It wasn't very often that Ann ventured off the residential area of the base but it's exactly what she did one fall afternoon at Sarah's invitation.
As her friend explained it, Hank wanted Sarah to see what it was he did every day since he talked about it so much and she asked Ann along as a sort of chaperone. She didn't think it was necessary but what Sarah didn't tell her when she accepted was that Danny would be there as well.
That piece of information materialized in the form of a young Air Force lieutenant. Sarah had decided to act as matchmaker, of that Ann had no doubt and wondered if Hank was in on the plot. But even if he were, he wouldn't say.
The tour seemed innocent enough at the start. The two pilots took the girls to different areas of the base to show them around and to explain how everything worked to get them and their planes up in the air. And they ended up at the edge of the tarmac to watch a group of pilots take off and land.
Ann was used to the sounds of the jets as they came and went, from a distance. But to hear the power of the engines up close sent a chill up her arms and for the first time got a real idea of how difficult it might be for Danny and Hank to handle the aircraft.
As the last jet took off Danny looked at her. "Kind of takes your breath away, doesn't it?"
"It's hard to imagine you flying one of those thing." She was in awe of the effort.
"Now you understand why it is that I run every day." He explained. "It takes more strength than I ever imagined and it's exhausting. Then when you factor in that we're going up at least twice a day now, it wipes me out."
"But if you didn't love to do it so much, you wouldn't be here."
Danny smiled at her and nodded in agreement. "That's a fact. I have to admit though; I really enjoy flying the P-40. It's a lot slower than what we fly now obviously but they've got more character. There's just something about a propeller driven airplane that can't be matched by a jet."
"Didn't you learn how to fly in a P-40?" Ann asked him because she couldn't remember.
He shook his head. "I learned to fly in Gramps old crop duster, but I learned to love flying when Dad took me up in the P-40." He told her. "There are a couple of them around here that are sometimes used for training."
"Are you able to fly it?" She wondered.
"I don't have a whole lot of time to fly for myself these days." Danny answered. "Most of my flight hours belong to the Air Force. But when I get the chance I can take it up for short flights."
It was then that Ann realized that they were alone because Hank and Sarah were nowhere to be found.
"Some chaperone you are." He laughed as he looked around. "You're supposed to be keeping an eye on my sister and you manage to lose her."
She smiled back in return. "I didn't lose her she slipped the leash."
"Do you think we can trust Hank with her?" He asked her with a straight face.
"If I can trust you, I think we can trust Hank."
Danny seemed to warm to their humorous discourse. "I was an Eagle Scout Annie you can trust me. Can I trust you?"
"Well, I was a Girl Scout. Of course you can." She feigned indignation.
"Just checking." He grinned.
Ann couldn't remember what his sense of humor was like before he left for the Academy, but she liked it now. His deadpan delivery made her wonder if he was always like this and for the life of her couldn't help but wonder what she'd missed.
"Earth to Ann." She heard the amusement in his voice and it brought her back to the tarmac where they stood. "You left me for a minute."
"I'm still here." She assured him.
"You do realize that when your mind starts to wander it means you're getting old."
She raised her eyebrows. "Really? Well just remember that you're five years older than I am so if I'm getting old, it just means that you're getting older."
"Touché." He said and threw her a mock salute.
Ann shook her head and smiled. "Sarcasm doesn't become you Lieutenant."
"You drove me to it." He replied. "And that's the first time I've ever heard you call me by my rank."
"You drove me to it." She repeated and suddenly noticed that Danny was wearing his flight suit. It helped her understand why so many of the girls on base were after him.
He touched her arm and grinned. "I'm losing you again."
"I've never seen you in your flight suit." She admitted to him.
"It's my lifeline when I'm up there." Danny explained with a curious look on his face. "Have you ever been up?"
The question startled her because it came out of nowhere. "Dad took me up once in the P-40 when I was little, but I don't remember much."
He seemed to think for a moment about what he was about to ask her. "Would you be interested in going up with me? It might give you a better idea of what it's like to fly."
Ann had to admit that the idea intrigued her. She'd been around pilots all of her life but never really got to see what they saw from the air. To have the chance to go up with Danny would definitely be an experience.
"Never mind it was a bad idea." He sighed and put his hand up before he gave Ann the opportunity to say anything.
"You haven't given me a chance to answer, so how do you know what I'm going to say?" She frowned and pushed his hand down. "Honestly, sometimes I think you try to read my mind and you usually get it wrong."
