by Merri Hiatt
When she opened the terminal door leading to the holding area, Captain Sarah Marshall waved, then came over to meet her. “Jenny, are you working this flight?”
“No, but I am looking for the baggage truck for this flight.”
“Why?”
Jenny leaned in closer. “Actually, I’m looking for the baggage truck driver.”
“Ah.” Sarah smiled. “That’s why you’re looking all prettified.”
“Too obvious?”
“Just the right amount of obvious, I’d say. Enough for him to get the point, but not overkill.”
“Have you seen the luggage truck?”
“Should be here any minute. Good luck. Tell Kate hi for me.”
“Thanks, and I will.”
Jenny walked around the jet, scanning the area for signs of Rich. After several minutes, she saw a truck with six baggage containers attached snaking its way toward the plane.
Jenny smoothed her hands over her thighs and took a deep breath. She just needed to wait until he was transferring the contents of the last container, then she could approach him. “Now I know how the cowardly lion felt,” she mumbled as she hid behind a jet wheel, peering out every few seconds to see if it was time for her to approach Rich.
“Finally,” she whispered as the last container was opened. She walked over to the truck. “I know you’re working, but I’m hoping you can find a few minutes after you’re done here so we can talk.”
“What?” He pulled one ear muffler to the side.
Jenny spoke louder. “I said, I know you’re busy, but I’d like to talk with you for a few minutes when you’re done.”
A shadow seemed to cross his face, what she could see of it. He was bundled up in a Ballinger Air jacket with several heavy scarves wrapped around his neck and then tucked into the front of the coat. Safety goggles distorted his eyes and a Ballinger Air cap covered his hair.
“I’ll just be over there, waiting for you.” Jenny pointed to an area by the stairs, close to the terminal, so they’d be out of the way of the jet when it began heading toward the runway.
“Okay.”
Jenny thought he hadn’t seemed very excited to see her. Maybe he’d decided she wasn’t worth the effort anymore.
As she walked toward the terminal, she rubbed her hands together. It really was cold when the sun went down, plus the planes and service vehicles darting out from every which way created a cool breeze.
Her stomach contents seemed to be rolling like waves on the ocean. “I will not throw up. I will not throw up. I will not throw up.”
As he approached, he removed the headgear, gloves and loosened the scarves around his neck a bit. “Aren’t you cold?”
“A little. I didn’t really think about what the temperature would be like tonight.”
“I don’t mean to be rude or anything, but do I know you?”
“Would you take off your cap and safety glasses?”
“Sure.”
“You’re not Richard Novatney.”
“Never said I was.”
“I’m sorry. I made a mistake. I thought Rich was driving the baggage truck for this flight.”
“He was scheduled to. Something came up with his daughter. He had to take her to the Emergency Room.”
“Is it serious?”
“Serious enough for the ER.”
“Hm… Thanks. Again, I’m sorry.”
“My pleasure. It ain’t every night a pretty woman comes looking for me.”
“Thank you for being so gracious.”
Jenny headed back into the terminal. Did Rich ever mention his daughter’s name? Yes, but she was too pissed off to listen to him.
Before she knew she had even made the decision to go to the ER, her body was walking briskly through the terminal. Once in her car, there was no hesitation as she headed for St. Vincent’s Memorial Hospital.
She had been waiting at the ER admittance desk for almost ten minutes, behind a man who came in with chest pain, a woman who was having difficulty breathing, a baby with a high fever and a man who had a knife in his belly and reeked of alcohol.
Jenny wondered if he could even feel the pain of the blade. He seemed oblivious to it, even though he did look down once and ask if that was his blood or someone else’s.
She was next in line when Rich walked through the ER doors. “Jenny?”
“Rich. I just heard about your daughter. Is she okay?”
“She’s doing much better. This happens every once in a while. She has asthma. So does her mother. It runs in her family. She’s already had two treatments. They’re going to watch her for a bit to see if she needs another one. I just came out to get her a soda and a candy bar.”
“I’ll get it for her. You can go back in.”
“I need a little break. Besides, you don’t know what she likes. It has to be a certain soda and a certain candy bar, you know?”
“Naturally.” Jenny smiled.
“I miss that.”
“What?”
“Your smile.” He paused, looking at her face as if he was trying to memorize it. “How’d you know I was here?” Rich began walking toward the bank of vending machines on the East wall.
“I went to the airport to meet you tonight, so we could talk. I accidentally mistook you for a guy driving the luggage truck. In my defense, he had on goggles and those soundproof ear muffler things and gloves and scarves and a jacket and a hat. I just assumed it was you. Anyway, he told me you were here with your daughter.”
“Do you want something?” Rich nodded at the items behind the glass.
“No. I’m good.”
Jenny watched as he purchased a Dr. Pepper, Twizzlers, a Snickers bar and a bag of pretzels. “Well, Snickers does sound good.”
“Snickers it is.” Rich put another dollar bill into the machine and then collected all the items from the tray.
“She must think you’re a good dad, bringing her all this?”
