Sierra
I scooted down the stairs because it was impossible for me to walk. My legs had used muscles I didn’t even know existed.
“What are you doing?” Cameron asked with a smile as he stood at the bottom of the staircase.
“I can’t move. I’m dying, Cameron.”
“Come on,” he said as he helped me up and carried me to the kitchen. He reached in the cabinet and took out a bottle of Motrin. He shook two orange pills into his hand and then handed them to me.
“Take these. You’ll feel a little better,” he said as he handed me a glass of water.
He went upstairs and grabbed our bags and took them to the car. I walked outside on the patio and took one last look at the lake. It was truly beautiful and peaceful. Jolene came running down the stairs at the speed of light to say goodbye. She threw her arms around me and I almost fell over.
“It was so great sharing a room with you. Thank you,” she whispered in my ear.
I wasn’t quite sure what the thank you was for. I suspected it something had to do with her finally accepting she was a lesbian. I felt bad for lying to her, but I’d probably never see them again anyway, so what the hell.
“Always be you and nobody else.” I smiled at her.
“Do you have a girlfriend?” she asked just as Cameron walked up to say goodbye.
“Yeah. Her name is Kirsty and she’s hot!” I pulled out my phone and showed her a picture of the two of us from my birthday party.
“You two are a beautiful couple.”
Cameron looked at me and shook his head. I shrugged my shoulders. He hugged his little sister goodbye and we walked out to the car where Luanne and Jerry were waiting for us.
“It was so nice to meet you,” Luanne said as she hugged me. “I wish Cameron would meet someone just like you. Well, except the lesbian part.” She laughed.
I gave my fake-as-hell laugh and hugged Jerry goodbye. “So long, sugar. You keep making people happy by making that awesome coffee.”
“I’ll try.” I smiled as I climbed in the car.
I pulled out my phone and looked at it. Nothing.
“I need service!” I exclaimed as I shook my phone.
“Relax, sugar. You’ll have service soon.” Cameron smiled as he looked over at me.
I held up my finger. “No. No. Don’t you ever call me that again.”
He chuckled and placed his hand on my thigh. “You don’t like it when we southerners call you ‘sugar’?”
“Very funny.” Then it happened. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. The beautiful and glorious sound of text messages and emails came through loud and clear.
“See. Are you happy now?” he asked.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!”
“You’re not having an orgasm, are you?”
“YES! I think I am!” I smiled.
“I’ll leave you alone so you and your phone can get reacquainted.” Cameron smirked.
“Thank you very much, Mr. Cole. We appreciate it.”
I scoured through my text messages. Nothing of real importance. Just a few from James and Kirsty pretty much making fun of me. Another one from Delia asking why I didn’t text her back. One from Royce asking for sex the minute I got back and one from Bradly, another suit, wanting me to attend a corporate gala with him at the Ritz-Carlton. The rest were just minor business ones.
“I’m alive!”
“Thank God. I missed your sorry ass.”
“Thanks, Kirsty. Remind me to fire you when I get home.”
“There’s something you should know.”
“What?”
“Ryan moved back to Los Angeles.”
My stomach started doing sick flips because I had forgotten that text message he sent me.
“He sent me a text message and told me. I actually forgot about it until you just mentioned it. Why did he move back?”
“I don’t know. He came by the office and said he needed to talk to you. I face palmed him after calling him a few choice names and told him never to come around again. I think he got the message.”
I swore I felt a single tear rise up in my eye. But I wasn’t going to let him do that to me again. Enough tears had been shed over his small cock and I refused to go back to that place.
“Good for him. He’s my past and the ex-files are staying closed.”
“Good girl, but you aren’t fooling me. I’ll talk to you when you get home. Have a safe flight.”
I set my phone down on my lap and looked out the window. Why was I letting this affect me?
“Are you okay?” Cameron asked.
“Yeah. I’m just really sore still. Oh, and that reminds me,” I said as I sent a text message to Kirsty.
“Book us both massages tomorrow during lunch.”
“Awesome. I love massages.”
We reached the airport and turned over the rental car keys. We slowly walked to our gate, which was on the other side of the airport, since the goddamn tram was down. Of course it was.
“I can get you a wheelchair if you want,” Cameron said as he walked next to me.
“Ha ha. That actually sounds nice. Or how about one of those scooter things?” I smiled.
We got to our gate and they had just started to board the plane. Cameron and I took our seats in first class and I immediately ordered a glass of white wine, then two and three.