He had the grace to look embarrassed. "Guilty."
"If I agreed, how would we do this?" She asked him as she tried to remember what the cockpit was like.
The look on his face told Ann that he hadn't considered how the two of them would fit until then and he cleared his throat. "You'll have to sit on my lap. There isn't enough room for you to sit next to me."
Why did he seem so nervous all of the sudden?
"If you're worried that I'll be a back seat pilot then don't. I would never presume to tell you how to fly that old crate." She joked and it seemed to snap him out of his sudden jitters.
"You should know better than anyone Ann that the P-40 isn't an old crate. Or have you forgotten what our dad's did after Pearl Harbor was bombed?" He grinned back at her. "Between the two of them, they shot down seven zeros."
"I've heard the stories too Danny and I apologize for insulting those old crates." She couldn't help it. "And seeing as how my life is literally going to be in your hands, I won't say anything else."
He looked concerned. "If going up with me is something that you'd rather not do I understand. But I'm a good pilot and I would never do anything that would put your safety at risk."
"And if I thought for a moment that I wouldn't be safe with you I would have turned you down without a second thought."
Danny seemed to be reassured as he began to walk toward a far hangar and Ann followed not sure what to expect. She did trust his ability because she knew that he wouldn't have made it through the Academy and become a pilot if he weren't competent. But she hadn't been in the air since she was a child and couldn't remember if she liked it or not.
They approached the hangar and when she and Danny walked inside there were the two P-40's he'd told her about. Ann had seen the pictures of her father and his plane and he always looked so proud to stand next to it. One of the planes sat near the front of the hangar and Ann saw who she could only surmise was a mechanic as he cleaned the windshield. "You still going to take her up Lieutenant? You signed her out for a half-hour and the sun is starting to go down."
"I'm aware of that Sergeant." He replied.
"She's all gassed up and I gave her the once over." He added and then he spotted Ann. "Sir, you know the rules about civilians, they're not supposed to be here unescorted."
"Her father is a pilot on this base." Danny told him as though that was all that needed to be said.
"She's still a civilian Sir, dependent or not." He seemed intent to argue with his superior officer. "And if I let her stay here unescorted I could lose my stripes."
"You won't lose your stripes Sergeant." Danny assured him.
"How do you figure that Sir?" He looked uncertain.
"Because she won't remain here unescorted."
"Sir?" The sergeant looked confused.
"If she's with me she isn't unescorted, is she?" Danny said logically. "And if you leave the hangar now, you can't say that a civilian was here unescorted can you?"
"Lieutenant, if you're up in the air how can you be her escort?"
"I don't think you want me to answer that question do you Sergeant? Because if I answer it, you have to tell the truth if someone asks but if you honestly don't know you can't answer, can you?"
Ann was amazed. She had never seen Danny in his capacity as an officer and she was impressed how he took control of the situation. But she didn't want him to risk the loss his commission over something so unimportant. She also knew however, that anything she said wouldn't help so she remained quiet and let Danny handle the reluctant sergeant.
"Sir, they're going to bust me down to airman if anyone finds out about this." He pleaded.
"No one is going to find out about this because as far as you know, I came in here by myself and took the plane in the air. I'll be back in a half-hour, probably less and if you're working in another hangar you won't see me land, will you?"
The sergeant seemed to realize that his argument was lost. "No Sir."
"You won't get busted because I'm going to file a report to be placed in your permanent record that you went above and beyond the call to get this plane ready so I could take it up. I'll be sure to note as well that with such an old plane you had it running as smoothly as any one our jets."
He was good.
"Don't bother Sir; just take care of her. I may have her running like a top but she's still old." He reminded the Lieutenant.
Danny acknowledged his concern. "Don't worry Sergeant. I'll take good care of her."
"See that you do Sir." And with a sigh he walked out of the hangar.
Ann didn't know what to say after such a performance.
"So are you still going to come with me?" He asked as though nothing out of the ordinary just happened.
"I can't believe that you just talked him into walking out of this hangar and leaving you alone with a civilian he thinks is going to be here unescorted." She finally said.
"Rank has its privileges, Annie." He said with a smile. "Besides, he knows that I've never pulled rank on him before. This was the first and only time, I swear."
It suddenly dawned on her that he planned to fly the whole time. The only question was, did he plan on her as a passenger? "Did you plan all of this?"
