Page 25 of Too Much In Common
Chaz’s intervention meant she could sleep on the flight without worrying about wandering hands.
They landed at O’Hare to falling snow. Tian opened her rideshare app, hoping to find someone with a four-wheel drive.
“My car is in employee parking if you want a ride.” The offer came from the pilot she was trying to avoid. His gaze lingered on her chest area. She knew the type. No such thing as a free ride in his book.
“Thanks for the offer.” Chaz answered before she could. “My roommate is already here. He’s driving us.”
She’d known Chaz for years—he’d been on several crews with Simone—but he’d never gone all protector on her before. What was with this weekend? She let Chris play the role. Now everyone was jumping on board.
Tian thanked the cargo pilots as she left the plane, then hurried to keep up with crossing the tarmac into the cargo company hangar. True to his word, Chaz’s roommate Scott waited in his SUV. Tian climbed into the back seat.
“Scott, we’re dropping Tian off. I had to listen to the most vile talk from one of those StuckUpAir pilots in the restroom in Denver. No way was he getting near my favorite female pilot. You should have seen me keep him from sitting next to her in the cargo. Girl, you stay far away from him.”
Scott met her eyes in the rearview mirror. “Good thing she is my favorite, too. Even if we never get to fly together.”
“Maybe when I reach captain, I can ask for you to be my FO.” Tian teased. Since she’d graduated with Scott, they weren’t likely to fly together soon as their flight hours would always be too close.
“Or I’ll ask for you to be my FO.” Scott smiled over his shoulder before turning back to the front. “I only brought one thermos of hot chocolate.”
“Give it to our Tian. She needs it more. The things she has to put up with.” Chaz handed back the thermos.
Tian put up her hand. “No, you keep it. I’m fine.
Chaz pulled it back. “If you’re sure. I could use it to put me in a better mood. I still want to deck someone.”
“I don’t know that I want to know the rest of the story.” Tian closed her eyes trying to block out the conversation. Chaz never ended until he made his point.
“This man would put your daddy to shame. I hear a lot when men think that women aren’t around, but this guy was the worst. He insinuated you spent the night with some hulk of a man in Spokane. And I know you would never...”
Tian wondered if he had seen her with Chris entering the hotel room. “I didn’t. But I had a funny room mix-up with a man who has my name. In fact, you met him. He was the man whose seat was stolen by Thor, the dog wonder.”
Chaz turned in his seat. “Him?”
“What are the chances, right?”
“Oh, Scott, our girl finally has a crush on someone and he’s got her name.”
“Wait, how do you know I have a crush on him?”
“Besides, you admitting it? You should have seen your face when he said your name when you came out to deal with crazy dog-lady. I’ve never seen someone try so hard not to look at someone else in my life.”
Tian leaned back against the headrest. “Chaz, it is way too early in the morning for this.”
“It’s never too early for love. Are you going to see him again?”
“He lives in my building.”
Chaz snapped his fingers. “That’s where I knew him from. He helped Simone and Brit move in. You had better see him again.”
“What part of ‘we have the same name’ didn’t you understand?”
“The part that means that should matter? A rose by any other name.”
“Chaz...” She put as much warning as she could into her voice.
“Just saying a name isn’t a good enough reason to not give the man a chance.”
Chaz had a point.
