Page 111 of Owen

On a blush, I chastise him. “You are in no position to take the piss with all thatSweet Petalshit you call Violet.”

“I’ll have you know I also call her the dick destroyer,” he says matter-of-factly.

Chuckling, Jacob says, “Fucking hell, what has happened to us? Those women have got us by the balls.”

Silently, we all stare at each other and smile.

“I love you two like brothers. You know that, right?” I say, looking at my friends, who I’ve never said that to before.

They both nod my way.

“I don’t know what I would have done without either of you.” They know I’m not referring to the past couple of days. They’ve been everything to me since we were kids.

Never one to talk about his emotions, Jacob bows his head and pushes his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He might be built like a tank, covered in tattoos, all buzz cut and muscles, but he’s a big softie underneath it all. He clears his throat. “We feel the same.”

In contrast, Lincoln is one broad, Greek, smiling muscly teddy bear who overshares and could charm the pants off anyone. “Fuck, man, bring it in.” He holds his arms out and moves toward us, closing the invisible triangle we are standingin. “Now let’s find some moola.” Releasing us, he steps back and rubs his hands together.

Jade

Everything feels weird.

One minute Owen’s calling and texting me every minute of every day, the next, it’s as if I’ve completely fallen out of his thoughts and I haven’t heard from him in days.

Before he did his Houdini act, he asked me some seriously odd questions on the phone. I laughed at him when he asked if I noticed anyone suspicious following me or if anyone was lurking about outside the house. But the one that freaked me out the most was the question that shot straight through my heart:Can you check outside and see if someone is lurking around?

I shrugged it off and told him he had been watching too many thriller movies since I left, but his silence told me a very different story, and I found myself closing the drapes earlier at night and peeking through them every now and again to check the surrounding area around my quarters just to make sure no one waslurking aroundlike he said.

I put a stop to that silly behavior the night after, telling myself to stop being so stupid, safe in the knowledge I live inside a military base where no one gets in or out without permission.

Like I said, he was being weird, as was I.

Then Lincoln called me to let me know Owen had a stomach bug, but I don’t believe him and now I’m questioning if he’s having doubts about moving here.

It’s a huge ask; a big life change.

Although he assured me it’s what he wants, now I’m not so sure.

I hope he would do the decent thing if he didn’t want to follow through and marry me and tell me he’s changed his mind.

I miss him so much. So does Poppy.

I’m in the restroom at work washing my hands. As I finish up, I slide my beautiful engagement ring off my finger, pull the zipper of my flight suit down, and then hook my fingers under my tee shirt and into the cup of my bra to drop it inside so he’s right beside my heart.

Since Owen hasn’t come back, I don’t have my lucky stone, and my ring feels like the closest thing to luck I have. We’re miles apart, and it’s the closest thing to connect us.

Doing my zipper up, I quickly gather my hair into a low ponytail and tuck some smaller loose strands of my hair behind my ears.

I don’t have a fear of flying; what I do have is a bone-deep fear of losing him, and it scares me knowing he’s pulling away.

“Don’t think like that.” I stare at myself in the mirror and give my reflection a good talking to. “He loves you.”

The hinges on the restroom door groan loudly as it’s pushed open. Blake pops her head through the gap. “Ready?”

“I was born ready.”

I follow Blake out and she reels off a dozen different things about the weather conditions—sun shining, beautiful afternoon—and then something about dinner with the station commander and meeting her tomorrow for the show. I laugh, telling her to slow down. She’s the only woman I know whose brain works faster than mine.

“Go get ready.” Blake waves me off and as soon as I’m suited up in my survival equipment and red display coverall, I’m in thecockpit of my red jet plane, cruising solo above the clouds to Wales to prepare for another display tomorrow.

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