Flight to Paradise (Flight Trilogy, Book 1) (37 page)

Rex showed alarm. “You didn’t…”

“For God’s sake, no! She had a head-on with a truck. Sad, but it works for me.”

How
cold
-
hearted
, he thought, even by his standards. He figured it was the alcohol talking. Then it crossed his mind that Keri’s mom had also been killed in a head-on.

He blew it off. “Interesting. Are you staying in the hotel?”

She reached in her purse, pulled out a plastic room key, and laid it on the coffee table. His eyes moved from the coffee table back up to her face. She lifted her eyebrows with a slight smile. He paused only briefly before reaching down to pick up the card.

Leaving the lounge, Rex looked back at the bartender. From Joe’s smile, Rex knew he had been eavesdropping on their conversation. Holding a wineglass in one hand, drying it with a white cloth, he shot Rex a wink. Rex gave him a subtle thumbs-up and a smile.

The door to the elevator opened on the third floor. Emily led him to the right, down the corridor. After passing three rooms, she stopped at the fourth door on the ocean side, slid the plastic key in-and-out, followed by a series of chirps, a click, and a green light. She pushed down on the lever opening the door to a large luxurious suite.

She walked over and opened the French doors to a balcony with a stunning view of the ocean. With her arms outstretched, she took a breath and exhaled. “Isn’t this wonderful?” She turned and put her arms around Rex and gazed up into his eyes. “Just like you.”

“You’re too sweet,” he said.

Her hands found their way down his back. She gently pulled his body up close to hers. “Tomorrow we will fly back to Atlanta and claim our prize.” She kissed him softly, letting the passion grow slowly.

He enjoyed her aggressive advances. His heart pumping faster; every blood-gorged muscle in his body tightening with expectation. “I’ve got my prize.”

She kissed him again. “So, why don’t you unwrap it and see what’s inside?”

“Now you’re talkin’ my language.”

With a brazen face, she spoke to him in a poetic language. “Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning. Let’s enjoy ourselves with sex!” She led him with seductive words. She charmed him with her silky smooth talk. He followed her.

The
Rexter
is
back
.

CHAPTER 67

Keri caught a ride home with Amanda. When she walked into the condo, Sara, the nanny, emerged from the kitchen with a shocked look on her face. “I didn’t expect you home so soon,” Sara said.

“It seems like this day has been filled with unexpected surprises,” Keri said.

“Is everything okay?”

“Couldn’t be better. Is little David asleep?”

“Yes. He went down about thirty minutes ago.”

Keri needed to call Ryan. He would be leaving tomorrow on a trip, and she had to talk to him tonight.

As she lifted the receiver, before dialing his number, she noticed the notepad by the phone and the name: Philip Darby and a number. She paused, remembering the message on the answering machine.

“Keri,” Sara said, “I was going to tell you, that man—Mr. Darby—has called here three times today. He wants you to call him tonight.”

Keri glanced at the clock. “It’s after ten on the East Coast. I’ll call him first thing in the morning.”

“I told him you were on a trip but assured him you would be calling later to check on David. He left his home number and requested you call him, regardless of the time.”

Why
would
her
father’s
lawyer
be
so
eager
to
talk
with
her
?

“Where is the number?”

Sara said, “It’s on the next page of the notepad.”

Perhaps her dad had advised his lawyer to inform her she had been taken out of his will.

I
should
have
known
.

Remorse gripped her, squeezing her heart like a sponge. She loved her dad and hated that she had hurt him. She wanted to tell him that she was sorry. What did it matter now if he had an affair? Knowing her mother like she did, could she blame him? Keri felt it was all her fault.

Why
would
the
lawyer
be
so
persistent
?
How
could
it
be
so
urgent
?

Her mind searched deeper. Her mother was dead and her father’s lawyer was trying to contact her. Her chest tightened with fear.

Something
is
wrong
!

Keri made the call. Philip Darby answered after the first ring. He informed her of her father’s recent death and that, before he died, he had requested that she be present for the reading of his will.

Tears spilled from her eyes. Her throat tightened. She’d waited too long. She would never be able to forgive herself for what she had done. She would never be able to tell him she was sorry. He was gone. As much as she loved her father, the thought of seeing that woman repulsed her.

