by Jana Janeway
“I said before I knew I was in love with you. I was already in love with you, I was just in denial.”
Coming down off her tiptoes, her heels touching the floor, her arms dropped from around his neck as her hands sought his waist. “Why were you in denial?”
“I’d just met you.” He gently wiped the tears from her cheeks that had just started to appear beneath her glasses. “I’d never felt Chimie before. I was confused. I didn’t know what to do with it.”
“So you thought, ‘Hey, I know! I’ll sacrifice everything for a chick I barely know till I figure it out’?”
“Not exactly.” He returned her smile, grateful for the momentary humor, but he was quick to grow serious again. “Bottom line, Jessica, is, we need their help. We need the Registry’s help. Without them, our lives would be far worse. Always running. No one to turn to. It’s a small price to pay, really.”
Displeased but accepting, she gave a solemn nod. “How much say do they get, over what we can and can’t do?”
“They’ll probably want to call most of the shots, at least for a while. But, in time, they’ll ease up.”
“Is that an assumption?”
“You tell me. . .”
And then he leaned in and kissed her. It was a soft, affectionate kiss, not at all showy or demanding, and it told her all she needed to know.
When he broke away, she smirked back at him. “Don’t ever cheat on me. I can read you like a kindergartener’s picture book.”
“See Spot cheat. See Spot run.” Within a few seconds, his joking smile faded. “I would never cheat on you. And I’m not assuming. I don’t know for sure what the future holds, but I can make an educated guess, based on what I do know.”
“So, in your best educated estimation, how long will we be under their thumb?”
“Six months? Maybe a year?”
“So that gives us what?” she asked rhetorically. “A hundred and forty-nine years without them breathing down our necks? I suppose I could live with that.” She nudged him playfully before resting against him, relying on him to support most of her weight. A moment later, she grumbled in annoyance. “Stupid fake belly.”
Craddock laughed, but stopped when they heard the overhead intercom crackle. An unenthused female voice then announced, “Flight one-forty-two to Ontario, California, now boarding at gate fifteen. That’s flight one-forty-two, non-stop to Ontario, California, now boarding at gate fifteen. Thank you.”
“That’s us.” But since everyone already knew that, Craddock’s muttered words were more for himself than for the others. “Now remember,” he bent down to grab both duffles, “we’re one big happy dysfunctional family, on our way to fun, sunny, Southern California, right? Let’s all put on our best fake smiles and act the part.”
Jessica adjusted her dress and prosthesis, fidgeting with it, worried that it wasn’t sitting right. “What if we run into that guy again?”
“I doubt we will,” Craddock wanted more than anything for that to be true, “but if we do,” he took her hand in his, “act like he doesn’t matter. Like he means nothing to us, okay?”
“I’ll try.” Allowing him to lead her towards the plastic barrier, she ducked through when he held it open for her. As soon as they hit the crowded terminal, she tensed, her feet hesitant to move and follow.
“It’s gonna be fine,” Craddock whispered to her; she nodded slightly as she pushed herself to catch his stride.
They approached the gate quickly, stepping into the line where a dozen other passengers, at least, were already waiting. A mixture of excitement and annoyed anticipation filled the air as people chatted about their plans and destinations, and about the wait to board, but Craddock tuned it all out as he gave his silent attention to Jessica and her growing anxieties. He was so unaware of his surroundings, it wasn’t until Bibi’s lips were at his ear that he snapped back to the here and now.
“That guy is in line, up ahead,” she whispered harshly.
He spun around; a knee-jerk reaction. “Where?” His eyes darted and scanned, trying to locate any man with glasses who looked suspicious.
“Seven people ahead of us.” She locked eyes with Jessica, who seemed as if she was ready to bolt for the nearest exit.
Craddock counted, found him, but then quickly dropped his gaze to the floor when the man looked in his direction. “Shit,” he cursed under his breath, and Jessica squeezed his hand tighter. “Don’t react. Smile. We’re talking about our fun California plans.”
