Flight to the Horizon, page 6
Janine pushed open the door to her brightly colored room and knelt by her bed. “Why aren’t you asleep, Pumpkin?”
“I knew you were coming home, and I just woke up.” She held up her little arms for a hug. All the distress of the last few hours in the plane melted away as Janine embraced her tiny five-year-old daughter. Her small body was warm, and she smelled sweet when Janine wrapped her in her arms. Molly held tight to her neck.
“Were you a good girl for Mrs. Harris?”
“Yes, I was, but I still think she smells funny. I like Rosa better. She’s more fun.”
“I know, honey, but Rosa wasn’t available this time. You’ll see her next week when I fly again. I promise.” Janine bent down and nuzzled Molly’s neck, rewarded, as always, with a delightful giggle from her ticklish daughter.
“Mommy, why do you have to go away so much? I don’t like it when you’re gone.” The twinge of sadness in her little voice broke Janine’s heart.
“I know. I don’t like being away from you either, but I have to work. We need the money. It’ll be better when I get more seniority in LA. Then I can do one-day out-and-back trips.”
“What if Daddy gave us money? Could you stay home with me then?”
Tears welled up in Janine’s eyes at such an innocent and straightforward question from her very smart little girl. “Molly, we talked about that, remember? We can’t take any money from Daddy because it would cause some very big problems. We’re fine, just you and me. I’m really tired and need to go to bed now.” She knew Molly wouldn’t be satisfied with her answer and would bring up this subject again later.
“I’ll move over, and you can sleep in my bed with me, Mommy.”
“Good idea. First, let me tell Mrs. Harris she can go home, and then I’ll come right back.” As she started to get up from her daughter’s bedside, she heard Mrs. Harris go out the front door and say “Good-bye” on her way out.
Janine took off her high heels and blue uniform dress, then climbed under the covers with Molly. The twin bed was cozy as Molly snuggled up next to her and put her head on her shoulder. Janine exhaled a deep sigh, overcome by bone-numbing fatigue. She squeezed Molly tighter. This is bliss. I don’t need to be in bed with anyone except my angel, Molly. Janine gently kissed Molly’s forehead as darkness and oblivion descended on her.
* * *
Kerri slept only a few fitful hours after her all-night flight, preoccupied with thoughts of Janine. She had no clue as to why Janine hadn’t waited for her at the end of their flight. Maybe she’d completely misread the situation. But what about that kiss—that amazing, brief kiss with Janine on the flight deck. Kerri closed her eyes and relived that vision.
She remembered Janine in her slightly snug uniform dress leaning down over her as she sat in her captain’s seat, Janine’s full lips moving in slow motion toward her mouth. The sensations running through Kerri’s body were almost too much. Janine’s lips were so soft. Kerri recalled sucking Janine’s lower lip like it was a luscious, juicy peach right off the tree. Then she felt just the tip of Janine’s hot tongue slide between her own lips. Electricity tingled down her spine and into the pit of her belly.
Instead of letting this memory of a kiss with Janine turn into a full-blown sexual fantasy, Kerri jumped out of bed, frustrated and antsy.
She stomped into her kitchen and made herself a double espresso. She never kept much food in the house since she was gone half the time, but she always had excellent coffee from Costa Rica. As she recalled the details of her trip to Maui with Janine, she had to accept the reality that Janine had ditched her after landing. The reason why she got ditched preoccupied her thoughts for most of the day.
Had she come on too strong after their snorkeling trip? Kerri hadn’t intended to hit on Janine. She’d merely wanted to soothe her skin, but Janine might have misinterpreted her actions. Kissing Janine on the flight deck was probably a bad move, clearly unprofessional. Maybe she’d offended her.
She needed to talk to Janine about this situation. She refused to let problems fester, whether she was dealing with a crew member or a potential girlfriend. She attacked issues head-on, just like she’d done her whole life. She would figure out a way to get in touch with Janine and either apologize for her behavior or see if they had any real connection.
