Free Turbulent Intentions by Melody Anne

right up!” Stormy made quick work of making the coffee and handing it over the counter. “I apologize for my behavior,” she told him through gritted teeth.
    The pilot took a sip of his hot coffee before smiling. “Thanks for the apology. You don’t need to worry about it, though. I can take it as good as I give it. Hope your day goes a little better than the way it’s been so far.” He tossed down a hundred-dollar bill as if it were petty cash and then strode off to his gate.
    Stormy stood there motionless as she watched the incredible backside of Captain Armstrong as he walked away. Damn, she wished he were short, fat, and ugly. Why was it that if a man was good-looking, it made you think he was actually a decent human being? It had to be the smile. No, it definitely had to be the eyes.
    Possibly the backside.
    Whatever the hell it was, she wanted to hate him—but she couldn’t quite do that. For now, she could just feel anger.
    The man had insulted her, most likely gotten her fired, and he couldn’t even apologize. He figured throwing out a ridiculous tip would make up for his rude behavior. Either that or he wanted her to know he was rich, thinking he could buy a night with her.
    He would be wrong on both fronts.
    But there was an upside here. Being fired would mean that she wouldn’t have to deal with him or any of the other jackass men who roamed the airport hallways thinking they were God’s gift to women.
    The one thing that worried her the most, though, was the fact that she was still stupidly attracted to the man. How in the world could she find him attractive? What was wrong with her that she found it acceptable to be attracted to the man who couldn’t be bothered to remember they’d slept together?
    Stormy had been loved and taken care of by incredible parents. She’d had a few hard knocks in life, but who the hell hadn’t? She’d never been neglected or tortured. On the whole, her life had been pretty damn great, actually.
    Enough reflection. Hardening her resolve to deal with her slimy boss, she squared her shoulders and forced herself to turn toward the office. Though her feet were dragging, she made her way inside and stood in the doorway.
    Henry made her wait while he scribbled for several moments in some notebook behind his pathetically small desk. It was a power move on his part. Not surprising, she thought. How much respect could the man have for himself, working at a crap job with horrible wages despite his law degree from Harvard?
    Too bad the man had been caught concealing material evidence in a case and had been disbarred. He had wound up a manager in a small coffee shop. And he took his anger out on everyone.
    “Are you trying to get us shut down, Stormy?”
    She hadn’t expected that. “No,” she said.
    “Well, if you don’t follow the rules, you get fined, and if you get fined enough, you get shut down. So again, what are your intentions while working here?”
    “To do my job and collect a paycheck, sir.”
    “Well, your job is to ensure that customers receive satisfaction. If we piss off the pilots, then we lose their business. Then we lose all the airline employees’ business and we get shut down.” His voice rose the longer he spoke.
    “I’m sorry I snapped at Captain Armstrong. But he was being rude as well,” she pointed out.
    “The customer is always right,” he thundered. “Deal with that.”
    “I apologize. I won’t be rude again,” she said, feeling tears behind her eyes.
    She hated that she sometimes cried when she was angry. She wanted to show she was furious, not a weakling, dang it!
    “Look, Stormy, Captain Cooper Armstrong visits us many times during the week. You need to be more observant, take the time to actually notice the crew members who stop in frequently, and be extra courteous to them. I know this is a new shift for you, but just look at their name tags so you’ll remember them more easily, and be sure to give them that employee