Chapter 13
Ace
I reach over the big armrest in the middle of the two first-class seats and grab her hand in mine. "I gotcha." My voice comes out calm when I see her eyes are filled with fear. "I've always gotcha." All she does is nod at me and then turns to look out the window.
"I can pretty much handle anything that you throw at me," she says, trying to remain calm as the plane makes its way down the runway. "I could pretty much wrestle with a tiger, and I'd feel better than being in a plane." Her leg starts to bounce up and down as she looks out the window.
"Hey." She turns to look at me. "Don't look outside," I tell her. "Just look at me."
The plane stops for a second, and I know that we are lining up to take off. I also know that once it starts moving faster, she'll probably freak out. "So what time did you get home yesterday?" I ask, not sure that I should even bring up yesterday, but at least her mind will be off the takeoff.
"I have no idea," she says, leaning her head back on the seat. She still has some makeup from yesterday on, and her eyes are a bright blue with red on the side, so I'm assuming she slept as great as I did. "I was looking for you." Her hand grips my hand a touch harder when the plane moves.
"I left after you fell asleep on me," I inform her. "Walked out, saw the family dancing, and decided that this was not what I wanted to do."
She laughs. "Right, because getting drunk by yourself was a better solution."
"Um," I say, rolling my eyes. "Obviously. Who doesn't like going home and getting shit-faced and then waking up and thinking about being fucked over in front of three hundred people."
She nods. "That's very manly of you." She laughs as the plane starts to move, but she doesn't notice. "Did you go home and rub dirt in it?"
"I woke up naked on my leather couch," I tell her the truth, and her eyes go big. "And someone had turned off the air-conditioning." I close my eyes. "I had to peel myself off it." Her mouth drops open. "Would not recommend to anyone." I shake my head as the plane speeds up even faster, and I continue my story so she can concentrate on me and not the fact that we are taking off. "I mean, I recommend Joseph do it and Sheila, but that's about it."
"I would recommend that they pour honey all over their bodies," she suggests. "And then go roll in sand and add in a couple of fire ants for some fun."
"Look outside." She turns her head, and her mouth goes into a smile.
"We took off," she says. "I didn't even notice. I had to share my most embarrassing moment with you." My thumb rubs her hand.
"I don't know how to thank you." Her voice is light, just like it was before the dreaded day. She leans over and kisses my cheek. "You're my hero." My heart speeds up, and my cheek still tingles from where she kissed me. "But seriously." She relaxes in her chair now, but her hand stays in mine. "When did you decide to come?"
"To be honest. It's pretty much a blur." I shake my head, trying to pinpoint that moment, but everything is coming in bits and pieces. "I don't know when exactly I decided to come on this trip, but apparently, it was while ending the second whiskey bottle. During which time, I was stumbling around my house and throwing all of Sheila's shit in a plastic bag. When my alarm went off this morning, I thought the house was on fire. I couldn't understand what was going on. I also couldn't find where the fucking blaring alarm was coming from. I kept walking around the house with one eye open because the other one was seeing double."
Her mouth opens as she tries not to laugh, but her blue eyes light up. "Where did you find it?"
"Right on top of the suitcase." I shake my head. "I almost killed myself because I kept tripping all over Sheila's shit that was scattered all over the house."
"I thought you said it was in a bag?" She’s trying not to laugh.
"No, that was the plan." I laugh at myself. "But I didn't exactly open the bag to put the stuff in, so it made a path all through the house." She puts her hand in front of her mouth. "Also did that fully naked, so that was fun." Her head goes back, and she laughs again. "I took it as a sign that I should come and drown my sorrows in the sand."
"Well, I think that was a great decision," she says. "We can drown together."
"Besides"—I look around—"I can only endure so many looks of pity."
"My mother was still giving me the look this morning when she asked me if it was smart that I go." She shrugs.
"Your mother was the first pity look I got." I laugh at her. "I mean, I'm sure I got lots of them walking down the aisle after you and ignoring Sheila." The attendant comes over when the seat belt sign goes off.
"Can I get you guys something to drink?"
"I'll have another mimosa, and he'll have a whiskey," Shelby says.
I shake my head. "I'll just have ice water."
"How are we supposed to drown our sorrows with ice water?" she huffs, and I laugh. She finally lets my hand go.
