Page 50 of Your Pucking Mom

As the plane leveled out and hit its cruising altitude, we hit a small bump of turbulence, and her hands tightened around the armrests. Her breaths came in shallow gasps.

Instinctively, I reached out, finding her knee in the darkness. With a gentle squeeze, I sought to offer her reassurance. Everyone else was unaffected. Dirks was snoring, and the rest of the cabin was silent, except for a few hushed voices and the rustling of papers coming from the front of the plane.

“Fuck it,” I whispered, then reached for her hand gripping the armrest of the seat.

Her eyes widened, a fleeting moment of uncertainty flashing across her features. Yet as my hand enveloped hers, a sense of calm seemed to wash over her, her muscles relaxing ever so slightly.

For a moment, we existed in our own little bubble again, insulated from the rest of the world by the warmth of our connection. The hum of the plane’s engines faded into the background, replaced by the soft rhythm of our synchronized breaths.

As the turbulence subsided and the plane stabilized, she leaned into my touch, her body seeking solace in my presence.

At that moment, a surge of emotion welled within me, and an overwhelming tide of longing and desire threatened to consume me whole. Yet I held back, unwilling to let my emotions spill over and disrupt the fragile peace we had found this last month.

Instead, I simply savored the intimacy of the moment, relishing the feeling of her hand in mine and the warmth of her skin against my own.

24

auburn

I hated flying so much that not even my emotional support UNO could make me feel any better when we hit turbulence.

The moment Ledger’s hand touched mine, everything steadied. The turbulence faded, and I relaxed in my seat. He leaned over, his height creating a protective cocoon around us, his hand still holding mine.

My breath quickened again, but it wasn’t out of fear this time. It was because of the emotions I’d been trying desperately to suppress for the past month. The ones I’d convinced myself weren’t real were suddenly bubbling to the surface.

It took me an entire month to convince myself I was not enamored with my son’s captain. Emma had tried to tell me I needed to throw myself at him and give him a chance, but instead, I threw myself into work. It was easier for me to learn how to master the espresso machine than figure out my emotions surrounding Ledger Cole.

“Are you excited?” His deep voice lulled me out of my thoughts.

“For?” I asked, pulling away from him. I didn’t want someone to see him holding my hands. Drama was not on my BINGO card for today.

He leaned back into his chair, but our knees stayed touching, and even that smallest bit of comfort made me feel safe.

“The game?” he asked, giving me a smile, insinuating there’d be something else to be happy about.

I leaned closer to him, making sure no one but him could hear me. “You know what we talked about last time we saw each other.”

“It seems like fate has placed us in each other’s paths yet again, Sunshine.”

I snapped. “Do not call me that.”

At this point, our foreheads were touching, and I could breathe him in.

“We are nothing.”

He scoffed a laugh and pulled back. “You said that last time, but here we are.”

I leaned back in my chair. “So what do we do?”

Ledger let out a deep exhale. “I don’t know, Sunshine, but it seems like we’ve found ourselves in this little predicament where I’m going to see you every fucking few weeks for the next few months.”

I looked out the window, then back into the deep-amber eyes fixated on me. “You’re making me uncomfortable staring too much.”

He shook his head. “Okay, then, Sunshine. Where should I look?”

My hands flew up in the air. “I said we can’t do this.”

“I know you did, but the truth of the matter is that it seems we’re going to be together whether we want to or not.”

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