Chapter 6 Easton
EASTON
“At what point were you gonna tell me you have a fear of flying?”
“Figured I’d let you find that out when I make proper use of this barf bag.” Collie holds up the disastrous flying aid in front of me.
My face must say it all because she barks out a laugh, her small frame lurching forward in hysterics. “You should see your face right now!”
We’re not off to a great start…
Or should I say…I’m not?
The fact that she can be so carefree in the presence of a stranger should be alarming. But then again, I invited said stranger, and I now have to follow through with my decision.
At least once we get to the cabin—I’m hoping there’s a cabin—we’ll have our separate quarters. Give us a little bit of space to get acclimated.
I sound like a bear prepping for hibernation.
“Do I really need to prepare for you to puke?” I groan.
Collie shrugs. “When in doubt, prepare for the worst!” she chants over the flight attendant’s safety briefing.
“Ma’am, please secure your seat belt for take-off,” the kind attendant tells Collie, suddenly standing beside us.
“Oh! Yes, of course.” Collie situates herself by the window, her eyes squeezing shut at every turn of the plane on the runway.
“Want to switch seats?” I ask, offering her my aisle seat.
“That might be a good idea.” We trade off, and I immediately sense her relax a bit. Not fully, but enough to keep her still.
This is going to be a long flight. Long trip.
“Do you fly often?”
I doubt it, seeing as how her hands are shaking and she’s already chomping her gum before takeoff.
“All the time.” The fuck?
I fight back a smile because she confuses the hell out of me. “Then you know chewing gum is useless before we’re actually ascending, right?”
“Uh huh.” Yet, she doesn’t stop. “It gives me something to do. Occupies my mind over the fear.”
“Okay then,” I draw out, trying to find a way to distract her with conversation. “So, you fly a lot but hate flying? Just want to make sure I’m understanding that correctly.”
Collie’s eyes open for a moment, cutting me a look I’m not sure I should find funny. “I hate flying, yes. But I usually throw back a double Dramamine and say ‘peace the fuck out’ to the world. Then, wake up on the other side.”
She throws a peace sign up for good measure.
Is it too late to take back my invite?
“And you can’t do that now?” I ask because it sounds like a good fucking idea at this point.
“Too late,” she mumbles, nervously fidgeting as the plane takes off. “We’re already in the air, and by the time the meds kick in, it’ll be close to landing. And I’d hate to miss out on all the fun to come because I’m too sleepy.”
That would be a shame…
Am I regretting being a nice guy and offering her a ticket? No. But I am questioning whether I’m in the right headspace to handle someone else and their…conflicts.
Especially when I have yet to process my own.
“Tell me something good.”
“Huh?” Collie looks my way as the plane levels out in the sky.
“You’re good now,” I tell her, my hand absentmindedly finding her leg for security. I pull it away the moment her eyes catch on. “Tell me something good. I know you’ve had a rough morning, but what’s been the high of your day?”
To this day, my parents still ask my sister and me what our highs and lows are of the day. It’s usually with a phone call while I’m buildings high in a bucket truck, but the thought still counts.
“I sort of love that.” She thinks on my question before popping up in her seat. “Wanna see what I got?’
“If it distracts you, yes.”
I watch Collie shuffle through her designer bag, only to pull out a glass bottle the size of her hand. “See this baby right here?”
I examine it closely. It’s a message in a bottle. Iridescent in color with musical notes and sand inside. In addition to the rolled-up message, of course.
“Where’d you get it?”
“Airport gift shop.”
Okay…
“So, what makes that your high? I don’t mean that to be disrespectful, so please don’t take it like that. I’m just curious.”
Her smile has so much warmth for someone with mud on her ass and a fear of flying.
“I collect them,” she tells me, with what looks to be fond memories at the back of her mind.
“I have a shelf full of them back home. One for every place I’ve ever traveled to.
They’re so small that they’re easily missed.
Some of the gift shops even keep them behind the desk. This pretty baby is from Music City.”
That’s a pretty legit high. Especially if the fun in finding them is something she looks forward to when she travels.
“When in Nashville…” I joke. “Buy a message in a bottle. You’re doing a good job at making me envious of your collection, Collie. And I don’t consider myself a jealous man.”
“Happy to be of service to you, Easton.” Tucking it back in her bag, Collie pulls out a snack. Gushers. The nostalgia hits me.
“Jesus. I haven’t seen those in ages.” I nod to the gummy candy.
“They’re the best. Want one?”
“I’m good.” I wave her off. “Wanna watch a movie?”
What I really want to do is fucking sleep. I’m exhausted, both mentally and physically, from these past few days. But at the same time, I feel like I’m at the peak of an adrenaline high, just anticipating the crash out.
The past twenty-four hours roll through my mind like a track. Spin. Halt. Rewind. Only to fast forward to now and fight to forget the look on everyone’s faces.
The moment I fucked up a lifetime of expectations.
Because Easton Voss doing something for himself is completely unheard of. I guarantee the town is in a frenzy. I still don’t feel like dealing with all the hundreds of messages I can almost bet are sitting in my inbox.
“Might make me car sick,” Collie responds, taking me out of my stupor.
“We're on a plane.” I can’t help it. A deep chuckle vibrates through me. Not enough to cause a scene, but enough to watch Collie smirk a bit in victory.
“Got you to almost laugh, didn’t it? Speaking of, do you ever smile? Giggle so loud you fart? Kick back and have a good time? Or do you always look like a moody Mafia man in expensive cologne, dressed in…whatever you call that suit?”
