Aurora was just as confused as he appeared to be by those words, so she ignored them, and changed the subject. “Why aren’t you at the dance?”
Sky took a step away from her. “I leave first thing in the morning for the Lunar Base.”
“Oh.” She forgot that Sky wasn’t a full-time instructor. Aurora made a move to leave, but Sky stopped her with his next words. “Want to go fly?”
“How?”
He shrugged. “I can get us into the SpacePort.”
Flying would definitely clear Aurora’s head, but she was a little hesitant to get back into the XT-101 after her last flight.
Sky must have understood her hesitation because he said, “We can fly together. It’ll be good for you.” Back in instructor mode, he didn’t give her a chance to respond, grabbing her hand and pulling her along.
When they passed a locker room, Aurora had to put all of her weight into stopping Sky. “Let me get a flight suit.”
He let go of her hand. “Oh, right. I’ll be outside.”
Excited, she grabbed her flight suit and met Sky outside. Soon enough they were both in a hovercar on their way to the SpacePort.
“Are you
sure
we can do this?” She could already feel adrenaline pumping through her body, forcing out any lingering doubt. Flying would be so much better than moping in her room, even if Sky was the one she had to do it with.
“Yeah, I go up whenever I want.”
Aurora wasn’t sure she understood. “But why?”
“It’s training. I have to stay current somehow.”
The Apollo Academy must really trust Sky. Fuel usage was highly regulated. Aurora never had to worry about it because her father could afford any price, but that wasn’t exactly normal.
“So? That doesn’t explain why you’re allowed to take an aircraft out whenever you want.” Aurora rolled her eyes. “You’re not the only Apollo Academy pilot. They couldn’t possibly allow every pilot to take out their airplanes whenever they feel like it.”
Sky shrugged and didn’t bother responding.
Aurora raised an eyebrow. Was he really not going to answer?
As if reading her thoughts, he winked. “Technically, you didn’t ask a question.”
Aurora laughed for the first time that night. This was the Sky that girls fell over themselves for, and it was a side she didn’t see directed toward her very often. When Sky was like this, he was kind of hot, but she so didn’t need to go there. Usually she didn’t have to distract herself from his looks because he was usually doing something to piss her off.
“So why are you allowed to take out a multimillion-dollar aircraft whenever you want?”
His blue eyes twinkled, “Let’s just say there’s a few perks to being me.”
Aurora believed him.
“Humph.” Whatever the reason, she wasn’t going to complain about it. Maybe she should have been concerned that he had such free reign around the Academy, but she had no reason anymore to think he had anything to do with the techspiders. Originally, she thought Sky could have been a suspect, but over the past few weeks that changed. Sky would have lost his job if something fatal happened to her; her father would have made sure of it. Besides, he was the one to help Zane find the first techspider.
Thankfully, before her mind started thinking about Zane, the hovercar stopped in front of the Apollo Alliance SpacePort. At night the geodesic dome and flight line were breathtaking, brilliantly lit in neon blue and green lights, with the occasional shuttle burn lighting the sky behind it. Because of the late hour, the SpacePort was on a skeleton shift, leaving Aurora and Sky free to walk directly to the hangar that housed the Academy’s XT-101s without seeing anyone.
Aurora shivered when she saw, in the far back corner of the hangar, an airplane stripped down to a bunch of parts and metallic pieces.
Sky noticed her stare. “They can’t find anything wrong with it, so they’re hesitant to put it back together.” He pointed at an XT-101 sitting toward the front of the hangar, situated with easy access to the taxiway. “This 101 just completed a maintenance diagnostic test.” He walked toward the airplane. “Besides, we’ll be flying together,” he said over his shoulder.
They both completed a very thorough pre-flight, walking around, verifying that everything was as it should be. Aurora even checked the back of both their HUD units to make sure there were no techspiders lurking inside. Aurora then went to change into her flight suit, but it wasn’t until she had it zipped up that she realized she didn’t have any other shoes except her high heels. For a moment, she thought about going barefoot, but flying in heels was nothing new. Sky would just have to get over it.
