott was unlikely to follow her that far.

Emily abruptly sat up and brushed a few stray blades of grass off of her jeans. “I should go,” she said, glancing at her watch even though it didn’t light up and she couldn’t see it in the darkness. She needed to get out of here before she had to answer any more questions about Scott. It was hard to sit here and justify Scott to a man who was clearly ten times the man Scott was. Chance was respectful, caring, and gorgeous. He had a meaningful job, and he obviously valued his friendships.

As if Emily needed more proof that Chance was a gentleman, he jumped up to his feet and offered his hand to help pull her up. When his hand touched hers, Emily felt like she might melt. His strong grip and warm hand sent a wave of soothing energy through her body. It was almost like he was trying to silently send her a message that everything was going to be okay. Emily felt a surge of disappointment as he released his hold on her.

“Are you okay to drive home?” he asked. “I’m more than happy to drive you back.”

Emily was tempted to accept his offer just to have the chance to spend more time with him, but she forced herself to shake her head no. “I haven’t had anything to drink for the last two hours now. I’ll be fine.”

Chance nodded, seemingly satisfied with her answer. “Alright. Well, let me walk you to your car at least.”

He grabbed their dessert plates, then fell into step beside Emily. He tossed the plates into the trash can set up next to the picnic tables as they walked the short distance to her car in silence. Then he held the car door open for her as she climbed in, another gentlemanly gesture that seemed to be a reflex for him. Just before he closed the door, he bent down to look her straight in the eyes, his expression and tone serious.

“If you ever need a safe place to stay, you can always come here. And if you ever need help, I’m just a phone call away. I’m serious, Emily. Don’t let anyone treat you with anything less than total respect, because that’s what you deserve.”

Emily forced a brave smile onto her face as she looked away from Chance’s intense gaze and started the engine. “Thanks, but I’m fine. Really.”

Chance stepped back and closed the door, letting her go. She forced herself to turn her car away from the hangar and back toward Red Valley. But even as she drove away, she knew she was anything but fine.

Chance slept fitfully that night, tossing and turning and unable to get comfortable. He kept seeing Emily’s face as she turned away from him to start her car. She had tried to look like everything was fine, but the sadness in her wide, beautiful eyes gave her away. She wasn’t fine. He knew she was lying about Scott. Or, at the very least, she was avoiding the truth.

But what was he supposed to do about it? If she didn’t want to talk about it, and she didn’t want him meddling, then he didn’t have a way to intervene. As much as he wanted to come riding in on a white horse and save the day, Emily was a grown woman. If she didn’t want saving, he couldn’t force her to accept his help. Sure, if he saw Scott in action, harming her or berating her, he would intervene in a heartbeat. But unless he caught Scott in the act like he had in the movie theater, there wasn’t much he could do. Around six a.m., Chance finally gave up on trying to sleep. He decided to head back outside to lie in the grass on his favorite spot near the runway. He needed time to think.

The grass was cool and damp from the night air, but Chance didn’t even notice as he settled down to look up at the sky, which was a deep, dusky gray. Birds chirped in the background, singing the first songs of a new day. Chance loved times like this, when the world was quiet except for the sounds of nature. He looked over to his left, and then closed his eyes for a moment, imagining that Emily was still lying next to him like she had been the night before. He sighed, and turned his gaze back up to the sky.

He needed to let her go. In fact, maybe he needed to let California go. He had been waiting for a sign, but maybe he should give up on waiting for the universe to tell him what to do and just make a decision. He’d had a good run here in California. He knew the smokejumpers were lifelong friends, and they would always leave the door open for him to come back. But no matter how far away from Alaska he roamed, the beautiful, frozen frontier always called his heart back home.

As if on cue, Chance’s cell phone rang. And when he looked down he saw Sawyer’s name on the caller I.D. Chance glanced at the time, surprised. It was only six-thirty in the morning here in Red Valley, which meant it was five-thirty in Alaska.

“You’re up early,” Chance said as he answered his phone, not even bothering with the formality of saying hello. “Is everything all right?”

“Hey, buddy!” Sawyer’s voice came on the line. “I’m fine. Just have a busy week ahead and wanted to try to catch you before things got too crazy. I didn’t wake you up, did I? I thought it was later in California.”

Chance laughed. “It’s only an hour later. It’s not even seven a.m. here. But I was up already. Couldn’t sleep?”

“Oh yeah? Pining away for a girl?” Sawyer asked, then laughed at his own joke.

Chance winced. If only Sawyer knew how close he was to the actual truth. “Very funny,” Chance said, managing to sound somewhat normal. “Now, to what do I owe the pleasure of this early morning call?”

“I’m calling to tell you to come home,” Sawyer said, his voice growing serious.

Chance winced again. Was Sawyer somehow reading his mind now? “You always tell me that,” Chance said, keeping his voice light. “Why are you calling at the crack of dawn to tell me now?”

“I’m calling early because I literally have no other free moment to call,” Sawyer said. “We’re busy here, Chance. Clan business is keeping me busy from sunup to sundown, often later. We’re expanding a lot of things in Frost Peak. We’re building a new school, and a new library. We’ve got a new community center going up. The clan elders are trying to get new clan rules adopted that are more up to date with modern times.”

“Sounds like a lot,” Chance said. He felt a sudden pang of homesickness. Life in Frost Peak was moving on without him. His desire to go back grew stronger with each word Sawyer spoke.

“It
is
a lot,” Sawyer said. “Anderson and I can’t keep up alone. We need you. Come back and help us out. You’ve been playing around in California long enough.”

Chance laughed. “I’m not sure I would consider flying our friends here into wildfires to be playing.”

“Whatever. At least you’re not freezing your ass off in the winter.”

