by Susan Fox
Jonathan pulled her bag down the wheelchair ramp and she walked behind him, to where Aaron waited with his Jeep. Initially, she’d booked a 7:00 a.m. flight, but last night Aaron had said the departure time had changed to 7:30. Though she’d turned in her rental car yesterday, she’d told him she could get her bags to the dock, figuring he’d have preflight things to do. However, he’d insisted on picking her up.
“Seeing your family this weekend?” he asked once she’d climbed into the Jeep.
“Dinner tonight. I’ll spend part of the day there tomorrow, too, as well as going into the office for a couple of hours.” She gave a humorless laugh. “Yes, despite your best efforts to lighten me up, I’m the same woman who arrived here a week ago.”
“I like that woman,” he said quietly as he steered the Jeep into the village parking lot.
After taking her luggage out of the back, he led her directly down to the dock, not stopping in the office. She’d expected to check in, then join a group of passengers waiting to board the de Havilland Beaver. Instead, there were no people on the dock, and the only plane tied up was the blue-and-white Cessna four-seater. “Where’s the other plane?”
He opened the door and stowed her bags. “Jillian took the seven o’clock flight, with stops in Victoria and on Mayne Island.”
“That’s the flight I booked.”
“I changed things so I could take you. Rather than fly into Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre, I’m taking you to a seaplane dock on the Fraser River. There’ll be a taxi waiting and it’s a five-minute ride to the main terminal of the airport. Climb in.”
She obeyed, wondering why he’d made the change. Did he want to be alone with her? Or did he think she might go all girlie and make some kind of emotional scene in front of other passengers? She could have asked, but he’d only give her a flip answer, so she didn’t bother.
They remained silent until they were in the air, flying out of Blue Moon Harbor. Eden sighed. “I came here with such high hopes. I hate letting Mom down. I’ve always been the one my parents could count on. It’s Kelsey who often disappoints them.”
Aaron glanced over, then out the windshield, and then back at her, like he was debating whether to say something.
“What?” she asked.
“I’ve heard you say that before, and I’ve told you that all you can do is your best. As for your sister . . . well, maybe you’re being kind of judgmental. You and your parents. Seems to me you need to respect your sister’s independence and her right to make mistakes, even when you think she should do things differently.”
“What?” Here she was, feeling emotionally fragile, and he had to go and criticize her? Hurt and annoyed, she said, “I didn’t ask for your opinion. Especially on a subject you clearly know nothing about.”
“Hey, I was just trying to be helpful.” He sounded a little ticked off, too. “And yeah, I do know something about it. I have a younger sister, too. An independent one with a daughter and a pretty fucked-up life, who resists most of my efforts to help her. But that’s her right and I have to respect that. I mean, it’s her life.”
He had a sister? A niece? All week he’d kept his mouth shut about his family while Eden went on and on about hers. They’d been lovers and she thought they’d become friends, but he hadn’t even shared these significant details? In fact, he’d led her to believe there was no one in his life he cared deeply about. Stunned, she said, “You have a sister and a niece? And you’re only now telling me? That’s . . . it’s rude, shutting me out like that.”
“Shutting you out?” He shot her a nasty glance. “Just because you share all your personal shit with everyone you meet, that doesn’t mean it’s a good thing.”
And they were back to that. She connected on a serious level with people, shared with them, cared about them. Maybe he did that with his sister and niece—perhaps with his parents and whatever other family he had—but he sure wasn’t going to share anything meaningful with a random female he picked up for a week’s fling. “Whatever,” she muttered.
For the rest of the trip, she kept her mouth shut and her hands clasped tightly in her lap. This past week, she’d barely once felt the urge to bite her nails, but this morning it was back.
She noted the scenery below but didn’t ask what she was looking at, and Aaron didn’t tell her. Twenty minutes after takeoff, he flew along the mouth of a large, muddy river—the Fraser, she assumed—and took the plane down. He motored it to a wooden dock with a ramp and a small, open-sided roofed shelter with a Canadian flag flying from the top. Up on the road, she saw a parked yellow taxi.
