by Britney King
“So.” Jack broke the silence. “Anything?”
The man pulled a folded set of paperwork from his back pocket. “Nothing concrete. But I was able to locate an email address and pull a travel manifesto—places we believe her to be visiting in the next few weeks.”
“Well, that’s something,” Jack said. “How’d you get the information? Maybe there’s more where it came from.”
The man looked at the paperwork before handing it over and smiled slightly. “Don’t ask.”
Jack read through the documents and glanced at the photographs. “South America, huh.”
“Yeah. It’s not a lot to go on. But I wanted you to have it, just so you understand that progress is being made. No matter how slow it may seem.”
Jack looked at the paperwork and then back at the photographs. “I’m going to book a flight.”
The man didn’t look the least bit fazed. “Mr. Harrison, I’m not sure that is advisable at this point. We really don’t have enough to go on—not enough in order to make it worth your time.”
Jack smiled at the investigator. “Do you see all of those photographs, Mr. McDowell?” He pointed at the wall. “Every so often at random I receive the same padded envelope addressed to me here at my office. There’s never a return address, but she always sends several photographs. Each one has a note on the back saying where it was taken. These photographs are her messages to me. They’re clues as to where and how she is, to how she sees the world at any given time. But you’d have to know her to understand that. And if there’s anything I know, it’s Amelie and how she travels. I’ve travelled with her for over half of my life. So trust me when I say, I know a thing or two about her habits.”
The man nodded. “But have you considered that perhaps Miss Rose doesn’t want to be found—that perhaps this is the reason she never leaves a return address, the reason that her own mother can’t tell us where she is?”
Jack rubbed at his chin. “I’ve considered that, yes. I just don’t buy it. She’s making herself difficult to find and yet, not impossible—hence the photographs. The thing about Amelie, Sam, is that you always have to work a little bit harder than you’re comfortable with.”
That afternoon, Jack sat down at his desk and composed an email to Amelie. He typed, deleted, typed, and then deleted some more before finally settling on this:
To: Amelie Rose
From: Jack Harrison
June 28, 2012
4:43 PM
Subject: Longstanding Friendships
Dear Amelie,
You’re a hard one to track down, my friend. But word on the street has it that you might be traveling to Ecuador in the next few days. I find that to be quite coincidental as that’s where I’m headed, as well. Anyway, I’d like to see you.
I’ll be staying at the Hilton Colon Guayaquil. If you receive this in time, meet me in the hotel lobby on June 30th at 4:00 PM ECT. In the meantime, my phone number is below, and I’d love to hear from you.
Hope to see you soon, kid.
Jack
Two days later, Jack boarded a plane bound for Ecuador. He still had yet to receive a response back from Amelie, but something in his gut told him she would show, and if she didn’t, well, he decided that he would still make a nice holiday out of it. It wasn’t until he’d placed his bags in the overhead compartment and taken his seat that he began to have second thoughts. He fumbled with his phone and checked his email again when suddenly the lady in the window seat spoke up. “I see you’re one of ‘those.’ My son is one of those, too. I just don’t get it. Must be a generational thing…”
Jack glanced over at the woman, unsure if she’d been speaking to him. “Oh, don’t mind me. I promise not to talk the whole time. But I just think it’s so odd how people can be encapsulated in an aluminum cylinder, which happens to be shooting through the sky at a very high rate of speed and not even know the persons name they’re sitting next to… Anyhow, I’m Jane.”
He didn’t buy it. He knew her type. She was a nervous flier, which meant two things for Jack: she’d talk the entire time, and it was going to be one hell of a long flight. He eyed the heavyset woman who appeared to be in her mid to late sixties and stuck out his hand. “Jack Harrison,” he said before going back to his phone.
“I really have no idea what you kids do on those things.”
Jack smiled but didn’t look up. Nip this in the bud now, he told himself.
“I’m going to visit my son. He’s a scientist. He’s studying in the Galapagos.”
Jack stared at his phone. “You must be proud.”
She didn’t miss a beat. “Oh, I am. Very proud. But if you ask me, I think he’s too focused on his work. He needs to find love, settle down, and give me a few grand babies. He seems to think he has all the time in the world. But when one gets to be my age… well, you start to see things a little differently.”
Jack leaned his head back against the seat and closed his eyes. “I’m sure.”
She didn’t take the hint. “How about you? Do you have children? I see you’re not wearing a wedding ring, but that doesn’t mean anything these days.”
Jack sighed. “No. No children for me.”
To his surprise, the woman didn’t respond right away. Jack felt the plane reverse and taxi down the runway. He checked his email once more and switched his phone to airplane mode. He felt the woman watching him from the corner of his eye. “This is my first time flying,” she said and then paused. “It’s hard to believe I’m sixty-eight years old, and I’ve never flown. I’d always meant to, you know. But somehow, life just has a way of passing you by.”