Chance smiled. He could picture Sawyer sitting there and rolling his eyes at him with an exasperated look on his face. “Well, today is your lucky day, because I was actually just sitting here thinking that it was time to head home.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Chance almost chuckled. He had a feeling that Sawyer had been ready to fight with him until he agreed to come back. But Chance had already made up his mind.

“Really?” Sawyer finally asked. “You’re serious? You’re coming back? When?”

“I’m serious,” Chance said. I’m not sure when, exactly. But it should be within the next month or two. Fire season is finally slowing down here, so I’m going to talk to Ian and let him know I won’t be back next year.”

There was another long pause, and then a big whoop of joy came over the phone line. Chance grinned, and had to hold the phone away from his ear for a moment thanks to Sawyer’s loud volume.

“Dude! You just made my week. My month, even. Maybe my year! I’ve tried to give you your space, but I’ve missed you so damn much,” Sawyer said, his words tumbling out in a rapid, excited sequence.

“I’ve missed you, too,” Chance said. “Things have been fun here, but you’re right. I’ve been in California long enough. It’s time to come back to Frost Peak. I’ll let you know as soon as I have an exact date.”

“This is awesome news,” Sawyer said. “Anderson is going to be so excited, too. Hurry your ass back over here so we can put you to work.”

Chance laughed. “Alright, alright. I’ll be in touch.”

As soon as Chance hung up the call with Sawyer, he knew he was making the right decision by choosing to go home. He felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Now he just had to tell Ian. He knew the smokejumpers’ alpha would be disappointed, but Ian also knew that Chance had already stayed in California longer than he’d originally planned. Chance sat up and breathed in the morning air, enjoying the sunlight that was just starting to streak over the tops of the trees.

“You’re up early,” a voice behind him said. It was Ian.

Chance turned around, surprised. “Yeah, I know. I couldn’t sleep. And was your nose itching or something? I was just thinking about you.”

Ian laughed and came to sit down near Chance. “I could ask you the same thing. I was just thinking I needed to talk to you. And here you are. Why were you thinking of me?”

“You first,” Chance said, deferring to Ian’s alpha status.

Ian nodded. “I wanted to ask you about Emily.”

“What about her?” Chance asked. He had known this conversation was coming. Ian had let it go pretty easily last night when Chance had assured him that he knew Emily and she was fine to have around. But Ian had never been a big fan of full humans being invited around without his knowing. Chance couldn’t blame him. When humans discovered that shifters existed, they often responded by running to the police in fear. Things could easily get out of hand.

“How do you know her? Are you interested in her?”

“I’m not interested in her because she’s not available. I met her in town at a movie theater, where her scumbag of a boyfriend tried to beat her up. I stopped him, but Emily refuses to leave him or acknowledge that he’s dangerous. I told her if she ever needed a safe place she could come here. Don’t worry, I don’t think she’s interested in going to the police about shifters. She tries to stay far away from the cops because she doesn’t want them getting involved with her and her boyfriend.”

“Wow, I never would have guessed she was in a relationship like that. She seemed so happy and carefree at the barbecue last night.”

“Yeah, well, I think that’s the first time in a long time she’s been out somewhere with people and didn’t have to worry that she was going to get beaten up at any moment.”

Ian shook his head. “Well, of course, she’s welcome to take refuge here any time she needs to. I would never turn away a woman in danger. But you should have warned me that she might be stopping by.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I honestly didn’t think she was going to come by. She shocked me almost as much as you. But you’re right. I should have said something just in case.”

“No harm done. Just be more careful next time. Now, did you say you wanted to talk to me about something?”

Chance took a deep breath. “Yeah. You’re not going to like it, though. I’ve decided to head back to Alaska as soon as the fire season here is done.”

Ian looked surprised, and frowned. “I guess I knew this day was coming, but I was hoping you’d stay at least one more season. We’ve gotten used to having a full-time pilot. And we’ve gotten used to having your crazy ass around. We’re going to miss the hell out of you.”

Chance smiled. “I know. I’ve loved working with you all and getting to know you better, too. But there are a lot of changes going on with my clan up in Frost Peak, and Sawyer needs me. Besides, as much as I’ve enjoyed being here, I’m feeling homesick. Alaska will always be my home.”

To Chance’s surprise, Ian didn’t fight him. Instead, he nodded his head and looked over at Chance with a resigned expression on his face. “Well, I hope you’ll come visit. And you know you’ve always got a job here if you ever get the urge to come back.”

“Thanks, Ian. That means a lot to me.”

Ian stood slowly, wiping the wet morning dew from his jeans. “When are you leaving?”

Chance shrugged. “I haven’t decided on an exact date. Maybe the end of this month? Fire season seems to be slowing down, finally.”

Ian nodded. “Yeah. This year has been bad, but I think the worst of it is over. If we’re lucky we might have even seen the last big fire of the season.”

“I hope you’re right,” Chance said. “I’m going to look at a calendar this afternoon and figure out a date to head back. I’ll let you know.”

“Alright,” Ian said. “Make sure you leave us enough time to throw you a goodbye barbecue.”

Chance smiled. “I’ll make sure to do that.”

Ian started to walk back toward the hangar, but turned around one last time to look at Chance. “Are you sure you want to move away and leave Emily behind?” he asked. “You know long distance relationships are tough, right?”

Chance raised an eyebrow in Ian’s direction. “Long distance relationships are tough. But, like I told you, she’s already got a boyfriend. There’s nothing going on between us.”

“Well, the way you two were stealing glances at each other all night suggests otherwise,” Ian said, then turned on his heel and walked away. Chance watched him go and let out a deep sigh, admitting to himself that maybe, just maybe, he was going to miss Emily just a little bit.