Mr. Darby told her about a special video that her father had recorded, specifically for her. He said that because the video was a part of her father’s will, for legal reasons, she would have to view it in his office.

The video would allow her to at least see, and hear, her father, one last time. Perhaps it would be a good thing. Partially out of guilt, but mostly because of her deep love for her father—a love that had been suppressed only because of her selfish anger—she had agreed to go. She then told Mr. Darby that she needed him to reserve a second first-class seat on the same flight. Without any questions, he said everything had been taken care of.

He informed her that two first-class reservations had been made for her and Mr. Ryan Mitchell on Delta Airlines out of John Wayne International. The flight departed at 6:45 a.m., Thursday, arriving Atlanta Hartsfield at 1:56 p.m. A limo would pick her up at her condo at 5:00 a.m., and another limo would be waiting for her when she arrived in Atlanta. The meeting was set-up for 3:30.

After hanging up with Mr. Darby, she paused, her mind in a fog.

How
did
Mr
.
Darby
know
about
Ryan
?

She dialed Ryan’s number.

“Hello,” a sweet lady’s voice answered.

Before she could get a word out, she heard Ryan’s voice.

“Mom, I got it. You can hang up now.”

“Okay, dear.” A click followed.

“Hello,” Ryan said.

“Ryan, this is Keri.”

“What a pleasant surprise. Don’t tell me you’ve already talked with Rex.”

“Oh yeah…you could say that.”

“What did you find out?”

“More than I needed to know.”

“What?”

“I caught him red-handed. On the trip back, I worked with this little pumped-up blond who happened to be a big talker. Believe it or not, she was on her way to spend a few days with—none other than—Rex.”

“No way.” Disbelief in his voice.

“Yes. Without her knowing who I was, she spilled her guts for three hours, telling me all about her and Rex…and let me tell you, it was nasty.”

“Are you okay?”

“It’s over.” Silence followed.

“Keri, are you okay? Keri?”

“Ryan, do you realize what this means?” she sniffled. “Us. We can finally be together. A family. You, me, little David, and mom.”

“Keri, I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“Listen, I’m catching the first flight out in the morning.”

“What about your trip. I thought you had to go to work tomorrow.”

“Screw that. My trip doesn’t leave until tomorrow afternoon. I’ll call in sick once I get to California.”

“There’s something else,” she said.

“What?”

“I just found out that my father passed away a couple of weeks ago.”

“Oh Keri…I am so sorry. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, but I received a call from my dad’s lawyer and I’ll need to fly over to Atlanta on Thursday for the reading of his will…actually it’s a video. I wanted to know if you would go with me.”

“Are you kidding? I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

“I just didn’t think I could face that woman by myself. I don’t want to be alone with her in the same room. I might kill her.”

“Don’t you worry. I’ll be right by your side. Did the lawyer mention anything about the will?”

“No. He only said that my father had made a video especially for me. As long as you are with me, I’ll be fine.”

“Well, you can be assured that I will be sticking to you like glue for the next hundred years. I can’t wait to see what this little gold digger looks like. Maybe I’ll help you cook up a scheme to kill her, and then we can takeoff with her inheritance to some romantic paradise, like in the movies, and live happily ever after.”

“Ryan, what’s gotten into you?” she questioned playfully.

He laughed. “You know I’m just joking.”

“I know.”

He said, “Well, I guess I’ll let you go so you can get some sleep. It’s been a tough day. I should be out there by nine, maybe earlier.”

“I am so excited,” she said. “I can’t wait to see you. I love you so much.”

“I love you, too. Did you find out anything about little David.”

“After everything that has happened today, I completely forgot about that. We can do that tomorrow, together. I think it would be better that way.”

“Yeah. One more thing…”

“What?”

“Where did you come up with the name David?” There was a brief silence.

“I think you know.”

CHAPTER 68

Ryan’s flight landed at the John Wayne International Airport at 8:45 a.m.

With only a carry-on, he hurried off the plane and headed to the exit on the upper level. As he passed through the electric doors and out into the crisp morning, his heart pounded hard when he locked eyes with Keri, parked, waiting patiently at the curb. A giant smile spread across her face.