“Yes. I do know,” Jack remarked. He looked at the woman and considered that he was seeing her for the first time. He sensed her nervousness. “There’s no need to worry, Miss. Flying is relatively safe. I’ve flown probably… hundreds of times and I’m still here. If you get nervous, just pretend you’re somewhere else. That’s what most people do.”
The lady smiled. “Hundreds of times? It sounds like you’re well-traveled. Care to humor an old woman and tell me about the places you’ve visited? It really helps my nerves to focus on conversation. ”
Jack remembered his mother making the same request during her chemo treatments, and especially in her final days. Talk to me, she’d say. Tell me about your day. Tell me about the weather. Tell me about school. Jack would spend hours talking, telling her about everything and nothing. He’d forgotten about that until now. He swallowed hard. And then he spent the next five hours telling a random stranger his life story.
“This friend you’re going to see,” the woman smiled, “she sounds really special.”
Jack nodded. “She is.”
“Do you think she’ll show?”
He pondered the question for a moment. “You know, I really don’t know. We’ve been through so much together that I’d like to think that if she’s received my correspondence, she will, but then again, I know I really hurt her. And who knows, maybe she’s happily married with a few children by now. Maybe she has no desire to see me, to revisit the past.”
“For what it’s worth, dear, I think you’re doing the right thing, flying out here. So many people would call or write or email, as you young people like to do, and leave it at that—but not you. You’re actually showing up. And showing up is what matters in life. It makes all the difference. Even if the outcome isn’t what you might’ve hoped for. No matter what… at least you’ll always have that.”
Jack checked into his hotel with three hours to spare before the time he’d proposed to Amelie that they meet in the lobby. He went upstairs, showered, unpacked and dressed in a clean pair of blue jeans and a button down shirt. He paced the room for a bit, and then powered up his laptop, checked his email, fumbled around the room a bit longer before deciding to head down to the bar to kill some time. Jack ordered a glass of red wine and drank half. He checked his watch repeatedly until finally, with half an hour remaining, he made his way out into the lobb
y to wait. Jack heard the familiar voice call his name as soon as he rounded the corner. He looked up to see Amelie barreling toward him. He braced himself as she crashed into him, catching him a little off guard when she jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. He tripped backward a bit before he was to able steady himself by evening out her weight. He regained his balance and pulled back a little trying to see her face. She wrapped her arms around his neck and dug her face into his neck. “Amelie. I can’t breathe.” He reached up and attempted to loosen the grip she had around his neck. “Hey. Hey!” he whispered. “You’re cutting off my air supply…”
She pulled back then and let her legs drop to the floor. “I can’t believe you’re really here!”
Jack looked confused. “Didn’t you get my email?”
Amelie eyed him up and down. “Yeah. Why?”
“Because you didn’t respond.”
She waved her hand in the air as though she were dismissing his concern. “I wanted to surprise you.”
Jack smiled and took her in. She was beautiful—her blonde hair piled in a messy bun that sat atop her head, her face bare without a trace of makeup, and she was dressed casually in shorts, a tank top, and flip-flops. Not much had changed, Jack thought. He shook his head. “Yeah, well, a response would’ve surprised me. I never have—ever understood your logic.”
“When did you get in? Are you hungry? I’m starving… and I know just the place,” she asked as she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the exit.
“Amelie.” Jack stopped mid-stride.
She turned and waited.
“It’s really, really good to see you.”
Amelie led him into a poorly lit crowded restaurant. She nodded to a waiter who appeared and said something in Spanish that Jack wasn’t quick enough to catch. He glanced around the place and back at Amelie. “You’re sure you want to eat in this place… it doesn’t look very safe.”
She laughed. “I consider this to be one of the finest eateries in all of South America. And believe me when I say I’ve tried quite a few of them”
The waiter set two bottled waters down at their table. Jack picked up one of them, twisted the cap off, and pushed it in her direction. He did the same to his and took a sip. “So you come here often? To South America, I mean?”
She nodded. “Yeah. Actually, I live here part of the time, when I’m not traveling so much.” She gulped her water and twisted the cap back on. “But what about you? What brings you here? Business? Pleasure?”
“You.”
She furrowed her brow. “Me?”
“I wanted to see you.”
“Oh.” She swallowed. Amelie paused and picked at the label on her bottle of water. “I heard about the divorce. I’m sorry…”
Jack eyed her, confused. “You did? How?”
Amelie smiled wryly. “Google alerts.”
“Ah. So you’ve been stalking me, then.”
“I prefer to call it keeping tabs on an old friend…”
He nodded in her direction. “What about you? What’ve you been up to?” He glanced at her ring finger though he’d already noted it was bare.
“Work mostly. But I have three kids and a very handsome husband. They keep me pretty busy.”
Jack felt his mouth go dry. “Oh, wow. The kids… what are their ages?”
She threw her head back and laughed. “Geez, Jack, relax. I’m just messing with you. No kids for me. No husband, either.” She couldn’t stop giggling. “I’m sorry. That was mean, I know. But you’re practically as white as a ghost.”