Her forced, obviously fake smile just made her feel conspicuous. “Now what?”
“I don’t know.” He glanced at both Bibi and Josiah, noting their expectant expressions. “Just give me a minute to think.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
“Well?” Jessica asked, after several minutes had passed. The line had moved three times, bringing them closer to the front of it, and still Craddock had remained silent.
“I think we have to board the plane.” He turned a little, including Josiah and Bibi in the conversation. “If we miss this flight, it could cause problems, and piss everyone off.”
“Maybe we should call Marcy and ask her what she thinks.” Josiah was edgy, straining to avoid looking at the man they were all worried about.
“I don’t think there’s time.” Craddock checked to see how many people were still ahead of them. “And she’s probably still in that meeting they were going to, which means she wouldn’t answer her phone anyway.”
Bibi gave a jerk of her head, indicating the line had moved again. “We could call the main office.”
Glancing over his shoulder, Craddock took two steps backwards, his attention still predominantly on Bibi. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea. We don’t know who knows what, or that this guy is even a problem.”
Jessica clutched his hand tighter, as much for comfort as to offer it. “If you don’t think he’s a problem, then why is your heart racing a mile a minute?”
“Because it’s a potential problem.” He took in a steady breath to settle his nerves, and to ward off the adrenalin rush he was experiencing. He couldn’t expect to keep Jessica calm if he couldn’t hold it together himself. “Let’s just get on the plane, and worry about the guy, if we need to, once we get to California, okay?”
“By then, it might be too late.”
He regarded her for a moment, assaying. “Too late for what?”
They all moved again when the line did.
“To ditch him.” She glanced over at the clerk, who was currently checking the suspicious guy’s boarding pass. “If he gets on this plane, and we take another one, we’ve successfully ditched him.”
“If we do that, we’ll be on standby for God knows how long!” He closed his eyes, regrouping. He hadn’t meant to snap at her. “I get what you’re saying, but I really think we should get on this plane, and just worry about him when we land.”
His take-charge attitude was oddly comforting, and though she wasn’t one hundred percent sure she agreed with him, she nodded in acceptance. “Okay. We’ll take this flight.”
“Thank you.” To show his gratitude, and to comfort her, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her hair. “You’ll see. It’s gonna be okay.”
After the six other people ahead of them were checked through, Bibi jerked her head towards the counter. “We’re up.”
Spinning around, Craddock offered the clerk as sincere a smile as he could muster, approaching and handing over his and Jessica’s boarding passes.
Given the all-clear with muttered, rehearsed words of, ‘Thank you for flying with us,’ and ‘Hope you enjoy your flight,’ Craddock took Jessica’s hand firmly in his and led the way down the ramp and into the plane.
Scanning people’s faces, but trying to look like he wasn’t, he spotted the suspicious Mengliad sitting three rows up from their assigned seats, in the middle row of the plane.
Leaning in, Craddock brought his lips to her ear. “He’s not all that close to us, ok
ay?” Jessica took little comfort in that, but nodded in response, anyway. “Smile,” he spoke in an upbeat tone, encouraging her, “and don’t look at him.”
As they moved down the narrow aisle towards their seats, with Josiah and Bibi now directly behind them, Craddock decided to take advantage of their close proximity to the guy while passing him. “I know you’re nervous about flying, Allie, but it’s gonna be okay.”
Realizing what he was doing, she played along. “I’m sure that’s what everyone thinks, right before their plane crashes.”
Craddock laughed, turning to discreetly wink at her before stepping up to their seats. After reaching above to stuff their duffle bags in the overhead compartment, he gestured for her to slip in first, to take the seat by the window. She did so carefully, with effort, because her belly was larger than she was used to, and dropped down with an ungraceful thud.
“The twins are doing acrobatics in here today,” she complained, loud enough to be heard without sounding as if she was trying to be.
