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A few minutes became a few hours including a
buzz that wasn’t helping his cold. By the time they got on the
plane, he felt like death warmed over.

“Dude, you look like shit,” Bob said, handing
him coffee.

“Thanks. I’ve got a cold and we’re thousands
of feet in the air, you git. My bloody head’s going to
explode.”

“Isn’t that what your PA’s for, to bring you
Nyquil?” He propped his long legs on the seat across from him. They
were on a private jet again.

Jacob sighed. “He’s not Beth.”

“No kiddin’.”

She’d set a high bar as an employee within
the first month on the job. The new kid tried, but he was in over
his head. Several months after being hired, he still couldn’t keep
up with Jacob’s needs on tour.

“I’ll start lookin’ for someone else. He’s
fine around L.A., but…”

“Get Beth back, then.”

“Are you out of your mind, mate?”

“What? You wouldn’t be apart then and I
wouldn’t have to listen to you whine about it.”

“You can’t be the boss of your girlfriend,
that’s insane. Relationship kryptonite.”

“Just a thought, geeze. You’re so bitchy when
you’re sick.”

“Bite me.”

“Cute, but you’re not my type.” Bob stood and
left him alone.

Yeah, he was grumpy, but being cooped up on a
plane for ten hours wasn’t his favorite place when he was healthy,
let alone under the weather. He wanted sleep and there was no
private bedroom, nor could his mates keep the noise down when stuck
together.

When they finally landed at LAX, it was
evening, but on what day, he couldn’t tell. A car took him home
alone, and once his luggage was inside, he trudged upstairs and
dropped on the bed still fully clothed.

The world could wait.

****

December Thirty-first

Los Angeles, CA

Seventeen hours after the Tokyo concert…

“Is that really how you’re going to spend New
Year’s Eve?” Celeste looked at me in my sweats with disdain.

I was curled up on our sofa with popcorn and
the original
Star Wars
trilogy, hair in a ponytail and
glasses on my face. Tradition for every New Year’s I’d spent alone.
She was dressed to the nines for some fabulous party I wasn’t brave
enough to attend.

“Have fun,” I said, watching Luke Skywalker
destroy the first Death Star.

“Beth…this is pathetic and I only say that
for your own good. You’re moping again and I’m sick of it.”

“I’m not moping. This is how I party. Go.
Don’t be late.”

“I’m not late until after midnight. Come on,
get dressed and come with me. Take your mind off Jake for one
night.”

“Thanks, but wherever you’re going dressed
like that is not my scene. And I’m not
moping
.” Much. No
reason. He’d be home very soon and we’d reunite and I only needed a
little more patience.

She sighed. “Fine. If you change your mind,
you know where to find me.”

“Yep.”

She headed for the door. “Really hope you
change your mind…”

“Not gonna happen…”

She groaned and left. Knowing my friend as I
did, I’m sure she was rolling her eyes and muttering in the hallway
on her way out. Sometimes I liked making her frustrated with
me.

Cesar hadn’t made an appearance yet tonight,
so he was probably in Celeste’s room. I didn’t grow up with pets
indoors, so sometimes the company was nice, sometimes it wasn’t,
and right now I liked being alone with my movies. When it got close
to twelve, I’d get my sparkling cider from the fridge and borrow
one of her flutes to drink in the New Year. Chinese takeout,
popcorn, Chocolate Fudge Brownie, and sci-fi—did it get much better
for a winter night in?

Only with someone to cuddle.

Side-stepping that mental route, I put in the
next film.

But would he be home now? Time changes that
big confused me. Didn’t matter. Even if he was, he’d be asleep.
Wouldn’t he? It would depend on what time his body thought it was
now, though…

“Don’t call him. He would’ve called if he was
awake.”

Now I’d wonder all night. Ah, if only I had
some Obi-Wan ghostly powers to appear and check. Just one peek.
Just to know he was reachable.

At midnight, I paused the movie to watch the
ball drop in Times Square, replaying Jacob’s message for the third
time. I could barely hear him say, “
Happy New Year, baby. I’m
comin’ home
,” over the crowd, but it meant a lot he tried.

After toasting the TV and my phone, I
finished the sparkling cider and resumed play of
Empire Strikes
Back
.

Han and Leia had such an epic relationship. I
teared up again when he was about to be frozen in carbonite. For
those who had to wait for
Jedi
to come out, it must’ve been
torture to wonder if that was the end of Han. It struck me how many
times I’d answered Jacob with “I know” when he told me he loved me
these past months. Even my fear was a nerd.

Reaching for my phone, I typed a text
message:
I don’t know if you’re home, yet, but if so, I’ll see
you in the morning. I love you. Beth
.

****

January 1
^st

Bloody buggerin’ fuc
—Someone was
ringing his doorbell at—he opened one eye to peer at the
clock—10:00AM?

Jacob groaned and rolled out of bed. At some
point of the night he’d somehow stripped to his boxers, so he did
the zombie shuffle to a drawer, pulled out sweats and a hoodie from
his uni days, and dressed. The doorbell rang again.

“
Coming
.” Ow. His throat was raw from
breathing through his mouth all night.

He went downstairs, shielding his eyes from
sunlight.

“Dammit, Curtis, whatever it is can wait
until I’ve had one day off. One!” He disabled the security system,
unlocked the door, and opened it, prepared to give his assistant a
piece of his mind. “
What?
”

But it wasn’t the PA.

“Beth,” he whispered.

A step and she was in his arms, her body
fitting against his like a missing puzzle piece, tasting faintly
like mint from her toothpaste and her silky hair carrying his
favorite scent in the world. His girl, live, in the flesh, and
sighing into his kiss. He had her inside and pressed against a wall
without realizing he’d moved.

For two long months, he’d dreamt of having
her to himself and all alone, and now he didn’t know where to start
first.

“Scratchy,” she said when he let her breathe,
then moaned when he bit the spot on her neck that drove her crazy.
He faintly recalled he hadn’t shaved since Christmas. “Good
morning.”

He cupped the back of her neck. “God, I’ve
missed you.” Starting to run his fingers through her hair, his
bracelet caught on a few strands.

“Ow.” She reached up and tugged her hair
free, then grabbed his wrist. “You still have this?”

“What?” Oh. She gave him the leather cuff for
Christmas just months before they broke up nine years ago. “Worn it
all tour.”

She stared at the bracelet as she turned it
on his arm. “I can’t believe you kept it.”

“You gave it to me at a time I needed
encouragement. Though there were years I didn’t wear it, the
message wasn’t tainted. I didn’t quit.”

When she looked up at him, her smile was
watery. “I’m glad you didn’t.”

The End

Thank you for reading this little transition
piece. Look for news about the sequel to
My Once and Future
Love
on the
official site
in the
future, where you can also learn about other stories by Carla
Krae.