Page 132 of The Wedding

“Where’s Etta?” she asked.

Adele’s smile crashed off her face. “I see she was sparse with theexplanations.”

Jamie could hardly believe it. Wait, yes she could. Why would Etta mention this tiny detail to her at all? Ha. Ha! “So she’s not coming…”

“I hope I’m not too much of a disappointment.” Adele looked over her shoulder, seeing the stewardess signal that they were good to board. “Come on. Girls’ weekend. My treat.”

“Where are we going?” Adele walked away, but Jamie was still frozen in place. “Am I dressed okay?”

“So youarecoming?” the other woman called over her shoulder. Her ridiculously high heels moved effortlessly across the tarmac and pressed lightly against the bottom step of the Gulfstream. “You better hurry up! It’s a long flight.”

Jamie dashed forward. Her heels weren’t anywhere near as high as Adele’s, but she found a way to trip in them.

They were in the air within fifteen minutes, which had to be some kind of record even for the rich and famous. The first question out of Jamie’s mouth once the takeoff nerves settled was not, “Where are we going?” but, “Is this your plane?”

She had to ask it, because she had never seen anything like it. She was used to the planes that held, at most, seven people. Oh, they were plenty comfortable. This, though, was beyond her imagination. This was the kind of jet she imagined groups of celebrities taking around the world to party and perform, probably in that order. White leather seats were big enough for her to sleep in. Clear glass tables held her purse as soon as it was safe to unload it to check for weekend supplies. The complete lack of sound, aside from a low hum and their voices, was enough to make her think they hadn’t left the ground at all. The stewardess went ahead and poured them some sparkling water without being asked. The TV ready to pop out of a side panel? Huge.

“No, this isn’t my plane.” Adele unbuckled and shed her trench coat, handing it to the stewardess and revealing her black sweater dress with abrown leather belt cinching the waist. “I’m borrowing it from a friend who owes me. Although I’m paying for the fuel, so it’s like I own it right now. Or at least that’s what my pocketbook says.”

“Where are we going?” Ah, there was the most pertinent question.

Adele glanced out the window. So did Jamie. Water was already appearing beneath them. Alotof water. Ocean water! “It’s a surprise,” Adele said. “Although we will be in the air at least eight hours, so I wanted to make sure we were comfortable. Those boys might not mind their tiny toy planes, but I’m a woman of comfort and style.” She lowered her sunglasses as sunlight streamed through her window. “Surely, you agree.”

“I could get used to this, yeah.” And pester Etta to buy one of her own. Or at least start leasing them. “So, Etta knows you’re kidnapping me, right?”

“Excuse me… you got on this plane willingly.” Adele closed the blind on her window and sank back in her seat. “Etta knows everything. As always. While she’s clobbering her way through meetings this weekend, I’m taking time off. With you, obviously.”

“So…”

“Patience. It’s all a big surprise.”

“We’re going to Europe, aren’t we?”

“Well, it’s mostly a surprise, then.”

Jamie got up and found her suitcase secured in the back of the cabin.Etta said she packed this for me…Did Adele swing by the penthouse and pick it up before going to the airport? Or did a spy-like drop-off happen at the office? Jamie enjoyed that visual as she lowered her suitcase and opened it to see what her fiancée had decided she needed for a weekend trip to Europe.

“What the hell?” She dug through a huge pile of underwear to find two shirts, two dresses, no stockings, and one pair of shoes. Oh, and a single pencil skirt. “How many pairs of panties does shethink I need?”

Adele appeared behind her. “Typical. Got stuck sniffing through your underwear drawer and started fantasizing instead of thinking practically. Don’t worry, Jamie, if you can’t borrow it from me, we’ll get you whatever you need for the weekend when we land. Although you would look quite stylish with that T-shirt paired with that skirt. Hmph. Maybe she does think beyond Armani.” That’s what Adele mumbled as she stepped her way to the toilet and left Jamie to stare in wonder at all the lacy underwear and not a single cotton pair like the ones she wore.Thanks, Etta.

Adele wasn’t kidding about the length of the flight. The sun was setting by the time the stewardess served them dinner and confirmed they would be landing at about nine in the morning local time.

“I suggest getting a nap in if you can after dinner.” Adele somehow managed to make cutting roast beef and potatoes look like the fanciest thing in the world. Meanwhile, Jamie carved hers as if she were serving at some middle-class dinner table. “We’ve got a long day ahead of us when we land. Not that I’ll share what it is, mind you.”

Jamie looked around the otherwise empty cabin, now lonely without any sunlight to illuminate it. They had personal lights on, but Adele asked for the big cabin lights to stay off so they could rest after dinner. “You must not be doing any business.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because you don’t have your personal assistant with you.” Jamie of all people knew how important such constant help was for a businesswoman.

Adele, nonetheless, dropped her fork and stared intently at the wall in front of her. “No. I currently don’t have one, anyway. Need to work on that when we get back.”

“What happened to that other guy?”

“It didn’t work out.” What a curt tone. It didn’t suit her.Yet it totally does.

“Oh, sorry to hear that.”