Page 41 of That First Flight

How am I expected to live under these conditions?

He notices me staring and quickly looks down to assess what has me in a trance.

“Shit. Sorry. I’ll go grab a shirt.”

“You. Uh. No. Don’t need. It’s—” Now I’m rambling and can’t form a proper response.

When did I turn into the girl who can’t talk to someone of the opposite sex.

This isn’t me.

A smile curves his lips, just before his eyes roam every inch of my body heating everywhere his eyes touch. Oliver’s tongue brushes along his bottom lip in what feels like slow motion. My things clench with need.

Again… another new feeling for me.

I haven’t been with a single person other than Mackenzie's dad when he knocked me up.

I’m a twenty-four-year-old inexperienced woman staring at a man who looks like he could be on the cover ofSports Illustrated. I mean, he doesn’t play sports but looking at his abs right now tells me that’s where he belongs.

Which makes all these things I’m feeling out of my element.

“So…” I attempt to guide the conversation to something other than the fact he’s not wearing a shirt. “You’re supposed to be leaving for that Europe trip soon, right?”

Oliver shakes his head, grabbing a spoon from the drawer before jumping to sit next to me on the counter. He scoops a heaping spoonful of ice cream from the carton in my hands and brings it into his mouth. “Actually, no. I found out late last night when I was checking my emails that the backpacking trip was canceled. Something about the weather? Who knows. But all the places I was planning to stay at along the way canceled on me.”

“You seem like you’re always on the go. Maybe this will be a nice break?”

Oliver’s shoulder brushes mine as he reaches for another spoonful, sending an electrical current through every part of me only making the desire I felt moments ago enhance.

“For the first time in as long as I can remember, I would rather be home.”

Why does the way he says that, make me smile an uncontrollable amount?

Is it because I’m here?My mind wonders, but I brush it off.

For the next hour, we talk about what I did while he was gone for work.

Mackenzie and I walked around Central Park on one of the days and got pretzels from some street cart which was fantastic.

The next day we headed to her new school to get her enrolled and they told us she could start first thing Monday. She even got a chance to meet her teachers and her new classmates.

Her excitement for this school is such a stark difference from when she started at the one in the mountains. She’s actuallyeagerto go and wanted to stay that day.

Oliver radiates excitement for her when I tell him about all of it.

After that, our conversation shifts to more mundane things, mostly about how shitty the weather is right now and how he’s happy it’s not snow because that would be a disaster for the city.

Even these little conversations we have about something as silly as the weather make me realize more and more how comfortable I already feel in his space.

Just as I feel like I’m finally ready to head back to bed, Oliver stops me. “Hey. I forgot to tell you. I know your interview was supposed to be on Saturday but I rescheduled it for a week.”

“What? Why?”

“He was all set for it but he called me today to tell me that his wife and kids all have a stomach bug. I forced him to reschedule it.”

“You didn’t have to force him to reschedule. I would have gone since it sounds like he’s fine.”

Dare I say that part of me is glad? As much as I want to get this interview over with because my nerves are shot, it does give me a little bit longer to prepare for it, which is a relief.

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