“Don’t you think you should slow down?”
“Don’t you think that you should not pay attention?”
The truth was that I was trying to forget about the fact that Ryan had moved back to Los Angeles and the chances of running into him were greater than ever.
“I’m not carrying you off this plane,” he said.
As I sat there and looked at him, I couldn’t help but smile on the inside. My whole body felt alive when I was with him.
“You won’t have to.” I smiled. “Do you mind if I lay my head on your shoulder and close my eyes?”
“Not at all,” he said as he kissed the top of my head.
****
Cameron
I couldn’t help but stare at her as she slept on my shoulder. I had a great time and I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday. I still wasn’t sure what she really thought of my hometown. I got the impression that she still pretty much hated it, even when we left. But I’d never forget the look on her face when she got to the top of that mountain and saw the view. Just like I’d never forget the look on her face when she caught her first fish. She probably would never admit it, but I thought she had a great time. Soon, we’d be back in Los Angeles, back in her world and, to be honest, it scared me a little. I didn’t know where this was going or even what this was. Was it more than just sex for her?
****
Sierra
I opened my eyes and let out a long yawn. As I lifted my head from Cameron’s shoulder, I cringed from the pain in my neck.
“Oh my God,” I said and I took my fingers and rubbed the cramped area.
“What’s wrong?”
“My neck has a cramp in it.”
He smiled as he told me to turn my head and he massaged the back of my neck with his strong builder hands. I couldn’t help it, but I felt turned on. Soon my panties were going to be in need of changing.
“Okay. Stop! Sorry, but you’re turning me on.”
“Is that a bad thing?” He laughed.
“Right now, yes.”
“How much longer until we land?” I asked in anticipation of finally being able to touch the ground of Los Angeles.
“We have another hour.”
I held up my hand and summoned for the flight attendant. “Can I please get another glass of white wine?”
“Sure,” she said with a friendly smile.
Just as I was about to say something to Cameron, I saw Lowen walking up the aisle. I gasped.
“Sierra Adams.” He smiled as he stopped in front of my row.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Long time no see, doll. Where have you been playing?” he asked.
“Lowen, it’s nice to see you again. I didn’t know you were on this plane.”
“I saw you earlier and I was going to say hi, but you were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake a sleeping beauty.”
Lowen was a freak. He was a suit that I fucked a few times but stopped returning his calls because he just got way too freaky. He wanted to do things that I didn’t even know existed. One night, I went to his penthouse on Park Avenue and, when I walked in, he was standing in the middle of the living room, completely naked, with a pair of handcuffs around his balls and penis. What the fuck was that? I instantly sent a text to Kirsty, telling her to call me immediately. I told Lowen I had a family emergency and I high-tailed it out of there, never to look back. And now, on this plane back to L.A., I looked back and I didn’t like it.
“That’s very kind of you, Lowen.” I wanted him to go away. I didn’t want him saying anything in front of Cameron.
“Who’s this?” Lowen asked.
It’s none of your fucking business, I thought to myself. “This is my friend, Cameron.”
“Boyfriend?” he asked.
The nerve of this perv. “Did you hear the word ‘boy’ in front of ‘friend’?”
He sighed. “Still a smart ass. That’s what I love most about you, Sierra. You haven’t returned my calls since that night you had a family emergency. I hope everything was all right,” he said as he looked at me from his black-rimmed glasses.
“Oh yeah. Delia just had a nervous breakdown and I had to commit her to a mental hospital,” I said with the wave of my hand.
“Oh. Sorry to hear that. Well, let’s hook up when we get to L.A.”
“Didn’t you know?” Cameron interrupted.
“Know what?” Lowen asked.
“Sierra’s a lesbian now.”
The look on his face was priceless and I know for damn sure it would have gotten at least a million hits on YouTube.
“For real, Sierra?”
I looked over at Cameron, who was smiling at me.
“Yeah, I’m dabbling in the lesbian ways now. Dick just wasn’t doing it for me anymore.”
“Well, then. It was nice seeing you. I’m just going to go back to my seat,” he said nervously.
“Bye. Bye, Lowen.” I waved. “You’re good.” I smiled at Cameron.
“I didn’t like him and I could tell by the look on your face you didn’t either.”
“You’re very observant, Mr. Cole. I may just keep you around.” I winked.
“Are you going to tell me about him?”
“No. Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
He shook his head and laughed as the flight attendant handed me my glass of wine. I wasted no time finishing it off and, before I knew it, we were back in the land of the living.