Heart Hold Fast

Chapter Eleven

A/N: I hope you are having a great day/night, and enjoy this next chapter! Thank you for all your support - I can't say it enough!

A gust of wind swept down the runway, and Camila had to brush stray locks of hair from her face, as she turned around at the door of the aeroplane, and looked back towards Manhattan. It was now only visible as a cluster of skyscrapers in the distance.

"Ma'am?" the air hostess beside her asked gently.

"Sorry," Camila shook herself from her daydream, and stepped inside the plane.

She walked down into the first class area, and with her ticket in hand, she quickly found her seat. It was beside the window, and after putting her hand luggage into the overhead locker, she sat down and fastened the seat belt. Before long, the safety announcements had been made, and the plane was slowly heading towards the start of the runway.

As the engines fired up, they roared off down the seemingly endless strip of tarmac, and began to lift up into the air. Camila felt the familiar swoop in her stomach as they left the ground behind them, and soared into the sky. This was the part of flying that she could never grow tired of. As the plane tilted, and began to circle round, she lost herself in the view below her, until it was swallowed by clouds.

"Ladies and gentleman, this is your captain speaking. Our flight today, from New York to Miami, will take approximately two and a half hours..."

Camila put her headphones in, not bothering to listen to the rest of the speech. She was tired, and once the plane had settled and overcome the initial turbulence, the sensation of being in the air was soothing.

Across the aisle from her, was an empty seat. For a second, she could imagine Ruben grinning over at her from it; pulling faces from behind the in-flight magazine, and miming along to the pilot's announcement. When she blinked though, the illusion was shattered. He was, of course, still in New York, and getting further from her with every passing second.

When she had reached Ruben's office, bursting with excitement about the invitation to stay at the Lodge, he had been almost completely disinterested. At the start, he had managed to feign some sort of vague intrigue, but that had worn thin quickly. He just did not share the same level of eagerness as she did, and she knew that this was because he was still in the honeymoon phase in New York. He was enjoying himself there far too much to even see the point of considering a holiday.

Seeing her disappointment, he had quickly assured her that could go by herself. He could manage a couple of weeks without her, and she could go and have some fun in her home state! At that point, his telephone had rung, and he was called away to a meeting. Kissing her hurriedly, and thanking her for the lunch, he had left, leaving her stood alone in his office.

She had returned home, deflated and upset. This, however, had eventually morphed into determination. She had called Clara back and assured her that she would accept the invitation, but that only she would be coming down. Her husband would be staying behind. Plane tickets were booked, and bags packed in readiness, and now, here she was.

Being such a short flight, the plane nose soon dipped down, and they began to descend into the warm Florida climates. Glittering seas, and fluttering palm leaves greeted Camila's eyes, and a sense of relief wrapped around her like a blanket. She was home.

Their landing was smooth, and Camila felt a grin tug at her lips as she stepped out of the aeroplane, and the humid heat engulfed her. She had not been away for long, but she had missed this desperately.

She made it through airport security quickly, and walked through the wide, air conditioned halls to baggage reclaim. Once she had her suitcases, she went out to into the arrivals area, and saw both her parents beaming and waving at her.