Kinky Confessions

“Same here. And I’m glad Wren and I were late to class that day. You might never’ve noticed us.”

“Oh, I think I would’ve. You’re hard to miss. You’re a little piece of sunshine.”

“Thank you.”

“What about you?” I said. “Are you with me ’cause I remind you of Laurence?”

“At first, no. You don’t look anything like him. Maybe your general shape and coloring, but he was smaller. Shorter, too. But now that I know you better? Yes, a little. Your personalities are similar. You’re always so positive. It drives me crazy sometimes, but… you make me smile like he did.”

“I can live with that.”

“I hope so,” she said.

“I know so.” I lingered over a kiss and then looked at the clock. “Okay, it’s almost four thirty. Do you wanna try to go back to sleep, or…?”

She grinned. “Or what?”

“Trade bodily fluids for a couple of hours and then hit the slopes?”

“Yes, please. Bodily fluids.”

Damon and Alexa drove us to the airport in Elkins after lunch, and Carolyn rode along. She clearly hadn’t adjusted to the idea that her daughter wanted to fly. Christy sensed her reluctance and started chatting about how her brothers had learned and what they did in the military. The teens and I left them in the relative warmth of the FBO waiting area and headed out to the flight line.

I didn’t know what to expect from Alexa when we reached the plane. I thought she might be nervous or shy or wouldn’t take it seriously, but she was just as focused and even quicker than Damon. I reminded myself that plenty of women had been pioneers in aviation, starting with the Wright brothers’ sister, Katharine. So, note to self: ditch the preconceptions about women and what they could or couldn’t do.

I let Damon fly copilot first, since he was older and had more experience.

We spent an hour in the air going over the axes of motion, control surfaces, and how to use them for basic flight maneuvers. Alexa watched from the back and absorbed everything.

We returned to the airport so the teens could switch positions. I parked on the ramp and shut down the engine to give Alexa the same experience as her brother. She surprised me when she asked if she could go through the checklist by herself.

“I don’t see why not,” I said. “It’s slightly different, though, since the engine’s hot.”

“What’s different?” she asked.

“You lock the primer instead of pumping it.” I hid my surprise when she mentally went through the list and slotted the new information into place.

“Okay,” she said. “I think I have it.”

I flipped to the Engine Start (Hot) checklist. Then I handed it to her and deliberately folded my hands in my lap. She went through the entire sequence without looking at the card once.

“Showoff,” Damon muttered over the intercom. He knew as well as I did that she hadn’t missed anything.

“That was good,” I told her, “but use the card next time. It’s a good habit to get into.”

“Why? I know it already.”

“If you’re ever in a real emergency, you might miss something in the

confusion. A checklist forces you to slow down, pay attention, and do it right… which might save your life one day.”

She nodded seriously.

“And it makes your instructor happy.”

That earned a shy grin.

I was tempted to let her try her hand at takeoff, but I didn’t want to throw her into the deep end too soon. Besides, it was muscle memory more than the mental kind. I let her announce our intentions on the radio, though, and she repeated my tone and cadence almost exactly. She wasn’t quite as confident when she took the controls once we were in the air, but she learned quickly.

And, like her brother, she was hooked from the start.

We returned to the airport after another hour, and they helped me refuel the plane before we went inside. Carolyn seemed to wilt when she saw her daughter’s expression.

“Oh, Alexandra,” she said, “seriously?”

“Mom, it was amazing! I flew the plane and everything. We…”

Christy slipped her arm through mine and beamed up at me. “If it’s okay with you,” she said quietly, “I asked Carolyn if we could come back in two weeks.”

I counted forward. “First weekend in March? Yeah, that should work. But only if we get our projects done on time. They’re due the following week, and exams start the tenth.”

“I know, but… I want one more weekend alone before the end of the quarter and spring break. Wren wants us to go to Florida with them.”

My eyebrows rose. “Oh? And when were you going to tell me?”

“I said she wants us to go, not that I’d agreed. I told her I’d have to talk to you first. So there!”

“Oh. Okay. Then I’m sorry. I guess I’m just a little suspicious when it comes to Wren.”

“Me too. So don’t worry. I won’t make the same mistake twice, of committing us to anything without talking to you first. Which is why I asked about coming here in two weeks. What should I tell Carolyn?”

“We’ll be here.”

Christy beamed with excitement and waited for a break in Alexa’s conversation with her mother. We thanked them, said goodbye, and told them we’d see them in two weeks. Alexa watched longingly as we headed out to the plane.