Page 17 of Priceless
“No. I’m leaving town. It’s about time I got to go somewhere, you know?”
“You’re shitting me?”
“I am not. I promise.”
“Where are you going? Are you going alone? Don’t tell me you met someone!”
“I’m going abroad. I always wanted to say that. Yes, alone. And no, I haven’t met anyone, but I did…have a Scotsman help me with my itinerary.”
“You’re going to Europe? You should have said something. I might have abandoned my family and gone with you.”
“Just Scotland for now. I appreciate your near-sacrifice, but I want to go alone. I want everything new. Every conversation, every face, every town.”
I was pretty sure Whitney sniffed.
“You okay?”
“I’m fine,”she said.“Just proud of you. But if you go again, I’m coming along, even if I have to walk ten steps behind.”
“Fine. Though this might be a one-time deal. We’ll see. I only wish?—”
“That Paul was going with you?”
“No. I wish I was younger. I wish I’d done this a long time ago. Paul never would have left the state, let alone the country. And he wouldn’t have been happy to see me having fun without him. But if I’d known how easy it is, I might have gone anyway.”
“Yeah, well, neither of us should have settled for someone local if we ever hoped to get out of Dodge.”
“Hey, don’t think like that. And don’t give up. Maybe you can change Shawn’s mind. And if not, if you want to travel so badly, you can do it without him. If I really enjoy myself this trip, I’ll take another, and you can come with. Show a little faith and get your passport ready.”
“Show a little faith? You sound like…someone else. Someone brainwashing you?”
I definitely wasn’t going to tell her the truth, that I was learning positivity from AI. So instead, I said, “It’s just an app. How to think positive.”
“Ooh. I need that. Send me a link.”
“I will.”Hah! Not on your life. He’s all mine.And if he wasn’t, I didn’t want to know about it.
“Shawn says we can’t afford to miss our grandkids’ most formative years, that our love and attention might be pivotal.”
“Whitney. Seriously. How much can your grandkids grow in a couple of weeks? You won’t miss much, and if they miss you, it’ll be good for everyone. And it wouldn’t hurt for Shawn to miss you a little, you know.”
“You’re right. It wouldn’t. I’ll get my passport started. First thing Monday. And then I’ll start looking at trips. Just make sure you come back alive, okay? Or I’m stuck here for good.”She gasped.“I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry?—”
“It’s fine. I know what you meant. And I promise to come back alive.”
“How long will you be gone?”
“My return flight is two weeks from tomorrow. Set in stone. I promise I’ll be on it.”
While my planewas waiting on the tarmac, I checked my messages one last time. I had asked Jocko to tell me the most romantic Celtic story he could, and he said he would send it in time to read it on my flight.
True to his word, like always, a text was waiting with a file attached. I downloaded the file first, to make sure I could open it once the plane was in the sky. Then I read the text.
I hope this tale is to yer liking. ‘Tis about a man and woman who meet in Inverness, the second and longest stop on your itinerary. I look forward to yer reaction. Yers in truth, Jocko
I saved it as long as I could. Right after the first round of drinks and biscuits were passed out, I opened the file…
CHAPTER NINE