Though she was still upset, she didn’t want to leave things like this. And so, after Aaron helped her clamber from the plane to the dock, she said, “Let’s not part on bad terms. We know we’re different kinds of people and there’s no point getting mad about it.”
He gave a curt nod. “Agreed. Sorry. I wanted this to be a nice flight for you, something special you’d remember once you were home.” He gave a tentative smile. “Now I’m hoping you’ll forget all about it.”
She smiled, too, relieved but sad. “I have a lot of wonderful memories of Destiny Island, most of them thanks to you.” It wasn’t his fault she’d proved incapable of a casual fling.
“I can leave the Cessna here for a few minutes. I’ll take your bags up to the taxi.”
“Thanks.”
Side by side, they walked up the ramp and along a wharf to shore. A woman popped out of the taxi, waved, and opened the trunk as they approached.
Aaron hoisted the wheeled bag into it and the driver returned to her seat.
He turned to Eden. “Have a good trip home. I’ll be in touch.”
She nodded. “Thanks again. For everything.” Even, perhaps, for the confusion and hurt, because they’d helped her clarify what kind of man and relationship she was looking for.
“You too.”
She wasn’t sure which one of them moved first, or maybe they did it at the same time, but they closed the foot of distance between them and were in each other’s arms. Not kissing, just holding. She wanted to tighten her grip, to cling, in some futile wish that things between them might be different. Instead, she managed to step back. “Bye, Aaron,” she said softly.
“Bye, Eden.”
Tears burned behind her eyes—how stupid to cry for something that had never really had a chance—and she quickly got into the taxi before he could see them fall.
Chapter Fourteen
Aaron’s Thursday morning flight from Vancouver was full, with drop-offs at two locations before he flew on to Destiny Island with Di and Seal SkySong and a tourist couple from Japan. He gave his usual spiel for the visitors, but even though they peppered him with questions, his mind wandered.
It had done a lot of that in the five days since Eden had left, and always in her direction. In the past, when he and a lover had parted ways, he might have an occasional affectionate thought or remember a particularly fun time together, but this was more like an obsession. He craved the sight of Eden’s smile and that cute scrunched-forehead thing she did when she was deep in thought. He listened for the distinctive sound of her laugh. His skin itched with a restlessness that only her touch could soothe.
This was damned annoying.
Thank heavens the SkySongs had finally returned. He could talk to them, send a brief email to Eden summarizing what they said, and then surely he could get her out of his mind and move on with his life.
After Kam had assisted in docking the Beaver, the young man took the tourists up to the office to call their B and B for a pickup. Aaron put the SkySongs’ luggage—colorful woven packs—on the dock.
The couple, in their midsixties, both attractive in a natural way, looked tired but, as usual, had an aura of serenity. Their hippie roots showed not only in their choice of luggage but in Seal’s gray ponytail, the length of Di’s silver and brown hair, and the embroidered top she wore.
“Can you two spare me a moment of your time?” A
aron asked.
Di studied him quizzically with her bright blue eyes as Seal shoved his wire-framed glasses up his nose and said, “Sure. What’s up?”
“You both belonged to the old commune back in the late sixties, early seventies, didn’t you?”
Di glanced at Seal, then back to Aaron. “Yes. Why do you ask?”
“While you were off-island, a woman came to visit, trying to track down her long-lost aunt. She talked to a number of people who’d belonged to or had contact with the commune, but no one could help her out. I wondered if by any chance you might remember the girl. Her name was Lucy Nelson.”
Di gasped, her tanned face growing pale, and she grabbed onto Seal’s arm as if she were going to faint.
“Lucy?” Seal echoed in a choked voice.
Aaron studied them with growing hope. “Yes. She was from Ottawa, would have been seventeen in 1969, and came with her boyfriend, Barry. I have pictures of Lucy.” He reached into his jeans pocket for his phone, found the old school photo, and handed his phone to Seal.
