Frisco Christmas & Lemon Venture - Part II
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“Well Sam, are you going to drink that brew or do you prefer just watching me chew and eat raw crow with a beer chaser all by myself?” He looked absently at the swath of hair that framed her cheek and curved into a forward sweep at her jaw line. It did nothing to hide her self-satisfied smirk as the game of one-up-man-ship continued and the cabin lights lowered, leaving them haloed in the reading lights above their seats.
“No Adams, I figure all that beer, crow, and lemon pudding is giving you a substantial guilty gut ache about now. However, here’s a new menu for you if you need a bedtime snack.” She reached into the seat pocket ahead of her and retrieved a familiar orange book that had obviously been left by a child passenger. She handed it to him; he read the title and opened the first pages of the familiar rhyming verse.
“I’m a little surprised at your menu choices, but I’ll concede that you are Sam, dear Sam-I-am. And you have me pegged for a green eggs and ham hater...hmm” he perused the book and was primed to get a little of his own back. The guilty lemon crack had hit just too close to a raw nerve. “This actually sounds like something you’d really cook up, a couple of overdone eggs; let’s call them
caring and her best friend
compassion. Sam- if there’s any room on the meal ticket, let’s be sure and invite their female ham hock buddy
commitment along.” He watched her carefully, expecting reaction to the deliberate digs, but her smirk did not disappear and that bothered him. He had felt a wealth of sadness at leaving her last week and she seemed not to care at all, even when he obviously stabbed at her values. With a final chug, he delivered a verbal sally designed to deflate her self-justified attitude and buoy his flagging male ego. He paused as the flight attendant came to reclaim his bottle and offered blankets and pillows for the night ahead. Handing her the book, he put up the tray table.
“Here’s your recipe book back…Come to think of it- You are definitely Sam, the great Sam-I-am. I do not eat green eggs & ham. I will not eat them on a plane, I’m sorry Sam, you cook in vain.” He lowered his seat back, reached up to snap off the light, pulled up the blanket and turned toward the window…
She had thought she had known what was on his mind, but his reaction had shown a deeper side to his character. His three “
c” cannon shot had scored a direct hit to her confidence. At the same time, it had also highlighted his basic male fears about relationships- and that she understood. He’d been hurt before; time and humor was the key to easing his mind about
caring, compassion and commitment. Humor she could spare in abundance; time was a problem that would end with flight touchdown in San Francisco. She stared hard at his shadowed form under the lumpy blanket and willed her creative energy to keep him awake, just awhile longer.
“Would you could you, in a box? Would you could you, if I’m the fox?” A muffled groan came from under the blanket. She continued, “Adams try them, just be brave. Adams- Why’d the hell you shave? Just too sexy for your mirror? If that’s the case, look over here.” The dark form turned and an infamous squinted eye gave her a look that signaled victory for grudging attention. “Try it Adams- Let it rhyme. The flight is long, we’ve got the time. You can beat me at this game. If you succeed, you’ll win my name…”
He’d not been asleep, but he’d not expected her swift recovery from a critical insult designed to control the situation. His admiration for her went up a notch. This rhyming sh*t was decidedly strange, but so were most of his friends at one time or another. At least it was inventive and oddly musical... hell- maybe that’s why kids liked it. He remembered his mom reading the verses long ago to him and his brothers. Was it a fox in a box, a mouse in house,
or was she just glowing under the light of that reading lamp with her make-up smudged, looking vulnerable, vanquished, attractive and willing. This was definitely not in the version his mother had read to him. The last of his mental energy pulsed to produce a final coherent response.
“Not in a house, not in a box. And yes sweet Sam, you are a fox. So stop your tempting, go to sleep. Make no promise; you’ll need to keep…”
This rhyme-a-time came easy, but the beer had made his eyes heavy and a feeling of lassitude overwhelmed him…The flight attendants prepared for landing and the passengers looked ragged for lack of sufficient sleep. In contrast, his acquired seat partner looked refreshed and alert in a crisp white blouse with turned up collar and a short black leather jacket. She didn’t comment on the previous night’s ridiculous exchanges, but gathered her belongings together and noted that he was doing the same. His expression was determined, all business and the silliness of the night might never have occurred. He was formally polite as he assisted with the overhead bin, but his presence was lost as she headed down toward the baggage claim area. She thought she had seen Adams only for a moment when she collected her bag off the carousel, but she continued on alone toward the car rental stations as expected. Bob, the smiling rental agent confirmed her car reservation and requested her credit card. She opened her wallet and found it…gone. Unwilling to let him see her distress, she requested he hold the reservation while she attended “needs” in the ladies room. Air was in short supply has she fought panic and moved toward an area where she could sit down, breathe, and scour her purse for the needed card.
Damn… She had spent time just before leaving home, ordering Christmas gifts online and her agonized intuition placed her credit card at her computer desk at home. Tears welled as she realized that while she had counted her limited cash twice, she had omitted a last minute check to see if she had replaced her credit card in her wallet. The up front cost of any car rental would severely deplete her cash stores and leave little money for daily expenses, even though she was staying at a friend’s unoccupied condo. The combination of the stress of the past week, seeing him on the flight, and now the restricted vacation finances made the tears seep and she ran her hands through her hair for the tenth time. She could almost hear the day-old dried mousse screaming, “Stop!”
“Hey Sam-I-am, who does your hair? It’s here and there and everywhere! Honey- I’m no great reward, but I’m an awesome sounding board.” She looked up at his reassuring face as he sat down beside her and she felt something vital inside of her crack with relief. Her fingers gently came up to touch his now dark-stubbled jaw; her unguarded, watery gaze touched his heart with the first trails of her relieved tears.
Teething her lower lip, she admitted, “I have my friend’s condo for a week, approved vacation time and a useless car reservation. My credit card was left at ho--me.” Her voice caught, but emotional control took gradual hold and she went on. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d be halfway to somewhere by now…” She’d noticed his lack of baggage, but his grim countenance made her pause to wait for his explanation.
“You have problems? I find I have no valid hotel reservation, I have no confirmed ground transportation, I have a missing suitcase and an azzhole for a travel agent. However, I do have a credit card which solves my problems if I can sit in a plastic airport chair for a couple of days and get a chiropractic appointment when I get home…” He waited for her smile which never quite materialized. “Aw Sam--Would it be so bad if my problems matched your solutions and your sour lemon became my opportunity to make lemonade?” She searched his face for a personal angle and found none; she waited for the sexual punch line and there was none. His serious silence made her reaction seem prolonged and tangled in vacillation. Finally while his growing smile tempted; it was his genuine, lyrical response that convinced her.
“I will not eat them, not today- Perhaps, I need to find a way. If you can be there, I might find- a strength that I can hide behind…” His words spurred her affirmative decision and both their dilemmas were solved for a moment in time.
“Come and meet my good friend Bob, we’ll elevate his lowly job. Be on our way and see the view, you might be glad I came with you…”
For THE WILSONS board use only