Incidental Happenstance (30 page)

            Lilly didn’t have to put anything over the announcements for everyone to hear about Tia’s new guy. All staff members checked in at the office when they started their days, and Lilly was sure to deliver the message personally, telling them all to stop by Tia’s room to ask about her weekend with a wink and a smile. She told the story again and again, and never got tired of it. She worked with a great bunch of people; they hung out socially fairly regularly and kept track of each other’s lives. They were great to her after Nick died, taking turns bringing her dinner, stopping by with groceries, dragging her out for drinks or meals; and they supported her throughout the next school year, knowing she was still hurting. The happiness they felt for her was genuine, and that made her feel a twinge of guilt that she wasn’t telling them the whole story.

            By the time her students arrived, she was riding on a cloud. Even they noticed her giddiness, and it turned out to be a pretty good day, after all. Still, she was counting down the days until she’d be going to see Dylan again. Concentration was eluding her, and she had so much to get done in the next ten days. Jessa had sent the itinerary the night before, and there was a flight leaving for Prague at 9:45 PM on the last day of school. She could sleep on the plane, and wake up to see Dylan. She’d need to have her classroom packed away for summer, and have everything done by noon that day, plus have her luggage ready to go. When she replied to Jessa’s email, she’d asked for the car to collect her by 5:00 to give her time to get to the airport for the requisite three hour check in for international flights.

            Lexi didn’t end up being a calming presence. She showed up at Tia’s door at 5:00, her arms loaded with travel brochures, excursion pamphlets, and lists of stores and spas they simply had to visit. She had maps of the city, the tube station and surrounding areas, and three Chinese take-out bags dangling off her wrists. She dumped the contents of her arms unceremoniously onto Tia’s living room coffee table and plopped onto the couch.

            “Oh my God,” she exasperated. “Do you have any idea how much there is to do in London? There’s the Tower, the London Walks, the museums, the shopping, the castles… I don’t know if one week’s going to be enough time!”

            Tia laughed, and poured them each a glass of wine. Lexi grabbed hers and downed it in one tip of the glass, immediately handing it over for a refill. “Don’t freak out on me now, Lex,” Tia mused. “I’m freaking out enough as it is! I’m counting on you to keep me grounded over the next couple weeks. There’re a million things I’ll need to get done.”

            “I need to know what nights the concerts are,” she continued as if Tia hadn’t spoken. “I know you and Dylan’ll want some alone time, so I have some solo activities I can do while you’re busy, but I want to plan everything! I’ve already told them at work, so I’ll be set as soon as I have the dates. Did Jessa send you the info yet?”

            “Yeah, it was here before I even got home yesterday. She’s really good at her job.”

            “Ooh, so when do I come?” she asked excitedly.

            Tia picked up the printout she’d made of Jessa’s timetable. “Let’s see…we arrive on the afternoon of the 14
^th
of July. The 15
^th
is a Saturday, so you could come in that day. We stay for the week, and leave the following Saturday for Amsterdam. We’ll be there until the 26
^th
, but we’re leaving that morning for Paris. That’s…” she counted on her fingers, “…11days.”

            “I just can’t believe this!” she said, punching the dates into her Blackberry. “And Dylan’s really buying my ticket to get there?”

            Tia snickered. “Yes, I already told you that. First class all the way. And, he’s springing for a room at the Ritz—just for girl time.”

            “You need to hold onto that man, I’m telling you!” she crowed.

            “I miss him so much, Lex! It seems crazy that we only had three days together. You aren’t supposed to get that attached to someone so fast. But I am. I can’t wait to see him.”

            “What’s the countdown?” she asked.

            “Nine days. Then an overnight flight. Prague is six hours ahead of us. I leave here at 9:45, and arrive around noon the next day, Czech Republic time.” She took a sip of her wine. “I don’t know how I’m going to make it.”

            “Oh, you’ll make it, don’t you worry about that. So listen, I’ve decided that you don’t have to try and pack for the whole summer. There are so many designers out in Europe that you can just buy new things when you get there, and then ship them back home as you wear them. Just in London we’re going to…”

            “Have you forgotten that I live on a teacher’s salary?” she interrupted. “I can’t afford designer clothes.”

            “True, but you’re lucky enough to have a best friend who makes tons of money,” she said, indicating herself with her finger. “And when your boyfriend flies me out first class for an all-expenses paid trip to London and Amsterdam, the least I can do is take you on a shopping spree. Consider it my birthday present to you.”

            “Holy crap,” Tia said, realization dawning on her. “I’m going to spend my birthday with Dylan. In freaking Paris!”

            Tia hadn’t even thought about the fact that she’d celebrate it in Europe--what a way to spend a birthday, in the most romantic city in the world, surrounded by the lights and energy of Paris. Better yet, she’d be spending it with her man.

            “Could you imagine a more perfect present?” Lexi asked enthusistically. “I know I couldn’t!”

            “Dylan doesn’t even know when my birthday is,” she said. “We still have so much more to learn about each other.” She dropped her head and turned to Lexi. “Oh God, Lex, this is getting really intense.”

            “Yeah, but that’s the fun part,” she stated, matter-of-factly. She clapped her hands and rubbed them together.  “Oh, this is going to be so amazing!”

