Page 52 of Shared By the Pilots

And after today, it was clear Luke didn’t respect me. I needed a man whosupportedme. Or at least, a man who trusted me enough to want to learn more. But Luke seemed content to ignore everything I was saying and pretend like everything was okay.

“We’re done,” I said out loud to my microwave, which was reheating a leftover burrito. “It’s over.”

But as I finished the burrito and crawled into bed, I started to second-guess myself. I knew what I had seen, but if the roles were reversed, I might be skeptical too. Especially if it meant jeopardizing my job. Working for Excelsior was as cushy of a gig as someone could get in this industry. Regardless of what I said to Luke, I myself was worried about losing the job in spite of my suspicions about what Broussard was doing.

Was Luke the unreasonable one here, or was it me?

After tossing and turning for half an hour, I pulled out my phone.

Me: Hey, want to come over?

Adam: Sorry! When you said you were busy today, I made my own plans.

Me: Don’t have too much fun without me!

Adam: We’re having the exact correct amount of fun.

Me: We?

He responded by sending me a selfie. He was at a bar with his arm around a blonde woman. I felt my skin go cold.

Adam: Sorry! I couldn’t help but tease you a little since you were out with Captain Hendricks today. This is my big sister, Anne. She’s in town until tomorrow.

Me: Ohhh, you had me going! That was not very funny!

Adam: Want to join us for a drink? I’ve been telling her about you, and she wants to pass judgment. Also, we’re both a little wasted.

Me: Tempting, but I think I’m staying in for the night. You two have fun, though!

We had a three-leg flight the next day with Gulf Airlines. We were on the same rotation with Luke and his co-pilot again, which made for an awkward boarding situation. While walking through the forward cabin toward the cockpit, Luke said hi to each of us. But when he said hi to me, I pretended like I hadn’t heard.

“Uh oh,” Dex whispered to me. “Trouble in paradise?”

“You might say that. We had a fight.”

“Oh!” Adam said, grinning widely. “Sorry if I seem happy about this change of events, but I can’t help but see how it benefits me. Call me a turtle, because slow and steady wins the race.”

I laughed. “I’m not sure if we’re through, but it’s not great right now.”

“What was your fight about?” Dex asked. “Let me guess. He wanted to do something really weird in the bedroom.”

Adam started whistling to himself, pretending not to listen.

“Nothing like that. Here, come this way.”

I walked down the aisle a bit to put some space between us and the cockpit so Luke wouldn’t overhear. Then I explained the situation to Dex and Adam. When I was done, the two of them exchanged a look.

“Honey, you know I usually take your side,” Dex said.

“Aw, man. Really?”

“I think you’re being a littleextra,” Dex went on. “Maybe something weird is going on with that Broussard guy, but that doesn’t mean it’s human trafficking. It doesn’t even mean whatever they’re doing is illegal.”

“What do you think?” I asked Adam.

“I think it’s in my best interest to tell you what you want to hear.” Adam grimaced. “But I respect you too much to do that. I think I agree with Dexter. There are lots of regulations regarding private flights. It’s not easy to do something illegal under the radar without people finding out.”

“Then what do you think is going on?” I asked.

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