Chapter Fifteen
I wasn’t sure if my trip back to Chicago was good for me.
I wanted to go home, rest for a weekend, catch up in the office, and do an incredible amount of laundry. I had accomplished all that, of course, but repacking the suitcase, getting back on a plane, and leaving the sanctuary of my apartment for another few weeks seemed unbearable.
Or maybe I was just freaking out about the Oklahoma trip.
Dennis had called me the night before I left, and I immediately recognized Jo’s voice on the other end.
“Allegra?”She said as soon as I answered.
“Hi, Jo,” I responded, trying to hide my surprise. “How are you?”
“Well, I was talking to Dennis, and he said he let you know we want you to stay with us, but I’m sure he didn’t get you any details, so I wanted to call and convince you myself!”
I hadn’t responded to Dennis’ original text.
I had stared at the text and the picture of my dad for an hour, barely blinking.
I had planned on forming some kind of excuse, but every time I tried, I felt a knot in my stomach form.
“Oh yes, so sorry I haven’t answered. It’s been a busy week back in the office. ”
She laughed. “Oh, sweetie, I can only imagine! Don’t even worry, I missed you anyway and wanted to chat.”
I sat on the edge of my bed, bringing my knees to my chest like a child. I closed my eyes and soaked in her words.
When I didn’t respond, she went on. “We have a farmhouse out here in Guthrie. The girls and their kids have been stayin’ here while we were gone, so it’s taken some time to get it back to livable, but it’ll be in tip-top shape by the time you make it.
Jimmy and his wife live across the street, Alan is next door with his family, and Dean and Colton still live with us, that is, until Dean gets married in the winter.
We’ll have a bed made up for you, breakfast and dinner every mornin’ and evenin’, and Dennis and the boys can drive you anywhere you need to go so you won’t need a taxi or nothin’,” she said in a single breath.
I barely opened my mouth to start forming a response when she kept going.
“What time does your flight get in? I’ll have Dennis or one of the boys meet you at the airport.”
I thought back to Dennis’ text. He was right, she was very hard to say no to. I couldn’t think of a reason why staying with them wouldn’t be optimal.
Other than the fact that her son had unknowingly broken up my engagement and changed the trajectory of my entire life.
“Allegra? Are you still there?”
I put my legs on the floor, looking at my half-packed suitcase. I would have to rethink the tiny silk pajamas. “Yes, sorry! You really don’t need to go through so much trouble for me. I’m happy to stay in a hotel real close.”
Listening to her strong accent was forcing mine to creep back into my voice. I swallowed hard and shoved it back down.
“It is no trouble at all! We cannot wait to get to know you better. Just send Dennis your itinerary, and we’ll have dinner on the table when you get here. Travel safe, Allegra!”
Click.
I resisted swearing enough to make my mother proud. I pulled the tiny silk tank top and shorts out of the suitcase and replaced them with a matching red pajama set I had gotten for Christmas from Martha a few years ago.
The rest of my clothes fit the usual Corporate Allegra persona.
I had a vision of the Nash family sitting for dinner in the house. I knew for a fact Jo’s daughters-in-law didn’t wear slacks, blazers, and tight blouses regularly.
I threw in a textured t-shirt, a sundress, and a pair of denim shorts, just in case.
The pair of boots sticking out from the cardboard box in the closet caught my eye. I shut the closet and zipped up my suitcase.
~~~
I leaned back in my seat, taking long, deep breaths. My heart was pounding so hard, I thought I was going to have a heart attack.
I wasn’t ready for Dennis to ask me personal questions about myself on the drive to their home. I wasn’t ready to have a weekend stay with the Nash family. I wasn’t ready to face Colton again after all he’d done for me.
The only thing I was prepared for was my work.
I had a perfect script that I had emailed to the rodeo coordinator for the announcer to read.
I had Billy coming on Friday night to shoot some footage of the Agri-Corp logos scattered throughout the arena.
I even managed a video presentation of the equipment to be shown right after the rodeo starts.
Thompson was bound to be proud.
I caught my reflection in the plane window and sighed.