I’m raising questions. I can see it in her fearless, crystal-blue eyes.
I glance down at myself. “A Mafia man?” Can’t say I’ve ever been called that. “It’s not what it looks like…”
“Suuuuure,” she draws out. “That’s what they all say.”
“I’m a good guy. Clean, even.” I point at my wrinkled dress shirt. “I’m just going through a bit of a rough patch.”
That might be a light term to describe my life right now.
“I’d say,” Collie reminds me. “I just can’t figure you out. And that’s usually my specialty. It’s how the men flock to me.” She giggles, humble in her proclamation of beauty.
But Collie is beautiful. An otherworldly kind of beautiful.
“Lucky me.”
A slight swell of turbulence rocks the plane, Collie’s small hand linking onto mine without a thought. “Deal with it, okay?” she tells me, not giving a single fuck we’re strangers.
I wish I could live that way—without reservation.
“Whatever you need.”
“What I need right now is another distraction. Got anything?” Her eyes remain shut, body as rigid as a sheet of plywood while she waits for me to grant her some solace.
I fidget with my pockets. Not sure what I’m looking for, seeing as how I have the bare minimum with me as is. “Sorry.”
“Okay. That’s okay,” she responds with bated breath. “Let’s play Would You Rather.”
I’m exhausted already.
But it’s clear she needs this, so I’ll go along with her game.
“Okay. Want me to start?” I ask, and Collie nods.
I shouldn’t notice little details about her from here. Like how long her eyelashes are. And how tiny the sun-kissed freckles are across her cheeks, despite the winter season beginning.
I should look away. But I can’t. It’s been so long since I’ve allowed myself to notice anything about another woman without feeling guilty about it.
“Would you rather burn to death in a fire or drown at the bottom of a frozen ice rink?”
Collie’s head swings in my direction, eyes bulging like saucers. “And you say I’m the morbid one,” she giggles.
I shrug. “First thing that came to mind.”
“I think I’ll go with the fire. Claustrophobia under an ice rink would take me out before drowning would.”
Both sound like a shitty way to go. “So, I’m guessing cold weather doesn’t bother you?”
“Nope.” She pops her ‘P’ for added effect. “I love the cold. My sister, on the other hand, would prefer to be buried in a bikini.”
“Sounds kinda hot.”
Collie barks out a laugh and nudges my side. “If only you could see her. She’s a goddess. Literal perfection. Boobs I’d pay good money for, too. But she’s taken.” Her eyes beam lasers at me.
I throw my hands up in surrender. “Not interested in the slightest.”
“Good. Now, my turn.” Without even knowing this woman, I can tell her questions will be much different than mine. I can practically feel her off-the-wall thoughts from where I’m seated. “Would you rather accidentally send a dick pic to your mom or your boss?”
“Straight for the jugular, huh?” This one hardly requires much thought. “My boss. He wouldn’t give a shit.”
“Okay, but what if you knew he would? Pretend he’s a stickler, and this could be the thing that costs you your job.”
“Then, I guess my mom. Although it would be weird as fuck since I’m a full-grown man now.”
Her laugh erupts around us, and I feel a bit of relief knowing our tactics to distract her are working. “My mother would have a conniption fit if she saw a picture of my vag. Literally would probably call the authorities on me. God, that would make my day.”
This time, Collie’s laugh feels forced. Disingenuous.
“Your mom a bit of a prude?”
“That’s a light term. Although, she’d do anything to see me married with ten kids to a millionaire who doesn’t love me. Don’t ask me to explain her distorted logic because I’m still trying to figure it out myself.”
“Sounds like a bitch.” I instantly regret my remark, rushing to apologize for commenting on someone’s life that I know nothing about. “I shouldn’t have said that—”
“Oh my god. Thank you for noticing,” Collie groans, jumping in her seat for joy. “I love her, but damn that woman can be a mega bitch at times. Who am I kidding? Most of the time.”
Not one part of me understands what’s happening right now…
“Passengers, at this time we ask that you remain seated with your seat belts securely fastened as we begin our descent into Jackson Hole, Wyoming. As always, thank you for flying with us today,” the flight attendant broadcasts across the main cabin of the plane.
“We’re here,” Collie marvels. “Open the window, Easton. Let’s check out the views.” She nods for me to raise the shade, and my first instinct is to ask if she’s okay. But I think better of it because she’s distracted, and that was the goal.
“You got it,” I say. “Oh, by the way. What’s your email? I’ll send you over the itinerary, so you have an idea of the plans. I haven’t had much time to look it over myself. Didn’t want you to think I invited you here without somewhat of a schedule.”
If looks could kill, I’d be a dead man. “Not you too.” She must see the question in my eyes because I’m really fucking confused. “Jot this down in that email…screw the itinerary. Who needs them anyway? It’s so much more fun to just explore and see what happens.”
Well, technically, I didn’t create the itinerary, but Collie doesn’t need to know that. All of this is just as much a surprise for me as it is for her.
I honestly don’t know what else to say but, “Sure thing. Consider it gone.”
So much for having a fucking backbone, Easton.
But I’d be lying if the idea of being spontaneous didn’t sound appealing.
“You won’t regret this,” Collie tells me, smiling wide and bright. “Time to stay wild. Wyoming, here we come.”
Will I, though? Will I regret this? That seems to be my life’s biggest question.