Kerri decided to call George Cato to see if he had Janine’s phone number. She would contact Janine, and they would simply iron out everything. Kerri felt the old, familiar laser focus engage her mind. She was persistent and determined when she wanted something. That was how she’d gotten through U.S. Air Force pilot training and all the aircraft training courses with Trans Global. Some exes had called her stubborn, but she preferred to see herself as tenacious. When Kerri Sullivan was on a mission, nothing could deter her.
Chapter Seven
Sunday, May 4
“Hello?”
“Hi, George. It’s Kerri Sullivan. I need a favor.”
“Kerri, my favorite captain. What can I do for you, darling?”
Kerri smiled at the sound of George’s deep baritone voice. “I’m trying to get in touch with a flight attendant who worked the Maui flight with us.”
“Let me guess. Is it the blond beauty, Janine, who worked in the aft cabin?”
“You know me too well, George. Yes. I was hoping you had a phone number for her. I just wanted to give her a call.”
George laughed. “Sure thing, Kerri. Be right back.”
Kerri’s heart raced as she waited for George to return.
“Sorry, girl, but Janine Case has an unlisted phone number on the domicile roster. I can’t help you with this one.”
“Damn. Well, thanks for checking, George. Do you have any other ideas of how I can get in touch with her?”
“You could ask a flight-attendant scheduler. Those folks have everyone’s number. But talk to Dusty. She works the midnight shift and is the only nice one anymore. Plus, she’s family. Kerri, don’t be surprised if she won’t tell you. They’ve gotten very strict about security stuff. Good luck, honey.”
“Thanks, George. You’re the best. Say hi to Doctor Michael for me.”
Kerri had a nine a.m. flight to Boston the next morning, but she needed to talk to Dusty. She stayed up late and drove to LAX at midnight to find her. Even though pilots and flight attendants worked together every day, they rarely ventured into each other’s respective operations centers. Traditionally, pilots stayed in Flight Operations and hung out with other pilots, while flight attendants stuck to themselves on a different floor in the maze of offices beneath the airport terminal.
Kerri stepped off the elevator at Flight Attendant Operations and looked around the unfamiliar space for the crew schedulers. She saw a big, open room with multiple computer monitors and phones on each desk and scanned the room for Dusty, even though she had no idea what she looked like. At the back of it, she saw an attractive woman wearing a rainbow ball cap, with the tanned face of a softball player.
“Excuse me. Are you Dusty?”
“Yes, I am. What can I help you with, Captain?” Kerri had worn her uniform on her mission tonight. People tended to listen to her and comply with her requests more readily when she was wearing it.
“I need to get in touch with a flight attendant I flew with on my last trip to Maui. Her name is Janine Case. Could you please give me her phone number and address?”
Dusty paused before she answered. “Is this official business, Captain? You know the rules regarding employee security. I’m not supposed to give out personal information on flight attendants. Sorry I can’t help you.”
Kerri carefully worded her next question. She didn’t want to get anyone into trouble, but she desperately wanted Janine’s information. “My friend, George Cato, told me to come talk to only you about this. He said you’re the best scheduler, and the nicest one, so that’s why I’m here at midnight. I really need to talk to Janine about a personal issue. I promise you, that’s all I want. Please, I really need your help, Dusty.”
Dusty paused again and looked Kerri up and down. “Well, if you’re a friend of George, I might be able help you out just this once.” She turned to her computer screen, punched in some keystrokes, and wrote on a Post-It note. She looked around the big scheduling room to make sure no one was watching, then slipped the note to Kerri. “Do not tell anyone I gave you this.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you, Dusty. I owe you big-time.” Kerri stuffed the note into her jacket pocket.
“You’re welcome, Captain.”
“Please call me Kerri. Can I ask you one more favor, Dusty? Can you tell me if Janine is flying, or is she off right now?”
