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“I’m just here to help, Mr. Sloan,” Toby replied. “I can help wherever you need me.”
“Neutral answer… clever boy,” Samantha’s Uncle Hunter said, grinning at her father – whose expression was getting quite peevish.
“That’s it!” her father snapped. “Toby, get the chairs. Sam, help with the planes.”
“My son went to the Academy, just like us, and I assure you he’s capable of taxiing an airplane, Thumper,” Valkyrie, or Mr. Saxon, Toby’s father interjected, walking up to see what the delay was.
“Dad… it’s fine,” Toby said quietly, looking quite uncomfortable at the attention – and the obvious attempt to separate them.
“Jackson! Goodness… come over here!”
Samantha smothered a laugh as her mother walked over, grabbed the large man by the ear, and pulled him away. “What do you think is going to happen…” her mother’s voice faded off, punctuated by her dad hollering, ‘ow!’ a few times.
“Samantha, why don’t you help your father with the planes so he can enjoy the bonfire tonight and not have his evening ruined by me just being here,” Toby said quietly, walking towards her, his voice low.
“We both know how he feels about me. I would rather everyone have an enjoyable time and not worry about me hitting on you. I’m sorry if any of our past has made any of this uncomfortable.”
Stunned, she realized that all the negative attention had alienated a really sweet person who she’d once called her best friend – despite the fact that it made her father mad. Every time her father had found out she was texting or calling Toby, she was assigned chores simply to keep her busy.
It was like Pavlov’s bell.
If she talked to Toby, they gave her more work… to the point that she had slowed down communication or stopped talking to him all together.
Had it been the same for him?
She missed having someone who understood what this crazy life was like growing up as a kid in some Podunk small town under the shadow of Flyboys. They always referred her to as ‘Thumper’s daughter’…
“I’ll help you,” Samantha announced, surprising Toby – and herself. “Dad can move the planes himself and wonder what’s going on for a few minutes, can’t he?”
“I don’t know,” Toby smiled. “This is how rumors get started, my friend.”
“We are friends, aren’t we? We’ve always been friends for the longest time – and I would really like that again. Can’t we just live a simple life and be friends like that again?”
“I would like that – a lot.”
“Let’s let the juicy rumors fly then, friend…” she laughed evilly, hooking her arm with his as they walked off towards the building.
“Are you trying to get me beat up?” Toby chuckled, smiling shyly at her, his blue eyes dancing and full of mirth. “Maybe it’s your uncle instead…”
Sure enough, her Uncle Hunter, Firefly, and Reaper were already whistling cat calls in the distance to egg her father on. Samantha just laughed aloud, smiling up at Toby.
“I think you can probably hold your own…”
“Your dad will have a conniption fit… or wreck my plane.”
“That’s what insurance is for,” Samantha grinned, “And Flyboys is insured exceedingly well…”
She and Toby worked at pulling out the chairs, talking quietly about easy subjects, almost as if they were afraid to cross a line or make things uncomfortable. As they carried the chairs out, she felt her dad’s eyes watching her, realizing that he was definitely overbearing and protective of his little girl.
“Still like regular cheese pizzas on thin crust?” she asked easily.
“Nahhh, I grew up,” Toby smirked in a way that reminded her so much of his dad that it was shocking. “I elevated my taste buds to Margarita style – I add tomatoes and basil now. Adulting, my mom calls it.”
“Ohhh, sooo very cultured?” she teased, laughing.
“Pepperoni?” he asked, remembering.
“Adulting,” she teased. “It’s now Meat Lovers with stuffed crust, jalapenos, and a filthy amount of ranch dressing that will clog arteries…”