He seemed genuinely surprised at her question and she realized that his invitation was a spontaneous one. "I told you the truth when I said that I don't have much time to fly for myself. And when Sarah said that Hank was going to take her and you around the base, I thought it would give me time to get a short flight in. I hadn't counted on him asking me to join you."
It was Ann's turn to be confused. "Then why didn't you just say, No Thank You? Sarah would have understood and so would I."
"I don't know."
She decided to take him at his word and didn't press the matter. "All right Lieutenant, we're losing daylight. Let's get this thing in the air."
"Yes Ma'am." He grinned and stepped up on the wing before he held his hand out to her. "We have to get settled before I can start her up."
She hesitated for just a moment before she gave him her hand and he took it in a firm grip. She stepped up on the wing and he pulled her up next to him.
"All aboard." His grin got wider as he climbed down into the cockpit and sat down. "Come on Ann."
She followed his lead and stepped down into the cockpit. "What do you want me to do?"
"Sitting down would be a good place to start." He laughed and she sat down gingerly in his lap. "You're light as a feather."
"No comments on my weight please." She told him as she sat as still as she could. It felt odd to be so close to him and she wasn't sure how she felt about it.
Danny seemed oblivious to her jumbled thoughts as he started the engine and the propeller came to life. He pushed the throttle forward and guided the plane out of the hangar toward the runway and proceeded to line it up for takeoff. "Watch your head." He cautioned as he reached up and closed the canopy over their heads. He alerted the tower of his intention to take off and was given clearance before he pushed the throttle forward again and as the plane steadily gained speed Ann's heart began to beat harder and wondered if this was such a good idea.
"Are you all right?" Danny asked her over the noise of the single engine. "I can abort the flight if you want me to."
"Don't you dare!" She admonished him. "You said yourself that you don't have much time to fly for yourself anymore and I won't be responsible for you not being able to fly now."
"Thanks." He looked relieved.
"Just keep your eyes on the sky and don't worry about me."
Danny smiled at her for a moment before he looked ahead and before she was able to change her mind the P-40 lifted off the ground and they were airborne. The plane continued to ascend for another minute or two before he eventually leveled it off and they began to cruise. Oahu looked so different from the air and it was hard for Ann to orient herself to where they were because she recognized so little from where she sat. She watched as the sun began to sink down into the Pacific and didn't think she would ever look at a sunset quite the same way again.
"That's not a view you can get from the ground." Danny commented as he echoed her thoughts. "This isn't a view that I usually get to see either because I'm a few thousand feet higher and that's why I have to wear the flight suit."
"How different is it?" She was curious.
He glanced at her for a moment. "Dad explained it once like this; flying a plane like this is like riding a bike while flying a jet is like driving a car."
"Is that how it feels to you?"
He nodded. "And sometimes it's nice to have the chance to ride a bike."
"You work too hard." She commented without a thought as to how it would sound.
Danny glanced at her again. "What I'm doing now is a piece of cake compared to the workload I had at the Academy. Being here all I have to concern myself with is the daily briefings, getting into the air and making sure I know what I'm doing. When I was in Colorado, I not only had to do that but I had a full load of classes everyday too. See?"
"I get your point." She conceded and hoped she didn't sound too much like a mother hen.
"But I appreciate that you worry about me." He grinned at her as he banked the plane.
Ann frowned at him as she looked for a place to put her hand to steady herself. "I don't worry about you. I was just making a comment."
"A comment that is still appreciated." He said with a smile as he leveled out again. "So what do you think Ann?"
"I think I remember now why I didn't go up with Dad again after that first ride."
He looked a little worried. "You're not getting airsick are you?"
"No, nothing like that." She tried to reassure him. "But I kind of like the old terra firma, you know?"
Danny laughed. "Spoken like someone who isn't a pilot."
"Spoken like someone who prefers her two feet planted firmly on the ground, thank you very much." Ann smiled at him and not for the first time saw the handsome man Danny had become. "But if I chose to fly again, it would be with you."
His eyes were on the horizon, but she saw a flush start to creep up his neck.
"I'm sorry." She was suddenly embarrassed because she thought she embarrassed him.
Danny glanced at her again. "Sorry for what, for saying that you would fly with me again? It means a lot to me that you would trust me that much."
"I do trust you Danny." She answered honestly. "I told you earlier that if I didn't I wouldn't have agreed to come up here and I wouldn't have."
"Would you consider coming up again?"
There was a tone in his voice she'd never heard before and wondered if it was her imagination. It wasn't a plea, but it didn't strike her as a casual invitation as this flight was. "I'd consider it." Ann told him and didn't like the fact that she sounded so coy but Danny didn't seem to hear it.