With that decision made, she walked back into the hangar to find Sky already sitting in the right seat of the cockpit. She squeezed by to sit down next to him and before long she was taxing out onto the runway. Sky handled their radio communication. As they waited to take off, she watched the last shuttle for the night depart, probably on its way to the Lunar Moon Base.
“So this is what you’ll be doing tomorrow?” she asked Sky who also watched the shuttle travel straight up, rocketing through the night sky, illuminating everything in an orange glow as it traveled outside of this world. Aurora was jealous; she couldn’t wait until she piloted her own ship.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “We’re cleared for departure.”
Aurora let the change in subject slide. She shoved the engines full throttle and felt the aircraft push her back in her seat as she quickly accelerated. Because of training, she didn’t often have the opportunity to fly freely, but tonight she took all of her frustrations out by pushing the aircraft that much harder. Once she reached Vr, the appropriate rotation speed, she pulled the nose of the aircraft back and began her ascent.
They flew like homesick angels as they tore their way up through the night above them, pressed firmly back in their seats. When she was high enough, she leveled the plane off and couldn’t help but laugh in exhilaration. She looked over at Sky who was grinning back at her. Goosebumps rose on her arms in anticipation; she could tell Sky wasn’t going to have any reprimanding remarks tonight. He was along for the ride, however crazy it might be.
Without warning Sky, she pulled the throttles all the way back and pitched the nose of the aircraft down. As they descended, they felt the effects of zero gravity. The only thing that kept her in her seat was the seatbelt strapped firmly across her. Anything not held down floated around them.
Aurora couldn’t see the ground they were pointed towards, but she already knew what it looked like. Brown. Ruined. She was kind of thankful she didn’t see it. Aurora pulled the nose of the aircraft back up; three Gs forcing her back into her seat.
The moon hung heavy and bright as they spent the next hour flipping, turning, and twisting the aircraft every way imaginable. Aurora pretended she was in aerial combat against some unknown enemy. She hadn’t felt this free in a long time. Neither the attempts on her life nor Zane entered her thoughts. If the plane wasn’t running low on fuel, she would have continued flying for the rest of the night.
As the wheels touched back down, Aurora knew that everything she’d been avoiding would come roaring back. Sky hopped out first and waited patiently as she climbed down, which was a little tricky because she was still wearing her high heels. She very carefully placed her feet on the metal ladder’s small steps until she finally made it to the ground. When she turned around, she realized Sky was appreciating the view she presented and was smirking at her.
She teased him, trying to ignore the heat in his eyes. “What, don’t like the shoes?”
He surprised her by laughing.
Those dimples were going to get her in trouble.
“Oh no, I’m very impressed. I don’t know how you walk in them without falling, much less fly an aircraft the way you just did,” Sky said.
Aurora pushed his shoulder and winked at him. “Well, now you should be doubly impressed. I can walk, dance, and fly in any shoe you put me in.” She wasn’t sure where this flirty banter was coming from, but she liked knowing that Sky was impressed with her. She wanted him to like her. He was fun and laid back tonight, and somehow the flight had relieved the tension between them. Just as he’d predicted, the flight released all of her stress and anger through sweat, adrenaline, and shear exhilaration.
He looked so good, especially in his flight suit. His hands were on his hips as he towered over her. Even in her heels, she only came to his upper chest. For a moment she let herself imagine him stepping closer and engulfing her in his big arms.
It was weird that her thoughts strayed in that direction, and she decided she must feel closer to him because of their shared love of flight. She’d never really looked at him in this light because she always assumed something would work out between her and Zane. But after tonight, she felt she saw more of the real Sky, a Sky kind enough to take her flying, giving her a few hours reprieve from the usual drama of her life even on his last night on earth for awhile.
Sky grabbed her hand. Their earlier banter faded, and his face grew serious. “I had a blast. I’d like to do it again sometime, and not just because you need to be cheered up.”
Aurora swallowed, her throat dry. “I think I’d like that.” How was she just now starting to realize what a great guy Sky was?
He tugged her by the hand, pulling her out of the hangar. “Let’s get back to the Academy before someone notices we’re missing.”