Seal took it but didn’t glance at the picture.
“Who is this woman who came looking?” Di asked in a thin voice.
“Lucy’s sister’s daughter, Eden Blaine. Her mother’s been ill and really wants to find her sister and reconnect.”
“Helen’s sick?” Di asked, looking stricken.
Aaron hadn’t mentioned Eden’s mother’s name. “Di? What do you know about this?”
She didn’t answer. Seal put his arm around her shoulders as, with graceful but trembling hands, she took the phone from him and gazed at the screen.
“That’s Lucy as a girl,” Aaron said, “and if you scroll on, there’s one of her and Helen.”
Di stared at the two pictures for a long time. And then she said, “I’m her. Lucy.”
Seal cleared his throat. “I’m Barry.”
Aaron gaped at the pair of them until Di said, “I need to sit down. We have some talking to do, Aaron.”
* * *
Eden tapped her fingers on her neatly organized desk at the Butterworth Foundation. It was five o’clock on Thursday and she was actually caught up with work. What a rare feeling, especially after having taken last week off.
Navdeep had really stepped up, proving to Eden that she wasn’t as indispensable as she’d thought. It was tough to get her head around that, and maybe it hurt her pride, but it was also a relief to be able to delegate to someone she could trust, and to have a capable person to brainstorm with.
So what should she do now? Stop in at ByWard Market for groceries and cook dinner for herself for a change, rather than stick something in the microwave? Pour a glass of wine and sift through the small collection of shells and pebbles she’d collected on Destiny Island? Indulge in a memory-lane trip through the photos she’d taken of the island and of Aaron and sniffle into her wine?
Aaron Gabriel. The man who had shared his love of flying and of Destiny Island but hadn’t really let her into his life. Not only hadn’t he mentioned having a sister and a niece until that fact slipped out in the course of an argument but neither had he told her that he owned Blue Moon Air. He’d let her think he was just a pilot, and one so careless about responsibility that he’d take chunks of time off whenever the whim struck him.
On Sunday, when Eden had checked her email, she’d found a message from Kam, stating that the price of her flight from Destiny Island to Vancouver had been refunded as per Aaron’s instructions. She’d been about to email back and ask for clarification, but an impulse had led her to first check the airline’s website. It was the first time she’d visited the website, because it was her dad who’d made her travel arrangements. Last week, when she’d been checking Aaron’s nonexistent social media presence, it hadn’t occurred to her to take a closer look at the Blue Moon Air website.
The site was professionally done and included lots of pictures of destinations on Blue Moon Air’s schedule, as well as the kinds of things tourists would see on sightseeing trips. It also included pictures of the planes, with their histories and specifications. And there were photos and profiles. Kam, the office manager, web designer, and aspiring pilot. Jillian, the pilot. And Aaron. Pilot, founder, and owner of Blue Moon Air. Which also made him the man who’d not only given her a couple of free flights but also given complimentary flights to seniors who couldn’t afford the fare to fly to medical appointments.
Maybe she should’ve clued in when Glory mentioned that fact. But damn Aaron. Why had he let her think—no, made her think—he didn’t take anything in life seriously?
The answer was obvious. As he’d said up front, he only wanted a casual relationship. He’d probably guessed, as Bernie had, that Eden was a woman who’d seek a serious relationship with a responsible man, so he’d made sure she didn’t see him that way. He convinced her he was a commitment-free guy, when in fact he owned a business and was significantly involved in his sister and niece’s lives. No wonder she’d suspected he had hidden depths.
He should have trusted and respected her enough to be honest with her. She wasn’t insane enough to fall in love with a man who didn’t want her. Sure, she might be mildly obsessed with him, but that would soon pass.
Her phone—the direct work line—rang, startling her. “Eden Blaine.”
“Eden, it’s Ray.”
“Ray. Oh. Uh, this is a surprise.” She and her ex hadn’t spoken, texted, or emailed since he’d moved his stuff out of the apartment two months earlier.
