Authors: D. T. Jones
It was nearly midnight by the time Clark turned off the main road and onto the one that led to Leeds Bradford International Airport. He steered the long limousine past the main entrance, and drove to a nearby hanger.
Sandra sat staring out the side window, her heart pounding with excitement and anticipation, her stomach flipping and her hands sweating. This was the moment she had been waiting for all day; a time when she and Creighton would begin their lives together as husband and wife. On one hand she felt like crying; it was all so surreal, while on the other she was scared to death. What if Cathy was right? What if she wasn’t the type of woman he needed? What if she found herself alone mending a broken heart?
“Ready to go?” he asked, placing a large hand on her knee. Sandra smiled and turned to look at him, the love echoing in his dark eyes gave her the courage she needed to face whatever happened. She nodded and turned back to the window, looking out at the white plane which sat beneath several flood lights. The sound of the engines humming softly through the still of the night alerted all around that the plane was preparing to leave.
The side of the fuselage held six small round windows in a row, while two side windows and a large windshield encasing the cockpit. Two blue diagonal stripes decorated the nose of the plane, just behind the front windows. On the tail of the plane was written the plane’s identification,
GV2504
in blue and on the side beneath the cockpit windows was the name
Kansas Kandy.
A very attractive red-haired woman stepped out of the door, her well-endowed frame accented beneath a tailored black skirt and snug white blouse; her long legs were thin and bare and she wore a pair of high black stiletto heels. Beside her stepped two men; one Oriental, tall and thin with short black hair, the other Caucasian, somewhat shorter with blonde hair, both wore dark black suits with crisp white shirts, black ties and caps. They looked very professional as they stood on the top of the stairs awaiting their employer.
“Nervous?” Creighton asked, picking up on his wife’s sudden silence.
“A bit,” she lied causing him to laugh.
“Well don’t be. It will be a great trip filled with romance and adventure. Exactly the type of fairytale you’ve always wanted.”
“Every day I’m with you is filled with romance, adventure.”
“Glad to hear that,” he replied with a wide smile. “As I recall, you owe me for the lack of affection this afternoon.”
“You wouldn’t dare?” she warned; staring at him through a stunned gaze, the amused expression on his handsome face was both challenging and endearing.
“Oh, but my darling, I not only would, I will. Only not here; the crew is waiting and we have a scheduled departure that has to be met. Come on,” he said reaching for her hand. “Let’s go start our honeymoon.”
Creighton said something very quietly to Clark who held the door open for them and Sandra didn’t miss the wink he offered, causing her face to warm under the blush she knew was creeping up her neck.
“Kansas Kandy?” she asked with a frown as they neared their destination.
“That’s her name,” he answered in a matter-of-fact tone. “This is actually the second plane I’ve owned since my business took off. My first one was old when I bought her and after a couple of years, became too dangerous to fly. I bought this one just before my first trip to Hoisington so that was her maiden flight. I named her when we returned, after a specific young woman I fell in love with while in Kansas. All I could think of was her beautiful smile and her incredible laugh.” Sandra’s eyes widened as she realized what he was saying.
“The first time I laid eyes on you, you were reading to a group of children at the library. When you finished you took them all to the counter and gave them each a piece of candy; the typical treat for after story time as I was told. The thought of you drove me crazy and I couldn’t stop wondering what you would taste like. What better name for my plane than that of my own delicious treat?”
“I don’t know if I should be flattered or not,” Sandra said. “If I didn’t already know you, I’d be worried about you stalking me.”
“You already know I was, so what’s the problem? I would follow you to the ends of the universe, this you are undoubtedly aware of?”
“That I am Mr. Ashford,” Sandra giggled, taking the first step up to the plane.
