29. Elias
Chapter Twenty-Nine
ELIAS
The following morning, I was out prepping a plane for a flight. It was an all mail delivery today for me. Nora usually handled most of the scheduling and did a good job of changing it up for us. Some days were tourist days and other days we got to fly the gorgeous skies of Alaska with nothing but the sound of the plane engine and the mountains to keep us company while we dropped off various deliveries.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I fished it out to glance down at the screen. It was a text from Sandra. Results are in: you’re not the father. I already knew that, but I thought you’d want to know for sure.
I tapped out a quick reply to Sandra. Thanks for letting me know and hope that helps. You take care now.
Just then, my phone rang, and I saw it was the hospital number. I only knew this because I had entered it as a contact in my phone in the aftermath of my recovery after the accident last winter.
“Hello,” I answered.
“May I please speak with Elias?”
“Hey, Violet. I recognize your voice,” I said. “I’m guessing you’re calling me with the results. I already heard.”
She laughed. “You’re not the father, but then that’s what you said. I guess it’s none of my business, but I admit to being nosy about your situation.”
I chuckled. “No big deal. You can be nosy. It was a blast from the past, and a custody case where they’re trying to deny child support and say I was the father. We didn’t end on great terms before, but it’s not right for people to pull that kind of shit, so I did the deed. Or rather, I didn’t do the deed.”
Violet’s laugh rang out in my ear. “You’re a good man, Elias. I’ll see you around. Don’t forget, you know where to find me if you need to get your cheek swabbed or some blood drawn.”
“I sure do. You take care, Violet. Give Sawyer my best,” I said, referring to her husband.
“You got it. I gotta go ‘cause I’m getting paged. See ya.”
I hung up my phone and slid it in my pocket. Another second later, I pulled it back out. I typed out a quick text to Cammi.
Just wanted you to know the results came back, only confirming what I already knew. I’m not a surprise father. I hope you’re doing okay. Miss you.
I’d gone by reliably to get my coffee at Red Truck Coffee. Although I was giving her space, I thought it would be weird for me not to do what I’d done for years. Out of those mornings, I’d only seen her twice. According to Amy, Cammi was busy over at Misty Mountain Café most days.
As I flew into the blue sky a few minutes later, I pondered Diego’s and Flynn’s pointed comments last night. I suppose I did play my cards close. It felt fucking monumental to tell Cammi I knew we had something. Yet, after what she’d been through, she had her own reasons for being doubtful about that.
I was unloading the delivery for a small village onto the pallets set up when Stan, whose last name I didn’t even know, rolled up on his four-wheeler, a common form of transportation in the smaller villages in Alaska. He ran the grocery store and cast me a quick smile. “What do we have today?”
“A shit ton of food,” I replied with a wry grin.
Stan chuckled and cut the engine on his four-wheeler, climbing off and quickly helping me unload. Stan used to be the chief of the small tribe for this village. He was older now and told me he enjoyed running the store because he could keep up on all the gossip. I usually expected to see him and had remembered to get him a coffee from Red Truck Coffee because it was his favorite. “Hang on,” I said, lifting a finger after we put the last box on a pallet, which was ready to be driven by forklift the short distance to the small store.
I leaned in between the plane seats and pulled out the untouched coffee. “Here you go,” I said handing it over.
Stan put his palm over his heart in a gesture reminiscent of Diego. “Oh, man. I swear, that Cammi, she’s an angel. Her coffee is straight from heaven, and I’m not even sure I believe in God.”
I chuckled. “Not gonna argue with you on that. She just bought Misty Mountain Café too.”
“Whoa,” he said with a grin after he took a long swallow of his coffee. “She’s going to be a monopoly. I wonder if her food is as good as her coffee.”
I shrugged. “Not sure about that, but she told me she wanted to have breakfast leftover pizza, so I took that as a really good sign.”
“That’s freaking brilliant,” Stan said. “Don’t you know if she’s a good cook? I thought you were seeing her.”
Did I mention Stan was up on the gossip? Lord knows how this guy knew about me and Cammi. Although, Diamond Creek was a hub town in this part of Alaska. If anybody from this village was flying out, they went through Diamond Creek on the way. It was the main place for them to travel for any errands beyond the small offerings here in the village at the general store.
“How the hell do you know anything about who I’m dating?” I countered.
“I’m high-society, dude. Saw you at that fundraiser with her. Remember?”
“Oh shit, we did see you there. I meant to track you down to chat some more, but the night got away from me.”
“Sure, the night got away from you. Better explanation was your eyes were stuck on Cammi. Now you listen,” he said, his eyes lasering me as his gaze went somber. “She is a nice girl, and you better not screw her over. I heard about that bullshit that last guy pulled with her. Good thing I’m over here most of the time and not around to make a stink over there.”
Of course, Stan would practically adopt Cammi. He was also that kind of guy. He loved people far and wide, which was how we became friends so quick when I took the job with Flynn. Stan had actually volunteered to fly with me and introduce me at some of the other villages.
I held both palms up in surrender. “Stan, I don’t play games, and I wouldn’t hurt Cammi.”
He rolled his eyes. “I know that. I know you’re a good guy and you’re totally solid, but you’re kind of, I don’t know, a little mysterious, I think you got a past. So, I’m just saying don’t let your baggage fuck with her.”
I leaned my head back to stare at the sky as I took a deep breath. Was I that fucking obvious? Leveling my gaze with his again, I nodded. “I get it. I’ve got baggage. I’ll do my best not to let it mess with her.”
He nodded and cuffed me lightly on the shoulder. “Fair enough. We all got baggage. Lord knows, I do. I’ve had three wives, and now I’m back with my first one. Only took me…” He paused, counting on one hand. “…forty years to figure out I shoulda stayed with her to begin with.”
I threw my head back with a hearty laugh. “Guess it’s never too late to figure out the right thing to do, huh?”
“Damn straight. Now, I’m sure you’re on a schedule, so you better get your ass in the air. I’ll see you next time you’re here for delivery, okay? Don’t forget my coffee,” he called as he strolled away and held the distinctive red cup up in the air.