Love Under Two Flyboys [The Lusty, Texas Collection] Cara Covington (short story to read txt) 📖

this morning. He’ll be arriving sometime tonight. He’s looking to hire someone to give us a hand so we can get this finished by the end of the month.”

“He likes to take his annual vacation in December, if I recall,” Henry said.

Their second-youngest brother, Jordan, ran a successful construction company based out of Waco.

“I figure between the two of us, plus Jordan and another person, and our cousins here and there, we should have this done on schedule, no problem.”

“Well, I’ll agree with you, but only if we can manage to head off Uncle Caleb and Uncle Jonathan between now and then.”

Morgan laughed. “You have to admire their industry,” he said. “I hope I’m as energetic as them when I’m their age.”

“Me, too, but I’d like to admire those traits from afar, if you don’t mind. You know, I listened to our cousins complain about their dads needing a hobby, but I didn’t fully understand the sentiment then the way I do now.”

“They did need a hobby, and starting up Benedict-Murphy Investigations with Colt and Ryder’s dad, Mike, is the perfect solution for them all. Did you see Aunt Bernice the other day? She’s grinning from ear to ear because her men will soon be out of her hair and out of her kitchen,” Morgan said.

“Hey, I’m delighted they’re starting a business, and especially pleased they’ll be sharing space with us here. It’s just navigating that murky middle area—getting us all to the point where we can move in—that has me antsy. I had a hell of a time yesterday keeping those two off the ladders. Thank God Susie finally came by and distracted them,” Henry said.

“I’m not too keen on having sixty-plus-year-old men up on ladders, either.” Morgan wouldn’t want his own fathers doing high work, come to that. Just thinking about it made him shudder. “What we need is a plan. Some way to keep the uncles occupied. Some sort of senior Benedict protocol plan. Hey, I bet Penelope could come up with one. She’s even more of a strategic thinker than either Josh or Alex is.”

“I bet she could,” Henry agreed. “You know, I never thought those two geeks would be able to snag a woman like Penelope. It means there’s hope that even a couple of flyboys like us will eventually meet our mate.”

Morgan turned and gave his brother a level stare. “Are you forgetting the fact that the woman was chosen for them by Grandma Kate?”

“Of course I haven’t forgotten.” Henry sent him a confused look. “What, are you worried she’ll try to ply her match-making magic on us, too?”

“Hell, no. I let her know flat out the night of that impromptu engagement party for Penelope and the geeks that you and I were quite capable of finding our own woman when we figure the time is right.” Morgan chuckled. “I think she’s got her eye fixed on Adam and Jake, though.”

“So what are you worried about, then?”

Before Morgan could answer, he heard a sound that he recognized instantly, and it chilled him to the bone.

It was the sound of an airplane engine stalling out.

He shot his gaze skyward, searching.

“There!” Henry pointed to the north.

The engine smoothed out even as the faint speck moved closer and gained in size. He was just able to see it was a single-engine prop job when the engine coughed again. Then it sputtered for a few long seconds before finally quitting altogether.

“Shit.” Morgan recalled the one time a similar thing had happened to him. He’d been behind the controls of a Cessna. This plane, a Piper he could see now, was smaller, but the danger for her pilot was no less. In any contest between plane and ground, the ground won. The Piper changed course slightly and appeared to be coming straight toward them.

“He’s spotted our landing strip,” Morgan said.

“Plane was flying kind of low. You make him for a drug runner?” Henry asked.

“Doubtful. The payload capacity is too small on one of them to make it worthwhile.”

Then Morgan focused on the plane, watching as the pilot executed what he considered to be a near perfect approach. When the wheels touched the tarmac for the second time and the Piper coasted to a stop, Morgan exhaled in relief. It didn’t surprise him when his brother did the same.

“Let’s go.” He jogged over to where he’d parked the Jeep by the helicopter hangar. It didn’t take long to drive the quarter mile or so to the plane. He stopped his vehicle well away from the craft. Any worries he had for the pilot’s initial safety vanished when he saw the man was already poking under the engine cover. He thought he caught a wisp of smoke but couldn’t be certain.

“Damn fool,” Morgan said. He’d heard of more than one plane exploding mere minutes after being landed safely.

“So do we let him get his ass blown to bits, or do we go get him the hell away from there until we know it’s safe?” Henry asked.

“I’ll go. Sitting by waiting for disaster to happen isn’t how Kendalls do things.”

“I was afraid you were going to say that. You grab him, I’ll take a quick look at the engine. Sitting by while one’s brother hogs all the danger isn’t how Kendalls do things, either.”

“Be a hell of a thing,” Morgan muttered, “to survive all those tours in Afghanistan only to get our asses killed at home.”

Henry grunted, and then they both launched themselves from the Jeep.

Morgan ran, low and fast, and scooped the pilot—he was a small one—and carried him away from the craft.

“Hey, what the hell…damn it, put me down!”

Morgan struggled to hang on to his fighting, kicking female bundle. Then one small leg jammed between his two and he began to fall. At the last minute he twisted so that he didn’t squish the woman in his arms by falling on her. Then he quickly reversed positions with the wildly struggling female so that he was on top, pinning her