CHAPTER 38
Antonio looked at his watch. It had been twenty minutes. He was standing outside of Jackie’s house, waiting for her to come out, and he was running out of patience. The small, private plane he’d chartered was waiting for them. If Jackie didn’t bring her ass out of there, they’d miss the flight.
Just when he was about to ring the doorbell again, Jackie’s front door opened. She was carrying two big duffle bags and a purse. Jesus, she can’t pack light for shit. It was something he’d have to get used to.
The driver came around, opening the door and the trunk. He reached for Jackie’s bags, but Antonio stepped in.
Jackie typed a long apology on her phone as Antonio tossed her bags in the back of the SUV.
“I was trying to find this pair of sneakers Tanika gifted me, since you said sensible shoes. I mean, what’s more sensible than sneakers?
Then, I wanted to make sure they looked decent with what I had on.
And then you’d told me to pack a dress for dinner, but I wasn’t sure if it was more causal or fancy.
And then I had to make sure the dogsitter for PeeWee was good and knew about his meds and to change his bandages.
He’s much more comfortable at home than at the medical spa. ”
“Jackie,” Antonio laughed. “It’s all good. I mean, we gotta haul ass to the plane, but we’ll make it.”
Jackie slid inside the car, and Antonio couldn’t help but watch her thick ass and thighs glide across the leather in those jeans.
This was the first time he’d ever seen Jackie in jeans.
She either wore suits or dresses to the office, always with some kind of blazer.
She definitely needed to wear jeans more often.
Antonio shook his head as he put on his seatbelt, trying to focus on the conversation and not Jackie’s ass. “We’ll get there. But now I know when I need you to be ready by five, that I really need to tell you three, so you have enough time to pack your whole life.”
“Very funny,” Jackie typed, rolling her eyes. “Are you going to tell me where you’re taking me?”
“Damn, Luck. Can’t you let a brother surprise you? Stop asking all these questions. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.”
Jackie sucked her teeth as the app responded. “I mean, my family should know where I’m going.”
“I took care of that,” Antonio said. “I sent Tanika and Bronwyn the itinerary. Guess they didn’t spill the beans.”
The look on Jackie’s face said, Those sneaky heifers …I’m going to get them.
Antonio had asked Calvin for Tanika’s and Bronwyn’s info.
Calvin was hesitant, having recently received a lecture from Jackie on an assistant’s role in protecting privacy.
But when Antonio said he was trying to surprise Jackie, Calvin relented, writing their numbers on a Post-it note.
“I’m only helping you out because Ms. Miles has been a lot nicer, relatively speaking, since you’ve been here.
So, you must be doing something right. I can only guess what that is. ”
Their driver broke a few speed limits and got them to the small airport just in the nick of time.
A plane was waiting for them at the private jet terminal, already gassed up.
Antonio and Jackie handed their bags to an attendant and boarded the plane, where they were greeted by the small flight crew.
Antonio thought it was fly that everyone on the plane was Black, including the pilot.
“Hi folks, I’m Captain Campbell,” the pilot introduced himself. “Glad that you all joined us. I was getting worried you wouldn’t make it.”
“I apologize. This one is always late. Next time, we’ll be on time,” Antonio said. He could feel Jackie’s eyes burning a hole in the side of his head.
The captain laughed. “It’s all good. Luckily, this flight to Savannah is short. Just an hour and ten minutes if everything is fine. It looks to be a clear evening, so we’ll probably land around 5:00 p.m.”
Jackie looked puzzled.
“I know what you’re thinking—we could have driven to Savannah,” Antonio said.
“But we wouldn’t get there in time for what I have planned.
” He took Jackie’s hand, kissing the back of it.
“Just roll with it, ma. Real talk. Whatever happens, whatever we’re feeling, I want to lean into it. You think you can do the same?”
Jackie gazed at Antonio, her dark brown eyes softening. She nodded.
“Lucky, that’s all I ask of you. Just give this a try…”
Antonio leaned in, kissing Jackie on her forehead.
