Page 48 of Don't Fall for a Grump

20

Jackson

The plane is nearly empty and I could not be more relieved. It’s not a long flight, but a screaming child for any length of time is enough to drive anyone mad.

After talking with Phil last night, I didn’t waste any time. I booked the flight right there in the bar. He laughed at me when I told him I was taking a few days off.

“You think?” he had said. “If you weren’t so damned reactive, you wouldn’t even be back here.”

That was me. Reactive.

I had come to the only conclusion that my mind allowed for at the time. I now worry that jumping to that incorrect conclusion about Bree might just be the biggest mistake of my life, and it most certainly ruined something really special. My narrowmindedness will be my undoing.

While I still don’t know for sure whether it was Bree’s brother on that porch, I have no doubt in my mind, that it wasn’t her ex. The more we had talked last night, the more Phil’s sensible reasoning had convinced me that Bree just wouldn’t have done what I thought she had done.

She wasn’t Claire.

What she was, was a beacon. Without me even asking, she had been a kind ear to my problems, a ball of comfort for my demons, and a calming sensation in my despair.

Claire hadn’t been like that at all. Not that I had many demons when we were together, but looking back, I realize that Claire had always been a selfish and conceited woman. Even now, her arrogance and piousness remained unmatched.

I suddenly recall the conversation between Bree and me on her porch on Sunday afternoon. Bree’s reaction to me finding Claire in bed with someone else was perfect, and had made me laugh. “What a witch.” We had then fallen into hysterics, and now, I quietly chuckle to myself as the memory comes back to me. She certainly had not held back her opinions about Claire and everything else. She can definitely hold her own when the situation demands it, like her smart comment in the kitchen that day when we had fought so viciously. She was right though. I have been just like a faucet. Running hot then cold; and Bree never knowing what to expect next. I hadn’t been a good person.

There’s an announcement that we’ll be descending soon, so I follow the instructions and fasten my seatbelt. The nerves are beginning to roll around in my stomach, and the sensation is making me feel a little sick. I still had enough time to gather myself, but the angst at what was going to happen once I see Bree again was beginning to rise.

She was either going to forgive me or hate me forever. I couldn’t see any other option. The latter was a terrifying thought, but nothing I didn’t deserve. I had silently accused her of betrayal, and left her without so much as a goodbye, never mind an explanation. And now that I know the truth, I can’t even begin to imagine how I must have made her feel. She had not put on the performance of a lifetime when we had argued. She genuinely had no clue what the hell I was talking about.

Idiot!

The plane lands. My nerves go stronger as I climb out of it. In about an hour’s time, I’m going to know where I stand with Bree. A part of me wants to get it over with, the other part wants to run back to the city like the coward I am. But like Phil had said last night—If I don’t come back and face this now, I’m going to spend the rest of my life wondering what it could have been.

I had already been close to insanity with thoughts of Bree cropping up nearly every minute of every day since I had left. In truth, whatever happened next, couldn’t make me feel any worse than these last couple of weeks, could it? I don’t want to think about it anymore. I stride across the airport concourse and look for a cab.

My brain is confused when I turn a corner and head toward the airport’s exit. I had informed neither Dad nor Daniel that I was coming back, and yet, somehow, they’re both here to receive me. Dad in his wheelchair, Daniel standing beside him, looking aimlessly about.

What the heck?

With a confused frown, I stride toward them. When I’m about twenty feet away, Dad looks up and his eyes find me. His jaw drops at the sight of me, which only confuses me more.

What the devil is going on?

“What are you doing here?” Daniel blurts, when I finally reach them.

“I could ask you the same question,” I say, looking from one to the other.

Dad suddenly bursts into a grin and begins to chuckle. “Oh, this is going to be good,” he says.

“What?” I cry, not feeling any less confused.

Dad turns his head, and absently, I follow his gaze.

“Oh,” is all I can manage when I see what he’s looking at.

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