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“Well then, Declan, you’re just going to have to fly the client yourself,” Annie said in a no-nonsense voice.
He shook his head. “I can’t do it. I’m not ready yet,” he said, his tone clipped.
Annie reached out and began tugging him by the wrist. Yikes. She was way stronger than she looked.
“Hey! What are you doing?” Declan cried out as he resisted her efforts to displace him from his seat. “I’m in the middle of breakfast.”
Annie let go of him. She placed her hands on her hips. Her brown eyes flashed. “I’m getting you mobilized. Step away from the omelet, O’Rourke. You have a client who is paying you good money to fly to Homer in approximately one hour.”
“Me? You think I’m going to fly Ethel? I’m not ready to take this on,” he admitted as a feeling of shame threatened to swallow him whole.
“Willard is sick with the flu, which means it’s all on your shoulders. There’s no one else but you.”
“I’m not sure I can do it, Annie.” What was the point of pretending anymore? It was high time he came clean. He was fairly certain Annie already knew that his fear was preventing him from flying Ethel.
“What aren’t you sure about? Your skill? Your expertise? Your perfect flying record? The fact that you now know that you had nothing to do with the malfunctioning of your plane? It was a random bird strike. Something rare and completely out of your control.”
“So what if it happens again?” he spit out.
She shrugged. “So what if the sky falls? You can drum up hundreds of scenarios to convince yourself not to do something. Don’t give in to the fear. It will consume you if you let it.”
“Live courageously,” Declan said. He’d been hearing Annie say this for weeks now. In this very moment, it resonated with him. That’s how he wanted to live his life. Without fear or reservations. Flying was his world. He could never be whole if he hid in the shadows and stayed grounded.
“Exactly!” Annie said. “You’ve got this!”
“No one handed me O’Rourke Charters,” he said in a raised voice.
“Nope,” Annie said. “You didn’t grow up with a silver spoon in your mouth.”
“I built my company through hard work and grit and determination,” he said.
“Yes, you did!” Annie encouraged him. “And you’re not going to throw it in the toilet simply because you have a few jitters. Declan O’Rourke is not going out like that!”
“No, he’s not,” Hazel chimed in as she appeared at the table with a basket of corn bread in her hands. “If he does, he’ll have me to deal with.”
?
?You better listen to Hazel.” Annie scrunched up her nose and made a face. “Those are fighting words!”
“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re one beautiful pain in the neck?” Declan asked in a raspy tone as he stood up from his chair.
“Maybe once or twice,” Annie murmured as he dipped his head and kissed her soundly on the lips.
“Enough smooching, you two, ’cause time is a wasting,” Hazel barked. “It waits for no man...or woman. One of these days Jasper will figure that out before the best years of my life have passed me by,” she grumbled.
“He still isn’t ready to put a ring on it?” Declan asked, his eyebrows raised.
“Ha! A ring?” Hazel shouted. “At this point I’d settle for a quickie wedding in Vegas and a piece of tinfoil on my finger.”
Annie made a tutting sound. “Don’t settle for anything, Hazel. You deserve a swoon-worthy proposal and a wedding with all the trimmings. And some bling on your ring finger.”
Hazel reached out and squeezed Annie’s hand. “You’re some kind of special, Annie.” Her voice was choked with emotion. Her eyes radiated warmth.
“Annie’s right, Hazel,” Declan said, reaching across and pressing a kiss on her cheek. “If Jasper can’t see what a gem you are, then he’s a plumb fool.”
“You’re a sweetheart, Declan,” Hazel said with tears in her eyes. “I’m so proud of you. For facing your fears and tackling them head-on. That’s never easy, even for an old bird like me.”
Declan reached out and hugged the woman who was the closest thing to a mother figure he had in his life. She’d always been there for him, firmly rooted in his corner. Just like Boone and his family. “Aw, Hazel. Please don’t cry,” he said, wrapping her up in a tight bear hug. “You’re going to make me cry, too,” he teased.
