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1. Nora

Chapter One

Nora

“What the —?!”

My brain couldn’t even finish firing off the thought as I felt an abrupt jolt in the small plane just as the wheels touched the gravel runway. The aircraft listed roughly to one side before grinding to a stop as I tried in vain to keep one of the wings from striking the well-placed boulder protecting the tiny building. Only in Alaska would an open shed with benches and shelving be referred to as an airport.

The plane’s wing scratched loudly against the boulder as I finally managed to bring it to a complete stop.

“What the hell?” I muttered as I leaned my head back against the seat. That was my complete thought. A fat lot of good it would do about my situation.

After taking a moment to collect myself, I climbed out to check and discovered one of my landing tires had blown out. Hopping back into the plane, I tapped my radio on and called air control to let them know. The radio operator assured me they would get the message over to my brother Flynn so he could reschedule my remaining flight this afternoon.

Meanwhile, my situation wasn’t great. All things considered, a blown-out tire was no big deal, but it left me stuck for the time being. I also needed to check on the plane’s wing. Despite the annoyance of my situation, it was a beautiful day with the sun glittering on the waters of Kachemak Bay. I’d practically landed in a postcard.

Taking a deep breath, I turned everything off on the plane, running the standard post-flight inspection before climbing out and assessing my situation more thoroughly. This airport was nothing more than a supply pickup and drop-off way station for several nearby Alaskan communities. Literally, no one lived here. The only way to get here was by plane, boat, or backcountry vehicles.

I rechecked the tire, thinking it probably blew out from hitting a rock when I came down. Losing control on the landing had brought one of the plane’s wings up close and personal with that boulder and left a deep dent in the wing as a souvenir.

“Dammit,” I muttered.

A lone eagle screeched in reply, and I glanced up to see one flying nearby, its massive wingspan casting a shadow on the ground below.

I could deal with the tire, but the wing's damage meant I wouldn’t be flying this plane back until that was repaired. I slipped my cell phone out of my pocket, wondering if I had any reception. Some stretches of Alaska were so sparsely populated that reception was a distant dream. This area was isolated. However, it was close to more populous areas, and there were cell towers scattered at the higher elevations.

I’d flown here plenty of times, but I couldn’t remember if I’d ever checked for reception here before. As a pilot in my family’s small flight business, we dropped off mail and supplies here on a regular schedule. Nearby areas used four-wheelers for pick up and transport, while the more remote areas required more distant ferrying by planes.

Maybe this seemed crazy if you weren’t familiar with Alaska, but even the more remote areas of Alaska were busy in the sky whenever the weather was safe for flying. Between the proximity to more touristy areas and geographic convenience, it was much faster to get places by small plane in Alaska for areas off the main road system.

“Aha!” I exclaimed when I saw that I had not one but three whole bars for cell reception.

I immediately called the main number at Walker Adventures, the outdoor expedition resort I owned with my two brothers and my younger sister.

“Walker Adventures,” Daphne, my brother’s fiancée, answered cheerfully.

“Hey, Daphne, it’s Nora.”

“What’s up? I thought you were in the air for most of today.”

I quickly explained my situation.

“Ohhhh. Well then, that’s a pain in the a*s,” she began matter-of-factly. “I’m sure they’ve already radioed Flynn. He stayed in town at the plane hangars to work on some engine issue. Everybody else is up in the air. What can we do?”

“I need you to look at the schedule on the laptop. It’s the one I keep in the pantry.”

Daphne’s laugh was dry. “I know. You’ve told me that’s a central location. I personally think a pantry is for storing food, but I’m flexible about that for your benefit.” I could hear her footsteps crossing the floor. In another second, she asked, “Okay, what am I looking for?”

“Click the bottom so the toolbar comes up, and then hit the tab that says schedule.”

“Got it. Okay, here’s what it says.”

She read off the schedule, and relief washed through me when I realized Gabriel wasn’t conveniently close to me.

“I need you to call Flynn. Have him get ahold of Elias and tell him to come by here and pick me up. He’s the closest and should be landing soon. He’ll have plenty of time to hop over here and get me.”

“Consider it done. You’re okay with waiting?”

“Of course, I’m okay. I’m bored, but it’s beautiful out this afternoon. I just hope it holds. The wind is supposed to pick up later this afternoon. I’ll only have to wait about an hour, though, so it should be fine. Plus, there’ll probably be some magazines in the airport.”

“The airport?”

I laughed softly. “It’s a shed with two benches and some shelving, but it counts as an airport. The magazines are probably ancient, but it’ll help me pass the time. See you tonight.”

“You got it, girl. Call me again if you need anything,” Daphne replied.

I hung up, smiling to myself and thinking I needed to take Daphne with me on a supply run one of these days. Aside from taking people on guided flight expeditions to see wildlife and the stunning Alaskan wilderness, Walker Adventures also had contracts to deliver mail and supplies to different areas in the southern part of Alaska. Running the business with my siblings made for a kick-a*s job, and I was never bored.

I quickly unloaded the supplies I’d brought over today—some mail and a few things from a local hardware store. There was one heavy pallet, and I decided to wait for Elias to get his help with it. I could’ve handled it myself, but a little help never hurt anyone. I discovered the magazine selection was older than expected. I walked out, angling toward a rocky ledge that sloped down to a beach with charcoal gray sand and a wide variety of rocks. The runway here ran parallel to the water.