“I don’t know about that. The word dad is a bit misleading sometimes. Do you want to meet Maya?”
“Sure. You don’t think it’s kind of weird?”
“Why?”
“Meeting a person who may become your dad’s girlfriend while he’s married to her mother.”
“She’s gonna love you.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
The nurse opened the ER doors so they could access Maya’s room and they wound their way through the maze of hallways.
“How do you not get lost around here?”
“I know these corridors well.”
Jenny felt a tug on her heart. How many times had he sat by Maya’s side listening to her raspy attempts to breathe?
“Here we are.” Rich walked through the doorway first. “Maya, this is my friend, Jenny.”
“Hi Maya, sorry you’re not feeling well. As far as hospital rooms go, this one is pretty cool. I’ve never seen a colorful ER room before. You have it all to yourself?”
“Yeah. They redid this whole section of the hospital about a year ago. All the rooms are painted bright colors and have art on the walls. And, they’re all singles now. No more sharing rooms.”
“You know a lot about the hospital. Do you come here often?”
“I don’t know. Couple of times a year, I guess. More when I need respiratory therapy.”
“Now that’s a big word.”
“It means having to do with your breathing and stuff.”
“I see.”
“Thanks for the contraband, Dad.” Maya looked at Jenny. “That’s what they call it when you sneak in stuff you’re not supposed to have.”
“What’s your favorite kind of contraband?”
“Ice cream, for sure. And pizza.”
“Are you feeling better, honey?” Rich asked.
Maya nodded. “My oxygen sats are back into the 90s.”
“That’s good.”
Jenny sat in the chair next to Rich, amazed that someone so young knew so much about oxygen saturation le
vels, contraband and the layout of the hospital. Amazement was followed by a sense of injustice that she was in a position to have to learn about all these things at such a young age.
The doctor joined them. “You’re looking better. I’d really like you to stay at Club Vinnie’s for the night so we can watch your oxygen levels.”
“Club Vinnie’s is what they call the kids’ ward. It’s supposed to make it sound like fun. It’s not fun.”
“One night. I’ll even let your dad bring you McDonald’s for breakfast tomorrow.”
“Now you’re talking!”
“I’ll get the arrangements started. It’ll be at least another hour or two.”
“You’re gonna stay with me aren’t you, Dad?”
“Of course.”
Maya fell asleep in the ER watching a movie on the Disney channel.
“It always takes a while to get a bed around here. You don’t have to stay, Jenny.”
“If you want me to leave, I will, but I’d like to be here to support you. Do you mind if I ask where Maya’s mother is?”
“She works nights at a hotel. I’ve been texting her with updates. It’s serious when she has an attack. Dangerous serious. She has an inhaler that she keeps with her all the time, but sometimes that isn’t enough. That’s when we come here. Once they get her stabilized, it’s a lot of waiting around and watching.
Sometimes…” Rich rubbed his chin with his hand.
“Sometimes?”
“Well, every time, really. I think, what if this is the time she can’t get her air back? I’ve seen her start to turn blue. Scares the shit out of me.”
“It would me, too.”
“I’d rather it be me handling these situations than Becka, my wife. When she gets stressed out, her breathing becomes erratic. She also has some mental health issues, mostly depression. It makes it hard for her to handle a lot of stressful situations.”
“She must rely on you a lot, especially with Maya. She’s lucky to have you on the front line.”
“What made you come to see me at the airport tonight?”
“I started to think there might be an explanation that had merit. I couldn’t think of anything you could possibly say that would be okay when I first heard you had a wife and daughter. Then my friends and I started talking about the situation. It got me to thinking that I should at least hear what you have to say.”
“Remind me to give them chocolate and flowers.”
“They’ll like that.”
Rich pulled the covers up to Maya’s neck and dimmed the light. “Becka and I grew up together. Our families knew each other and we were always at barbecues and picnics together. We were in the same church youth group and had some of the same classes in high school. We were friends, really good friends.
She took up with one of my best friends in eleventh grade. He didn’t treat her very well and I told her so. She didn’t like that and pretty much told me to stay out of her business. So, I backed off.
One night they’d been drinking and he hit her. She came to my house and I helped her get cleaned up and everything. I went over to the guys’ house the next day and laid into him, but good. He and Becka split and she blamed me for the longest time.
Anyway, about five years later, she got involved with another loser. He treated her worse, but she kept staying with him. Why do women do that?”
“They don’t think anyone else will love them.”
“Long story short, she ended up pregnant. The guy took off, of course. She was afraid to tell her parents. She’d lived a pretty sheltered life. Hell, we both had. She was scared and I wanted to protect her.
I told her I’d always take care of her, no matter what. We decided to tell people the baby was mine and I asked her to marry me.
We didn’t love each other in the way a married couple ought to, but we loved each other as friends. Sometimes I think that’s a more lasting bond. Love relationships come and go, but friendships, well, they last forever.