Thankful for the few minutes alone in the locker room to compose herself, Aurora took her time getting out of her flight suit and back into the tight bodiced gown. She stuck her peacock feather in her hair and ran her fingers through it until it was untangled and hanging smoothly down her back once more.
By the time she finished, Sky had managed to get a hovercar to take them back to the Academy. For some reason she was nervous to be alone with him, even though they’d just spent two hours in a much tighter space. There was something different about it now. As she scooted into the back seat next to him, she felt his body pressed close to hers. Aurora looked up at him in surprise, their faces only inches apart. He gently pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, and instead of immediately letting it go, he held onto it.
“I’ve wanted to touch your hair for a while now.” He gently stroked a strand.
Aurora blushed, and Sky took the opportunity to push his hands further into the back of her hair.
“Why?” she whispered.
Sky smiled into her eyes. “It’s beautiful. It’s fiery, just like you.” He bent down to brush his lips slowly over hers. They were hesitant, waiting for her reaction.
At first she couldn’t even move; she was too shocked to do anything. When his lips first touched hers, she felt like she was betraying Zane. But how could she betray someone who made it abundantly clear that he only wanted to be friends? She was so angry that he’d stood her up, and even more angry with herself for obsessing over him. And she couldn’t deny the heat Sky managed to create. Apparently, it didn’t matter whether they were fighting or kissing. He always ignited her emotions, and right now his soft lips were starting a slow, simmering heat inside of her.
She parted her lips and invited him to kiss her deeper. The feel of his tongue as he slowly brushed it inside her mouth was exotic, and a small moan escaped her lips. That seemed to excite him even more, and he boldly deepened their kiss. The kiss was like every other experience she’d had with Sky. Demanding. Intense. Bruising. They made out like they were going to war, their lips caught in a desperate battle against one another.
A roaring fire spread across Aurora’s chest and quickly swelled to more sensitive areas. She pushed herself against him, and he took it as an invitation to pull her onto his lap, causing Aurora’s dress to push up around her legs as she straddled him. Their kisses became frantic, wild things as they both ached to cool the fire lit within. Aurora had never been kissed like this.
Sky’s hand slowly moved from her hair, down her neck, to the swell of her chest. When he caressed her nipple from the outside of her dress, Aurora whimpered. His finger continued to slowly circle her breast, until she couldn’t stand it anymore. On instinct, she pressed herself closer to Sky, her hips moving against him.
Completely lost in the moment, Aurora unbuttoned Sky’s shirt until he lay bare before her. Slowly she ran her hands over his rock-hard chest, down his six-pack, and lightly over the V just above his pants. Aurora trailed a finger over his pant button, wondering what it would be like to follow it all the way down.
Sky groaned, gripping Aurora’s waist tighter. Pulling her toward him, he reached around to undo her top. Aurora shivered as Sky tried to unzip her dress, but before he managed, the car came to a stop and Aurora came to her senses.
She grabbed hold of Sky’s hand, stopping him before they went any farther. She wasn’t ready for that. Ever since she met Zane, she’d always imagined he’d be her first. And this with Sky was too soon.
Aurora wasn’t sure what she was thinking. She liked this version of Sky, but she couldn’t forget most of the time he was a dick. Aurora, embarrassed by her position on Sky’s lap and his obvious enjoyment, pulled back. Before she completely removed herself, Sky grabbed her, holding her in place as he stared into her eyes. She knew he saw her eyes widen, yet she still let out a needy whimper.
Sky was so big compared to her. He was strong and could probably force her to do anything with just the slightest pressure. And why did that make the situation that much hotter? She lightly touched her lips, still feeling the sting of their frantic kissing. Her lips would be sore tomorrow.
“Don’t pull away.” Sky’s husky voice broke the silence. She felt the deep vibrations of his voice rumbling in his chest.
Aurora rested her head on his shoulder. She was so confused. Only a few hours ago she’d been pining for a guy she couldn’t seem to have. Zane with his pent-up emotions had left her hanging tonight while Sky, on the other hand, never held anything back.
Zane was the only guy she’d thought about for the past few months, and here she was in the arms of another man. But he’d made his feelings perfectly clear. And she liked how Sky made her feel. Even when he was yelling at her, he still ignited things within her.