Lone Star Heartbreaker (10 page)

Caitlyn didn't want to think about leaving. For the first time in her life, she felt like she truly belonged somewhere. She'd had a fairly good childhood with strict and loving parents, but the constant moving and relocating demanded by the military had been difficult for her. Even after her mother had died and her dad retired, she'd kept a vital part of her heart in lockdown.

And the one and only time she'd al owed someone to break past her barriers . . .
No
. She'd never do that again. Scott had charmed his way into her heart and into her bed, but when the chips had fal en and he'd discovered there was no monetary gain left in her dad's defunct flight school, he hadn't been able to leave fast enough. And no one had been left to pick up the pieces of Caitlyn's shattered heart.

She'd learned her lesson the hard way. She was over Scott for the most part, and she was desperately trying to guard her heart against the sensual appeal of Tyler McCade. No matter how stern a lecture she gave herself, the temptation to give in only grew stronger.

No, she didn't want to think about leaving Lone Star Wings or the Diamondback Ranch. Ruth McCade had taken Caitlyn in and lavished nurturing balm to her lonely heart. Every Sunday, the McCades gathered in Ruth's big cozy kitchen for delicious home-cooked meals. Caitlyn final y knew how it felt to be a part of a large loving family. The dynamics were fascinating to watch and participate in.

Undoubtedly, it would be much safer to pack up her camper and her dad's plane and head for the hil s. Except that would be like reading an edge-of-your seat, page-turning novel and throwing it away before it was finished. How would it end?

Only one way to find out, and that was to stay and face the music.

****

Tyler let himself out the door and headed toward the wrecked plane. He stil had a slight limp and his knee ached a little, but he was a free man. No crutches. No cane. His body had final y healed. Now if only his spirit could be resuscitated.

During his convalescence, he'd purposely stayed away from the downed plane. He'd focused al his energies on healing his body and tried to believe he'd not been at fault.

Consequently, he hadn't given the go-ahead to remove the debris even though family and friends urged him to do so. The Maule MX-7-180 had been his first four-seater. He'd bonded with her and christened her
Lady Hawk
.

Sure, the insurance would help pay for a new plane, but it wouldn't be the same. A man didn't give his love lightly. To his planes or his women. At least, he didn't. He'd never fal en in love. Not one of the many women he'd dated had ever touched his heart.

Tyler walked slowly along the runway then out into the field. Caitlyn stood near the
Lady Hawk
, hands on hips, her attention on the landing gear. She looked up, saw him approaching and smiled. His stomach clenched and his body tightened. He tried to tel himself it was because he'd been without a woman for so long.

Sell it somewhere else, McCade
.

Tyler stepped on a pebble and his foot turned slightly; pain shot up his thigh. "
Son of a bitch
!" He corrected his bearing and kept walking forward.

Caitlyn came running, not stopping until she was standing right in front of him. "What happened? What's the matter?"

"Nothing. Just stepped wrong, that's al . Let's go and get this over with. I'd like to get reacquainted with my planes. I want to take the Piper up this morning. It's been too long since I've been in the cockpit."

"You don't have to do this, you know." She pointed toward the plane in the field. Or what was left of the plane.

He gritted his teeth. "Yes. I do. Then you can make the cal and get the bal rol ing on the clean-up detail while I make that first test flight."

She saluted. "Yes, sir. Anything you say, sir."

"Don't I wish?" He stared into her green eyes and touched her cheek. She stood passive beneath his caress, before blushing and ducking away.

Yet an answering fire burned in the emerald depths and a longing so strong, it stole his breath.

The woman was a contrast between innocence and seduction. If they didn't make love soon, he wouldn't be held accountable for his subsequent actions.

****

After walking around the crashed plane twice and inspecting every dent and cranny, Tyler slowly climbed into the crumpled cockpit. He eased himself downward until his feet found purchase, then hunkered behind the flight control panel. No way could he sit in the pilot's seat. The plane was tilted at an angle almost paral el to the ground. Caitlyn stayed outside the opened door, peering into the cockpit.