The flight attendant came by with water, juice, and a fruit-and-cheese plate. “I hope you’ll make yourself comfortable during the flight. Please fasten your seatbelts. We’re about to take off.”
“You ready?” Antonio asked after they’d buckled themselves in, holding out his glass of cranberry juice.
Jackie smiled, tapping her glass to his.
AFTER CHECKING INTO THEIR HOTEL, ANTONIO HAD TO WORK TO convince Jackie to change out of her heels into her sneakers. They made it just in time for his surprise: a trolly was waiting in front of the hotel lobby, with a dozen other people milling around outside of it.
Jackie read the sign on the trolly, Beyond the Ghoulish Gates. She looked at Antonio, intrigued.
Antonio could barely contain his giddiness. “Surprise!”
Jackie’s brows knitted together. “A ghost tour?” she typed.
A tour guide, dressed in black with the company logo on his buttoned-down shirt, stepped off the trolley and addressed the group.
“Hey y’all! My name is Sam. And I’ll be your tour guide for this special twentieth anniversary ghostly tour.
Tonight, we explore one of the most famous true crimes to happen in Savannah—the 1981 murder of Danny Hansford by Jim Williams, which inspired the book and movie of the same name, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. ”
If Antonio had been quick enough to take a photo of the way Jackie’s mouth dropped, he’d have framed it to cherish that image for the rest of his life.
Jackie squealed. She opened her Notes app so she could write to Antonio without interrupting the tour guide. “That is one of my favorite books and movies of all time. How’d you know?”
Antonio spoke in a whisper, close to her ear. “The book in your office, remember? It was the day you lost your voice.” He tipped Jackie’s chin up with his finger. “I remember everything about you, down to the most minute detail. You’re unforgettable.”
He watched her throat bob as she swallowed, her eyes glistening with…tears? Antonio knew it was rare to see Jackie emote, outside of her legendary temper. He didn’t take it lightly that she was letting her guard down with him. “See why you needed sneakers now?”
Jackie nodded, wiping a tear from her cheek.
“C’mon, Lucky. Folks are getting on the trolley. Let’s get a good seat.”
The tour was fascinating, and the cast of characters was colorful.
But Antonio couldn’t have cared less about any of it.
He was soaking in all the tiny moments with Jackie.
The way she leaned against his arm as Sam droned on and on about a particular point.
Her breathy giggle if she found something funny or absurd.
The way she wrinkled her forehead when she was paying attention…
it was all adorable to Antonio. Outside of handling contracts and client negotiations, Antonio had never seen Jackie so engrossed in something.
When they got to Forsyth Square, Antonio did have the foresight to take out his phone and snap a picture.
Jackie was standing underneath trees lined with hanging Spanish moss, the famous fountain in the background.
In the twilight, it looked like a postcard.
And she looked so damn happy. I want to keep making her happy, he thought.
The tour ended at the Jepson Center so the group could take a picture of the Bird Girl statue that was featured so prominently on the cover of the book.
As Sam pointed out, it had originally been at the Bonaventure Cemetery but was relocated to preserve the history.
When Sam mentioned an optional bonus stop at the cemetery, an older, gray-haired woman scolded, “This time of night? Oh, hell no! I don’t think so!
” Everyone laughed and agreed. Nightfall in a Southern, Gothic cemetery? Yeah, that was too damn creepy.
“So,” Antonio began as the tour concluded. “I have late dinner reservations at The Gray. We can go back to the hotel and change. Maybe we—”
Jackie put a hand on Antonio’s chest. He stilled, looking down at the expression on her face. “What is it? Not hungry?”
A smile lifted the corner of Jackie’s juicy, full lips.
Antonio raised a brow. “Oh, it’s like that?” He put his arms around her waist. “We can stay in, ma. Whatever you want.”
Jackie’s hand went under Antonio’s shirt, her nails slightly grazing his chest.
Antonio closed his eyes, breathing through his nostrils. “Lucky, girl…” He was trying really hard not to get hard in front of a group of senior citizens. “You gotta chill.”
Jackie removed her hand with a seductive smirk.
Antonio pulled her by the shoulders to his side as they walked back to the trolley.