He frowned. “That was mean.”
The waiter placed two plates on the table then and walked away. “I ordered you the special. I hope that’s ok.”
He shrugged, nonchalantly. “Are you seeing anyone?”
Amelie stabbed at her food and took a bite. “You don’t waste any time, do you?”
Jack looked away.
She caught herself. “Oh… no… I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant… that you’re full of questions, that’s all.” She slid her hand across the table and placed it on top of his. “Jack, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
He looked back at her and grinned. “Ha! No offense taken. That was me getting you back. And forcing you to touch me.” He winked. “I’m good like that.”
She slapped his hand. “Nice one. I should’ve known you, Jack Harrison, lack the feelings most of us humans carry around.”
“I do not.”
Amelie started to speak, but then hesitated and looked away before turning back. When she spoke, her tone had changed. “I am seeing someone, actually.”
Jack treaded carefully just to make sure she wasn’t joking again. “Can’t say I’m surprised. I mean look at you… you’re stunning.”
She smiled slightly. “I’m really glad you’re here. There’s so much I want to show you.”
He reached for her hand her eyes immediately followed his hand as it brushed hers. “That’s good. Because there’s so much I want to see.”
After they had eaten, Amelie insisted they should head off to one of the National Parks. There was something she wanted to shoot when the lighting was right, and she wanted him to come along. Jack informed her that he needed to stop back at the hotel to change his clothes and his shoes, which is how with luck and a little charm they ended up back in his room.
Amelie sat on the bed and watched him as he fumbled through one of his suitcases. She nodded toward the other one. “I’m surprised you brought two of them. I’ve never seen you travel with two before.”
He shrugged. “Maybe I plan on staying a while.”
She threw her head back and laughed. “Right.”
Jack pretended to ignore her laughter and continued searching for the item of clothing he wanted to wear. “Why? Would that be such a bad thing?”
She looked up and met his gaze. “You’re serious?”
He backtracked a little. “Well, yeah. Sort of.”
“But what about your work?”
“I’m selling The Harrison Group.”
“What? No! Why?” She was so taken aback by what he’d said that she couldn’t find the right words with which to respond.
He shrugged slightly. “My heart just wasn’t in it anymore.”
“Since when have you ever cared about that?” she asked, her voice uneven.
He looked toward the balcony door and then back at her. “Since I decided not to settle any longer. I want something that lights me up. Something that makes me excited to wake up. I don’t really need to work. At least not for a while, anyway. I’ve done pretty well for myself. So I figure that I’ll travel around for a bit until something strikes my fancy.”
She furrowed her brow then smiled. “Who are you, and what have you done with Jack Harrison.”
He laughed. “It’s me. I’m him. Just a little wiser, that’s all.” He gave up on what he’d been looking for and sat down on the bed beside her. “The thing is, for so long I had my life all mapped out. I thought I knew what I wanted, and when things didn’t work out, I realized that I had it all wrong. I realized I wanted something different altogether. I wanted something more…”
“And what is that?”
“I’m looking at it.”
He leaned in and kissed her once softly, asking for permission with his expression. To his surprise, she kissed back. Hard. Relentlessly.
She climbed on top of him and pulled her tank top over her head. Jack leaned up, unfastened her bra, and took one of her breasts in his mouth and sucked hard. He pulled back, released her, and took the other in his mouth, giving it the same attention. Amelie ran her fingers through his hair, then grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled it, forcing his face upward toward her. He grabbed her chin and sucked her bottom lip before releasing it and searching her eyes. “What about this guy you’re seeing? Is it serious?”
She smiled and then trailed kisses down his neck. “Does it seem very serious to you?” she mur
mured, sucking on and then nipping his neck with her teeth. And just like that, Jack had had it with her smart mouth. All of a sudden, he had something to prove. He wrapped his arm around her back and lowered her to the bed. She perched herself up on her elbows as she watched him fumble with her shorts. With one hand, he unbuttoned them, and with the other, his own pants. He slowly pulled them down her legs, stood up, removed his, and then promptly buried his head between her thighs. Amelie moaned, dug her fingers into his scalp, and arched her back. Jack didn’t stop until she begged him to fuck her. He obliged as she called out his name again and again and again. After they had finished in unison, they laid there, silent and sweaty, staring at one another until the light began to fade.
“Jack?”
His eyes widened, but he didn’t speak.
She smiled a devious smile. That smile he’d always loved. “I’m really glad you came.”
He leaned in and kissed the tip of her nose. “Me, too, kid. Me too.”
Acknowledgments
Most importantly, I’d like to express my gratitude to those who inspired me to write this story. You know who are.
Thank you to Rogena Mitchell for the arduous job she did editing, and for pointing out with all of the grace in the world what was needed to polish my manuscript.
Once again, many thanks to Lisa Wilson of Pixel Pixie Design for being not only an amazing person but truly brilliant at all things design. More importantly, for not murdering me when I insisted we start over.