Page 46 of Fighting Gravity

He brushed some of her tumbling hair away from her face. His sweet smile nestled in her heart. “It’s scary as hell out here alone. Can you double your meetings with your counselor or something? Hurry up this healing?”

Rosie chuckled. “Sure.”

He kissed the tip of her nose as noise from the hangar reached them.

“Chen and Elle,” she said unnecessarily. Her smile faded. “They love each other so much. I’m heartbroken for them.”

“Me, too.”

“She was going to propose.” Rosie didn’t know why she confided that sacred information to Tate, but she knew he’d keep Elle’s secret safe.

He let go of her. “Merde, really? Does he know?”

Rosie shrugged.

“I wonder if he’d change his mind if he knew. Or maybe she doesn’t want him to know so he follows his dream. What a mess. Poor Elle. What can we do for her?”

Always fixing.

“I guess we’ll have to wait and see. For now, we can have fun at the party she planned.”

Tate slipped his hand in hers and kissed the back of it. At the door, he let go. Rosie studied the first and only man who’d ever declared himself in love with her. Did she deserve a love like his? And could she return it?

25

Tate was only ever grumpy when Matt was around.

His bitterness translated as silence and a jaw ache. Tate knew it wasn’t very mature to react negatively each time he saw his only brother, but it wasn’t very mature of Matt to walk away from a company he created because he’d knocked up a hot flight attendant the moment he’d met her. It was churlish of the man to deny Tate’s request all those years ago of the CEO position he deserved.

As he tapped his foot and stared across his desk at his brother, Tate realized why he was more annoyed than usual at the CEO’s—in name only—unannounced visit.

Tate wanted the freedom Matt had to just follow his whims and see where they went. Instead, thanks to Matt, he had obligations. And roadblocks. OrbitAll needed him, and Rosie didn’t want him. Not like that. Not yet.

“Any other big personnel changes expected this year? These are top salary positions being bandied about. OrbitAll is the only brand under the Geier Group umbrella not making money.”

Money. The only part of the business his family seemed to care about. “The positions aren’t being bandied about,” Tate retorted. “Chen was a careful hire who found a better opportunity. Vadim is simply replacing him, and at a lower salary step, I might add. Elle is a term position that will differentiate our program and justify ticket prices.”

His brother smiled, the only curve in his square, straight features. “How is Elle working out? Pia and I love that island.”

Tate bit back themust be nicecomment. Matt and Pia got to lounge about on a luxurious island whenever they wanted, while Tate journeyed to his cabin once every year or so. Alone. “I know you do. Your constant praise of that place is what inspired me to seek her out.”

Tate knew his irritation was somewhat unreasonable. He hadn’t even wanted company at his cabin before Rosie. Now he wanted her everywhere all the time. Even more so now that he’d told her he loved her. He’d spent a lifetime not knowing he was waiting for her. He didn’t want to wait anymore.

“Is there another reason you’re here, or are you just here to question my decisions?”

Matt frowned. “I wanted to meet the new chief test pilot, see Elle’s progress with the experiential planning deliverable, and check in with some of the directors. OrbitAll is still my company, after all.”

“Don’t,” Tate warned.

Matt didn’t know when Luz’s birthday was, or that Miriam in Mission Control was expecting twins. He couldn’t cite any of the issues identified during Chen’s test campaign or name their newest reaction control system. Tate was there for the mundane and the monumental. This company had become his life. His family.

But Matt was the older brother. Branching the Geier Group into luxury experiences like commercial spaceflight had been his brainchild, an idea he’d scribbled on a piece of paper, wadded up, and tossed to Tate to catch. For the past ten years, Tate had been smoothing out and rendering that sketch into reality. Successfully.

Matt frowned as he leveled Tate with a hazel-eyed stare. “I’m not questioning your decisions, Tate. You’ve done more with OrbitAll than I ever could. I’m the visionary, you’re the one who gets shit done. This venture never would have worked without you. The family knows that and so do I. I didn’t mean to imply this wasn’t your company, too.”

Tate sat back in his chair with a sigh. His shoulders dropped an inch.

“What’s with you today? Is it OrbitAll? Do you need me to step in and help somewhere?”

---