He placed his hand on her fake belly, like he was feeling for fetal movement, seeming every bit a doting father-to-be. “That’s ‘cause you’re nervous about flying!” Nuzzling her neck, he whispered one word only, just below her ear. “Perfect.”
She nodded, not necessarily in agreement, but in acknowledgement. “I’m freaking out.”
“I know.” He shifted away from Jessica as Bibi sat down next to him, taking hold of his wife’s hand as he gave his sister an upnod. “She’s freaked.”
“Understandably.” Bibi cut her eyes towards the possible Purist, the action almost too quick to catch. “He’s far enough away, at least, that he won’t be able to smell her, and we have—” She nodded subtly at the passengers seated in front of them, indicating that they were Humans, and then finished with, “seated in front of us.”
“Yeah,” he muttered, “that’s something, I guess.”
They remained silent during the flight attendant’s spiel about safety and exits and instructions on what to do in case of a crash landing, though Craddock did whisper a few calming words of comfort when Jessica started to white-knuckle the armrest. It wasn’t until they were safely in the air, and the captain had turned off the seatbelt sign, that Craddock leaned in to speak to her.
“How are you doing?” He gently pried her hand off the gray foam covered plastic separating their seats, knowing the answer before she even whispered back.
“My heart feels like it’s going to explode.”
“Right.” Unlatching her seatbelt before his own, he grabbed her hand and stood, encouraging her to do the same with a gentle tug.
“Where are we going?” she asked, confused, but he just shushed her in response. Moving past Bibi quickly, helping her to as well, he pulled her behind him towards the bathroom.
After locking them inside the tiny stall, he gathered her into his arms. “You need to calm down a little, Jessica, please. Even if that guy is a Purist, airport security is tight. He wouldn’t have been able to smuggle a gun or any kind of weapon on board or anything, right?”
“I guess.” She sighed deeply, still concerned but easing away from it slightly.
“I won’t let anything happen to you, Jessica, I swear,” he promised, realizing as he nuzzled, and brushed soft kisses across her neck, that his affections were distracting her from her anxieties.
She nodded, breathless already, her body craving his from both memory and instinct.
Desperate to feel more of him, she allowed her hands to drift down his back to his ass, squeezing as she pulled him to her. With the prosthetic belly creating a frustrating obstacle, Craddock pulled her dress up inch by inch until the foam annoyance was exposed, then reached behind her and tugged on the Velcro straps, loosening it. Pulling it free, dropping it to the floor at their feet, he grabbed her waist and lifted her up, helping her to sit on the edge of the sink behind her.
Staring back at her, he felt the need to possess, and be possessed, her desires magnifying his own. “God, I love you.” His hand cradling the back of her head, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
She returned his kisses eagerly, wrapping her legs around him to bring him closer. She broke away just long enough to whisper, “I want you, Craddock,” before forcing her lips back onto his.
But then in a sudden flash of cognizance, he pushed away from her, groaning due to the effort it took to do so, their lips parting, aching with the loss. “Not like this. Not in a bathroom on an airplane. You’re just scared, baby,” he cupped her cheek in his hand, “and making love won’t change that.”
She leaned into his touch, content and unfulfilled, reveling and needy. “It might make me forget that I am, even if it’s only for a few minutes.”
Unable to deny her, not wanting to deny himself, either, he pressed himself against her once more and began rocking his hips, rhythmically, as his lips found every bit of skin they could. Moaning, she moved with him, biting her bottom lip to keep from making noise as her extreme arousal started to climb.
“Excuse me!”
The knock at the door, followed by some woman calling out from the other side of it, startled them, but Craddock didn’t stop his movements, only slowing a little in response.
“Yes?” he called back, squeaking the word, too affected by Jessica, and by what their bodies were doing together, to produce a normal inflection.
“Only one person in the restroom at a time, sir,” she announced in an overly chipper, singsong voice. “Regulations.”
