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His smile fell away. “If she is sick, I will need you to come. Even more.”
“I’m praying for her, Henri.”
“Merci! Please be safe. I don’t want to lose you. I think I could not handle any more pain.”
Anne hung up, with more than a little concern that Henri was becoming dependent on her. What if he needed more than she could give?
Anne finished packing her bag and checked for the fourth time to be sure she had her passport. Then she picked up a pillow and held it to her face. She screamed into the pillow at the top of her lungs, “I’m flying to Switzerland tonight! Ahhhhhhh!”
She threw the pillow back onto her bed with a grin. “There—now I’m ready to go.”
High Flying
Anne was too excited to sleep. Her first time to fly in a private jet. Her first time to go to another country. Her first time to use her passport. Her first time to visit Switzerland. Her first time to be a part of a huge business presentation involving millions of dollars’ worth of assets. As if that wasn’t enough, she was traveling with Steven Gherring, whose soft cashmere sweater only enhanced the appearance of his broad shoulders and hard muscles. She was grateful Jared Hanson was on the trip with her. He was almost as excited as she was, tempered only by having to leave his wife and new baby daughter behind. Despite the fact this was his first big presentation, he seemed more eager than nervous.
“This is great, isn’t it?” Jared explored the spacious main cabin. “These chairs are so comfortable. And they recline. And look, this part pulls out and it will lie flat, like a bed.”
“You should sleep now,” said Gherring.
“But it’s only eight o’clock,” said Anne. “I thought we’d work for a while.”
“We’ll sleep on the plane, and work when we get there tomorrow. We’ve got an eight-hour flight and we’re losing six hours. So it’ll be ten o’clock when we get to Bern. Sleeping now will cut down on jet lag.”
“There’s no way I can go to sleep now. I’m way too excited.” Indeed Anne felt adrenaline pumping through her veins. She needed to go for a run to expel some excess energy.
“Not me,” said Jared. “I’m perpetually tired. I love Emery, but she still doesn’t sleep at night. I can fall asleep any time I want, and sometimes when I don’t want to.” He stretched his seat into a bed, grabbed a blanket, lay down, and promptly began to snore.
Meanwhile, Anne started reclining her chair, but Gherring stopped her. “Let me give you a sleeping pill. You really need to sleep, because I need you sharp tomorrow.”
“I don’t know. I’m kind of sensitive to drugs. I might overreact.”
“I remember the Benadryl incident. How about half a pill? That should just make you relax.”
“Okay, I’ll try it. But don’t leave me behind on the plane if you can’t wake me in the morning.”
“I promise. But I’m taking a whole one. I need it.”
“What if we oversleep?” She swallowed the proffered half-pill with a swig from a bottled water.
Gherring laughed. “The pilots would wake us up, but I’ve already set my phone alarm to go off forty-five minutes before we get there. Come with me, and I’ll give you a quick tour first.”
Anne followed him from the main cabin through a small area with a compact kitchen on one side and a table and seating area on the other.
“There’s a bathroom here. Even has a small shower in the back. And the master bedroom
is back here.”
“Wow—this is amazing. I can’t believe there’s room for this on the plane. And you have a flat screen TV in here. Why am I not surprised?”
“We’ve got a great selection of movies and shows to watch. Not very good television reception on overseas flights.”
“And do you have black lights in here and mood music? The world’s richest playboy’s private love plane?”
“The music starts automatically when I say the words, ‘You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.’” He reached his hand over and felt for a button on the wall. The room was immediately filled with the sound of bagpipes. Anne giggled hysterically.
“Oops, I must have said the wrong words.” He fumbled with the buttons while he spoke. “I think the correct phrase is, ‘Oh baby, you’re the best.’”
The music changed to soft jazz.