The bruise was healing as well and as quickly as it could, but it was still there. The redness in my eye was fading, but it still itched and burned. It was an annoying reminder of how quickly my life spiraled out of control.
A few months ago, the whole scene would’ve put me in a stress coma.
Now? Maybe I was maturing as much as I convinced Mr. Sterl…Craig that I was.
The plane was beginning to descend, making my stomach lurch into my throat. Only a few more minutes before my anticipatory anxiety could turn into regular anxiety.
The plane touched down in Oklahoma without a hitch, yet I stayed rooted to my seat, watching the overhead light and waiting for the finality of the chime before I found the courage to stand.
I stepped into the aisle, throwing my briefcase onto my shoulder and meandering behind the rest of the passengers out of the plane.
What was really the worst that could happen? They could get to know me? Oh no! The horror!
Come on, Allegra, chill out.
I joined the slow trek of the crowd through the concourse, the rhythmic clicking of my heels echoing against the tile. The moment I stepped onto the escalator, I leaned over the handrail, scanning the arrivals hall for a Nash hat in a crowd of Oklahoma strangers.
Unfortunately, almost everyone was wearing a cowboy hat, so that wasn’t going to help my search. I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants and took a breath.
The escalator carried me lower, the wide-open baggage claim coming into full view. My eyes darted from face to face. A grandfather holding a handmade sign, a woman with dark circles under her eyes, a dad with two energetic kids and four suitcases, and a group of teenagers on their phones.
Then I saw him.
He wasn’t standing by the baggage carousels or walking by the glass doors.
He was leaning against a thick concrete pillar, near the base of the escalator.
His arms were folded over his worn denim shirt, one dusty boot hooked behind the other.
He didn’t have a sign, wasn’t holding his phone; he was looking straight up at the escalator.
At me.
My heart didn’t just thud; it stopped.
Colton didn’t wave. He didn’t give me his usual crooked grin. He just watched my descent with an intensity that made me feel like the only person in the airport. The soft light coming through the glass caught the sharp lines of his jaw and the messy brown hair peeking out from under his tan hat.
I swallowed hard.
The escalator ended suddenly, and I found myself fumbling to find my footing. “You’re not Dennis,” I said as soon as we were face-to-face, the words falling out of my mouth before I could stop them.
He pushed himself off the pillar with easy fluid grace. He was taller than I remembered; I had to crane my neck to look up at him. Then came his crooked grin. “Disappointed?”
I shook my head, trying to offer a casual smile back. “Just surprised.”
“How’s the cheek, Chicago?” He said, his voice low and gravelly, vibrating right through my chest.
My hand instinctively went to the bruise. “Oh, it’s fine. Much better. Thank you.”
He threw his chin toward the baggage claim. “Do you have a suitcase?”
I nodded.
“Let’s grab it so we can get you back to the house.”
I followed him, racking my brain to remember how to have a normal conversation. I had been in so many uncomfortable situations with this job, so many powerful men and women, and yet around Colton Nash, my tongue melted, and my mind turned to mush.
“What’s it look like?” He asked over the crowd.
I smiled at his thick accent. “It’s, um, it’s a really light pinky color, ya know?”I wanted to smack myself.
How about, “It’s pink.” Would that be so hard, Allegra?
We watched the carousel start spinning, neither of us willing to speak. Luckily, the airport was noisy enough to drown out the awkward silence.
My suitcase, with a price that would make Colton gag, came around. I stepped forward to take it down, but Colton put his hand out to stop me.
“What kind of man would I be if I let you lift that heavy bag?” He said with a tiny wink.
I could think of a few of my snotty city friends who would throw a feministic fit over that line, but I couldn’t help but be grateful for the gentlemanly gesture. “Thank you,” I said as he easily lifted it off the track.
I reached for it again, but he lifted the handle himself, his fingers brushing mine as he swept the rolling suitcase away. “It’s kind of heavy,” I apologized.
He shrugged, and for half a second, I thought I smelled cologne gliding through the air. “I’m tough,” he assured me. “Come on, Mamma’s worried you’ve been kidnapped by a different set of hicks.”
I let out a soft chuckle.
My rehearsed scripts to keep Colton Nash at a distance were already starting to feel like a very thin shield.