Page 2 of Praise Me: Pilot
She stops on the top step and searches the gathering of parents eagerly, her hands wringing at her waist, those green eyes brimming with hope, the wind causing her unusually colored hair to blow around. That same wind flutters the hem of her pleated skirt. It plasters her thin, white tank top to her hard nipples. My knees almost give way beneath me, the wave of hunger hits me with so much strength.
I hear a low whistle to my right and glance over, noticing one of the fathers elbowing the man closest to him, nodding discreetly at Haylo. Both of them lick their lips and absorb a lusty eyeful, before reluctantly returning their attention to their families.
I’m surprised to find the nasty prickle of possessiveness, though it takes me a beat to identify the emotion, since I’ve never experienced it before.
Why in God’s name do I have to experience it with Phil’s daughter?
“Hey, Joel,” says Phil in my ear. “You there?”
“Yeah.” I sound like a rust bucket. “Yeah, I’m here. I think I see her.”
Just kidding. I definitely fucking see her.
That face is like the sun coming out from behind a rain cloud.
Soft, sweet, fresh.
Young.
Holy shit, I didn’t even ask how old she is.
“She must be graduating soon,” I say, trying to sound conversational.
“What? No. This is her first year. She’s a freshman.”
My stomach plummets. Uh-uh. I’m not this guy. I don’t lust after young women. I’ve had my fair share of one-night stands and short-lived situationships, but they’ve been age appropriate and not withmy best friend’s daughter.For the love of God, I need to stop looking at her thighs and wondering if they’d makea good pair of earmuffs. But damn, she is the most beautiful human being I’ve ever seen in my life—and as a former Air Force pilot, I’ve been all over the world. She outshines everything and everyone.
“Listen, I know this goes without saying, because you’re the most respectful guy I know, Joel. But, uh…keep your hands off my daughter. All right?” The familiar sound of a cockpit door closing in the background of the call tells me Phil is preparing for the flight to Logan. “You want to have a little fun with someone else’s daughter, that’s your business. But Haylo…she’s different. She’s sensitive. And hell, I don’t want her getting hooked up with a pilot. We’re gone too much. She needs stability. She needs constants in her life, after losing her mother so young.”
I don’t point out that showing up on parents’ weekend, instead of going to answer a booty call in Boston, might have been a good start toward giving Haylo the constants she needs, but I bite my tongue. Phil has his reasons, and I need to respect that. He’s done nothing but help me out since I met him. I can’t judge him the first time he makes a bad judgment call, can I?
“Joel, are you there?”
“Yeah.” My stomach tightens another degree as Haylo comes down the steps of the house, her tits bouncing in the neckline of her skintight tank top, her lithe legs starting a pulse below my belt. She’s only a short, little thing, but she’s wearing a pair of ridiculously high heels that I surmise would bring the top of her head to my chin. “Yeah, I’m here. I’m going to hang up now. She’s looking around for you. I’m going to go explain what happened.”
“Thailand.”
Acid floods my mouth. “Right. Thailand.”
I end the call.
Goddamn, there’s a fist lodged in my throat as I approach Haylo, feeling like I’m on the edge of a precipice, getting ready to dive off into the unknown.
“Haylo.”
I’m not prepared for those bottle-green eyes to fix on me, and that’s all it takes for the rest of my blood to rush south, filling my cock with heat. The kind of pressure that almost causes me to excuse myself, so I can take care of the ache in private. And I know the exact mental image that would make me explode. That little skirt draped around my head while my tongue buries itself over and over in her slickness.
Get a hold of yourself.
“Yes?” she says, her voice light and curious. Husky.
I step closer to her and remove my sunglasses, wanting to make it known to the other men in attendance that she’s with me. “I’m Joel. Your father sent me.” She blinks a couple of times, disappointment already beginning to set in. I know in that moment that this is not the first time Phil has let her down. “I’m sorry. He got held up in Thailand with some bad weather, so I’m here in his stead.”
She swallows hard and looks down at the ground.
My fingers itch to tip her chin back up. I need those eyes on me.
Somehow, I resist.