Creighton introduced the tall oriental man as Aiden Davies, the Pilot; Charles Cooper was the co-pilot and Eryn Jenkins the very attractive flight attendant. They all nodded and welcomed her aboard the Kansas Kandy, causing Sandra to blush yet again. Finlay Parker and Rhett Harvey stepped forward to greet them, shaking Creighton’s hand and smiling to Sandra as they stepped through the door. Sandra paused in the middle of the path, the sight beyond stole her breath away as she looked around her.
The interior of the plane was large with the front appearing more like a meeting room; holding four brown upholstered benches, two on either side of the plane facing each other with a dark wooden table between each set. The floor was covered in a thick plush beige carpet and the walls were decorated in two-tone tan wallpaper in an etched swirl pattern. Behind the meeting room was a large…very large…main room with two half circular sofas against the sides. Like the loveseats, these were upholstered in brown and held six cream-colored pillows spread across the length with two matching throw covers, one on each sofa. A dark wooden coffee table stood between the sofas, long, thin and polished to a high sheen.
On the back wall were two dark wooden doors and between them was a small wet bar with etched mirrored shelves holding wine glasses and goblets. The walls had several sconce lights of antique brass that looked like bouquets of lilies, the light shades were frosted off white glass with the tips a dark yellow resembling peddles. The windows were covered by cream-colored shades that had been opened about three inches, allowing the glow from the flood lights to filter through.
To the left of the entrance was a small galley style kitchen with a built-in refrigerator and a tiny two burner stove
-top. There were four upper cupboards on the walls and cabinets beneath a granite counter. Next to the entrance of the plane was a second door which stood open to reveal the cockpit beyond. Sandra suddenly felt very much out of her league in the midst of such wealth and luxury. It was inviting and stifling at the same time and she became more anxious and frightened with each tick of the clock that hung on the wall opposite the door.
“Relax,” Creighton told her, as though reading her mind again. “You’ll get used to it.” He edged her forward with a hand on the small of her back until she was in the main body of the plane, where he sat on one of the large sofas, pulling her down next to him as the door was secured and the crew took their stations.
“I know it’s a little overwhelming, but you’ll adjust,” he told her. “Money can be your friend or your enemy; it all depends on how you look at it and what you do with it.”
“I just keep thinking about an old adage my grandmother told me,” she said, her hands suddenly feeling too large for her lap as she wound her fingers together. “Money corrupts and absolute money corrupts absolutely.”
“That’s power darling, and even a poor man can do evil with a dollar.”
“I suppose,” she said absently as the engines roared to life.
“We’ll take this slow,” he promised, removing his jacket and tossing it across the end of the sofa. “I will give you lessons in wealth and you will give me lessons in husbandry.” Sandra couldn’t help but smile, feeling much more comfortable with him in the instant he relaxed on the sofa next to her, his feet perched on the coffee table.
“We’ll be leaving in a few minutes, Mr. and Mrs. Ashford,” Captain Davies said over the speaker. “The weather is clear to
Versailles and we should arrive in about fifty minutes. Please sit back, relax and enjoy the flight.”
“Ready to go?” he asked again as the plane began to move forward. He reached across her and pulled a seat
-belt from between the cushions on the sofa and fastened it around her, smiling seductively to her as he cinched it tight.
“I don’t think I have a choice, do I?” she teased, the fear slipping quickly away as excitement began to take hold.
“Not really,” he assured her. “Even if you could escape I wouldn’t let you. I’ve told you before; the dangerous side would hunt you down.”
“But I’d have the safe side waiting for me.” Creighton chuckled, kissing her temple as he eased her back into his embrace.
“Just remember that, my love,” he assured her when the plane’s wheels lifted from the earth and they were enveloped in the darkness of the night sky.
Sandra smiled happily, snuggling closer to his chest. She had married the man she spent a lifetime dreaming about. He taught her to love and to believe in her dreams, he gave her the world and hope for the future and in exchange she gave him her heart, her soul and her body. He was hers, this incredible loving handsome man she put her faith and trust into. This man she proudly called husband.
