The jet was one of the larger planes in the jaguar fleet. Ren had only flown on it a few times before. It was a mark of how much the leadership valued each and every one of the Clansmen that Mark had sent the luxury private jet to bring them all home for just a few days. The pilots were a brother and sister team that were based out of Jaguar Island but did the majority of taking Clan members wherever they needed to go.
Lucinda—aka “Lucky”—Pendleton and her little brother, Keith, were well known among the Clan for being both fantastically gifted pilots and good fun. They were forever playing tricks on each other when they weren’t flying. Thankfully, their mischievous ways were limited to ground maneuvers. When they were in the air, they were all business. The consummate, competent professionals.
Ren felt a flush of satisfaction when Kat boarded the jet. There was a Clan member looking after the cabin. Lucky and Keith’s younger sister, whom everyone called Sissy. She was already learning to fly, but her siblings insisted learning every aspect of running the larger jets was a good idea. Plus, she could earn a little pocket money keeping the galley running and handing out snacks on the larger planes. It would be a few years yet before she was old enough to fly as a co-pilot, but she was working her way toward just that.
Ren nodded at Sissy, indicating where he wanted her to seat Kat. The plane was configured more casually than a passenger liner. The seats were larger and more spaced out. They were also placed in groupings where some faced forward and some faced back, so they could chat or eat together with others. Ren wanted to share one of the two-seat units with Kat so he could sit across from her while they ate and chat with her privately—or as privately as they could get with so many sharp-eared Clanmates around.
Ren arranged it so that he was the last one on board. He helped Sissy close the hatch and said hello to Lucky and Keith briefly before taking the only open seat in the cabin…directly across from Kat. He liked the way her eyes widened when she realized she would be sitting across from him for the flight.
They began taxiing, and everybody strapped in and changed the orientation of their chairs for takeoff, where possible. Sissy helped stow last-minute items and then took her own seat just as they reached the end of the runway.
A few minutes later, they were airborne, the thrust of the engines propelling them into the air. It was exhilarating, and Ren never tired of the feeling of takeoff. He had a smile on his face as they levelled out. Now, the wooing would begin. He had a plan for the next few days, and convincing Kat that he was serious about her was right at the top of his list of to do’s. Starting now.
Katrina was surprised when Ren took the seat opposite her. She realized someone must have arranged the semi-private setting for them, and her breath caught at the idea that Ren, himself, might’ve done it. Was this some kind of overture? And, if it was, could it be trusted?
She didn’t think he was a shallow movie-star type. Not anymore. She sensed there was more depth to him, and he’d been nothing but kind to her over the past week of filming. But was he interested in some sort of fling? With her? Truly?
And would she be ten kinds of an idiot to let it happen? Or would she regret it for the rest of her life if she turned down any overture he might make?
She was probably over-thinking this. Maybe he just wanted to sit with her for some reason. Maybe he wanted a quiet companion for the flight, rather than the more raucous conversations she could just hear over the engine noise going on in the other seating areas. On this side of the aisle, there were a few two-seat arrangements, but on the other side, the groupings were larger, with four or six sitting together in various configurations.
Greg and Liatha Mendez quietly shared the two-seat arrangement just behind them, and to the other side of the loosely marked aisle, a group of four that included the Hilliard brothers, Deidre and Franny were chatting up a storm already.
Since Ren and Katrina were closest to the cockpit and the small galley, the young girl who had helped Katrina find her seat and stow her luggage came to them first. She brought a tray filled with a selection of sandwiches and had a rolling cart with different choices of juice and snack items. Ren introduced her, demonstrating his familiarity with the plane and its crew.
“Sissy, this is Kat,” he said, smiling at the girl, who had to be in her teens.
“You’re playing Maid Marian,” Sissy said. “I can’t wait to see the movie.”
Katrina was touched by the girl’s enthusiasm and smiled back. “Neither can I,” she admitted. “It all still feels kind of unreal.”
“I bet. Uncle Ren let me visit him on the set during his last film shoot, and it was so cool. It almost made me want to work with these guys, but I like flying too much to change course now,” Sissy added. “My family is teaching me to fly, and one day, I’ll be working with my sister and brother, who are in the cockpit right now.”
“Now, that is truly cool,” Katrina told the girl. “Flying a plane takes a lot of skill and talent, from what I’ve heard. And, I suspect, a lot of guts.”
Sissy shrugged. “I grew up around planes,” she said nonchalantly. “It’s in my blood, my folks say.”
The girl moved her little cart to the next group and served drinks before pulling out another giant platter of sandwiches from the lower portion of the cart. She left two platters with Franny and the gang, as well as a whole bottle of juice and cups with ice before moving on to the couple seated behind Katrina.
“Uncle Ren?” Katrina asked, one eyebrow raised as she smiled at him.
Ren had already demolished half of a giant roast beef sandwich. He swallowed before answering as Katrina chose a small egg salad sandwich for herself from the platter.
“Sissy’s mother is my sister, Rowena,” he admitted. “Her husband, Mike, was a commercial pilot for one of the big carriers, but he’s employed by Mark’s company now, as are my sister and their kids. They all fly, though Ro and Mike tend to stay in the office these days while their offspring roam the skies on behalf of Pepard Industries.”
“That’s really impressive,” Katrina replied, feeling the truth of her words. Flying was something she’d always found fascinating. “Do you know how to fly, too?” she asked impulsively.
“Actually, I do. I keep my license current, but I don’t get as many cockpit hours as the rest of my immediate family these days,” he told her.
“Too busy making movies,” she said, nodding as she smiled.
“Something like that,” he agreed. “Speaking of Hollywood, Sully is already on the island. I know you wanted to meet her.”
“I can’t believe I’m going to meet Sullivan Lane,” Katrina gushed, feeling excitement fill her at the prospect of meeting one of her favorite actresses.
Ren’s famously green eyes flared with amusement. “She and her husband are building on to their home, and Shelly, Mark’s wife, is designing it for them. She’s an architect,” he added. “From what I understand, Mark and Shelly are hosting an informal reception at the mansion when we arrive. You can meet everybody there.”
The flight wasn’t a long one. There had been no wait time at the airport as there always was with commercial flights. They’d simply shown up and boarded the jet, which had taken off shortly thereafter. Katrina was amazed at how rich folk travelled. There seemed to be no hassle, and everything happened on a custom timetable.