Alaskan beaches had the best rocks, and I could always collect more. I clambered down the ledge and began walking along the water. The tide was out, and I leaned over to gently carry a few starfish into the shallows. A seal noticed me and followed my progress. There was also a raft of sea otters nearby. They were gathered together, some resting on their backs and others frolicking in the water. The wind picked up slightly, and I turned back after a little while, both of my pockets filled with pebbles and rocks. They were all kinds of rocks here, including lava that had formed into lightweight shapes, almost weightless in your palm. A bright red piece of lava was my best find of the day.

A short while later, I heard the distinct sound of a small plane engine approaching. “Yay!” I cheered to myself unless I was counting the eagle that screeched above again.

I was waiting by my plane when Elias came in for the landing. Unlike me, no last-minute gust of wind threw his landing angle off course. The aircraft lightly bounced a few times before he came to a smooth stop. I couldn’t see his face due to the glare of the sun, but I waved and turned to walk to my plane and fetch my backpack.

A few moments later as I reached into the back of the plane, the hairs on the back of my neck stood. Without looking, I knew it wasn’t Elias. Gabriel was here. f**k my life.

I’d been studiously avoiding Gabriel for several months now. I prayed my instincts were wrong.

“Hey, Nora.” Gabriel’s low voice came over my shoulder, sending a jolt of electricity and the most inconvenient desire I’d ever experienced coursing through my body.

My instincts were spot-on, but then Gabriel was a magnetic force. Taking a deep breath, I marshaled all of my tattered composure and turned. “Hi.” I refused to say his name.

His eyes met mine, and his gaze alone felt like fire on my skin. I ignored the feeling. “I thought Elias was coming to pick me up,” I added.

“We switched up the schedule this afternoon.”

“Why?” I practically barked at him.

The love of my life and the only man who’d ever really gotten to me shrugged. “Because we could.”

I felt the tension in my face, and my lips tightened, but I refused to discuss this further. There was no point. Elias wasn’t here, and my ex was. Actually, I didn’t even know what Gabriel was to me. I guess my ex-friends-with-benefits or some other bullshit.

“Elias wanted to get back earlier to have dinner with Cammi,” Gabriel added.

That detail felt like a twist of the knife buried in my heart. Not only did Gabriel not love me, but it seemed everyone around us was falling in love. My eldest brother, Flynn, who I’d never thought would fall for anyone, was freaking in love and so content with Daphne it was almost a joke. I was happy for him. I really, really was. Then there was Elias, who’d fallen in love with Cammi, the best barista in town. Even Diego, who wasn’t as much of a surprise because he was such a softie, was in love. That left me, Gabriel, Tucker, and my younger brother, Grant. I found a minuscule amount of comfort in the fact that there were still more of us not paired up.

I absolutely did not need to dwell on this. I let my backpack slide off my shoulder. “Can you help me unload that last pallet?” I pointed at the open compartment on the small plane.

“Of course.”

For a moment, we studied each other. My eyes soaked him in greedily. Because I’d been so carefully avoiding being alone with him, I’d hardly let myself look at him in the past few months. Whenever we were together, we were with our nosy friends and family. I loved all of them, and I didn’t want any of them picking up on the tension simmering between us.

Gabriel’s mossy green eyes searched mine, and I swallowed, willing myself to be numb to him. The sun glinted on his auburn hair, illuminating the flecks of gold in it. At the right angle, it looked like he had a freaking halo. I definitely knew he didn’t.

He had strong features—cheekbones cut at clean angles and a strong jaw. Of course, because life felt incredibly unfair when it came to Gabriel, he had a smoking hot bod. He was tall with a rangy build, muscled shoulders, and arms that could make a girl weep.

My gaze dipped down, tracing over the way his T-shirt clung lovingly to his muscled chest. He had a hand in his pocket, and my eyes traced the flex of his forearm from where his thumb curled over the belt to his jeans. The distracted moment snapped when an eagle screeched again. That sound was followed by the chatter of a crow, probably trying to annoy the eagle. They were good at that.

Gabriel strode past me. “You get the other side,” he said after he dragged the pallet halfway out of the back.

Within a few minutes, we had it inside against the far wall of the shed, protecting it from the elements if any weather came through. Deliveries here could wait a few hours, or even days, depending on the schedule for whomever planned to pick them up.

“Looks like your tire blew out,” he commented as we walked back toward my plane.

“No s**t,” I muttered.

Gabriel glanced at me, his eyes narrowing. “You don’t have to be angry every f*****g time I’m near you, Nora.”

“Maybe I don’t have to, but I want to.”

His nostrils flared before he let out a breath. Spinning away from me, he rounded the back of the plane to look at where the wing scraped against the boulder.

“Not bad. I can come back tomorrow with some supplies and patch it up,” he commented as he returned to where I was waiting. His eyes skipped down to the blown-out landing tire and back up.

“You’ll need someone to come with you.”

“I assumed you would. This is your plane,” he replied.

I suddenly felt crowded. I was between the door and the wing and felt hemmed in with Gabriel standing right there.

“It’s not specifically my plane,” I corrected.

My neck was hot, and my skin felt prickly all over. Longing pierced me, and I tried to shove it away, but I was helpless to my body’s reaction to him.

“I know it’s not yours, but it’s the one you usually fly,” he countered.

The moment fell quiet, silence spinning out between us. He stepped even closer, and I thought my entire body might go up in flames. Even worse, I didn’t want him to move away. I wanted him—to the point of desperation.