Page 117 of Love & Other Disasters

Thirty-Nine

Violet arrived two hours before her flight, stood in line, had her suitcase searched, and her body patted down because apparently, she looked shady. By the time she made it on the plane, sweat drenched her back, and she got stuck with a middle seat. She couldn’t wait to see J.P. That was the only reason she was putting herself through this. Violet inserted her earbuds and closed her eyes.

He’d met this guy that owned a consulting firm and had a great round of golf with him and his friends. J.P. clarified that his score wasn’t all that great, “respectable” he called it, but that he’d gotten along with them and thought they all liked him. He told Violet that they were invited to a charity event this guy’s wife was hosting.

If he got a job and settled there, he might never move back to Nashville. She’d tried to sound enthusiastic for him, but couldn’t pull it off. J.P. noticed her apprehension, pointing out that while he was okay financially at the moment, he was shelling out a lot of money every month and not bringing in anything. Also it would be easier to get another job if he already had one. And she understood that, but she couldn’t wait for him to get a job where they could live in the same city.

When the pilot announced they were making their descent into Chicago’s O’Hare, Violet went over her instructions again: after getting off the plane, find the signs to “Lot F” where she’d take the shuttle bus to the Multi-Modal facility where J.P. would meet her. What if he wasn’t there? She shuddered. What if she got lost? She shook the unhelpful thoughts from her mind, and taking deep breaths, reassured herself that there was cell phone communication, and she wouldn’t be lost forever.

The bounce on landing and the vibrating plane took her off guard. It was worse than takeoff. She’d assumed incorrectly that was the worst of it. The plane came to a stop after an eternity and Violet unpeeled her fingers from the arm rests she’d taken over from her row mates in a moment of rude panic.

“Are you okay?” the guy next to her asked.

She nodded, but wanted off the plane as quickly as possible. With everyone around her standing up, the walls of the plane closed in and everything around her was too close and too tight.

Her row mate pushed himself out into the walkway, and opened the overhead bin, and motioned for her to retrieve her bag. He was a big guy and blocked up the walkway with his bulk, much like he did sitting next to her. Only this time, she used his size to her advantage, and grabbed her bag muttering a “thank you” before scurrying down the aisle and out of the plane.

The exiting instructions from J.P. worked like a charm, and soon she found herself on a shuttle bus headed to the Multi-Modal Facility. Once there, she’d meet up with him, and they would take a train to Glencoe. She hadn’t known that places other than New York City had commuter railways, and studied the website once J.P. told her he’d take the train in to meet her.

She powered on her cell phone, and a new text message from Jordan popped up. I’m at the station. Let me know if you need any help.

I’m on the shuttle bus. See you soon! She replied and smiled. He was so thoughtful.

In a dark gray thermal shirt, jeans, and boots, he looked like a mirage standing there. His smile sent an electric pulse racing through her. A sexy sight for sore eyes. Violet ran into his arms, and he scooped her up off the floor. Setting her feet back down, his lips found hers, fingers lifting her chin to get a better angle. The tension drained the instant his arms closed around her.

“Hi,” he said, after the mind blowing kiss.

Violet laughed. “Hi, yourself.”

He took her bag and grabbed her hand with his free hand. “I’m so happy you’re here. I can’t wait to show you around town. How was your flight?” he asked. And Violet told him of her morning as they made their way through the massive complex and out to the Metra Station. A loud chiming bell signaled the arrival of a large silver train as it pulled to a stop alongside the platform, breaks squeaking.

Onboard the train, she was ushered into another seat, but at least this time, it was J.P. beside her. She leaned against his arm, and they interlaced fingers. He kissed the top of her head, and she couldn’t stop smiling. A row of lights hung on the car wall running along above the windows, but the light outside made them unnecessary. Above them, a second level wrapped in shiny metal bars held a row of people in single file seats. The conductor made his way down the row, taking tickets and looking at cell phones.

J.P. shifted, removing his cell phone from his pocket and in a few taps held the screen up when the conductor came to their row.

“I have the app,” he said to her after the conductor moved on. “Electronic tickets are so much easier.”

She smiled and rested her head on his bicep. The city whirled past outside the window and Violet watched the landscape turn from buildings to water.

“That’s nice,” she mused.

“It’s why I wanted to sit on this side, so you could see Lake Michigan.”

Violet took in the scenery along the forty-minute train ride, curled in the seat against J.P., his arm wrapped around her shoulders. He occasionally pointed out different landmarks and told her which towns they rode through. All of the adrenaline that had coursed through her all day lessened as the train rolled along the tracks.

The Glencoe station was a small red brick building with white stone accents and a rotunda in the middle that jutted up to a steep peak. J.P. carried her bag from the station to his mustang parked in the adjacent lot. It was cooler here than back home, and the leaves had already begun changing color.

J.P. turned away from the water and drove through town with its tree lined streets and sidewalks. Back home, sidewalks were right next to the road, but here a median of grass and trees sat between pedestrians and traffic. All of the houses they passed were beautiful and well-kept. Many hid behind trees and foliage. Violet stared out the window, her mouth agape.

“I still need to go visit my mom,” J.P. said, bringing her thoughts back into the car. “If you’re not ready to meet her yet, I can come back and pick you up after.”

“No, I’m fine. Unless you don’t think today is good.”

“I want you to meet my mom. It’s just you’ve been traveling and you might be tired.”

“I’m not too tired. I would like to get freshened up a bit.”

He smiled and turned down yet another tree lined street with a variety of lovely houses. “Sounds like a plan. Then, I can show you around town, and we can have dinner.”

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