Bora Bora
Chapter 1
Airports are always great for people-watching. The international terminal of Los Angeles International Airport has by far the best assortment of human eye candy, of both the sweet and sour kinds. A sea of colors and sounds wrapped around her mind. Languages she neither understood nor recognized. Clothes showed tradition on the older generation while electronic gadgets were the religion of the younger crowd.
Jade recognized him from the San Diego Padres ballcap he wore. It wasn't everyday you see a tall, dark and handsome man showing support for her favorite baseball team. Okay, maybe you could see that everyday in San Diego, but something else struck her about him. Was it his eyes? So dark and deep she felt like she could sink right in and not find her way back. Had she seen him before? Possibly, they seemed to live in the same town.
She had seen him in the San Diego airport, and now that same ballcap sat a few rows in front of her in LAX. He better be careful, this was Dodgers turf. Jade was on her way to meet her sister and her sisters fiance' in Bora Bora. Just the sound of it was exotic. Her world traveling experience was pretty limited to a trip to Chicago and another to New York. A week in Savannah was as far and as long as she'd spent away from home, so Bora Bora for 6 days, 7 nights was a dream come true.
She tried to pay attention to her book as she waited for the flight to be announced, but she kept peeking over the top to check out the ballcap. What was it about this random stranger that had her so curious, and a bit tingly? Giving up on her book, she watched the next stream of passengers slip past her. Thanking God she had no children to travel with she watched in silent horror as a travel weary, jet lagged couple drug their equally worn children through the terminal. The older boy was loudly complaining about walking and sitting and standing and walking some more. The young girl hung limp in her fathers arms, crying that pitiful 'I'm too tired to fall asleep and can't do anything but cry'. For that minute, she was grateful to be single.
She was grateful again when the tall, dark and handsome ballcap stood to stretch and make his way past her as he searched for a soft drink. His eyes found their way to hers and a little curl to his lips told her that he had looked for her, and knew she had watched him. Interesting. She wondered where he was going when the announcement for her flight came over the speakers. "Air Tahiti flight 713 to Papeete, Tahiti. Now boarding at gate 12."
Bora Bora! An eight and a half hour flight, then an island transfer and she would be in paradise. Jade had no idea what the local time would be when she got there, and she didn't care. She hadn't bothered to bring a watch. She could always check with the hotel if she had the strange desire to know the time, but she knew that she would never ask. Time will stop while she lies on the white sand and lets the small waves lick at her toes. She can almost smell the ocean as she hands her ticket to the flight attendant. Stepping onto the ramp, her heart starts to race. She's almost there.
As Jade arranged her carry-on and grabbed a pillow for the long flight, a Padres ballcap made it's way down the aisle. She failed miserably at hiding her surprised smile when she recognized him and saw those deep dark eyes. He was going to Tahiti too?! Maybe this trip would be more exciting than she thought.
