From Different Walks of Life

L.A.

    I took a deep breath as I looked out the plane window at the California landscape spreading beneath me. I really wasn't a stranger to flying – I had done it several times in high school, and some in college as well. I actually enjoyed it, especially takeoff. It was the landing I wasn't so keen on.

    I closed my eyes and leaned back in my seat, listening to the captain speaking about the current time and weather conditions in California. It had been a long week already, and I was looking forward to a little relaxation in a warm state. It was late Saturday afternoon after Thanksgiving, and I should have landed in L.A. the day before. If it had not been for a late flight out of Denver, then a diversion to a small airport in Idaho due to the weather, I probably would have made it on time.

    "You'll just have to stay a few extra days then," Ashley had said to me when I called her while waiting for my plane in Idaho.

    "I can't do that. What'll my work say?" I asked, and I could almost hear her shrug over the phone.

    "Who cares? Enjoy yourself. Get a piece of that British ass."

    I had quickly covered the receiver of my phone at that comment, hoping no one around me had heard.

    "Ashley!" I hissed, but only heard laughing on the other end.

    "You know you want to." She said between coughing and laughing. "And I know you've had the sex life of a 90-year-old since you and Cole split up. So just go. Get. Laid." And with that my line had gone dead.

    I was brought back to the task at hand when I felt the wheels touch the tarmac. I loosened my grip on the armrests, and turned my cell phone back on. No new messages, which didn't really surprise me. The only people I had heard from this week had been Ashley and Tom.

    My family hadn't been happy when they heard I would be spending Thanksgiving away from Sheridan – but honestly, I doubt they were surprised, as I hadn't spent this holiday with them in nearly four years. Ashley and I had eaten out at a local restaurant in Casper for Thanksgiving, spent the evening drinking wine and playing cards, and shopping. It had been amazing - other than my dear friend talking me into 'cute' dresses and a swimsuit for my trip. I had also picked up a new lingerie set, though Ashley hadn't known about that. I still wasn't sure if I was going to be brazen enough to put it to use.

    I picked up my backpack and slung it across my shoulder, then waited my turn to pull my carry-on suitcase out of the bin overhead. I followed the crowd off the plane, dragging the little suitcase behind me. My phone as clutched tightly in my hand, as I realized I hadn't thought far enough ahead to plan what I was to do once I arrived in L.A. – was Tom to be waiting for me here? Surely not, I knew he was at an event today, somewhere in the city. So was I to take a cab somewhere? I had no idea where the event was even being held. My stomach began to knot, and I chewed my bottom lip, trying to figure out what to do as I stood, looking around the gate.

    Shifting my backpack to my other shoulder, my face lit up when I suddenly noticed Jake's tall frame in the crowd ahead of me. I smiled and waved as I moved toward him, happy to see him waving back at me. Unfortunately, I also saw a shorter, rather frazzled looking woman at his side, holding a sign with my last name on it.

    "Hi, Jake," I said, as he pulled me to his side for a hug.

    "You're Kat?" The short woman looked me up and down quickly, causing me to feel a little ill-at-ease. "Thank God. Come on, we need to go." The little woman turned on her heel and began to quickly stride through the airport. Even with his long legs, Jake struggled to keep up, and I tried to jog along behind him.