Once in the car, Keri wrapped her arms around him. “I have never been so happy,” she said. Then she kissed him with passion. When she pulled back, they stared momentarily into each other’s eyes allowing their hearts to speak in silence what words could not say.

“God, you are beautiful,” he said.

Keri smiled, brushing a tear from her cheek as she slipped back behind the wheel. She started the engine, checked her mirrors, then pulled away from the curb.

Ryan watched her every move. “God, you are beautiful,” he said. “Or did I already say that?”

“Stop it.” She shot him a playful smile and reached for his hand. Then in a more concerned tone, she asked, “Ryan, what do we do if you are not David’s father?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. When we get home...” he paused. “That sounds nice: ‘When we get home’. I like it.” He leaned over and pecked her on the cheek.

“Me, too.”

“Where was I? Oh yeah…when we get home, we’ll call your doctor, first thing. Then we’ll look for those dog tags.”

“I’m just nervous.”

“Either way, it’s going to be fine.”

They arrived at the condo in less than twenty minutes. Once inside, Keri nervously pulled a small address book from a drawer by the phone and flipped through a few pages. “Here it is.” She dialed the number then looked over at Ryan.

Ryan listened as she spoke with someone. “Hi, my name is Keri Dean,” she said. “Oh, we’re doing just fine. Listen, I know this might sound a bit strange, but could you possibly pull my records and tell me the blood types for my son and myself? I don’t mind waiting.”

Standing silently, with the phone to her ear, she stared at Ryan. In less than a minute, Keri’s attention was drawn back to the phone. “So, mine is ‘O’ and David’s is ‘A’. Thank you so much.”

Ryan whispered anxiously, “The chart. Ask her about the chart.”

She nodded to Ryan, then quickly asked, “Oh, I almost forgot, could I ask you one more question? Is there a chart that shows compatible blood types for parents and their children? For example if a mother’s blood type is ‘O’, and the child is ‘A’, then what could the possible blood types be for the father?” She listened, nodding her head. “I understand. Okay, great.”

Keri held her hand over the receiver and whispered to Ryan excitedly, “She’s getting the chart. It’s called an ABO blood-type chart.”

Her attention went back to the phone. “Yes. Let’s say the mother is ‘O’ and the child is ‘A’, what are the possible blood types for the father?” She listened intently. “Okay, so the father would have to either be an ‘A’ or ‘AB’. Are you sure? Thank you so much. Yes, we will be in next month. Thank you again. Bye.”

Ryan smiled, his eyes stretched wide. “One down, one to go,” he said. “That means that David’s father has to be either an ‘A’ or an ‘AB’. Anything else and he is out.”

“Ryan, your blood type is A-positive. Do you realize what this means?”

“We still don’t know about Rex. He has to be either an ‘O’ or a ‘B’ to prove that he is
not
David’s father.”

“I know, but this at least tells us that it
is
possible that you
are
David’s father. Look at me,” she said, holding her hand out, palm down. “I’m shaking.”

He took her trembling hand. “Let’s go find those dog tags.”

After an exhaustive search of every possible location, the tags could not be found. “So, what now?” Keri asked.

“Do you know where Rex might be? We can call him.”

She sighed, “I have absolutely no idea.”

“That’s okay. I guess we’ll just have to wait until we get back from Atlanta.”

“But I wanted to know now,” she said with a sad face.

“Me, too.” Ryan put his arm around Keri and kissed her on top of the head. “We’ll know soon,” he said, his tone lifting. He checked the time: 10:15. “Why don’t we go down to the beach for a walk and grab some lunch.”

She slipped her arm around his waist and hugged him. “Anything, as long as we’re together.”

They enjoyed the rest of the day walking on the beach in the wet sand along the ocean’s edge, while stopping at times to sit and talk as they admired the beauty of the ocean and the distant horizon.

The image of the thin line of the horizon, the sky above, and the ocean below had never meant so much. They were very familiar with the concepts Martha had often alluded to—embrace the present; learn from the past; and hope in future—but now the illustration was alive.