Twist of Fate
Authors: Jaime Whitley
Copyright © 2014 by Jaime Whitley
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, distributed, stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form of by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, without express permission of the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes, if done so constitutes a copyright violation.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and events are fictitious in every regard. Any similarities to actual events and persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used.
Edited by: Second Gaze Editing
Formatted by: Brenda Wright
Book Designs Cover Designed by: Kellie Dennis at Book Cover By Design
Dedication
To My Three Loves
Scott, Aiden & Peyton
Table of Contents
Prologue
Airports. There’s just something about them that makes my skin crawl. Hundreds of people always rushing through them, bumping into you with no consideration and no apology to anyone around them. No matter how many times I fly, the rudeness seeping out of people never ceases to amaze me. Unfortunately, my job requires me to travel, and as unhappy as I am at my job, it pays the bills.
Who knew that when I went to school and majored in creative writing, I would find myself working at an ad agency when I graduated? No one tells you how hard it is to find a job in that chosen field, they just advise you to pick a different major and use your spare time for your “hobby.” Only, writing isn’t a hobby for me, it’s a passion.
Putting in my ear buds to drown out the crowd, I sit at my gate and open my notebook. I start to write what I see around me. Writers block is a bitch, but maybe there will be inspiration around me today. It’s easy to people watch, but trying to figure out their story is another thing. A lady across from me is trying to pull apart her twin boys as they fight over some gaming system. She seems to be traveling alone and there is no ring on her finger. Hmm.
Girl gets knocked up. Guy leaves. Girl ends up pregnant with twins. Parents kick her out of house. She has to strip to make a living.
Ugh, crap! All I can seem to come up with lately is crap. Inspiration used to pour out of me; everywhere I looked I could see the perfect story. Maybe I need to fix my own life before I try to write a happy one for someone else. Closing my notebook, I rest my head back against the chair, letting out a sigh.
“Do you mind?” A deep voice fills my ears. I open my eyes and see a soldier standing in front of me. It’s not the uniform that stands out to me though, it’s the way his emerald green eyes are fixated on me. His gaze ignites my body as a tingling sensation rushes through me. Bedroom eyes, the only way I can describe them. You know, eyes that only take one look to make you want him to take you, throw you on the bed, and have his way with you. The intensity in his stare makes my heart flutter. It’s impossible for me to look away, so instead, I let myself get lost in them for a brief moment.
“I’m sorry?” I say pulling out an ear bud.
“I said, do you mind if I sit? This seems to be the only seat left,” he says, looking very tired.
“No. Not at all.” I move my bag to the floor so he can sit down.
The man takes his seat next to me and stretches out his long legs, crossing them. He thanks me before resting his head back against the seat, quickly nodding off. I know it’s rude to stare, but I don’t stop myself from doing so. He looks much more relaxed sleeping and his features soften dramatically. A strand of his thick black hair is swept across his face and a five o’clock shadow covers his chiseled jaw. His eyes are closed, letting his long lashes grace the tops of his cheeks. He takes a deep, sighing breath and smiles. I idly wonder what he is dreaming about. A dimple forms in his cheek and it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen. I don’t know much about the military, but his patch says he is in the Army. I wonder what his story is. The attendant comes overhead, announcing it is time to board the plane. Great, just when I think inspiration has found me, too. The man is not moving, obviously in a deep sleep, so I nudge his shoulder gently, immediately feeling the broadness in his shoulders. I bet he is sexy as hell without his clothes on. He startles a little, taking in his surroundings as he wakes.
I give him an apologetic look for waking him and say, “Sorry to wake you, but we are boarding.”
“Thank you, I would be fucked if I missed my flight.”
