Chapter 19 Distance Between Truth
distance between truth
Lana’s eyes popped open when Paula touched her arm. She had slept through the whole flight with the help of an over-the-counter p.m. medication, and couldn’t believe they were there already. The flight attendant walked up to them and handed Lana a bottle of water.
“Welcome to Georgia!” She beamed, grinning ear to ear.
It must be painted on, Lana thought as she opened the bottle and took a sip. Paula leaned close to her and rubbed her forearm.
“You ready?” she asked.
Lana nodded. It was a total lie; she wasn’t ready.
She wasn’t ready to see Maureen or deal with the drama that would be kicked into high gear.
The only person she wanted to see was Kayden, and she was still unsure of how that would turn out.
The airplane door opened, allowing the frigid air to ooze into the jet cabin.
It was almost midnight, so the temperature was about 5 degrees.
Closing up the leather jacket she had taken from Kayden a month before, she and Paula stood and started down the plane’s stairs.
A car was waiting on the tarmac of the private airport, the driver holding the doors open for them.
Paula climbed in first, and Lana took a look at the scenery.
The snow was still on the ground, a few feet deep, but plowed this time.
It looked the same now as it did when she was driving out of town.
As if the snow put the city in suspended animation until she returned.
She stepped into the toasty car next to Paula, who was removing her scarf.
“I’m scared,” Lana said, looking her friend in the face.
She still couldn’t believe everything Paula was doing for her and Kayden, and didn’t know how she would ever repay her.
“I know, baby doll,” she said, “You shouldn’t be. Kim and my mother, on the other hand, should.”
“Where are we going to stay tonight?” Lana asked as the car pulled forward.
“Spence Hotel.”
“We can’t! Your mother’s there,” Lana replied, panicked, sitting up with her eyes as big as saucers.
“It’s ok, we’ll check out by morning and keep a low profile. I still have to bring Kayden up to speed on everything if we’re going to do this right.”
“How are you going to tell him?” Lana asked, relaxing in the seat a little more.
“Oh, I have a plan. Don’t you worry.”
They rode in silence as the warm interior of the luxury car made its way towards Hamby.
The drive wasn’t more than ten minutes before they were turning at the familiar roundabout.
The streets were deserted and quiet, a light snow covering the roofs and treetops, with warm, glowing street lamps.
It looked as if they were driving through a cozy winter screensaver.
As they prepared to turn left onto Patterson, Lana caught a glimpse of Aunt Mae’s, still partially covered by tarps.
I guess not to give too much away before the big ceremony, she thought.
The car continued down Patterson and, a few minutes later, stopped in front of the hotel.
Lana felt the anxiety building in her chest, like heartburn.
The driver exited the vehicle to open her door, and Lana couldn’t help staring at the jewelry store across the street. Only a month and a half ago, Kayden practically dragged her in there to buy that gorgeous diamond ring.
She smiled, remembering how happy he looked when he slid it on her finger. The driver opened the door, and she and Paula hustled out in the cold and entered the hotel. Paula stalked straight to the elevators, and Lana followed suit.
“Don’t we need to check in?” she asked, confused.
“I told you, I’ve been planning this for a while. I booked this room and got the key in advance two weeks ago. We’re good.”
Lana couldn’t help but smile. She had to give it to them; there was never a dull moment when it came to a member of the Capshaw family.
LANA LAY IN the queen-sized bed of her hotel room, unable to sleep for the last three hours.
The uncertainty about Kim living under the same roof as Kayden for weeks on end unnerved her.
Even though Paula reassured her the whole way to Hamby that there was nothing to worry about, the Page Six announcement photo still haunted her every thought.
Every fiber of Lana wanted to leave the hotel and trek up the hill to the house, but Paula already had a plan in place that required her to wait, and she had to respect it.
The last few weeks had been a series of extreme ups and downs, and she wanted off the roller coaster; for that to happen, she had to be patient a little while longer.
Turning onto her side, Kayden’s jacket lay on the pillow next to her, and for a moment, she closed her eyes and tried to imagine him lying there.
Finally, she grabbed it and held it to her face, breathing in the now-fading cologne, as she’d done every night since she left him behind.