"I was so parched this morning," I tell her. "I drank my shower water while it was pouring on my face."
She laughs again. "This is going to be a great week." She turns to look out the window. "I can feel it."
"I don't want to feel anything this week," I mumble when the attendant comes over with a tray and hands me my water, and Shelby leans across me to get her mimosa.
"To an unforgettable week." She holds up her glass. "Oh, wait, is that right?" She looks to the side now. "Do we want to forget this week, or do we want to forget last week?" I roll my lips to keep from laughing at her as she works it out in her head. "Whatever." She holds her glass up, and I clink it.
The rest of the flight is uneventful, and I doze off for a bit, waking up when I hear the captain announcing that we will be arriving in fifteen minutes. My neck hurts from staying in the same position for too long. Something tickles my nose, and I look down to see Shelby's head falling off my shoulder. I think about waking her, but I know that she hates flying, so instead, I let her sleep until the wheels touch down. "Hey." I put my cheek on her head. "We're here."
She grumbles awake. "What is that pounding?" She looks around, and I try not to laugh at her, but I can't help it.
"It's called a hangover." I reach out my hand and wipe the black makeup that is under her eye with my thumb. "Also, you got black shit."
"I'm starving." She bends her arms and stretches, arching her back. She is wearing a baby-blue tank top with spaghetti straps. "I really need to eat." She grabs the sweater laid over her lap. She leans forward, grabbing her bag under the seat in front of her and tosses the sweater inside it. When the plane stops, and we are allowed to get up, I step out into the aisle and hold out my hand for her. She slips her hand in mine, and I point at the overhead bin instead of asking her because, for some odd fucking reason, all the words are stuck in my throat. She shakes her head, and we walk out of the plane.
The hot air hits us right away as we stand in the middle of the tarmac on the metal stairs. "Why is it so bright?" she mumbles as we make our way into the airport. I hold the door open for her as she steps into the cool baggage claim area. "I'm going to go do something with my face." She looks around for the signs to the bathroom.
"What color is your bag?" She laughs.
"White. It says bride on it," she says, and I think she's kidding. "You won't miss it."
I shake my head and head over to the baggage carousel. The beep tells me that the luggage will soon arrive as the area gets more crowded. The belt starts moving, and when the first bag comes out, I groan. She was not fucking kidding. Not only is it white with the big letters that say bride but there is also tulle tied to the handles. I grab the bag, and the man and woman standing next to me smile. I don't even know what to say. "Oh, you got my bag," I hear from behind me and turn to see her wearing a white shirt now.
"I thought you were kidding," I grumble when I see my silver luggage come out.
"One does not kid about a bride suitcase." She smirks at me, and I see that her face is makeup-free now. All the black marks are gone.
"Apparently, one needs everyone to know that they got married." I smirk over at her as the lady that smiled at me leans in.
"Congrats, you two," she says. "You make a beautiful couple."
I look at Shelby, who just nods and then turns around. "Remind me to get a couple of markers when we get to the hotel and fuck this shit up." She looks over at me as we walk toward the exit.
"You know what you can do," I say. "Put runaway before the bride." I laugh. "No one is going to want to talk to you after they read that."
"That just might be the best plan you've ever had." We walk toward the exit and see the driver standing there with a big sign in his hand with hearts all over it.
Mr. & Mrs. J. Romano
"He's not going to need that sign," I say under my breath and look over to see how Shelby will react. I don't have time because the man's face fills with a huge smile.
His eyes find the luggage as he comes over to us. "Welcome," he says.
"What tipped you off?" I ask him, and his smile never leaves his face while he looks down at the luggage.
"That's what I thought." I try not to laugh.
"Are those the only bags you have?" the driver asks as he tucks the sign under his arm, rushing to grab the luggage from us, and we both nod. "I'll take that." He grabs the handles as he wheels them behind him. "If you’ll follow me."
We follow him to the white limousine. "You know what that outfit is missing?" I put my arm around her shoulders. "A hat with a veil." She turns her head to look up at me and glares.
"Remember when I said you should come with me?" She pushes away from me, but my arm remains around her shoulders. "I lied. You can go home."
"Go home?" I stop as the driver opens the door. A white balloon flies out, and from the looks of it, there are more in the car. "And miss all the fun?"