The thing is, neither one of us wanted to settle down with a friend, so we dated other people, nobody local or anything; we needed to keep the illusion alive. But, let’s just say, we got our physical needs met outside of marriage. We had separate rooms, separate money, separate lives, really.
But, we always knew the other one would be there when we needed them.
When I broke my leg, it was Becka who nursed me back to health. When Maya had asthma attacks, I was the one who cared for her and took her to the ER. When Becka’s car caught on fire on the freeway, she called me. When I was responsible for the annual Novatney reunion, Becka saved the day by planning everything.”
“You had each other’s back.”
“Exactly.”
“A few years ago, Becka fell in love with a guy named Roger. They’ve been inseparable. She still lives in the first apartment we got together. I live in a different apartment. I see Maya whenever she wants, which is usually on weekends and for special activities and holidays.”
“What does she think of Roger?”
“She loves him. I fully expect Becka to ask me for a divorce any day now. We never consummated our marriage, but we’ve been married for eight years. I’m not even exactly sure if it’s legal. I mean, we have the signed paperwork, but we know it was for convenience and reputation.
I think we were both looking for the same thing at the same time. Someone we could trust and rely on and someone we really liked and cared about.”
“So why didn’t you mention your family earlier?”
“It was only our first date. We hadn’t even gotten to know each other yet. When would have been a good time? When you were chewing me out for almost running you over? Or when you almost ran me over learning to drive?”
“Not exactly a lot of moments for personal reflection and sharing life stories.”
“I’m really glad you changed your mind and decided to hear me out.”
“Me, too. Sorry I was so pig-headed and wouldn’t listen.”
“I dropped a pretty big bomb on you. That really wasn’t fair of me. I wasn’t thinking about how it would sound. I mentioned it so casually. When I saw that look in your eyes, I knew I was in big trouble.”
“I really hate that I said such mean words to you. It bothers me. I don’t ever want you to think I meant those things.”
“I knew you were speaking out of betrayal and hurt. I felt bad that I was the cause of it. So, let’s make a proposal. Both of us will stop feeling bad for saying things we didn’t mean and we’ll vow to put duct tape over our mouths the next time we want to slay each other with our words.”
“Great vow! I’m in.”
“Normally, you’d sign your name to this kind of agreement, but I have a better idea.”
Rich raised his right arm and grazed her cheek with his thumb. His lips met hers, soft and inviting.
Jenny’s fingers entwined themselves with Rich’s as their breath deepened and their tongues explored. Fires were renewed as words fell away.
Jenny thought she would rather not live if she couldn’t have Rich’s hand in hers. It felt so right to be together again. She kicked herself for the time she wasted being angry and refusing to listen. They could have spent the last few days in blissful harmony instead of yelling spiteful comments at one another.
That was in the past. They were looking toward their future. And, if Rich was right, Becka might be asking for a divorce in the near future. Sure, he’d still be in their lives and all, but he’d also be free to marry someone else. What if that someone was Jenny?
Chapter Twenty-Three
“You really don’t have to stay.”
“I’ll stay until Maya is settled into a room. You must be tired.”
“One thing I have learned as a parent, you learn to sleep with one eye open.”
“What will Becka’s parents say if you guys get divorced?”
“They’ll blame me, which will be good. I don’t want Becka to be on the other end of their wrath.”
“Did that happen a lot?”
“Enough. No one should ever be locked in a closet for eight hours and then get yelled out for peeing their pants. I really hate them sometimes for what they did to her.”
“Rich, I don’t want to give you the wrong impression, but maybe now isn’t the best time for us to be together. I’m not a home-wrecker. I don’t want to break up your family. I feel like an outsider bursting in on this comfortable life you’ve created.”
“Comfortable. That’s the right word, for sure. How many people do you know who get married so they can be comfortable?”
Jenny didn’t answer.
“Exactly. You get married because you want to spend the rest of your life with someone. There’s a spark and a fire of excitement that pulls you close and won’t leave you alone. I want that. I need that. I don’t have that with Becka.
I could go my whole life being comfortable, and that would be… okay, I guess. But, I don’t want okay. When you came running toward me yelling your head off, I knew you were different. Most people run the opposite direction when a truck is coming toward them.”
“I had to get your attention.”
“You did. I thought about you all night. I could see you standing there with your hands on your hips, fire blazing in your eyes. You were out for blood.”
“And you just smiled, didn’t even blink an eyelash at my outrage.”
“I just wanted you to keep talking so I could look at you and imagine kissing those lips.”
“If I had known that’s what you were thinking, I would have been so pissed off.”
“You already were pissed off.”
“Yes, but your calmness took the heat right out of my anger. Betty said I was in love with you. I told her she was being ridiculous. She was right about one thing, though, I couldn’t get you out of my mind. I don’t know if that’s love or lust, but I wanted more.”
“I wanted more, too.”
“I’m Gale from transport. Is this Maya Novatney?”
“Yes,” Rich said.
The abrupt interruption seemed to slice through the intimate atmosphere that had been created. Jenny yearned to have it back immediately.