He rolled his eyes, realizing it was just an overzealous flight attendant. “My wife has morning sickness. I’m helping her.”
“Sorry, sir. Regulations,” she repeated, in the same sickly sweet tone.
“I’ll be right out.” He was civil enough, but was obviously annoyed. He then waited for the sound of the woman’s retreating footsteps. “How close are you?”
“Not very.” She locked eyes with him, sensing what he was about to say.
Slowly, he brought his rocking motion to a stop, though he continued to press himself firmly against her. “I’m sorry. When we get to the house, I promise.” Disappointed, she tried to look away, but he gently pinched her chin, encouraging her gaze back to his. “I love you,” he whispered, hoping she wouldn’t mistake his sincerity for shallow consolation.
The hint of a smile that stretched her lips told him she didn’t. That, despite her being unable to say the words herself, she believed him, and drew comfort from the intensity of his feelings.
To discern so much from such a simple expression. . . It was clear that their Chimie was growing stronger.
“Do you need help with the thing?” he asked, gesturing to the floor, to where the prosthetic belly still lay.
She shrugged as she glanced down at it. “It’s cramped in here with one person, let alone two. I think I’d have better luck with it on my own.”
“Okay.” After helping her off the sink, he reached to retrieve it. “I’ll be right outside the door. We’ll walk back to our seats together.”
Her faint smile and nod only hinted at her appreciation, just a scratching on the surface of the depths beneath. Grinning, he kissed her lips quickly before clicking the lock over and slipping outside. He was immediately greeted by the flight attendant who had interrupted them, to whom he offered a sheepish shrug as an apology. “Turbulence makes her queasy anyway. Add to that the morning sickness. . .”
“I understand, sir.” Smirking, she winked at him, and then she walked away, to presumably return to her duties.
“Yeah. . .” He smiled to himself, in amusement and in relief. The woman knew what they had been up to, but instead of being austere and busting them on it, she just brushed it off with good humor.
Finally, something seemed to be going in their favor, rather than adding to their current list of problems.
Seconds later, Jessica emerged from the bathroom, surprising him. “That was fast.”
“It’s not like it’s complic
ated.” She shrugged, taking his hand when he extended it, allowing him to guide her back to their seats.
As they neared, Bibi stood and moved into the aisle, to give Jessica as much room as possible in which to maneuver and sit. “What’s going on?”
Craddock followed Jessica in, retaking his seat, waiting for Bibi to as well before answering her. “Just trying to calm her down.”
“In the bathroom?”
He scoffed at her scolding tone. “Everyone assumes the worst,” he muttered, implying that she was off base. He didn’t want to outright lie, and it was none of her business, anyway. “Anything going on with the guy?”
“He’s been reading this whole time,” she reported, “but he did watch as you guys went back there.”
“Kinda suspicious, but not overly so.”
“Yeah.” She glanced around them surreptitiously, checking to be sure that no one was paying them any mind. “I have a plan.”
“Plans are good.” He gave her an upnod, encouraging her. “What is it?”
“Okay. . .” she moved in a little closer, speaking a little quieter, “right before we land, have Jessica start complaining that she’s having contraction-like pains, ‘cause Humans have pains when they’re in labor and giving birth, and the crew here all seem to be Human. Then you ask the stewardess if you can leave the plane the moment it lands, so that you can go get her checked out because she seems to be going into labor prematurely. They’ll say yes,” she assured him. “They don’t wanna get sued.
“When you get off,” she continued, “beat feet over to the information desk and get the envelope with the info and the keys to the car. Don’t wait for us. Just get to the car. We’ll lead the guy on a wild goose chase, lose him, then meet up with you later.”
“How?” he asked. He then abruptly pinched his lips closed, glancing pointedly at a flight attendant who was on her way up the aisle.
Catching on, Bibi stopped talking and waited for her to pass before answering. “We’ll meet up at a McDonald’s or something. There’s bound to be one nearby.”