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“How efficient . . .” Gia said as she followed him. “Did I mention I’m also not a fan of heights?”
“No. But that surprises me since you took me to the top of the Empire State Building.”
She laughed. “But that was different. I was trying to get a kiss.”
As she and Roger rode the elevator, he said, “I’ll kiss you the entire way back to Rhode Island if you need me to.”
She appreciated his effort to lighten the mood. If she’d been alone in New York when she’d received that call . . . Well, she had no idea what she would’ve done. Roger was, once again, taking care of her, of everything. Gia had never considered herself to be a needy person. Or maybe it was because she never let anyone in close enough to help. Either way, she was glad he was there.
Gia was about to tell him it wouldn’t be necessary, but when the doors to the roof opened and she saw the helicopter, her heart started racing. Roger was a step in front of her with the luggage so he couldn’t see her panic. That was a good thing. She couldn’t rely on him to be there every step of the way. She was thirty-one years old, for goodness sake.
Forcing her feet to move, she made her way to the helicopter steps. “Mr. Patrick,” the pilot greeted Roger. “it’s been a long time. Good to see you again.”
“Good morning, Roberto. Sorry about the short notice,” Roger said.
“I was glad to receive your call,” the pilot said as he took the bags and put them inside. As Gia approached, he said, “Welcome, miss.”
“Thank you.” Gia took Roger’s hand as he helped her inside.
Looking around, she thought: If I’m about to die, at least I’ll die in style. The helicopter was fully loaded. If it wasn’t for the fact it was about to be flying high above the city, she would’ve thought it was more like a limo. Maybe even better.
“You’ll want to buckle up,” Roger said.
She found her lap belt, did as he suggested, then immediately gripped the arms of the white leather captain’s chair she was in. Roger sat to the right of her, and once he was settled, he reached over and covered her hand with his. It helped, but no matter what, this was going to be tough.
She turned to look at him, and his expression wasn’t one that was relaxed either. If she wasn’t in such a state herself, she’d ask him what was wrong. Maybe later. Right now, she held her breath as the helicopter lifted off. God, please don’t crash. Her eyes were squeezed so tight they hurt, and she was pretty sure her nails were digging into the leather arm.
“It’ll get better once we’re up,” Roger said softly.
She had no choice but to breathe, but her eyes weren’t opening. If he asked, she could tell him she was thinking about her dad. That was true. If it wasn’t for him, her ass never would be on this thing. What I do for the ones I love.
Gia felt guilty. She had promised her parents to make an effort to come home more often, but didn’t. It had nothing to do with avoiding them. It was just too hard to flip the switch from Boston: always-in-a-rush mode, to Maplesville: get-to-it-when-we-can mode. And when she did go and stay with them, her parents did what all parents do: nag her about marriage and children, like that was the only option for a woman. They thought she focused too much on her career and would be an old spinster someday.
That was funny, because as long as she had Vickie around, that would never happen. All she needed to do was give Vickie the green light and she’d hook Gia up on a hundred blind dates, all local guys. But this trip wasn’t a visit. And hopefully it wasn’t a goodbye either. There was so much she had yet to tell her dad. A zillion things came to mind, but the only one that mattered was, I love you.
“Are we almost there?” she asked.
“About halfway,” Roger replied.
She opened her eyes and noticed his were closed. Maybe he was tired. They didn’t sleep much last night. But that wouldn’t explain the tense jaw. Was he upset their getaway was cut short? He hadn’t appeared to be earlier, but something was definitely off.
Gia was about to ask when it flooded back to her. Oh my God. Roger was doing this for her. The stiffness within him made perfect sense. How could she have forgotten? His parents died in a helicopter crash.
He’d been covering her hand with his so far. She slipped hers out and covered his. He opened his eyes and turned to her. “Not scared any longer?”
It was odd, but in that very moment, she wasn’t. “No. I have you here, remember?”
He smiled down at her. “That you do.” Then he said, “Did you want to call and check on your father?”
She had her cell phone in her pocket and was tempted to. But she was also afraid of what she might learn. “I’m not sure.”
“Is there anyone with your mother?”
That was a good question. “My brother might be there. Normally he’s at work, but I’m sure Mom called him.”
“That’s good. Maybe you can call him and get a status update.”
Roger didn’t understand her family dynamics. She couldn’t remember the last time they called each other. Her brother was twelve years older than she was. There was no doubt in Gia’s mind that she was a surprise late-in-life baby. Her parents were forty when she was born. By the time she was interested in doing things, her brother was thinking about moving out and starting a family of his own. Of course, he was married and divorced a few years later.