As she squeezed her eyes closed, she prayed that he could forgive her for what she had done before she eventually drifted off to sleep.
AT FIVE IN the morning, Kayden was already awake, on his second cup of joe, eager to get ahead on the day’s work.
He sat at his office desk and stared down at the piles of pictures lying before him.
They were of various stages of the new house being built, all exterior and foundation work.
The shell of the entire house was completed, but it was far from finished.
He thought about how beautiful it would undoubtedly be, but couldn’t focus on the house or anything without thinking of her and, especially, knowing that some low-life tried to take advantage of her and put her in the hospital.
In times of quiet and solitude like this, he would reflect on the changes he’d made as a person because of her presence.
Something about her made him want to be a better man and human being.
The chance meeting with her was sudden and unexpected, but he had never felt luckier in his entire life.
He thought of the words that Aunt Mae told him before: “She was exactly what you needed when you needed it,” or something to that effect.
There was only one thing he didn’t like about that saying—the phrase “needed.” The past tense was wrong because he very much still needed her in every way, every day.
Kayden stood from the table, his lower back beginning to feel the past three hours of work, and made his way through his sister’s darkened living room.
He leaned onto the cold glass patio doors and peered over the garden and the town before him.
The snow was still clinging to life, but the view wasn’t as magical as he’d remembered it a few weeks back.
As soon as Aunt Mae’s diner grand re-opening happened later that night, he was boarding a plane to Florida to bring his woman home, and he’d be damned if his mother or anyone, for that matter, got in his way.
IT WAS WELL past eight when Lana lifted her coffee to her lips, the stillness of the hotel room doing nothing to settle her thoughts.
Looking out the window, she could see the farmer’s market couple, the Powells, getting ready to set up shop.
They would usually do this much earlier, but the temperatures had been unusually frigid this winter.
During the blizzard, they stayed away like everyone else, but the snow had stopped falling now, and everyone was taking full advantage of that, even if it was a little later than normal.
Staring down at them and seeing how they worked together—carefully and thoughtfully, like a well-oiled machine—she knew that came with familiarity.
Maybe that could be her and Kayden in the future. Happy. Finally.
A knock on the door snapped her out of her thoughts, and she walked over and peered through the peephole of the hotel room. It was Paula, dressed to kill in an all-black leather ensemble. As she opened the door, Paula sauntered in and sat on the bed while Lana closed and locked the door behind her.
“Are we ready?” Lana asked, exhausted. She only got a few hours of sleep and could realistically sleep another ten.
“I think you should stay at the hotel until I get back,” Paula replied, removing her sunglasses.
“But your mother is here,” Lana affirmed, annoyed. She walked over and sat next to Paula, cradling the coffee mug.
“I know, but there's nowhere for me to stash you yet. I need to assess the situation before we blow the lid off this thing.”
“Are you changing your mind?” Lana’s head began to spin.
What happened that made her want to leave me here all of a sudden?
“No way. I need to throw Kim out. I don’t want her in my house a second longer, and if she sees you, she'll run to my mom and ruin everything. Once she’s gone, I’ll have the chance to talk to Kayden in private,” she replied.
Lana nodded her head, realizing it made sense—although she did not want to spend all day hiding in the hotel. She could try to get more sleep, but knew it would be impossible. She’d be a mess of anxiety until she heard from Paula again.
“After you have your chat with him, what’s next?” Lana muttered.
“Then I come and get you and bring you back to the house,” she beamed.
“I know this is supposed to fix everything, but I can't shake this awful feeling I have,” Lana admitted, placing the mug down on the bedside table.
Paula put her hand over Lana’s and squeezed.
“After tonight, you won't have a thing to worry about,” she said and stood from the bed.
She put her sunglasses back on and draped her large Fendi bag over her shoulder.
“Tonight, after the re-opening, I’m going to throw Kayden a congratulatory dinner. Where on the big screen, I’ll hit play and let my mother’s actions speak for themselves.”
“Got it,” Lana replied and stood up from the bed.
“Just try to relax. I’ll be back before you know it,” Paula gave her two air kisses on the cheek, turned, and walked out of the room.