Page 46 of Stone
He grumbled under his breath as he shifted the lever he was holding onto. Suddenly, I realized we were descending. As before, my stomach dropped along with the altitude.
“Ugh. I hate this part,” I admitted.
“It’ll all be worth it.”
I took several deep breaths as my stomach roiled. When the clouds started to thin out, I finally looked out the window like he’d instructed. What was I seeing below? Something blue. Seconds later, I squealed like a kid on Christmas morning. “Oh, my God. That’s gorgeous.”
“I thought you’d like it. See the island just off to the right?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Lanai. That’s where I live and run an on-again, off-again charter boat for tourists who come to Hawaii.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “You live in Hawaii?”
“Don’t sound so shocked. You know I always loved the ocean.”
“I remember. You took me to Virginia Beach that one time and all you wanted to do was cruise the boardwalk.”
“All you wanted to do was cruise the tacky tourist shops.”
We both laughed and I stared down at the water again as he descended even lower. “This is just beautiful. Have your parents visited?”
When he didn’t answer right away, I tipped my head to look at him.
“They passed away a few years ago.”
“Oh, Stone. I had no idea. I’m so sorry. I know that might be a little too late, but I adored your parents.”
“Not too late at all. I miss them. You really haven’t been home in a long time, have you?”
“No. Not for years. Mom finally stopped asking. She keeps telling me she’ll visit Paris, but I don’t think Dad wants her to.”
“And your mom always does what your father tells her to do.” He groaned after making the statement. “That was shitty of me. Family is important, Dani. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t stand your father, but he’s still your dad and your mom is trying hard not to make things more difficult for you.”
I fidgeted in my seat. “I know she is. But sometimes I get so angry with Dad. He’s so set in his ways. He never forgave me for not attending Georgetown.”
“Well, you followed your dream. Maybe over a drink later you’ll tell me all about living in London.” He studied the instruments again before pulling the small microphone to his mouth in preparation of talking to the tower.
My muscles tensed. London. Another pipe dream. “Sure. When are you going to tell me what my father said to you that night?”
“What night?”
“Don’t do that, Stone. The last night I saw you.”
“It’s not worth talking about.” He concentrated on the gauges while also pulling down the small microphone and talking to the tower. He was as frustrated as I was.
“I’m sorry I didn’t come to see you off.”
“Eh. You had more important things to do.”
“That’s not—” I was interrupted before I could tell him the truth. If I could. I could hear muffled words coming through his earphones. We were on a fast approach and I rubbed my eyes. Every part of me was aching.
I continued enjoying the view, marveling at the waves rolling against the shoreline even as the memories continued to prick at my mind. There were some mountains, but mostly rolling hills and green as far as the eye could see. I was shocked how picturesque the entire horizon truly was, the water and foliage dazzling my eyes.
“We’ll be down in just a few minutes,” he said and banked to the right.
“By the way, it’s important to me what we shared all those years ago.” Was I looking for affirmation? Was I trying to rekindle the past? I had no idea. As soon as I looked at him, his face pinched. The subject was off limits. With our obvious difficulty talking about the past and our miscommunication, any subject from when we were younger would be delicate.
