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“And thanks, Dad. Thanks for putting up with me,” she murmurs in my ear. “Thank you for being there for me.,” she whispers, giving me an instant lump in my throat.
“I love you, Abby,” I remind her. “Call me as soon as you can, okay?”
I make an awkward move to the left so Jen can say her goodbyes, which makes Abby laugh out loud.
“Dad, what are you doing? You’ve been avoiding Jen like she’s got the plague or something all morning,” she exclaims, telling Jen to ignore her crazy old dad as she gives her bestie a hug of her own.
Both make quiet promises and giggle together before finally sniffing back some tears as the final call for boarding is called over the loudspeakers.
I keep a safe distance from Jen but feel my face still hot with embarrassment as we both watch Abby board her flight.
Then we move a little closer once it taxis out onto the runway.
But it isn’t until we watch it disappear into the distance through the thin morning clouds that either of us finally relaxes.
“She’s on her way,” Jen says, avoiding my gaze as I stare at her sidelong.
I feel Jen’s hand creep over to mine, teasing my pinky with hers, and I smile. Feeling like a love-struck teenager instead of a man old enough to be her….
Well.
It feels nice, whatever you wanna call it.
“Guess I should drop you home then,” I drone in a mock-serious tone.
Doing my best ‘dad’ impression of myself. But Jen doesn’t think it’s funny, and playfully slapping my arm, she tells me to take it back.
“Don’t even joke about it,” she scolds me but smiles as she moves a little closer.
“That is… Unless you really do wanna just drop me off?” she pouts, looking up at me in a way that I couldn’t refuse, even if I wasn’t already falling so hard for her.
“Oh, you’re coming home with me,” I assure her, feeling my smile widen.
Even still, I can’t help but turn and look one more time out at the sky.
Feeling as if Abby’s still watching us somehow.
Jen’s thinking the exact same thing, apparently.
“It might not be so bad,” she offers. “I mean, older guys and younger girls. It happens all the time in her profession, so it wouldn’t be such a huge shock,” she muses cheerfully.
But I really don’t want to even think about that right now. I just want more of this. More of Jen and me, finally alone.
Hell. Even if it is standing in an airport departure lounge on a Saturday morning, there’s nowhere on earth I’d rather be right now than with Jen.
“Let’s go home then,” I say, reaching for her hand. But her cell screams from somewhere, and the instant look of dread she gives me tells me that she has a ringtone saved for each caller.
And this one has ‘Mom’ written all over it, even before she answers it.
But Jen’s mom can call her. No law against that.
I give her a small smile and move a little further along the window, trying to give Jen some privacy.
But her arm hooks onto mine, and she burrows closer to me as she picks up.
She doesn’t tell her mom she’s at the airport, but after unintentionally eavesdropping with Jen hanging onto me, I can’t help but hear that her mom already knows about Abby’s job.
Apparently, we’re not the only ones she’s told, which any other day of the week, with any other person, would be fine.
