Page 108 of Come Fly with Me

“Who did this?” I ask, my words choked as I swallow hard.

“You did this,” he says, and I give him a confused look. With the exception of Dean and the pilot from Hawaii, I haven’t told anyone else about this. “This is because of you,” he continues. “These girls, Charlie and Carrie, me, we all support you. We believe in you and getting behind you was a no-brainer, Taylor.”

“But who… I mean, the reporters, the news?”

“You have your girls to thank for that. You’ve trained them well,” he jokes, pinching my side. “They’re going to change the world because of you.”

It’s now that I feel the tears begin to fall. I’m overwhelmed by all of this. I can’t believe that after all this time, after all the people who tried to say I wasn’t good enough, that I would never be enough, I have more people standing by me than not.

But taking this all in, I look at Jake and know that despite everything that happened before, it takes a good man to love someone like me, and he’s a good man.

“They’re waiting for you,” he says, tipping his head to the waiting reporters and my girls, a huge smile on his face.

“I’m not sure I can make a statement or anything. I’m not at all prepared for this. And honestly, you were instrumental in getting this going. Without you I wouldn’t be here right now.”

Jake laughs out loud, his hand slipping into mine. “While I enjoy your support, none of this would’ve happened without you. I don’t want to stand in front of you or next to you. I want to stand with you, because this is yours and don’t ever let anyone take that from you.”

I lean into him, my head resting against his shoulder as I swipe at my eyes. He leans down and presses a kiss to the top of my head and suddenly everything in my world feels right. I look up at him, my hands on either side of his face as I pull him in for a kiss.

“Thank you,” I murmur, our foreheads resting against each other.

“I’ll always be here.”

I step away from him and over to the reporters, and while they’re just local news stations, it’s enough to get my name and my cause out there. This is something that could help make this a possibility not just for Crescent Airways.

The questions start as soon as I walk up, and I only have a few seconds to thank the girls and begin answering.

Almost everyone is interested in how I started the whole process and when I look around, every single one of the reporters are women. Just being in this room with all these women and knowing they’re looking for the same thing I am is more empowering than anything I’ve done so far.

I proceed to answer their questions and chat with them, and as nervous as this makes me, as scary of a situation as it is, I know I’m doing something that won’t just benefit me but millions of women who are part of this workforce. Especially in jobs that are male-dominated, always hearing “it runs in the industry”, well, it’s about to run out.

I can only hope this story brings change because we need to see every level of industry change. This isn’t just about pilots but all females who work at Crescent Airways: flight attendants, baggage handlers, desk attendants, ticketing agents, and all the women who find themselves paid less than men for the same jobs.

I’m exhausted by the time the interviews end, and I thank each one of the reporters for taking the time to bring awareness to a story that will lead to nowhere without word of mouth. My girls are all hugging me and have the biggest smiles on their faces. I’m not certain this day could get any better.

After the excitement has died down, I turn to Jake, who is patiently waiting off to the side with a look on his face that beams pride. He’s grinning from ear to ear, and his shoulders are back as he takes me in.

“I guess if you’re going to hide something from me, this wasn’t so bad,” I tease, motioning around the hangar as the people begin to dissipate.

“I had no idea all of this was happening, but I did keep something from you,” he says, a sheepish look on his face now. “But it’s good because I have a surprise for you.” His hand moves to the small of my back as we walk over to one of the planes we use for Girls in the Sky. “The girls and I have a little something planned.” He gives a nod of his head to the girls and they all scramble away.

“You mean there’s more on top of this already overwhelming day?” I’m exhausted, but I wouldn’t take the opportunity away from Jake to be in the spotlight for a second. “And what the hell did you rope my girls into doing?”

“Just get in the plane, Taylor,” he demands, but like always there’s a playful quality to his voice, something I’ve grown to love about him.

“Fine, fine,” I acquiesce as I climb in and buckle the harness, beginning the process of preparing the plane.

“Move over, Captain,” Jake says, his hand flitting to the other seat beside me. “I’m flying this one.”

I shoot him a side-eye but slip over to the other seat as Jake prepares for takeoff. The plane is now careening down the runway, the world sliding effortlessly by, and when the plane lifts off the ground, I close my eyes and enjoy everything that has just unfolded.

“Where are we going?” I ask, and Jake is now the one shooting me the side-eye.

“Always with the questions,” he replies, shaking his head, pausing a second before he answers. “We’re not going anywhere. Just a quick flight together for fun.” He glances at the GPS and then out the windshield as if he’s looking for something. I lean forward and his arm flies out and swats me backward.

“Not yet!” he shouts and then gives me a quick smile, correcting his swat and shout which makes me laugh.

“Jake Campbell, what are you up to?”

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