Page 131 of Fly with Me

“You okay, Olive? You went all thoughtful.”

Olive fixed her face. “Oh, I’m just nervous that I might accidentally kick that Captain Douchebro guy in the nuts if he calls me sweetheart again. I’m really clumsy.”

Stella groaned. “Please don’t nut-kick anyone tonight.”

“Did you just say nut-kick? Is this an aviation-industry term?”

“Very technical. Air marshals are very strict about it.”

Olive followed Stella into the bedroom, where Stella removed her earrings and put them in the tiny ceramic plate on the vanity next to Olive’s. Olive was staring blankly in the mirror at their reflections when Stella came up behind her. She circled Olive’s waist with her arms and pulled her tight.

“I’m glad you’re coming with me tonight.”

Olive gave herself a tiny shake, trying to focus on the moment. “Me too.”

Stella was beaming. That carefree smile always gave the impression of sunlight shining out of her face. Olive adored seeing Stella beaming with excitement. She’d had a meeting with Jack O’Halloran during the previous week. All signs pointed to their plan’s grand success. Stella would get her promotion. And Olive had a friend at her side while the fuss over the viral video went on. Her hospital would have the publicity it craved along with a refurbished fish tank. And everything would be great.

Even if it was the end.

She’d tried to bake Stella a cake after getting home from seeing Hector, but after messing up the recipe twice, she gave up. Baking was beyond her today.

“Mind if I shower first?” Stella pointed to the bathroom.

“Of course, that’s fine.”

Stella grabbed her shoulder bag and went to the bathroom, and Olive plopped down on the bed.

Evidence of Stella had spread everywhere. She had a few hangers in the closet. A pair of shoes she’d forgotten here one night in the corner. A scarf Olive had borrowed from her was hung from a hook. And a clipping from the People magazine article was tacked up above Olive’s desk.

She crossed the room and touched Stella’s face in the photo.

She’d have to tell her tonight. After the party, after everything was over tonight, when Stella was riding high on the success of their plan. Olive would tell her she loved her and needed to know how Stella felt. Olive knew the pain of irrevocably losing someone. The agony over leaving things unsaid. It was a stupidly dramatic way of looking at the world sometimes, but losing Jake had changed her. She’d told Derek she loved him many times since, and he’d mostly stopped rolling his eyes about it.

But Stella… she needed to know.

Even if it meant the end of things because Olive couldn’t go on in this limbo of not truly knowing what they were to each other. They started this with Stella telling her that she didn’t date because she was afraid of someone getting hurt. She’d said that she was terrible in relationships. The last few weeks spent together had to prove to her that she was capable of being a fantastic girlfriend.

She sat in front of her vanity. Derek was working tonight, so Olive’s hair would remain mostly normal, and normal meant wild and fluffy, but Stella liked it that way anyway. Olive went to the closet and unzipped the garment bag to check that the dress was still just as perfect as always. She hadn’t tried it on for Stella yet, but Derek had said it looked flawless. She hoped to get a repeat reaction from the last time Stella had seen her all dressed up. That glowing look of awe that had seemed to make Sixpence None the Richer crescendo in the background.

Olive’s phone began buzzing. She’d left it out in the living room, but she could hear the grating vibration even over the whoosh of the shower. She nearly tripped over Gus, who was sprawled over the floor, as she crossed to the coffee table.

Olive’s stomach sank when she saw the name. Her father. She never talked to her father on the phone. There were two missed calls that had come before this one. “No. No. No. Not tonight.” She swiped her finger to answer and convinced her shaking hands to hold the phone to her ear. “What’s wrong?”

“I’ve been trying to reach you.” Her father’s voice was flat. Almost defeated? “Your brother passed away an hour ago.”

“He… no…” Tears stung her eyes but she blinked them away.

“Your mother said I should tell you. Said you’d want to know you wouldn’t have to be doing any more financial releases or paperwork.”

“Mom thinks I cared about the money? Is that why she didn’t call?”

“Your mother hasn’t been getting out of bed most days lately, Olive.”

“What? I thought she was still going to work?”

“She hasn’t since Jacob’s accident.” He cleared his throat. “Heather and I took over a lot of her patients. Your sister’s making the arrangements for the funeral at your mother’s direction, and the lawyer will be sending you the details.”

Olive’s mind was reeling. Her type-A mother was spending most of her days in bed since Jake’s accident? She was breathless when she spoke again, trying to recall the rest of what her father had said as if the first part hadn’t dropped a bomb on her. “What details?”