“How are you? And how’s your mom?”
“I’m fine and Mom’s doing okay. Thanks for asking.” This was all very polite, but why was he calling?
“Could I buy you a drink?”
Her mouth opened, but she didn’t say anything. What was going on?
“You’re wondering why.”
“Yes.”
“I’d like to talk. We were friends, more than friends, for a long time. I miss you and . . . well, yeah, I’d like to talk.”
She frowned. She missed him sometimes, too, though not as much as she’d expected to. Which proved she had speedy powers of recovery and would soon get over Aaron, too.
“Are you still mad at me?” he asked.
Examining her emotions, she said with some surprise, “No. I was, but it faded away.”
“Then let me buy you a drink. How late do you have to work tonight?”
She pressed her lips together. Oh, why not? As he said, they’d been friends for a long time. “I’m finished now.”
“Meet you at Zoé’s?”
Zoé’s was the elegant lounge at the Fairmont Château Laurier hotel—one of Eden’s favorite places, as Ray well knew. “I’ll see you there.” If nothing else, this should be interesting. He would never have chosen Zoé’s if he intended to pick a fight, so she needn’t stress out.
She gathered her things, turning off the ringer on her cell phone as she put it in her purse. In the ladies’ room, she freed her hair from its low ponytail and ran a brush through it, then deliberated. Not wanting Ray to think she was trying to look attractive for him, she pulled her hair back again.
Even so, objectively speaking she looked pretty darned good. The light tan suited her, especially against the coral blouse she wore with tailored charcoal pants and low-heeled black pumps. Her earrings weren’t the fanciful ones she’d bought on Destiny but her usual gold twists.
Outside her office building, a ten-story gray concrete one with reasonable rents, she didn’t don the suit jacket she carried draped over one arm. The temperature was probably about the same as it had been on Destiny Island, but without the ocean breeze it felt hotter.
As she walked the five or six blocks to the Château Laurier, she passed a couple of bars and restaurants with tables set out on the sidewalk. The tables were filling with people meeting up after work, as well as shoppers and tourists relaxing at the end of the afternoon. She wouldn’t have minded rolling up her shirtsleeves, putting on sunglasses, and having a drink outside, but th
ese weren’t Ray’s kind of place.
Besides, she’d adored the Château Laurier ever since she first saw it at the age of six, when Nana had taken her and her mom there for tea. On the sidewalk in front of the huge limestone hotel, Eden had stared in fascination at what seemed to her to be a castle straight out of a Disney princess movie, with its turrets and flags. Since then, it had remained her ideal place to celebrate a special occasion.
Kelsey thought it was too stuffy, but their mom loved it as much as Eden did. Eden smiled, thinking about what her sister had done the week before. When Kelsey had told her on the phone about not taking their mother to cancer support group, Eden hadn’t given her a chance to explain. It turned out, Kelsey and her university friend had taken Mom for high tea at the Château Laurier, finishing up with a trip to the hotel’s gift shop, where they’d bought fancy tea and jam. Mom had loved the outing, and it had no doubt lifted her spirits more than the cancer support group meeting would have. Not that those meetings weren’t important, but as Eden had been forced to admit, sometimes spontaneity and fun were beneficial, too.
She had been judgmental about her sister; Aaron was right. If he’d been in touch, she might have admitted it to him, but she hadn’t heard a word from him. Surely the SkySongs must have returned by now. If he didn’t get in touch by Sunday night, she’d text him to inquire.
Eden stepped into the hotel lobby. Although she’d never want this kind of elegant, traditional décor in her apartment, it was just right for this place. The dignified, classy ambience made her feel special.
She entered the lounge, so cool and quiet with its ivory walls and big urns filled with tropical greenery, so soothing after the hot, crowded streets. Ray was already there, seated in one of two upholstered chairs at a round coffee table. He stood as she crossed toward him and a warm sense of pleasure filled her. He wasn’t a monster, just a man she’d known and cared for—but perhaps not as well as she might have on either count.
