Page 6 of Exposed

4

The elevator opened to the fresh air of a rooftop high above the city streets. Ahead of her, Alex was leisurely waiting, scrolling through his phone as he leaned back against the sleek surface of a fifty-two-foot, luxury, black helicopter. He looked up.

“Ready, beautiful?” he called.

Elated, she ran full force into his arms. He caught her, sweeping his hands around her waist. “For absolutely anything,” she said, giving him a passionate kiss. Alex savored it, sinking into every kiss with Madison like it might be their last. He leaned back as the kiss melted away.

“Well if that’s the kind of greeting I get with this, I’d better let you sit up front with the pilot.” She kissed him again, with all the energy and excitement of a new adventure. As her lips lightly pulled away, his finger brushed her lower lip. “Hey, if we don’t stop now, we’ll never leave.” He pulled her chin up for another soft peck, then moved to unlatch the door while helping her in.

Her eyes worked to take in the console overflowing with gadgets and buttons. Alex hopped to the other side of the aircraft, entering to take the seat next to her. “I’ll just sit here for a minute while you buckle up.” Madison did as he suggested while he handed her a headset, which she slid on. He casually pulled on another set. “Can you hear okay?” he asked.

“Yes, perfectly.” Her eyes grew in wonderment. With so many gadgets and doodads, she eagerly awaited the pilot. She wanted to learn about all the displays and controls at her fingertips. Her curiosity peaked as she realized that each of the front seats was equipped with its own joystick.

Alex looked around then at the console. “I wonder what this does.” He flipped a switch, and the display turned on. “Hmm, what about this?” Another flip, and a few more buttons lit up. He glanced over with a naughty grin while he clicked his seatbelt in place. “Are you sure you’re up for anything?”

Madison pressed her hands into the top of his, her eyes captivated. “You’re the pilot?”

He hit a few more switches and checked some levers overhead, then gazed into her sparkling eyes while speaking into his headset. “November-One-Seven-Delta-Golf departing the Manhattan downtown district, request permission to transition your airspace to the north.”

Madison listened intently as another voice broke through. “November-One-Seven-Delta-Golf, standby.” He grabbed her hand, brushing his lips to her knuckles. “November-One-Seven-Delta-Golf, you’re cleared into the class bravo airspace. Cleared to transition to the north. Maintain 2500 feet. Safe flight, Mr. Drake.”

Still holding her knuckles to his lips, he kissed them and replied, “Thanks, Neal. Give Carolyn and the kids my best.” He set her hand back on her lap, and they were off.

Madison held her breath. The D.G.I. symbol on Alex’s midtown helo pad shrank into the sea of high-rise buildings as they flew high above Manhattan. “If there’s anything you want a second look at, just let me know.” She nodded, too enthralled to speak. Though she’d flown on planes a few times, the vantage point was entirely different. So much more was visible—like being on the wings of an eagle mid-flight across the state.

“Take the cyclic.” Madison whipped her face around, seeing him motion to her joystick. “Go ahead. Just hold it steady.” She slipped her hands nervously around it, and looked over to Alex, who’d clasped both hands behind his head. “I’m just gonna take a little nap.”

“What?” she cried, her pitched voice filled with terrified elation.

“You’re doing great. You’ve got about twenty minutes, then I’ll take it back as we get closer.” Her grin stretched across her face, and Alex gently swept her hair back behind her ear. She beamed more, realizing he was getting a better look at her. She loved the way he looked at her, but it was these penetrating gazes that somehow always turned up the heat in her cheeks, painting them in a slight blush.

After a while, the buildings dissipated, overtaken by the lush green of grass and trees, broken here and there by the blues and whites of rivers. Alex stroked Madison’s hand, nudging her to relinquish control. From the direction of the gold and amber sunset, Madison knew they hadn’t veered from their original northbound heading. Though she’d never been there, the stunning beauty of the land was instantly recognizable. The Adirondacks welcomed her, washing over her with a sense of peace and relaxation. She pulled in a breath as she took it all from her bird’s eye view. “It’s gorgeous. Are we going camping?”

“We are. We’ll be camping in a 6-bedroom luxury cabin on a lake owned by a friend of mine. But if you prefer something more rugged, I’ll do my best at moose calls.”

Madison feigned settling. “I guess a luxury cabin might do. But only if there are s’mores,” she added, her giddy excitement encouraging him. Alex reached back, retrieving a small, paper grocery bag out of the seat behind them. He handed it to Madison. Inside were chocolate bars, extra-large marshmallows, and graham crackers. She couldn’t believe it. “Oh, you got me s’mores?”

Alex just looked back aghast. “No, I got me s’mores.” He slowly pried the bag from Madison’s hands and returned it to the back seat. “But I could be enticed to trade.”

“Trade?”

He straightened up and did his best at being aristocratic. “Well, I happen to be a collector. A collector of rare undergarments.”

“Rare?” she asks, genuinely perplexed. Like, vintage?

“Rare indeed. You see, I only collect undergarments which have touched the erogenous zones of your body.”

“Oh, I see.” Madison’s expression dropped, and his followed in response, as if he had suddenly crossed the line of a staunch dessert aficionado. So much so, he started reaching back for the bag to hand it to her when Madison firmly placed her hand on his thigh. Through thick, playful lashes she glanced at him. “Well, I was really looking forward to some of that chocolatey chewiness. But at the moment, a trade’s just not possible.” She caught his eyes, and pouted her full lips. She took a deep breath. “Sadly, I’m not wearing any, um, collectibles.” His eyes popped. And with that, Madison noticed that amongst the incoming evergreens and fresh air, Alex suddenly has two cyclics to contend with.

---