“Time to wake up, wife,” Creighton whispered beside her ear, his breath sending warm chills down her spine. Sandra smiled feeling his naked body behind her in the bed, his legs wrapping around hers as he spooned his chest into her back.
“I don’t want to wake up,” she told him in a sulky tone.
“Come on, the plane will be landing soon and I need to get you to the flat so you can get some real sleep.”
“But I’m comfortable here,” she argued.
“Well, if you’d like, we could spend the night here and go to the flat in the morning. We’ll be locked in and safe from prying eyes, so you can run around the plane naked or I could chase you, whichever you desire.”
“We can’t stay here, what about the crew and your security team?”
“They have their own places in
Versailles. The door locks from the inside and it will be put into a hanger until we need it again. We have food and water, a bathroom and most importantly, the bed. What else could you possibly ask for on the first day of your honeymoon?” Sandra rolled over so she could look into his dark eyes. It was tempting, very tempting, as much as making love thirty thousand feet in the air had been.
“What would your crew say?” she asked.
“Who cares?” he asked with a wicked smile. “It’s my plane; I can do what I want.”
“Have you ever stayed overnight on it before?”
“Not like this, but I’ve never made love on it either. It has this bedroom, but until tonight I hadn’t found a need for it. If I wanted to sleep I would do it on the sofa or in one of the chairs. It’s nice to know the bed is comfortable enough to make love to my wife in though. Now, do you want to stay?”
Sandra bit her bottom lip contemplating the idea of doing exactly that. It would be something she could write about in her journal, if she ever started one and definitely a memory to hold in her old age.
“I’ll go tell Harvey and Parker,” he said, seeing her answer shining in her eyes. “I’ll have them come back for us tomorrow.”
“What about our bags?” she asked, siting up in the bed as he pulled on his pants.
“They’re here,” he assured her. “Private jets usually don’t misplace the luggage. I’ll get them before the crew locks us in.”
“Creighton,” she said softly, her eyes cast down to the bed. “What about Bachmeier? Could he get in?” Creighton sat next to her on the queen sized bed, taking her hand in his and kissing the knuckles gently.
“We’re safer here than if we were surrounded by security,” he told her. “The door is very secure and locks tighter than Fort Knox. The only thing you’ll have to worry about is me.” Sandra giggled wrapping her arms around his neck.
“I really love you,” she said, thrilled when he pulled her out of bed to sit naked on his lap.
“And I love you,” he assured her, feeling the plane’s decent. “I want you to be happy and stop worrying. We’ll find the bastard and put him back where he belongs, you have to trust me.”
“I trust you with every fiber of my being,” she assured him with a warm smile.
“Then I better go talk with Harvey and Parker.” Creighton kissed her hard and passionate, pushing her back down to the mattress. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.” With that said he walked out the door bare chested and bare footed, leaving her alone and naked in the bed.
Sandra sighed deeply, stretching her arms above her head. She was happy despite all that had happened the last two days and she was determined to enjoy herself and their time together. As the plane landed, her stomach jerked making her aware she needed to use the bathroom. She remembered from her one and only former plane trip that you shouldn’t move around when the plane was landing, but then again she didn’t know you could make love in a bed while on a plane either.
Once the wheels touched the ground a second time, Sandra had no choice. She wrapped a blanket around her naked frame and carefully walked to the door and opened it. Creighton was sitting in one of the love seats at the front of the plane, across from Harvey and Parker. He looked up when the door opened and smiled watching her quietly slip into the bathroom.
She had never been in a private airplane before, so she had no idea what to expect from the bathroom. The room was large, remarkably so, with white walls and dark wood trim. There was a double sink in a half circle shape, a smaller than normal toilet but still larger than the one on the plane she had taken to France, and porcelain not metal. There was a narrow bench with a thick cushion to sit on and a full size shower with rain jets. The same
familiar sconces from the main section of the plane decorated the wall and the floor was tiled in marble squares. The room had no windows, yet it was very comfortable and bright.