Love at First flight

by Marie Force

  Their lovemaking was desperate and almost frantic throughout a night neither of them would ever forget.

  As the sun came up the next morning, Michael was filled with a sense of foreboding that left him wondering if what she had given him that night was going to have to last a lifetime.

  Juliana took her time in the shower, wanting to prolong her departure as long as she could. She heard the bathroom door open.

  “Want some company?”

  “Sure.”

  He got in behind her and wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head. “I don’t want you to go.”

  She turned to him, the water sluicing over them. “You have things you need to take care of, too,” she reminded him.

  Capturing her mouth in a plundering kiss, he lifted her, pressed her against the wall, and made love to her one last time. When it was over, tears mixed in with the water on his face as he struggled to catch his breath. “I’m sorry,” he said against her ear. “I didn’t come in here for that.”

  “Don’t be sorry.” She kept her arms and legs wrapped around him until the water turned cool, and they released each other with great reluctance.

  They got dressed in silence, and Juliana dried her hair. She covered what remained of the bruise on her face with makeup before gathering the last of the things she needed from the bathroom and adding them to her bag. Then there was nothing left to do, no reason left to stay.

  Michael walked her downstairs and held her coat for her. He gathered her hair from under the collar and let it slide through his fingers.

  “What time’s your flight?” she asked.

  “Noon. I’ll be back tomorrow night around seven.”

  She rested her hands on his chest. “Good luck with all that.” With a small, sad smile, she added, “Don’t let her hit you.”

  “I’ve learned to be ready for it.”

  She hugged him.

  “You’ll be back tomorrow night, right?”

  “Yes.”

  He kept his arms around her. “I don’t want to let you go.”

  They held on tight for a long time before Juliana took a step back, gazed at his handsome face, and reached up to kiss him. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” He stepped aside so she could open the door. “Don’t forget to come back.”

  “I won’t.” She leaned in for one last, quick kiss and was startled when he responded with a burst of desperate passion.

  “Go,” he whispered against her lips, his eyes bright with tears.

  Without another word, she went out the door to her car.

  Juliana drove around for almost an hour to get her emotions under control before she faced Jeremy. She willed herself not to cry so she wouldn’t have to explain red eyes to him. Pulling up in front of the house on Collington Street, she noticed his black Toyota SUV parked outside for the first time in nearly a year.

  For several minutes, Juliana was unable to move. Finally, with a last deep breath for courage, she grabbed her bag, got out of the car, climbed the cement stairs, and used her key in the front door. Inside, she dropped her bag on the floor and took off her coat, filled with the odd sense of having landed somewhere she no longer belonged. In just two short months, Michael’s house had become home to her.

  Jeremy came bounding down the stairs with a big smile on his face. “Oh, babe, I’m so glad you’re home!” He flung his arms around her and lifted her off her feet. By the time he put her down, they were both in tears, but for different reasons. “It’s so good to see you.” He caressed her face as if to convince himself she was really there. “I missed you so much.” He brushed his lips over hers but was so caught up in the moment he failed to notice her lack of response.

  “Jer, we need to talk,” she said, pulling back from him.

  He reached out to run his fingers through her hair, and she was stricken by the memory of Michael doing the same thing only an hour ago.

  “I know, but I just want to be with you for a while first. Is that okay?”

  She hesitated and then nodded.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked.

  “Sort of.”

  “Why don’t we go get some breakfast?”

  Juliana didn’t think she could eat, but it was something to do. “Okay.”

  They put on their coats to walk the short distance to their favorite coffee shop. On the way, Jeremy kept his arm looped around her shoulders. Juliana prayed that Michael wouldn’t drive by on his way to the airport and see them together. She was finally able to breathe again after they ducked into the tiny restaurant where they were greeted like returning royalty.

  “Hey, you guys!” their waitress friend Carla said with a warm smile. “We were just talking about you the other day! Where’ve you been?”

  “I was working in Florida for the last nine months. I just got back last night.” He reached for Juliana’s hand. “It sure is good to be home.”

  “It’s great to see you,” Carla said. “Can I get you the usual?”

  “That works for me. Jule?”

  Juliana swallowed the lump that lodged in her throat as she and Jeremy slid back into their old life like nothing had happened. “Just coffee and wheat toast for me, please.”

  “You’re sure, babe?”

  She nodded.

  “Coming right up.”

  Jeremy smiled and reached across the table for Juliana’s other hand. “I can’t believe you’re really here with me. I thought today would never get here.”

  “It’s good to see you, too.” She hadn’t expected to be so glad to see him.

  “I’m surprised I can even function after the last two weeks. I worked sixteen, seventeen hours a day to finish everything so I could leave by Wednesday. A couple of nights I slept on the floor at the office because it wasn’t worth going home.”

  “Did you get it all done?”

  “My part’s done. I might have to go back for a day or two in the next few weeks, but that’s it. The rest of them have at least another month, maybe two, before they’re done.”

  “So you didn’t have to quit to come home early?”

  “Fortunately, it didn’t come to that. They even gave me next week off and a bonus for getting the install done early.”

  “That’s good. Congratulations.”

