Page 24 of One Moment in Time
‘You know, I almost want to come with you so I can be there to rescue your ass when your mom finds out your dad is coming along for the ride.’
‘You think it’s a bad idea?’ Shit. He’d spent days convincing himself that this was for the greater good, but Trevon was hinting otherwise.
‘Man, it’s a terrible idea. Your mom hates him.’
Okay, maybe more than hinting.
Aiden offered the case for the defence. ‘But don’t you think she’ll get over it if they can just sit down and talk?’ He was willing his buddy to agree but Trevon wasn’t getting the memo.
‘Hell, no. She’s going to be so pissed off, I reckon I’ll get the invitation to Christmas dinner instead of you this year. And you can kiss goodbye to Thanksgiving too.’
‘I’m glad my pain is amusing you, bud. Thank you for being here to give me confidence and words of wisdom.’
‘Any time. And you know… I’m trained in all that first aid shit, so give me a call if it gets messy at the airport.’
Trevon was still chuckling when they drew up in the drop-off zone at the terminal building.
Aiden reached over and hugged him. ‘Thanks, man. You’re an asshole, but you’re my favourite asshole.’
‘Right back at ya. If this doesn’t work out well, it’s been good knowing you.’
Aiden shook his head, laughing, as he got out of the car, then grabbed his bags from the trunk. He gave his mate a wave as he drove off, then headed inside.
The check-in line was short, so it only took half an hour or so to check in his main case at the baggage drop, before heading over to the small café bar area in the corner of the departures lounge.
The space was half full, mostly with people in business attire, or Gen Zs with three devices plugged into the myriad sockets at each section of the counter. He’d just found a tall table with four high chairs around it when he got a text from his mom.
Arrived! Where are you?
He scanned the terminal and saw her by the door. He texted back.
Look to your left
He watched her read it, follow the instruction, then smile when she saw him waving to her. As she walked towards him, he thought, not for the first time, how great she looked. She worked hard in the gym – sometimes with Trevon, other times at spin classes or boxercise, or cross-fit, or whatever else was going on down there. She also took good care of herself and dressed impeccably, just like today. Ripped jeans, high-heeled grey suede boots, a white blazer and her highlighted blonde hair falling in waves over her shoulders as she pulled a cream suitcase. She was in her fifties, but could easily pass for someone in their thirties or early forties. He only knew the bullet points of why his parents had split up, but it wasn’t pretty. Much as he loved his dad, he knew he had a short attention span, a fragile ego and a wandering eye. His mom, on the other hand, was funny, she was smart, she had a core of absolute decency and any guy would be lucky to have her. What a fool his dad had been to let her go. Maybe this trip…
Aiden stopped himself. No, he wasn’t going to get his hopes up for some romantic happy ending because he knew better. Especially after the recent events in his own life. He’d settle for a ceasefire between his parents and anything else was a bonus.
‘Hey, son,’ she smiled breezily, kissing him on the cheek, then climbing on to the stool beside him.
‘How did the showing go?’ he asked, sensing that she seemed happy.
‘Great. Qualified buyer. All cash. He had a couple of other options, so I just have to wait and see. It would be the biggest sale of my career, so cross your fingers.’
‘Crossed,’ he told her, holding up his hand to prove it. ‘Can I get you a drink? We’ve got plenty of time before we have to head to security and there’s no queue. I just want to talk to you about something before we go through.’
‘Eh, sure,’ she replied hesitantly, with a definite edge of suspicion. ‘Gin and tonic, please.’
The barman reached him right at that moment and put two coasters in front of them. ‘What can I get you folks?’
‘A gin and tonic and a beer, please.’
The drinks were in front of them in a couple of minutes. His mum took a sip of hers first. ‘I needed this.’ She put the glass back down on the bar before she went on, ‘I’m so glad we’re doing this, but the curiosity is killing me. So spill. Where are we going and what do you want to talk to me about?’
He wasn’t going to spoil the surprise about meeting Zara’s parents, but he did want to give her the heads-up about his dad coming. He’d debated whether to wait and tell her where they were going when his dad arrived, but decided against it. One shock at a time would be enough.
‘What would you say if I told you we were going to Vegas?’ he asked, full of enthusiasm and hoping she would have the same reaction.
She didn’t.