“Stand by.” Dusty typed some more, looked at her screens, then jotted something on another note pad. “Here you go. She’s flying again in three days on a Kona trip, the afternoon departure. That’s all I can tell you, or my ass will be in a sling. They monitor everything we do.”
“I understand. Thank you again, Dusty. Here’s a little gift for you.” Kerri handed Dusty a two-pound box of See’s dark chocolate.
“My favorite! Did George tell you I love these?”
“He might have mentioned it. Thanks again.” Kerri turned to leave.
“Hey, let me know how everything works out, and thanks for the candy.”
“I will. Bye.” Kerri tingled with excitement as she glanced at the note with Janine’s phone number on it. She couldn’t wait to call her.
* * *
Janine heard her cell phone ring in the other room.
“Mommy, your phone is ringing.”
“Thanks, Pumpkin, but I’d rather stay here with you while you take your bath.”
Who could be calling her? Very few people even knew her phone number. Maybe it was the Crew Desk with a flying assignment. They would leave her a message, and she would check it when Molly finished playing in the bathtub.
Bath time with Molly was one of her favorite things in the world. It was more about listening to the stories Molly created with her plastic ocean animals than about getting clean. Molly would sing made-up songs, have fights between the toy dolphins and sharks, and loved talking to her sea creatures. She would play in the water until her fingers looked like little pink raisins. This was one of the few, precious times Molly could play like a regular kid.
Most of the time, Janine was painfully aware of how her child’s cerebral palsy made her stand out as different from other little girls. She did everything she could to make life as normal as possible for Molly, which was very challenging, given their situation with Molly’s father. Just thinking of him gave Janine the shivers.
“Okay, Mommy. I’m ready to get out.”
“Are you all done with your friends?”
“Yes. They’re all going to sleep in the water.”
“Let me get your towel from the dryer.” Janine wrapped her daughter in the toasty towel as she lifted her from the bath and held her on her lap to dry her off. “Ready for your jammies?”
“I can do it, Mommy.”
Even though it took Molly quite a while, Janine gave her only minimal assistance in putting on her pajamas. She’d learned years ago that, in spite of her disability, her daughter was a very independent child and wanted to do everything she could for herself. Janine was so proud of her everyday courage. She tucked Molly into bed, kissed her good night, and prayed for her safety.
When Janine checked her phone, she didn’t recognize the caller’s number. She got an occasional sales call, but this was a Los Angeles area code, and whoever was trying to contact her had left her a voice message. A chill ran down her spine, so she went to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine. Her nerves tightened. Who was calling her and leaving her a message? She ignored the phone as long as she could, and after checking that Molly was asleep, she finally hit “play.”
Janine was startled to hear a familiar voice.
“Hi, Janine. It’s Kerri Sullivan. I hope you don’t mind me getting in touch with you, but I was really hoping we could talk. Maybe I misunderstood, but I thought we were supposed to meet up after our Maui trip. I looked for you but couldn’t find you. When you have a minute, please give me a call back. Maybe we could get together for a drink or dinner? Have a great day.”
“How did she get my number? Who the hell does she think she is calling me at home on my days off? And, no, I will not be calling you back, Captain Don Juanita.” Janine angrily punched “delete” on the message and slammed her phone down. This arrogant woman, who was only looking at her as another notch on her bedpost, had just ruined her beautiful, relaxing evening with Molly. “I hope I never have to see that playgirl again.” She went to the kitchen, poured herself another big glass of wine, and tried to calm down.
* * *
Kerri anxiously awaited a reply from Janine. She’d felt nervous calling and had tried to sound cheery when she left the message. But she hadn’t heard back from Janine, and it was too soon to leave another voice message. Maybe she’d text her later. She didn’t want to look too pushy.