  “How’s everything at the salon?”

  “Oh.” The question startled her. She hadn’t been to the salon in almost three weeks and was due back to work on Tuesday. “Fine. Nothing new.”

  Carla brought them coffee.

  Jeremy added cream and sugar to Juliana’s and slid it over to her.

  “Thanks,” she said, touched by his attentiveness.

  “I missed you so much, Jule. Did you miss me?”

  “Of course I did.”

  His face sagged with relief. “I’m glad to hear that. I was so nervous about seeing you today, but the minute you walked in all the nerves went away.” He kissed both her hands and then released them when Carla brought their food.

  “Just holler if you need anything else.”

  Jeremy dove into his omelet while Juliana picked at her toast.

  “I thought you were hungry,” he said.

  “Not as much as I thought.”

  “Are you okay?” he asked, his eyebrows knitting with concern.

  Her heart ached when she realized this was going to be much, much harder than she ever could have imagined. “We really need to talk.”

  “Later. I promise.” After they had a second cup of coffee, he paid the check and extended his hand to her.

  “Take care, you guys,” Carla said. “Come back again soon.”

  Jeremy held the door for Juliana. “We will,” he replied.

  At home, he took her coat and hung it next to his in the closet.

  Juliana wandered into the kitchen to flip through the mail. Most of it was junk, which she threw away. She wished desperately for something else to do, anything to avoid confronting the needy, hopeful
vibe coming from Jeremy. When she couldn’t put it off any longer, she went to sit next to him on the sofa.

  He put his arm around her and brought her close to him.

  Juliana resisted his efforts to kiss her.

  “What?”

  “Don’t.”

  “Why?”

  She pulled free of his embrace and stood up. “I can’t do this! I can’t just pick up where we left off like nothing’s happened!.”

  He got up and rested his hands on her shoulders. “Let’s just take it a step at a time. Can we do that?”

  “No, Jer, we can’t.” She took a deep breath. “I don’t know how to say this—”

  He held up a hand to stop her. “Don’t. Don’t say anything right now, please? Just give me today and tonight. You can say anything you want to tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay,” she said reluctantly.

  After ten years, she could give him one more day.

  Chapter 31

  Michael moved through the house like he had hundred-pound weights attached to his legs. He’d experienced the worst feeling watching Juliana drive away to meet her boyfriend or ex-boyfriend or whatever the hell he was. Michael feared he would regret letting her go, even for just two days.

  Before he left for the airport, he called his mother to let her know he was going to Florida for the night.

  “Oh, Michael, why?” Maureen cried. “I thought you were done with her. Didn’t you just go to the Bahamas with Juliana?”

  “I am done with Paige, and things are great with Juliana.” He hoped he wasn’t jinxing himself with that statement. “I just have a few loose ends I need to sew up with Paige.”

  “What kind of loose ends?”

  He struggled to find the words.

  “Michael?”

  “She says she’s pregnant.”

  “Pregnant?” Maureen gasped. “Are you kidding me?”

  “I wish I was.”

  “Oh, dear God. How could that have happened?”

  “The usual way, I suspect.”

  “I’m surprised at you, Michael. I would’ve have expected you to be more careful.”

  “I’m always careful, but the one time I wasn’t…”

  “She’s trying to trap you.” Maureen’s voice grew more desperate by the second. “You can’t let her do that.”

  “Mom, listen. I agree with you. I highly doubt there’s a baby, which is why I’m going down there today. I want to settle this with her once and for all.”

  “Do not marry her, Michael. No matter what, you can’t marry her.”

  “There’s no way I’m going to marry her. Don’t worry.”

  “What does Juliana think of all this? She must be thrilled.”

  He couldn’t even think about where Juliana was right then or what she might be dealing with. “She’s supportive. She knows whatever happened with Paige happened before she and I were together. But we both hope Paige is lying.”

  “And if she isn’t?”

  “Then I guess I’m going to be a father.”

  “Oh, Michael,” Maureen sighed. “All this on top of everything with the trial.”

  “I know. As always, her timing is exquisite.”

  “I’ll be thinking of you, honey. Call me when you get home, okay?”

  “I will. Love you, Mom.”

  “Love you, too. You’re a good man, Michael. Don’t let her do anything to make you feel otherwise. Do you hear me?”

  He smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”

  All Michael could think about on the two-hour flight to Jacksonville was the last time he made this trip and met Juliana. The plane landed in the midst of a stormy downpour in northern Florida that mirrored his mood as he rented a car to drive to Amelia Island. He hadn’t told Paige he was coming so she wouldn’t have time for plots or schemes.

  The relentless rain turned what should have been a thirty-minute ride into an hour-long ordeal. Michael parked in the Simpson’s driveway and was drenched by the time he got to front porch. He rang the bell and pounded on the door, but there was no answer. “Goddamn it!” Now what? Shivering in the cold rain, he ran down the street to the home of their friends where he knocked on the neighbor’s door and almost groaned with relief when it opened.

  “Michael?”

  “Hi, Mrs. Davis. I’m glad you’re home. Do you know where the Simpsons are?”

