Belonging - House of Goths 2

Chapter 4

"Please, call me Crispin," he winked. "If you could just have a look, I would be most appreciative." Again, he gave her his most persuasive smile.

"You're in luck! We just had a cancelation. Here, I've rearranged your seat. You'll be situated a little further forward but you'll have two seats to yourself. Now, you'll have to hurry through security. Just show them your boarding pass and they'll rush you through." Once again, she grazed her eyes over him. "I wouldn't want you to you miss your flight."

"Me neither. That would be most tragic," he said with a wink. "Thank you, for your help."

"Anytime... enjoy your flight, sir!"

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Gwen didn't understand how she had made it this far, but there she was, sitting in her aisle seat near the back of the plane. So far, Stacy's prediction had been correct. She had gotten to the airport with plenty of time to deal with any unforeseen hitches. In fact, since things had gone so smoothly, Gwen had made it to her seat with time to spare. But with almost too much time on her hands, it only made it easier to worry about the inevitable moment when Crispin discovered her sitting next to him on the plane.

Speaking of Crispin, she hadn't yet seen him. She was sure she would have seen him by now. She had been on the lookout, ready to hide from him the entire time she waited to board the plane. Now, she was actually starting to panic. What if he'd changed his mind? What if he wasn't coming? The very real possibility of having to fly on her own was becoming an unbearable reality.

Not only would she not have his company, she would not have her detailed itinerary. Yes, she had a simplified version, put together by Stacy, but it was nowhere near as well planned and detailed as hers. How in the world would she survive this? As it was, her heart was racing in her chest. She was starting to perspire and she was having trouble sitting still.

Taking a few deep calming breaths, she focussed on the fact that people were still boarding. She convinced herself that she was merely overreacting and that at any minute, Crispin would appear. Then, of course, she would have to explain herself. But she was sure she could handle that part. This waiting, on the other hand was killing her.

Moments later, she felt a presence at her side. Finally, Crispin, she thought with a sigh. Looking up from her white knuckles, she frowned, discovering a middle-aged man in a business suit checking his ticket and looking at the numbers above her head. He must be mistaken. Stacy had seated her and Crispin together. This man was obviously not Crispin!

"Excuse me, miss." He showed her his boarding pass. "I believe you are in my seat."

"Your seat? There must be some mistake." She quickly checked her pass and sure enough she was in the right row but to her dismay discovered that her actual number was for the window seat. The horror! She could not sit at the window. No way could she bear the idea of being trapped into such a small space. She had specifically requested the aisle seat figuring she would feel better to get up and move around at will. Suddenly, she recalled Stacy saying that when she'd booked her flight, she had put her in the window since Crispin had already claimed the aisle. At the time, Stacy hadn't been too concerned since she figured she and Crispin would work it out.

"Oh, but... but I can't sit at the window!"

"Lady, I need the aisle. This is my seat. I just booked it minutes ago."

All Gwen could do was shake her head. This could not be happening. Where was Crispin? Who was this man wanting her seat? Too overwhelmed to cope, she closed her eyes and delved into herself. It was all she could do to keep from screaming. She should have known better than to have done this, taken such a chance. This is exactly the reason she avoided going outside of her comfort zone. There were too many unknown factors to deal with. She hadn't even left Toronto, and here it was, the first of many unforeseen hitches to come.