4. Bah-Humbug
BAH-HUMBUG
K ayn
“We’re here,” I announced as the car pulled up to the tarmac at the private airport. We planned to fly into Atlanta today for a business meeting tomorrow. Then, we would leave the next day and fly into New York, where we would spend the next few days before returning to Cherokee Springs.
“I’ve never flown on a private plane before,” Kandi announced as she stared eagerly out the window with her face pressed against it like a little child. She had insisted on the ride up that I stop calling her Miss Jolly.
There was something about her that bothered me greatly. I was uncertain why, other than maybe because she was always so damn cheerful. There wasn’t that much to be happy about all the damn time.
A part of me felt bad for taking her away from her family.
I’d overheard her conversation with her mother.
I was certain her mother wasn’t happy about her last-minute trip.
I didn’t give a damn. If she wanted a job, she’d do what she was required to do.
I planned to have her back in town by Christmas Eve.
On the other hand, I would be working on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I didn’t have any specific plans. I never did. But that was okay by me. I was more productive on those two days than any other day, because everyone else was consumed with the superficial holiday.
I climbed out of the car as our driver moved to Kandi’s door to open it for her. She quickly hopped out of the car and followed the driver to the trunk.
“Lawrence will grab our things and take them to the plane. You don’t have to worry about your bags, Miss . . . Kandi.” It would take some getting used to calling her by her first name instead of her last name, as I had done with my previous assistants.
“Oh, that’s fine. But there are a few things that I would like to get out of my bag before we board our flight, if that’s okay.”
She actually stood still and waited for my permission. As silly as it sounded, that shit turned me on.
“Sure,” I replied.
I watched as she moved to Lawrence’s side and waited for him to remove all the bags from the trunk. When he did, she grabbed a mauve carry-on bag and quickly unzipped it.
Kandi removed a few small, carefully wrapped boxes with bows on them. I frowned, wondering what the hell she was doing. Before I could speak, though, she handed one to Lawrence and then moved to the pilot, co-pilot, and flight attendant and handed each of them a packet as well.
“Merry Christmas.” Kandi’s voice was cheerful as she handed out each packet.
“Merry Christmas,” they all replied and thanked her.
I shook my head at her antics. In some ways, she was like a damn child with all this Christmas shit.
Hell, she didn’t even know the pilots or the flight attendant.
I knew that she knew who Lawrence was because he had come into the office on multiple occasions.
The only reason she had known how many people were flying with us was because she had asked yesterday.
At the time, I thought she was simply curious.
A part of me wondered what was in their packets, but I didn’t have to wait long because Lawrence immediately opened his.
“Thank you, Ms. Jolly.” Lawrence all but gushed over his gifts.
Our flight attendants and pilots did the same when they opened their gifts.
“I made those essential oils and the candle myself. The chocolates are from this little candy shop that’s not too far from my home. They’re great, and I promise that y’all are gonna love them,” she vowed enthusiastically.
“I’m sure that we will. Thank you so much,” Makenna Akins , the flight attendant, stated.
Makenna wasn’t our normal flight attendant, but she stepped in for our usual flight attendant, Dana, who was on vacation.
I watched the two women hug, and when they pulled back, Kandi turned a big, bright smile my way.
“Can we finally board the plane?” I grumbled.
Kandi giggled and led the way toward the plane as if she were the one in charge. I shook my head but hypnotically followed the sway of her ass and hips to the plane and left Lawrence to tackle the luggage.
Once we boarded, I showed Kandi around and pointed out where the bathroom was in case she needed to use it on the short flight to Atlanta. We buckled in and settled into our seats. I was focused on emails as we waited to take off.
“Here’s your gift,” Kandi announced sweetly.
I looked up at her, and she held out a small packet in my direction. She bit back a smile as her hand shook slightly.
I shook my head and replied, “You didn’t need to.”
She shook the package at me. “You’re supposed to say, ‘thank you.’”
I stared at her for several long seconds before I finally accepted the gift.
“Open it,” she encouraged eagerly. I felt bad because I hadn’t gotten her anything.
Sighing, I removed the wrapping and opened the box. Inside was a box of AirPods. There was also a gift certificate to my favorite coffee shop at the end of the street, along with the same chocolates she had gifted the others.
“I’ll reimburse you as soon as we land.”
The look of horror on her face would have been comical if I hadn’t felt so bad.
“It’s a gift, Kayn, . . . Mr. Kayn,” she corrected, pressing her hand against her lips.
For some reason, I loved the way she said my name without the Mister in front.
Apparently, my dick did, too, because he immediately reacted to it.
I didn’t know why this woman got to me the way she did, but she did.
“I overheard you talking about needing some new ones the day before yesterday.”
“Thank you, Kandi.”
I buried my attention back into my work. I was uncomfortable with her gift. No one had done anything for me in such a long time. I no longer received gifts from anyone, and the fact that she was so thoughtful touched a nigga in a way that made me uncomfortable.
After twenty minutes, Justin, the pilot, came back and announced, “We won’t be able to make the trip to Atlanta, sir.”
“What do you mean?” I growled, scowling up at him.
I slammed my laptop closed. Justin bowed his head slightly, and with his hands clasped behind his back, he stared back at me. “My apologies, sir, but with the unexpected snowfall that just hit Atlanta, we can’t get the clearance to take off.”
“Who the hell decided this, and why am I just now finding this out?”
“Sir, do you recall that I mentioned I had been in conversation with the FAA and Air Traffic Control about the conditions?”
“And I also know that you have the final authority on whether this plane can fly or if it’s grounded. Justin, I have an urgent meeting in the morning.”
“And I understand that, sir. But I cannot and will not, in good conscience, fly this plane into those conditions. It simply isn’t safe, and I refuse to jeopardize your life, Ms. Jolly’s life, or my team’s life to make that happen, sir.”
“You’ve got several years’ experience in aviation. I know that you can navigate?—”
“I could, but I won’t. Atlanta hasn’t seen a snowstorm like this in several years, and it’s coming down rapidly.
The last time they had snow this bad, the city shut down, accidents were all over the highway, and people were sleeping in their cars and stores.
They’ve grounded all of their flights going out of Hartsfield, and they aren’t accepting any in.
If there’s any way that you can postpone your meeting, I strongly encourage you to do so. ”
“That’s not your decision, Justin!” I seethed.
“I’m sorry, sir. But I have made my decision.”
I jumped up and stalked to the front of the plane. “We’ll drive. Is Lawrence still here?” I demanded.
“No, sir. He left right after he dropped you all off,” Kyle, the co-pilot, informed me.
“How the hell are we supposed to get out of here?” I demanded.
“You could take my car, sir.” Kyle’s suggestion came hesitantly as he looked back and forth between Makenna and Justin.
“Uhm, . . . Kyle, if you would like, you can catch a ride with me?” Makenna suggested.
“If that’s okay with you, Kyle, I will take your car and then hire a driver to take it back to Cherokee Springs,” I expressed.
He nodded humbly, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a set of keys. “It’s the white BMW parked in the lot over there,” he stated and pointed out the window in the direction of the parking lot.
I turned back to Kandi, who sat on the edge of her seat, listening. I could tell by the look on her face she was disappointed. I was sure she hoped that I would call the trip off and she could resume Christmas with her family.
Bah-humbug! That shit wasn’t happening today.