  “Come in. Get out of that rain.”

  “I’m soaking wet.”

  “It’s fine. Come in.”

  She went into the powder room and came back with a towel for him.

  “Thank you.” He wiped the towel over his face and was careful not to move off the mat in the front hall. “Do you know where they are?”

  “Honey,” she said in a lilting southern accent. “Paige is in the hospital.”

  “Why?” Michael gasped. “What hospital?”

  “I’m not exactly sure why, but she’s at Baptist. Do you know where it is?”

  He shook his head, so she wrote down the directions. Handing her the towel, he thanked her for the information. As he ran back to his car, his heart pumped with exertion and anxiety.

  Michael sped through the rain, squinting to see the street signs as he followed Mrs. Davis’s directions. Arriving at the hospital forty-five minutes later, he noticed that the rain had let up some.

  He asked for Paige at the information desk and was directed to the third floor. In the elevator, he read that the third floor housed the obstetrics department. “Fuck,” he groaned. “Fuck!” The elevator opened, and he rushed into the hallway, stopping short when he came face-to-face with Admiral Simpson.

  “Hello, Michael,” the Admiral said coldly.

  Michael wiped the rain off his face. “Admiral, where is she?”

  The Admiral studied Michael for a long moment before he gestured to a door on the left side of the hallway.

  Michael went to the door and took a second to compose himself before he pushed it open.

  Asleep in a hospital bed, Paige was so pale her face blended in with the stark white sheets. Even her lips were all but invisible. An IV hung over her with a bag of blood hanging next to it.

  Eleanor looked up when Michael came in.

  “Mrs. Simpson, what happened? What’s wrong?”

  “She had a miscarriage, Michael. It was pretty bad. She lost a lot of blood.”

  “Oh.” He fought off a sudden rush of nausea. I didn’t believe her. Oh God, I didn’t believe her. “When?”

  “Two days ago.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?”

  “She asked us not to.”

  Michael moved to the side of the bed, overcome by guilt over how badly he had handled this. Tears burning his eyes, he reached for her cold hand. Oh, Paige, I’m sorry I didn’t believe you. I’m so sorry. Keeping a firm grip on her hand, he stared down at her. He was so intent on Paige he didn’t notice when Eleanor slipped out of the room.

  What felt like an eternity passed before Paige finally stirred. She blinked him into focus. “Michael?” she whispered, her blue eyes swimming with tears. “I told them not to call you.”

  “They didn’t. I came to see you like I promised I would when the trial was over. Mrs. Davis told me you were here. I’m sorry, Paige. I don’t know what to say.”

  “I’m so sad, Michael. I wanted our baby so badly. I’ve lost you. I’ve lost the baby. There’s nothing left.”

  He brushed the hair back from her face. “You can’t think like that. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you.”

  She shook her head. “I drove you away, and I probably did something to make the baby die, too. You were right when you said I’m a horrible person. This must be my punishment.”

  “I never said you were a horrible person.” He sat on the bed and took her in his arms as she sobbed. “And you didn’t do anything to hurt the baby, Paige. You couldn’t have.”

  “I was so awful to you. I was like someone I didn’t recognize after you broke up with me. You didn’t even
believe me about the baby.”

  “No,” he admitted. “I really didn’t, and I’m sorry for that.”

  “I told my parents not to call you because I knew you’d think it was just another ploy, and I wouldn’t have blamed you.”

  “I’m sorry things got so bad between us that you couldn’t call me when you needed me.”

  “I’m the one who’s sorry.” Sobs shook her fragile body. “Losing you was the worst thing that’s ever happened to me—until now. I was such a monster, and I’m so ashamed.”

  He settled her back against the pillow but continued to hold her hand. “It’s all in the past now. Let’s just forget about that and focus on getting you better.”

  “Michael, can I ask you something, and will you tell me the truth?”

  “Of course.”

  “First, I want you to know I’ve learned a lot about myself in the last two months, and I’ve realized I need to make some changes. I’ve let my parents, especially my dad, be too involved in my life, and that needs to stop. I know now it’s time to start acting like a grown-up and not like their princess. So here’s my question: in light of these discoveries I’ve made, is there any chance at all that we can put things back together between us?”

  “I don’t want to hurt you, Paige.”

  “Just tell me. I need to know.”

  “I’m sorry but no. Our time together was so special to me, and I’ll never forget all the good times we had. But it’s over now. It’s time for both of us to move on.”

  Tears spilled down her cheeks. “That’s what I figured you’d say. I really blew it with you, and I’m always going to be sorry for that. You were so good to me, better than I deserved.”

  “I loved you, Paige—very much—and for a very long time.”

  “I loved you, too.”

  “Can I ask you something?”

  “Sure.”

  “The baby… could they tell if it was a boy or a girl?”

  She shook her head. “It was too soon to tell.”

  “And you’re okay? You can have others?”

  “I should be able to.”

  “That’s a relief.”

  “What would we have done if it had lived?” she asked.

  “Hopefully, we would’ve worked something out so he or she would’ve grown up with two loving parents who were able to put aside their differences to do what was best for their child.”