Page 116 of Raul

“Try me,” Erica said, knowing what was coming and hoping her stomach could indeed handle it.

The jet twisted, turned, rolled, and inverted in a series of high-speed maneuvers that sent Erica’s insides ricocheting around while she laughed in sheer exhilaration.

Rocky leveled out. “You seemed to enjoy that.”

“Oh, yeah,” Erica said, swallowing to settle everything back in place. “That was a trip and a half.”

“I hear you’re a pretty good pilot,” Rocky said.

“Nothing like you,” Erica said.

“They let you fly the royals around, so someone trusts you,” Rocky pointed out. “Since it’s your birthday, want to fly this baby for a couple of minutes?”

“Are you serious?” Erica scanned the controls in front of her with eager anticipation.

“Just don’t tell my boss,” Rocky joked, although Erica was sure she had gotten her commanding officer’s permission. “Besides, this is a trainer, which means I can stop you before you do anything stupid.”

Erica laughed and listened carefully to Rocky’s instructions, testing the feel of the stick and pedals.

“Okay, I’m handing over control of the aircraft to you. Acknowledge,” Rocky said.

“Acknowledged,” Erica said.

Suddenly, the jet was responding to Erica’s movements, which meant it wobbled a bit before she got the hang of it. But then it began to feel like an extension of her body, as though she could almost think commands at it, and it would obey.

“Good. Now try turning her very, very gently,” Rocky said. “Remember how fast you’re going.”

Erica eased into a righthand turn without too much jerking around.

“Now try the other direction,” Rocky said.

“This is amazing!” Erica said as they swooped to the left at an insane speed.

All too soon, Rocky said, “Okay, I’m taking control of the aircraft. Acknowledge.”

“Acknowledged.” Erica felt a sense of loss as she took her hands and feet off the controls. “Thank you! That was fantastic!”

This had been the experience of a lifetime, and they hadn’t even landed yet. How on earth would she ever conjure up a birthday gift that would come anywhere near this for Raul? But she would make sure he got a very nice thank-you reward tonight.

“Hey, we’ve got company,” Rocky said. “Starboard side.”

Erica looked right to see a jet just like theirs flying near their wingtip. The person in the back seat was waving to her, and then Raul’s voice crackled over the radio. “Erica, are you having a good time?”

“What are you doing up here?” She couldn’t believe he had followed her off the carrier’s deck.

He laughed. “I have an important question to ask you, and it couldn’t wait.”

“What? A question?” Totally confused, she watched as he leaned forward before lifting what looked like a rolled-up piece of paper. He fiddled with it for a few seconds before unfurling it. Then he pressed it against the side of the plane’s canopy, and she saw that something was written on it in capital letters.

I LOVE YOU! WILL YOU MARRY ME?

Shock ran through her as she stared at the sign. “Rocky, does that sign say, ‘Will you marry me?’”

“Affirmative,” Rocky said. “And I have twenty-twenty vision.”

She and Raul hadn’t talked about marriage. They had been enjoying the freedom just to be a couple. Her heart felt like it would pound out of her chest as she tried to wrap her mind around what was happening.

“I need a piece of paper,” Erica said to Rocky. “Do you have a piece of paper?”