"It's a miracle you got out alive, isn't it?" she said in a hushed voice. "A miracle al three of you survived."

"Yeah. A miracle." He swal owed the bile rising in the back of his throat. A sudden chil slid along his spine and his palms felt sweaty. Damn, he hadn't thought he'd have such a strong reaction like this. The accident had happened months ago. A lifetime ago.

As he crouched there, it al came rushing back. He wiped his damp palms on his jeans and looked up at the concerned face above him. "Give me a minute, wil you?"

Understanding gleamed in the sympathetic eyes. "Sure. I'l be right outside. Take as long as you need." Caitlyn disappeared from sight.

Tyler inhaled deeply. For months, he'd determinedly blocked out the sequence of events preceding the moments leading up to the crash. During the daylight hours, it hadn't been so difficult. Nighttime was a different story. He'd told no one about the nightmares that invaded his dreams.

He reached out to grip the yoke and closed his eyes. Immediately, images played behind his eyelids. Better to al ow the memories to wash over him, get them out of his system and cleanse him. He needed to get rid of them so he could move on. Flying was his life; he couldn't let himself be weighted down by such cumbersome cargo.

Tyler remembered the bright December day as if it were yesterday. At Kelsey's instigation, he'd agreed to fly Theresa--who hadn't been his sister-in-law at the time--to Houston to visit her folks for Christmas. Theresa had been Kelsey's favorite teacher back then. Now, she was his niece's new stepmother.

A lot had changed over the past nine months. Some for the better; some not so much.

That cold winter day, he'd performed a thorough pre-flight inspection. He might be the happy-go-lucky McCade brother, but he was a damned good pilot. Conscientious and responsible. Safe and careful.

After the inspection, he remembered hurrying to the passenger door to help Theresa board the plane.

"Thanks." She took his hand and climbed in.

"Here, Miss Rogers," Kelsey said. "Let me help you buckle."

While Kelsey helped her teacher with the buckles, Tyler made one more ground check before climbing into the cockpit.

Opening the door, he caught the tail end of Kelsey's buoyant chatter. " . . . he insisted.

"Who insisted on what?" he asked, as he eased his tall frame into the pilot's seat.

Kelsey giggled. "You did. You figured if you were going to fly Miss Rogers to Lubbock, you might as well fly her all the way home to Houston."

"What can I say? I love to fly." He flipped switches and checked gauges. "Besides, it saves time and trouble. And it's a hell of a lot more fun
than driving!"

"It doesn't save you time and trouble," Theresa said with a frown. "I feel like I'm imposing on your goodwill."

"No such thing. Hotshot back there will tell you I'm never happier than when I'm flying one of my babies."

Kelsey leaned forward. "That's true, Miss Rogers. Uncle Tyler lives to fly. Don't you, Uncle Tyler?"

"That's right."

"Well, I appreciate it all the same."

"No problem. Just sit back, relax and enjoy the ride."

After Theresa settled into her seat, Tyler pointed to the headphones. She put them on and he did the same, as did Kelsey.

"Everybody ready?" He glanced around at his passengers. He adjusted Theresa's headset, then started the engine. It rumbled to life. The
propeller turned slowly at first, gaining speed until it was only a whirling blur on the nose of the plane.

Tyler maneuvered onto the airstrip. "Hold on," he said, as he prepared to take them up in the air. The small plane sped down the runway, lifting
effortlessly into the clear blue West Texas sky.

"Wow!" Theresa smiled at him then looked out the window at the diminishing ground below.

"I told you it was great." Kelsey's voice piped in over the headsets. Theresa turned in her seat and smiled. Kelsey gave her teacher a thumbs
up.

Suddenly, the plane jerked, the engine sputtered, then died.

"Oh, hell." Tyler tried to stabilize the aircraft. While he fought for control, he felt more than saw Theresa reach back and grab Kelsey's hand to
offer comfort.

The plane dropped fast. He tried desperately to hold steady and ease out of the drop, but no luck. With teeth clenched and mouth grim, he
looked at Theresa. She stared back at him in stark terror, realizing there was nothing he could do to save them.