"It's more than Caroline would have done."
"You invited her up?"
"More than once but the idea of flying in one of these old crates" He grinned. "Wasn't something that ever appealed to her."
She couldn't help but think that Caroline didn't know what an opportunity she missed.
"But it seems to me that it's something that might appeal to you." He added.
Ann smiled. "We'll see how I feel once you get this thing back on the ground."
"As you wish." He banked the plane again and headed back to Wheeler.
Neither talked for the rest of the trip but because they talked so much that afternoon it was a comfortable silence. She watched as Danny made his approach and lined the plane up with the long white stripe that ran down the middle of the runway. He began his decent and before she knew it, the P-40 touched down and slowed before it rolled to a stop.
Danny shut down the engine and they sat in the quiet of the cockpit. But almost imperceptibly the silence that was so comfortable started to become strained and Ann wasn't sure why. He pushed back the canopy and she didn't realized how stuffy the cockpit had become from such a short flight until she felt the fresh air on her face. "Are you all right?" She heard the concern in his voice and looked at him.
"I think so."
He smiled. "Good. But I've got a cramp in my leg so you're going to need to get up."
"I don't know if I can Danny." She admitted because her legs suddenly felt like rubber and told him so.
"Rookie." He laughed softly. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. You're going to have to get up for a minute so that I can stand up and get out of this thing. As soon as I get this cramp out of my leg I'll help you out."
Ann got up as he requested and she heard him laugh again just before he stood.
"Nice view Ann."
She looked over her shoulder in time to see that her posterior was in his line of sight and felt her face flush. "Knock it off." She scolded and tried not to laugh as he climbed out onto the wing and hopped to the ground. He hobbled around for a second or two and she figured he'd walked the cramp out his leg when he came back to the plane and climbed back onto the wing.
"Come on Ann, if I don't get you out of this thing we'll both be in a lot of hot water." He smiled and held his hand out to her.
She took his hand and his grip was sure as he helped her out and they stood on the wing. He hopped down again and waited. "The fastest way to get down is jump."
She shook her head. "I don't think I trust my legs."
He approached the wing and reached for her. "Then grab my hands. I won't let you fall, I promise."
Ann took a breath before she took his hands and his strong grip helped her off the wing. The minute her feet touched the ground though her knees buckled and Danny kept his promise because he didn't let her fall. But as a consequence she felt his arm around her as she grabbed his shoulders and he held her against him to steady her. "You weren't exaggerating were you?"
She could see that her proximity to him and the fact that her arms were practically around his neck affected him. She saw a look in his eyes that was unfamiliar and it didn't take her long to realize that he didn't seem to know how to proceed.
She didn't know how to either for that matter because she'd never once considered how it would feel to have his arm around her. And it disconcerted her no end to realize that she felt a thrill to be so close to him. She took another deep breath and let go of his shoulders, reluctantly.
He took his arm from around her waist and held her gently by her upper arms. "You had me worried there for a minute."
"I told you I didn't trust my legs." She tried to joke because he was so serious.
"But you trusted me, didn't you?" He didn't take the bait. "That means a lot."
"And we need to get out of here because I won't be responsible for you risking your commission on something you shouldn't have done."
That look in his eyes was still there and Ann couldn't tell what was going through his mind. "Would it shock you if I told you that I thought it was worth it?"
She was determined to keep the situation light because it was headed in a direction she wasn't prepared for. "I'd tell you that I didn't believe you. After everything you've done to get here I seriously doubt you'd risk it."
It was then that Danny seemed to shake off the serious mood that gripped him and the familiar grin was back on his face as he let go of her arms. "You know me better than I gave you credit for."
"Then if I know you so well why are we still standing here?" She smiled back but felt a gentle tension between them. "Let's go find Hank and Sarah and get something to eat, I'm hungry."
"Now you know why they fed us so well at the Academy." He explained as he put his arm around her shoulders as he'd done so many times since he came home. But this time Ann didn't try to shrug him off and she knew he took notice.
"And you know why I want to eat so let's go find them." She insisted as her stomach suddenly growled.
She knew Danny heard it because he laughed out loud. "Let's walk to the commissary, they might be there waiting for us. And if they aren't we'll just have to have lunch without them."
"That's fine with me Lieutenant, let's go." She answered. And as they walked away from the old fighter plane the nervous sergeant returned to give it the once over to make sure that it was all right.