Page 7 of Wolf Forgotten

I narrowed my eyes as he spoke as if he ran the place. He couldn't keep me safe if we were spinning to our deaths.

His accoladesshouldhave left me with high confidence in his flight skills, but something didn’t sit right with me. I was unaware of proper helicopter pilot vetting, but it seemed awfully fast to let this unknown man fly an expensive piece of equipment.

I crossed my arms over my chest and turned my attention toward Reid, who was discussing a new project he had started.

The room emptied once the meeting adjourned, leaving me with the questioning stare of my new colleague. If anyone should have been wary, it should have been me.

“Shall we address the elephant in the room?” I gathered my paperwork and stood. I needed to clear my mind before having to spend hours in a confined space, trusting him with my safety.

He rubbed his chin and frowned before standing and following me out of the room. “What elephant?”

“The one where you left me with a gigantic bar tab! I hope whatever ass you got Friday night was worth it.” A few people lingered in the hall and their heads turned. Oops.

He followed me to my office. Shouldn’t he have been doing preflight checks and figuring out the helicopter, so we didn’t die in a crash? If I was going to die, I hoped it wouldn’t be until after my birthday.

“I didn’t mean to do that. I had an urgent call to make. Here.” He threw three hundred-dollar bills on my desk as I sat down.

I gawked at the money in disbelief. He was unemployed—now avolunteerhelicopter pilot—and he just threw money around like it was confetti. I wasn't an expert and spotting counterfeit bills, but it wouldn't have surprised me.

I looked up at him, meeting his stare that made my lower belly clench in a way it never had before. I really needed to find a man to scratch the itch because Cole Delaney wasn't itch scratching material, despite how my body reacted to him. He'd probably give me an itch I didn't want.

Crossing my arms, I leaned back in my chair. “Make it five hundred and we’ll call it even.”

He raised his eyebrows before shrugging and pulling his wallet back out and throwing two more bills down. "I hope you tipped well."

"I always tip well." Why was I wasting my time talking to this guy? “With this kind of return on investment, let me know anytime you want to skip out on your bar tab."

“You're much more agreeable when you're drinking.” He walked to the door before looking over his shoulder with a smirk. “We leave in an hour. You should get some more coffee before then; I think you need it.”

This man brought out the worst in me. I bit my tongue to stop myself from blowing him a raspberry. I tried to act professional most of the time, but he made my blood boil to the point where I wanted to throw that out the window.

I wasn’t sure I could trust a pilot that forgot things so easily, or one that was so cocky. Our multi-million-dollar helicopter was good, but nothing can outfly careless hands and a pilot that thought they were invincible.

After making sure my equipment was ready, I put on a thick flannel shirt over my long-sleeved top, a puffer vest, and grabbed my gloves and beanie before heading out to the tarmac with my research gear.

Reid and Cole were engaged in a heated conversation about some big mixed martial arts fight coming up. How could he have already forgotten what had happened three days prior?

Reid was a traitor. I had been hoping he would be a dick to Cole, but men never held grudges, at least not for long. Everything about this man was making my skin itch. Was it possible to be allergic to a person? It felt like it.

My eyes appraised Cole in his dark green flight suit. I had to give it to him; he was attractive as sin. I approached from the side, getting the perfect view of his thick thighs and rounded butt. He probably could squat a small horse.

I secured my gear in the back so it didn't slide all over the place. Reid held out my helmet and headset, which I took and let myself into the cockpit. Reid and Cole fist bumped before Cole walked around the front and climbed in.

“Perk up, he’s not that bad.” Reid leaned in and flipped a few levers before shutting my door.

I rolled my eyes and strapped myself in before shoving my head into my helmet. I rarely wore it, opting for the headset, but that day I felt it was necessary. Cole, on the other hand, put his headset on and gave me a quizzical look as if he didn’t understand the need for the helmet.

He powered up the helicopter and started pulling forward to the helipad we would lift off from. He was experienced, so I tried to relax. I pulled my phone out of my jacket pocket and turned on some music, which I connected to the helicopter’s main sound system. Hopefully it would prevent all conversation.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” His exasperated voice cut through the music as we lifted off in a northwest direction. “I’mnotgoing to listen to this crap for thirty minutes.”

He was referring to my late nineties pop playlist. I grew up listening to the songs since my mom was obsessed with boy bands. I cracked a smile and turned it up a little louder. Payback was a bitch.

He pressed a few buttons, and the music cut off. “I’d rather listen to nothing than that. You're going to make my ears bleed.”

“That is quality music. You wouldn’t know about quality though, would you?” I snapped.

“Reid said you were stubborn, but worth the effort. I’m pretty sure he's delusional. At some point you're going to have to move past my mistake. We're coworkers, whether or not you like it.” He glanced in my direction before turning his attention back to flying.

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