The ground rushed toward them, and Tyler braced for impact. Kelsey screamed or maybe it was Theresa. Time stood still for a moment, before
the plane crashed to a grinding stop. A loud sickening crunch of metal and breaking glass surrounded them. Tyler was thrown into the
instrument panel and pain wrenched through his body. Theresa and Kelsey tumbled forward and landed on top of him. He tasted blood in his
mouth. Then everything went black . . .

****

"Tyler! Tyler, are you okay?
"
Caitlyn's near-frantic voice broke through the fog of memories.

No, not really.
"Yeah. I'm fine."

Blinking away the dark mists, Tyler shook off the recol ections and straightened from his crouch. He pul ed in a deep reviving breath only to catch it halfway in his lungs when his left leg throbbed painful y from the uncomfortable position he'd maintained for the last few minutes. Probably
not
what the doctor had meant when he'd ordered him to take it slow and easy.

"Move back. I'm coming out." He caught hold of the sides of the door and hauled himself out of the tilted cockpit. He rubbed his thigh trying to ease the pulsing ache. He stil had a long way to go before he could leave behind the injuries caused by the crash.

One thing he
could
do was to get rid of the evidence, the constant physical reminder of the accident. Caitlyn was right. He should have done it months ago.

"Make the cal ," he told Caitlyn, ignoring those wide concerned eyes. "I'm going to go prep the Piper and take her up."

Caitlyn stared at him with her mouth hanging half open.

Tyler frowned. "
What?
"

"Are you sure you're ready to do that? A solo flight, I mean."

"I won't know until I try, wil I?"

"Let me come with you. For moral support."

It was Tyler's turn to stare. "You don't think I'm capable? Two weeks ago, I wasn't physical y capable. Today, I'm perfectly capable. I assure you."

Caitlyn shook her head. "No! No! I didn't mean that at al . Of course you're capable. It's just . . . you've suffered a terrible ordeal. Flying alone for the first time might not be the best thing to do. I'l just go along for the ride. You'l pilot the plane. You'l have the controls."

Tyler frowned at her. He didn't expect to have a negative reaction in the cockpit of the Piper like the one he'd just experienced in the Maule.

Inspecting the
Lady Hawk
had brought back the memories of that day. Natural y, he'd be uncomfortable thinking about the accident in which he'd been critical y injured.

Examining the crashed plane was total y different from taking up the Piper. He was itching to fly. He'd been grounded way too long. He lived to fly, didn't he? Flying was his life. Once he was behind the controls and winging over the countryside, he knew he'd be completely over the accident.

And about damned time, too.

If it made Caitlyn feel better to go up with him on this first flight, he would humor her. He liked her, liked being around her. He wouldn't mind the company. Being with the pretty lady and flying one of his planes . . . what more could he wish for?

Besides sex, of course.

And he planned to take care of that in the not-so-distant future, too. With or without Caitlyn. Although,
with
Caitlyn would be the ideal scenario.

She stood before him with concern and anxiety dimming the brightness in her beautiful eyes. What would she do if he closed the distance between them, took her in his arms and kissed her like he'd been dreaming about for weeks?

Not now, McCade. First things, first.

"Okay," he said. "Make the cal , then meet me in the hangar."

****

Caitlyn watched him walk away, his limp more pronounced than earlier. He'd stayed inside the tilted cockpit for quite a while, squatting on his haunches the whole time. She'd respected his need to be alone, knowing he had his demons to face. But something urged her to go with him on this first solo flight. Facing demons while on the ground was one thing; facing them up in the air was something else.

She shook her head and sighed. Digging her cel phone out of the pocket of her shorts, she punched in the numbers and arranged for the bul dozers to come out to the airfield. Then she ran to catch up with Tyler.

She found him standing in front of his Piper staring at it. Just standing there. Staring. Making no move to conduct a pre-flight inspection. His fingers curled into his palms squeezing into tight fists. He stood with his legs apart as if braced for a fight. What was going on in that brain of his? Was he fighting demons? Was he afraid?