Moving past the rows of seats, I’m all but happy to see that the plane is a smaller one. It has two seats on the left and one on the right. I reach my aisle and take my assigned seat. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the same camo uniform I just parted ways with. We lock eyes again and my heart starts to rapidly pound against my chest. Just when I think I’m about to have a panic attack, my body instantly floods with warmth and my fingers begin to tingle with the need to touch him again. I have no clue where all this is coming from. I’ve never reacted to anyone this way before, especially someone I’ve just met and I haven’t even officially met him. I suddenly have an inner goddess in me, screaming to be released, and I’m not sure what to do about all this sexual tension building inside me. Well scratch that. My traitorous body knows how it feels about it, and what it wants me to do, but I’m not sure if I can go there.
“Looks like we are sitting next to each other. I’m Silas by the way,” he says holding out his hand.
“Lilly, nice to meet you,” I say, shaking his hand. I let go, unsatisfied that the touch of his hand did not satisfy the tingling sensation in me. Sighing, I think, ‘this is going to be a long flight.’ Grabbing the flight attendant’s attention, “Could I please get a rum and coke when you have a chance?”
I turn my attention back to Silas who has one eyebrow up. “Don’t like to fly?”
I want to say, no it freaks me out and I hate it, how about we join the mile high club and you can screw away my fears? Again, totally not me, but that damn inner goddess. She needs to slow her roll.
“No, not at all. You would think with how much I travel, I would get used to it. What about you?” I ask.
“It doesn’t bother me. It’s the jumping out of the perfectly safe planes that gets me sometimes.”
“Sounds interesting.” I pause before adding, "and scary.” Silas laughs, and it makes my stomach flip flop.
Now, I may not know a lot about the military, but I do know that some soldiers are required to do practice jumps from planes. I never thought I would be sitting next to one of those soldiers. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I ask, “Tell me about your job. What does it entail? That is, if you don’t mind me asking.” He assured me it was okay and he begins talking. It’s hard to pay attention. Questions keep popping into my head. Does he like doing what he does, why did he join the Army? I’m hoping to find a story in there somewhere. While talking, the plane suddenly shakes from turbulence, causing me to grab a death grip on the arm rest. Closing my eyes, I say a silent prayer that the rest of the flight is smoother. I feel a warm hand place itself on top of mine, lifting it off the seat and, I swear, I felt a little spark. I open my eyes and see Silas’s lips turn up as he squeezes my hand. An ache between my legs appears, making me shift in my seat.
“You might break the arm rest squeezing it like that. Feel free to use my hand,” he offers.
“So you would rather me break your hand than the chair?” I say a little nervously, not sure if he is just being polite or flirting with me.
“Sweetheart you won’t break my hand, but it’s cute that you would think that. Squeeze away.”
So I do, but not for the reasons he thinks.
The plane is landin
g, and even though there wasn’t any more turbulence, I held onto his hand. It almost felt like if I let go, I would be missing out on something. What it was, I didn’t know, but I wasn’t ready to find out.
“Well, thank you for the hand,” I say, not really sure what else to say to him. I wish we weren’t parting ways.
“No problem, where is your next gate?” he asks as he brings down my luggage for me.
Looking at my ticket, I tell him, “It’s two gates down from this one, over at F.”
“I’m at G; I’ll walk you to your gate.” He starts walking, carrying his luggage with mine.
“Oh, that’s real nice of you, but not necessary, I don’t want you to miss your flight. Besides, I have a two hour layover.”
“Looks like we both do then. Would you like to head to the bar and grab a drink while we wait?”
“Sure, that would be great.”
Sitting at the bar, we talk more about what Silas does in the Army. I’m learning a lot of interesting stuff sitting here and listening to him. Some are funny, crazy, scary, and some are even heartbreaking. I admire this man for what he does for our country. Not everyone would be willing to make the sacrifices these men make to defend our rights. An hour passes and we are laughing and having a good time, when an announcement comes overhead, telling everyone that, due to the storm that rolled in, all flights are being grounded. You can hear everyone let out their frustrations, and the traffic in the terminals picks up as everyone goes to make other arrangements.