Chapter Fourteen
It was amazing that even after a long day of travel, their internal clocks still woke them at their normal time. For Sophie, that was 4:30 am, and Fernando awoke at 5:15 am. They took turns freshening up in the lavatory using the warm washcloths that were provided and the change of clothing they had packed in their carry-on luggage.
When Sophie returned to her seat, she still felt rumpled. She had applied a light dusting of eyeshadow, bronzer, mascara, and lip gloss, hoping it would make her look a little more put together. Fernando noticed the effort but wished she didn’t feel it was necessary.
After she had repacked her clothing from the night before in her bag, he spoke, “Soph, I don’t know how to say this properly, so I’m just going to say it. I hope you don’t feel it necessary to wear makeup on my account. You are a stunning woman. I have heard that makeup accentuates the eyes and such, and I’m not about to contradict any of that. If it makes you feel good and more confident or something, go for it, but you never need to wear it for me. Whether on vacation or in the office. You are beautiful, just as I saw you last night. ”
“Oh. Okay. Thank you. I don’t wear much, but it’s nice to know that you don’t expect it. I always thought it was the professional thing to do, like wearing a camisole under a silk blouse. I’ll keep that in mind, though.” There was a hint of color in her cheeks as she finished this confession.
“You’re welcome. I’m sorry that I never said it before. To be honest, it never even crossed my mind,” Fernando said absentmindedly as he retrieved his laptop from his bag. “You really wear a camisole under your blouses?”
“Yes, of course. I’m not sure if I should be relieved that you, as my boss, never noticed the lack of display of my undergarments under my clothing, which seems to be so popular nowadays, or dismayed at the total lack of interest in my feminine presentation,” Sophie commented thoughtfully as she booted up the laptop on the desktop that swung into place from its little hiding place in the center console.
“I’m not sure either,” Fernando said just as thoughtfully. “I would never want my female employees to feel objectified in my presence, but I could see where my total disregard could be insulting as well. I couldn’t honestly say what it is you wear everyday. I feel like it may be a skirt. Am I right?”
“Yes, long pencil skirts usually. They keep me from rushing around. My mother suggested them when I was hired. I have a tendency to walk quickly, and they prohibit a long gate and force a more sedate pace. I try very hard not to draw attention to myself. I see that my objective has been a success.”
“Don’t take it personally, Soph. You know how absentminded and over-focused I can be depending on the day and topic. I feel like since we started this adventure, I am seeing you in a whole new light. I think this trip is going to be a lot of fun,” he said, reaching to squeeze her hand where it rested on the desktop .
“No offense taken. I do know you, and seducing you was never my plan, so I can’t be upset that you weren’t distracted by my appearance when I was trying very hard to avoid that very scenario. I think this is going to be a lot of fun, too.”
They worked in silence for a couple of hours before the stewardess informed them breakfast was going to be served. White table linens were placed on their tables, with a selection of fruit juices, tea or coffee, fresh-cut fruit, breakfast breads, and steamed omelets.
Midway through their meal, the captain came over the speakers to announce that they were going to hit a short period of turbulence. He was going to climb to a higher elevation to try and avoid the worst of it but would be unable to avoid it completely. He suggested that passengers think of it like a bump in the road when driving, nothing more. It was simply a pocket of air they needed to get through, and all would be well.
Sophie reached over the divider and grasped Fernando’s hand. “Just like a roller coaster, remember? Sip some of your drink so it doesn’t spill, and I would hold onto your glass if you don’t want to wear it,” she suggested.
Fernando did as told and quickly gulped his orange juice down and took a large sip of coffee, burning his tongue in the process. He had just sat the ceramic coffee cup back down on his table when the plane began to shake minutely.
“A bit like a massage chair, right?” Sophie asked, trying to lighten the situation.
“I have never been in a massage chair that rattled the cutlery,” Fernando quipped but was doing okay even if his heart had picked up speed.
As the turbulence increased and the plane shook more intensely, the grip on Sophie’s hand increased as well. He was doing well and mentally congratulating himself on keeping his composure until the plane suddenly dropped, and he let out a yelp of surprise. If his brothers were present, he would blame it on the hot coffee that spilled on his hand, but Sophie felt the fear in his grasp and would never buy that excuse.
Within moments, the plane was back in calmer air and once again flying smoothly.
“Sorry about that, folks. That was a little rougher than we anticipated. Not to worry, we are above it now and should have a smooth flight all the way to Rome,” the captain announced. “Just to be safe, we will keep the fasten seatbelt sign on and would appreciate it if you would keep travel about the aircraft to a minimum for the remainder of the flight. Thank you.”
“Well, now you know what turbulence feels like, and we are all still in one piece. To be honest, the little shakes that happened first are totally normal, and you get a little of that just about every flight, just like the captain said about bumpy roads. Once you fly a few times, you don’t even really think about it, much like in a car. The big drop... I have only experienced that one other time. Still, the pilot was in control. My fingers are a little mashed but not broken, so I think you did okay. What do you think? Do you think you can handle more flights?”
“Let’s just say I’m not as terrified as I was when we boarded. The flight has been good up until just now. I’m willing to try the return flight. Then we will see how often you are going to get me on a plane once we return to California,” he admitted.
“Do you think you can at least consider a few flights a year home to see your family?” Sophie asked hopefully.
“Definitely. And I will be sure to give Julio a great, big hug the next time I see him for forcing me to face this fear. I can’t believe I have been such a baby about this all these years. My brothers must be totally flabbergasted by my stubbornness,” Fernando said ruefully.
“Perhaps, but as you said, they all have fears they have been allowing to hold them back. This challenge wasn’t just for you. So tell me, how did your New Year’s Eve brotherhood pact tradition get started anyway? It’s rather unusual but cool.”
Fernando finished his meal and handed his dirty dishes to the stewardess before pushing his table out of the way and turning in his seat the best he could to face Sophie.
“It was my idea, actually, and pretty ingenious if I do say so myself,” he blew on his fingernails and rubbed them on the front of his shirt in a snobbish congratulatory move that made her chuckle at his feigned arrogance.
“Enrique arrived at the boy’s home Julio, Gabe, and I were in when he was ten. He was tough as nails and mean. He kept getting into trouble—I mean, big trouble. One day, he got a particularly bad beating from the other boys. The whole situation had been escalating for months. The three of us had been talking about whether or not to intervene since our little brotherhood had the biggest kid, Gabe, the meanest kid, Julio, and the smartest kid, me, in the home. After that incident, when they nearly killed him, we voted to make him one of our brothers and took him in. He didn’t make it easy; he didn’t want any part of our merry little band of misfits, but the nuns and priest saw the benefit to the situation and happily handed him over to us.”