pilot. âMaybe Gil will resist the urge to hold a strategy meeting.â
âWorkaholic, huh?â Maybe they did have more in common than sheâd realized. âI guess I havenât really seen that side of him.â
âHe makes the drivers seem low-key.â
âArenât they? Theyâre always smiling when I see them.â
âThatâs because youâre feeding them. Trust me, youâll get a different viewpoint this weekend.â
From town gossip Sheila knew Marley was engaged to Linc Shepherd, one of Gilâs drivers. Tall, dark-haired Marley with her Sizemore beauty and black-haired Linc would probably have kids even better looking than their parents. Impossible as that seemed.
âYou arenât telling Sheila any stories you shouldnât, are you?â Gil asked as he walked up.
âI have no idea what youâre talking about,â Marley said, somehow succeeding in looking both innocent and capable of mischief at the slightest urge.
âWhat stories?â Sheila asked.
âMy baby sister thinks itâs hilarious to tell people about all the stupid things I did as a kid. And the more humiliating, the better.â
Marley flipped her long, dark hair off her shoulder. âHumph.â
âBut Iâm still the favorite son.â
âYouâre the only son.â
Gil grinned. âBeing surrounded by women was always a great burden.â
Sheila gave him a meaningful look. âExcellent practice for your adult life. My waitressesâamong others of the estrogen varietyâfawn over you shamelessly.â
âItâs a crime to be popular?â he asked with a teasing note of defensiveness.
âDepends on who youâre interested in impressing,â Sheila returned, her gaze locked with his.
Again with the flirting. Did Gil naturally send her toadolescence or inspire a fun, engaging side of her she thought sheâd lost over years of disappointment?
Marley patted his arm. âDonât worry, brother dear, I wonât spill anything. I actually like Sheila.â
âLadies and gentlemen,â the pilot said before Sheila could further question Gil. âPlease take your seats. Weâre ready for takeoff.â
Gil led Sheila to a pair of seats in the back of the plane. As she hooked her seat belt, it suddenly occurred to her that this little metal tubeâas luxurious as it seemedâwas about to be several thousand feet off the ground.
This sensation went straight from her gut to her mouth, which she used to babble nervously. âWhat did Marley mean, she likes me?â
âShe likes you.â
She jabbed him lightly in the stomach with her elbow.
âAs amazing as it seems, Iâd figured that much out. Does she not like many people?â
âMarley gets along with everybodyâone of the key reasons sheâs so good at sponsor relations. My mother used to say she could charm the ticks off a hound dog.â
â Your mother? I thought she was Queen of the Debutantes.â
âShe is, but Queen of the Deep South chapter.â
âAh. That still doesnât explain Marleyâs comment, though.â
âI guess not,â he admitted reluctantly. âIâd imagine she was referring to the fact that since her and Linc got together sheâs been retaliating against my overbearing interference in her love life by expressing her displeasure over mine.â
âI see.â Sheila shook her head. âNo, actually I donât.â
âShe doesnât like the women I date.â He started counting off reasons on his fingers. âToo prissy, too dingy, too self-absorbed, too catty, too lazy.â
She peeked out the window and noticed they were moving rapidly down the runway. âIs that all one girl, or several?â
âMore than one,â he hedged. âAre you nervous about flying?â
âNo, Iââ She could feel the plane