The Arrangement

Chapter 14

"It's not that big of a deal. You've been to New York a thousand times," said John into his phone. He was being driven to LAX to catch a flight into JFK in time for an evening event.

The 405 freeway was relentless during any time of the day, and he longed for access to the show's private jet. He wasn't going to complain about a maintenance schedule even though he was slightly annoyed, which embarrassed him. He had gotten spoiled over the years and caught himself being a little pretentious. There was a time in his life when flying first class to New York City would have been good enough and now he had options. What a charmed life.

"Well, it's a big deal to me," Hilary sulked. "I was obligated to the show today, but if I leave right after, I can be there by 9 AM."

The black Cadillac Escalade crawled up Century Boulevard toward the airport with a sea of like-minded travelers.

"I appreciate the effort, but I'm only there for a day and a half. The schedule is going to be tight," replied John. He checked his watch and didn't like the amount of time that he had before the gates closed. "And if this traffic doesn't let up, I'll miss my flight too."

Hilary was beside herself with John's last-minute trip to New York for the upfronts, feeding the press, and rolling out the new spin on the show. Just the title 'Live with Jarlena' made her skin crawl and yet she kept a stiff upper lip. The idea of John and Marlena working together and becoming close again had Hilary in her head. Even though she wasn't as insecure as she was ten years ago, she still felt threatened. She had a huge lie to protect and would hold on to the truth until her dying day. As far as she was concerned, the charity auction was the first and only time that she'd met Marlena Evans and no one could prove otherwise. Now she had the task of keeping just enough distance between John and Marlena and them doing press together across the country was making that impossible.

"I still say we should have just chartered a different plane," she replied. "We still can."

The driver of John's SUV maneuvered aggressively through the shuttles and frustrated motorists - yards of flickering red brake lights brightened the road with horns blaring. They approached terminal one and John felt a glimmer of hope.

"I think I'm going to make it. I just need terminal three."

Hilary fell silent on the other end of the phone with a pit in her stomach and a heaviness in her gut. John and Marlena were going to be around each other, and she was going to have to get used to it.

"Okay, honey. They need me back for this scene," said Hilary. As much as she loved being on the show, she resented that it prevented her from making her presence in New York known. She didn't have to attend the interviews or business-related events, but she certainly would have been waiting to meet for dinner.

John made it to the gate of flight DL1566 just in time before the doors closed to the sky bridge. But for his ability to jog at a brisk pace without difficulty, it may not have been possible. He boarded the plane and was greeted warmly by a flight attendant who welcomed him aboard and immediately directed him to the first seat on the very first row.

"Welcome aboard Mr. Black. Please buckle up and we should be on our way," she said while storing his bag in the overhead compartment. "I'll come check on you after we take off and can move around the cabin."

John exhaled at the sound of his seatbelt click and prepared himself for six hours of downtime. The overachiever in him was determined to get some work done and yet the ability to zone out was also a viable option. He wondered if he would have enough downtime to catch up with Marlena. He couldn't get their time together in Malibu out of his mind. Just being able to talk to her and be in her company stirred emotions that he knew that he shouldn't have and yet he couldn't seem to shake them. He couldn't stop thinking about the sweet smell of her perfume lingering in his thoughts. Sometimes the memories of her fragrance were so vivid that he suspected she was near - even at this very moment. John Black had it bad and for his sake, he needed to get his emotions in check.