Page 78 of Owen

Holding her hands in place, she doesn’t move.

“Please.” She’s worrying me now. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.”

She spreads her fingers to peek through. “It’s Cobra.” Her voice is small.

My body goes rigid, the timbre in my voice dropping. “What about Cobra?”

She moves her hands away from her face and then worries her bottom lip. “If I don’t find a nanny, Cobra will kick me off the team. He’s been threatening to do so since I returned from maternity leave. He… makes me feel uncomfortable.” She sucks in a breath as if gearing up to make a confession, then she does. “I haven’t told anyone, and I lied to you when you asked if he’d ever made other advances toward me, but he has, and I couldn’t say anything because he said he would shorten my time with the display team and send me back to my squadron. This is an opportunity of a lifetime and my dream job. I don’t want to have my term with the display team shortened.”

That motherfucker. I knew it. My blood takes on its own heat as my body temperature rises.

“I want to know everything. No stone left unturned, Jade; I want complete honesty from you.”

And then she lets it all out. She tells me about an incident in the break room, him whistling at her, comments about returning favors. She lists a series of offensive comments, asking her about her sex life, offensive gestures, unwanted touching, using his rank to not only sexually harass her but emotionally and physically harass her as well.

“This stops right now.” I kiss her on the lips, roll off her, and pull her up out of bed. “Jump in the shower. I’m calling Gregor.”

“No, don’t,” she exclaims as she tries to grab the phone that I now have in my hand.

“Do you want my help?” She wouldn’t have told me if she didn’t, and I think secretly she knew I wouldn’t keep this from Gregor. It’s too big not to act on.

“Yes, but?—”

“But nothing, Jade. How do you know he isn’t doing this to other women? And what about before you? Where was he based before this posting? We have to stop him. Now. He knows what he’s been doing. He’s been misusing his power to harass you and not just once or twice, it’s dozens of times, before and after having Poppy. You said you kept a diary of events, yes?”

When she nods, standing in front of me naked, my heart aches in my chest at how my usually confident girl looks completely lost and vulnerable.

“Up there.” I point to the sky. “You are the one in control. You are the brave leader that turns me on so fucking bad. I want to jump in your plane and write across the sky how badass I think you are. But sometimes, Hotshot, like now, you need to let go of the control and let others lead. Let Gregor help you,because this has to stop. For you, for others he may have done it to previously, and for anyone else that comes after you.” I close the distance between us and kiss the shell of her ear. “You didn’t ask for this. You don’t deserve it, and I will not let this go on for another minute.”

I wrap her up in a warm embrace. “We’ll fight this together, Jade. I can be your witness. I saw everything at the hospital. Theywillbelieve you.”

“They will.” It’s not a question. She sounds more confident now.

“And Gregor saw the break room incident, plus he saw and heard him wolf whistling at you,” I say, confirming more of her evidence against Cobra.

“He did.”

“Then you have enough evidence for a team to investigate. And when they find what they’re looking for, because they will”—I squeeze her tight—“then and only then will they take administrative action. But we need to follow your chain of command or whatever procedure the Air Force follows. They’ll have a strict zero-tolerance policy. It may be a drawn-out and lengthy procedure, but I’ll stand by you every step of the way. We all will.”

“Thank you.” Her tone is laced with heavy worry. “I don’t want to be a burden or be the woman who won the world’s first aerobatic pilot title to have it overshadowed with a sexual harassment accusation. I don’t feel in control of this.”

“It’s not an accusation, Jade. These are facts and they will uncover the truth with a thorough investigation.”

“What if I lose my job?” she questions, sounding pained.

“By law, they can’t do that. Cobra, though, will most likely be dismissed.” I lean out of our embrace and, with a firm voice, say, “You’re the victim, Jade. He’s the perpetrator. He madesome terrible decisions and now he has to face the consequences.”

“Okay,” she whispers, finally agreeing that we are doing the right thing.

Keen to call Gregor, because I want to strike before Cobra gets the chance to, I move out of our embrace. “First things first. Shower.” I point at the bedroom door. “Second thing, I am calling Gregor while you’re in there. I’ll tell him everything, and thirdly”—I kiss her on the lips—“yes, I’ll be your nanny.”

She looks astonished and confused, her eyes wide.

“That’s what you were going to ask me, right?”

“Yeah, sort of. You know what? Forget I mentioned it, it’s fine.” She wafts her hand through the air as if she’s swatting flies off her face as she tries to renege on the offer she never made me in the first place.

I smile, enjoying how uneasy she is when she needs to ask for help. I listen to her listing shitty excuses as to why it would never work, and when she’s almost out of breath, I speak. “It’s a great idea. I can keep Poppy at Gregor’s when you’re overnighting. I can look after her during the day at your house.”

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