Work Wife

Xanax

I have checklist written on my checklist with a checkmark next to it as I stride to security the next morning, confident that I have everything I need for the next six days. I dropped off my bags, checked to ensure I was in first class and loved that my ticket came with a fast pass through the long security line. I arrived at the airport two hours early as I have a strict pre-flight routine I follow to calm my flight anxiety before I pop a Xanax to fully relax. I absolutely love to travel but I loathe getting on airplanes. 

After zipping through security, I ride the train to my terminal and find the nearest bookstore. I read through a dozen bookjackets to find a thriller that sounds enticing enough to keep my brain occupied until I am able to board the plane. Then I walk around until I find a snack shop to purchase the blandest snacks that I know won't mess with my stomach or smell up the aisle. I also snag a bottle of water and a gossipy magazine just in case my book doesn't suck me in and then trot off to my gate. I scan the board about ten times just to be sure my gate hasn't changed and then pick a seat right next to the gate agent so I can be sure I don't miss any announcements. I glance around the waiting area and it's obvious that everyone here is prepared for the warm weather. Straw hats, colorful maxi dresses, and tank tops cover the passengers at our gate and I know I am in the right place. I tuck in and then realize I still have about an hour before I need to pop my Xanax.

I text my sister and the bridesmaid chat that I have arrived at my gate and am waiting to board, and within seconds I am bombarded with plane emojis and status updates of the rest of the bridal party who are also about to arrive at the airport. I tuck my phone away and slide my new psychological thriller from the paper bag and settle into my seat. 

I am about ten chapters in when I feel someone looming over me, I flit my eyes up and see Logan with a backpack slung over his shoulder eyeing me like he wasn't sure if he should interrupt.

"I wasn't sure if it was you," he says sheepishly when our eyes meet and I give him a quick smile and reply, "It's me." 

"Can I join you?" He asks while glancing at the open seat next to me and I want to tell him that I am invested in my book and would prefer silence, but I shrug and scoot my tote bag toward me. Emma told me I needed to try to blend in with the bridal party as well as keep my resting bitch face in check and I promised her I would do my best. "Have you been here long?" 

I shake my head, "Not too long. We should be boarding in about forty-five minutes." I notice he's in shorts, but thankfully not the cutoff jean shorts he lived in last year, and a nice linen button-up that matches his knit bottoms. He looks like he's traveling to a bougie resort in Cabo with his sandy blonde hair looking freshly cut. I also notice his beard is gone and say, "I see you cleaned up for the wedding." 

He rubs his hand down his smooth skin with a grimace as he says, "Chase asked us all to be clean-shaven. I figured it would be easier to maintain this than shave it all off the day before." 

"You don't like it?" I ask, realizing I actually do enjoy seeing what's beneath the unruly beard. 

"I feel like I look like I am nineteen years old," he says with a frown and I am surprised when a laugh bursts out of me. He does look younger without all the hair hiding half of his face and I notice his light green eyes stand out a bit more. "But I am sure Ainslee is having you all do crazy shit too, so...I'm going to do my best not to complain." He adjusts his backpack in front of him and I watch as he unzips the main compartment and slides out large, over-the-ear headphones still in the box. He's fiddling with the plastic when I reply, "We are having to wear a lot of matching outfits." 

"Oh. Well, I hope you're all wearing white and people have to guess who the bride is," he stoically jokes and he manages to get a second laugh out of me. He's scanning the box and must notice me watching him since he says, "I left my AirPods in the Uber. These were all I could find that wasn't complete garbage." I smirk, realizing Logan may look more refined, but is clearly as scatterbrained as he was when I first met him.