After her six-hour flight from LA to Boston, Kerri could barely get to sleep for thinking about Janine. Unlike many layover hotels, the Boston hotel was a grand old establishment with quiet rooms and big, soft beds. Kerri was sure she and Janine had simply had a communication misunderstanding about meeting after their Maui flight. Surely Janine would return her call later.
When Kerri never heard back, she realized she needed to be more direct with Janine. It was time to try again. Hopefully, Janine would answer this time. Disappointed to reach only her voice mail again, Kerri left another phone message. “Hi, Janine. It’s Kerri Sullivan again. When you have a minute, please give me a call back. I’d love to speak to you. Thanks, and have a good day.” She emphasized the word love, to encourage Janine to reply.
After another phone message and three text messages, Janine’s lack of response frustrated Kerri. Clearly, she needed to take more drastic measures. Beginning to obsess about Janine, she replayed every word they’d spoken to each other, trying to figure out why Janine wouldn’t communicate with her. Did she have a girlfriend at home? Was she not really a lesbian? Kerri’s gaydar, and the touch of Janine’s lips on hers, convinced her that Janine was the real deal. Straight girls might be curious, but they didn’t kiss another woman like that.
Janine must be failing to respond to Kerri’s messages for some reason. Whatever that was, Kerri had to speak to her face-to-face. She had to find out the truth. Maybe Janine simply wasn’t interested in her. Regardless of the reason, Kerri was going crazy with all her speculation and needed to find out what was up with Janine.
Since Janine refused to reply to her, Kerri decided to call in a favor. She had checked Janine’s flight schedule with the information from Dusty and knew Janine was flying the LA-to-Kona, Hawaii trip at four p.m. the next day. She had to act fast if she was going to pull off her plan. She logged into the Trans Global computer system and looked up the crew manifest for flight 401, the LA-Kona trip. Recognizing the names of the captain and first officer, she picked up her phone.
“Hey, Hector. Kerri Sullivan here. I wanted to talk to you about a trip trade for your Kona flight tomorrow.”
“Hi, Kerri. What do you have to offer? You know I’m always looking to improve my schedule.”
Kerri was sure she could count on Hector’s greed, since he had three ex-wives to support.
“How about I take your Kona trip in exchange for my Paris trip? It leaves the same day, you get home earlier, and you’ll get paid an extra ten hours of flight time.” Since they both got paid by the flying hour, her Paris trip would earn Hector a nice bonus this month.
“You sure you want to give up that trip? You’re a lot more senior than me.”
“Yes, Hector. I’d like to make this trade, for personal reasons. I need to know if you’re interested because I’ll have to call the Crew Desk before the trading window closes in fifteen minutes.”
“Then pull the trigger, Kerri. I’ll take it. And thanks for calling.”
“Thanks, Hector. I’ll make the change.”
“Any time, Kerri. Pleasure doing business with you.”
After Kerri called to make the captain change on the Paris and Kona flights, she was very satisfied with herself. It was rare for her to go to such lengths to spend time with a woman, but she found something intriguing about Janine that she couldn’t let go of.
All right, Miss Janine Case. Try to avoid talking to me when I have you trapped in a big airplane for five hours over the ocean.
* * *
Wednesday, May 7
Janine rushed around the house getting Molly ready for school and herself ready for work. She’d never flown to Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii, and was looking forward to her trip. She would miss Molly, as she always did, but the promise of adventure on her layover made her optimistic. She might rent a car and drive over to Volcano National Park to see Kilauea for herself. She hoped Kerri Sullivan wouldn’t make any more annoying calls or text her. She should have gotten the message that Janine was not interested in her by now.
“When will you get home, Mommy?”
“Day after tomorrow, Pumpkin. I’ll be home early in the morning again.”
“And will Rosa pick me up after school today?”
“Yes, honey, just like always. Are you ready for your math test?”
“Yes, I am. I’m going to get an A again!”
“That’s my smart girl.”
“Mommy, will you bring me a present from the volcano? Like maybe a piece of real lava?”
