Page 53 of Owen

Thirty minutes later, I’m standing with an entourage of press and spectators, on the furthest point of the base, way up high on the cliffs of the peninsula, watching in awe as Jade, and the team, in tight formation, roll, corkscrew, and zoom through the air in a series of moves and steep turns over the Mediterranean Sea.

Mari taps me on the forearm. “Could you hold Poppy for me? She’s getting very heavy.”

“Of course.” I lift Poppy into my arms and point at the red planes as they fly toward us.

Knowing she can’t hear me from under the noise protectors that are keeping her tiny ears safe from the noise, I still say, “Here they come, Popsicle. Are you ready?”

At supersonic speed, the jets fly straight for us, then snap out of formation to create something that looks like a firework of planes in the sky as they change course, flying from horizontal to vertical in the blink of an eye. The screeching noise they create shakes the cliffs underfoot, rattling every bone in our bodies.

Poppy gleefully claps her hands, completely mesmerized by it all. Clearly having been exposed to this lifestyle since the day she was born, she is not one bit fazed by the speed of the jets or the overwhelming sound. She might very well be a little daredevil herself.

Blake walks toward us across the rubble-topped cliffs. “That was the final maneuver. You ready to go?” She smiles, pushing her sunglasses on top of her head. “They did great today.”

“Her display was perfect.” Mari makes an okay sign with her hand using her thumb and forefinger.

“She had nothing to worry about.” Blake pushes her arm out as if she’s a teapot to escort Mari over the uneven ground.

Mari accepts, then she chuckles. “Except she did anyway. She always does with her routines and her team,” she says, now walking toward Blake’s sturdy four-wheel-drive jeep she brought us up the steep cliffs in.

I listen in, fascinated by Jade’s apparent under-confidence in her ability, and clearly only sharing that with loved ones. She should never doubt herself and I make a mental note to tell her that later because she was awesome, both in commanding her team and in the sky. I look up into theexpanse of bright blue sky, Poppy’s electric copper hair catching my attention.

“Shall we take these off?” I pull off her ear protectors.

“Momma?” she asks.

“Flying. Up there in the sky.” I point above.

Poppy’s gummy smile lights up her whole face. Then she babbles away as if chatting to me about the weather. She’s so freaking cute in her blue gingham dress with gold pineapples embroidered on it.

I answer her constant chatter, pretending to have a conversation about the display and how hot it is today, then ask her if she wants to go for a swim when we go back to the villa, and I take the way she grabs on to the back of my hair and pulls it as a firm yes.

As we reach Blake’s car, both she and Mari are staring at me like I’ve grown two heads.

“Everything okay?” I ask, worried I’ve done something wrong.

“Yeah, great.” Shaking her head, almost as if in disbelief, Mari’s eyes shift between me and Poppy.

“Everything’s perfect.” Blake sighs blissfully. “Just?—”

“Perfection.” Mari finishes her sentence.

Not understanding what they mean, I ignore their weird behavior, strap Poppy into her car seat, and then jump in the back with her as Mari and Blake buckle themselves into their seats up front.

“Right, little Pop-a-doodle,” I say, sounding like we have an important mission. “We have swimsuits to locate, sun cream to apply, just like your nana taught me, and then we are going to do some huge zoomies in the air, just like Mommy’s plane. Yeah? Maybe we should stop and get that giant inflatable duck with the cool sunglasses we saw at the shop on the way here.What do you think?” Poppy grabs my hand when I hold it up. I was expecting her to high five me, but, instead, she holds on to my thumb and doesn’t let go.

“I’ll take that as a yes then, Popsicle.” I chuckle, turning to face the front, curious why we are the last car to leave the cliffs, only to find Blake and Mari’s heads twisted around between the space of passenger and driver’s seats watching me.

“Do I have something on my face?” I pull my hand to my cheek, dusting whatever it is away.

“No. Not at all.” Mari’s smile broadens. “You’re just really great with her. It’s lovely to watch.”

“You’re very cute with her,” Blake says, making me scrunch my nose up.

“Cute? I’m not cute.” I make light of her comment, flippantly scoffing.

Asshole? Yes. Cute, most definitely not.

“You are with her.” Mari nods in Poppy’s direction.

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