I was so emotional lately, everything had me on edge. Of course, I blamed my overly delicate nature on Jack being gone all the time. But when a freaking tissue commercial caused me to burst into tears, I was convinced I’d gone crazy.
My cell phone rang and Jack’s dimpled grin flashed across my screen. “Hello,” I whined, wiping my nose with the back of my hand.
“Cassie? Are you crying? Why are you crying?” Jack’s warm tone instantly turned protective.
“Nothing, babe. It’s just this stupid commercial where this guy comes home from the war and sees his family and they don’t know he’s coming and he surprises them—” I cut off, tears falling in full force again.
“You’re crying because of a commercial? Did I hear you right?”
I sniffed. “Shut up, Jack. I’m crying because I’m emotional. You’re not here and I miss you so much. Our apartment is huge and we have a lot of shit and no one is helping me and all I want to do is be with you. But at this rate, I’ll be here until next season.”
“Ahhhh, Kitten.” He started to laugh and I swore I’d kill him if he didn’t stop. “Do you want me to send someone there to pack our shit? I’ll fly you out to Seattle right now and I’ll get someone to handle all that. You just say the word and it’s done. You don’t need to be doing that all alone. I told you that.”
“That’s so hot,” I mumbled through my whimpering.
“What is?”
“The way you protect me and want to take care of me. I love youuuu,” I told him, my declaration dragged out with my sobs. I couldn’t stop.
“I love you too,” he said. “Stop packing or not packing. Whatever you’re doing, just stop. We’ll figure it out later. But right now, we need to book my kitten a flight to come see me.”
I sucked in a shaky breath. “Okay. That sounds good.”
“We really don’t have to move out right now, you know. Hell, we can keep the apartment in New York for all I care. We’ll just never use it as often as we’ll want to. But if you want to keep it, we should.”
“I do want to,” I said. “But then again I don’t. It’s not realistic and it’s a waste of money.”
“Your decision. I’ll support whatever you want, okay? I just want you to be happy.”
“I am happy,” I cried out.
“I can tell,” he said, his voice all funny like it was when he tried not to laugh. “Okay, babe, I have a ticket for you to fly out to Seattle first thing tomorrow morning. It’s real early, so you need to go to bed. I’m e-mailing you and Matteo the itinerary now.”
“How did you do that already? We’re still on the phone.”
“I’m Harry Potter, remember? I’m f**king magic!”
I laughed and he chuckled into my ear. “There’s my girl. I’ll see you tomorrow. Now, go get some sleep.”
“Thank you. I miss you,” I confessed with my whole heart, wishing he could feel just how deeply I meant the words. My love for Jack felt like it filled my body to bursting at every seam that held me together. I was overcome with emotion on every level.
“I miss you too. I hate being away from you. I’ve always hated it, but this is different. You’re not home when I get there and it makes me crazy.”
“Me too.”
“Stop crying, please. It f**king kills me to hear you crying.”
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“You’ve finally cracked. I always knew you were crazy. I mean, I did get you to marry me.”
I wiped my eyes, and couldn’t stop the smile that formed on my face. “I’m in bed. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Good girl. I can’t wait.”
My plane landed in Seattle a little before eight the next morning. We disembarked via air stairs and walked across the paved runway before entering an annexed building. I glanced up at the clouds hovering in the sky. They threatened to drown me with the raindrops they carried. The air held a gentle chill that New York lacked this time of year. Even in a summer rainstorm, the East Coast air was hot and sticky. Not so in the Pacific Northwest. It was quite a change for me.
I walked through the small building, took the escalator down, and waited patiently for the shuttle that would take me to baggage claim. Within seconds, the double doors opened and I stepped inside. My stomach flipped as nervous energy surged through me at the idea of seeing my husband. I missed him so much.
Following the signs that pointed to baggage claim, I realized that I’d walked in a circle. Somewhere along the line, I wasn’t translating the arrow directions correctly. Passing by the women’s bathroom one more time, I decided I couldn’t hold it and stepped inside. My stomach ached and fought against the urge to puke.
I must be hungry.
I splashed some cold water on my face before patting it dry with a paper towel. Stepping into the oncoming foot traffic, I decided to follow the herd of other travelers, convinced they would lead me straight to my destination. And they did.
When I was halfway down the escalator, I saw my husband standing at the bottom with a dimpled smile on his face, holding a sign that read:
I covered my face with my hands and burst into tears. My mind flashed back to Jack in the airport when we first dated, holding the sign that read:
I bolted from the escalator and straight into his waiting arms. His body was warm and comforting as he held me close.