            The last few days before she left were like a tornado, and Tia kept so busy that the time actually seemed to pass at a somewhat normal pace. Aside from everything she had to get done at school, she also had to arrange for a service to cut her lawn over the summer, her mail had to be stopped, she had to install timers on her lights, empty her fridge and freezer so she could unplug them, get international calling for her cell phone, and a dozen other loose ends that filled a lot of her time. She had to have dinner with her parents, too, and explain to them why she was going to Europe for the entire summer with a guy she’d just met and who they hadn’t met at all. She felt especially bad not telling them exactly who she was dating, but she wanted that specific information in as few hands as possible and as much as she loved her mother, Tia knew she enjoyed gossip more than most. In the end, they took it better than she thought they would. They were thrilled to see her happy again, and trusted her to make the right decision about how to move on with her life.

            Packing for the trip was the hardest part, and she had precious little time to do it. She spent most of her evenings pouring over her wardrobe, deciding on items that could be mixed and matched in different ways. She also packed three boxes that Lexi could send to different destinations, and she planned to ship some of her more worn items back. It was a daunting task, but she figured that she could take her vacation fund money with her as well, and fill in with some new clothes while she was overseas—there were some amazing shops in some of the cities she’d be visiting, and she relished the thought of splurging at least a little bit.

            Finally, she said goodbye to her students for the last time and sent them off for their summer vacations. She spent most of the evening at school, packing away textbooks, covering her class library, taking down bulletin boards and cleaning up the room. She didn’t sleep at all that night, thinking that the next day she’d be on her way to see Dylan. Even with the lack of sleep, though, she skipped into work on Thursday, eager to get through the next couple hours so she could put work behind her and start what she anticipated would be the best summer of her life. They had their last staff meeting of the year, and shared around the table how they’d be spending their summers. Tia so badly wanted to blurt out exactly what she’d be doing, but kept her plans just vague enough when she told them she’d be spending most of it in Europe, visiting a number of cities, and seeing Dylan when she could. They were all excited for her, and extracted promises for emails and postcards, and lots of pictures when she returned. She hadn’t shared a picture of Dylan with them, and they were all curious about him. She made her promises, hugged them all goodbye, and finished up her year, running out the door as soon as the clock struck noon.

            The car picked her up at precisely 5:00pm, and she left her house with two huge bags plus a carry-on. Her heart pounded the whole way to the airport—she was merely hours now from seeing Dylan again, but neither the over-the-counter sleep aid  nor the cushy accommodations of British Airways first class did much of anything to relax her. She slept fitfully, fighting the medicine all the way to Prague, and when she finally stepped off the plane, her heart was pounding in her chest and she was riding on adrenaline. It was nearly impossible for her to keep still as she stood in the customs and immigration line, and when she finally made her way to the luggage carousel, her heart sank just a little bit when she saw Jessa holding a placard with her name on it. She tried not to show her disappointment—did she really think she was going to see Dylan standing in the middle of a public airport?—and gave Jessa a hug.

            “It’s so great to see you!” Jessa said happily, hugging her back enthusiastically. “How was your flight?”

            “Not quick enough,” Tia joked. “No matter what I said, the pilot wouldn’t fly any faster.”

            “I totally understand,” she smiled, “and I know you’re anxious too, so I won’t keep you here. You can just head out to the car and I’ll collect your luggage and bring it out to where you’re staying. How many bags?” she asked. “Do they all look like this one?” she added, motioning toward her carry-on.

            “Two,” Tia said, nodding. “Big ones—are you sure you want to handle them by yourself?” She was shaking with anxiety and the luggage hadn’t even started appearing on the carousel yet, but she felt bad leaving the job to the tiny woman.

            “No problem,” she said. “I’ll get one of these big strong guys to help me,” she waved her hand toward the many porters who stood around the fringes of the crowd waiting to offer their services. She handed Tia the placard with her name on it and pointed at an exit door to the right. “They can’t park at the airport, of course, so just go out to the line where the limos are cruising through and hold this up so the driver will know when to stop.

            “Aren’t you riding with me?” Tia asked, unsure of what to do next.

            “No, I’m pretty sure that Dylan would think three’s a crowd,” she replied, smiling.

            “He’s here?” she squealed, looking in all directions at once and hopping from one foot to the other in anticipation.

            “He’s in the car,” she laughed, “and very anxious to see you. Just give me your…”

            But Tia had already dropped her carry-on at her feet and was sprinting for the door. She saw the line of limousines drifting slowly by and held her name up over her head. When his limo pulled over to the curb, the door opened before it even stopped and Dylan leaped out, a smile lighting his entire face. “Heey!” he said, reaching her in seconds. He lifted her off the ground and spun her in a slow circle. He hugged her to him, and planted a soft kiss on her lips. “I’ve missed you,” he said simply, looking all sexy in baggy jeans and a t-shirt. “I’m so glad you’re finally here!”

            Tia wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled her face into his shoulder. “I’m so glad to be here!” she said. “Oh Dylan, it’s so great to see you!”

            “Come on,” he said, “let’s get out of here before we attract attention.” He wrapped his arm protectively around her and led her to the limo. The driver was standing there already, holding the door. They climbed into the car and tangled together, trying to make up for two weeks apart.

            “Mmmmm,” he sighed, taking her face in his hands and kissing her. “I’ve really missed this.”

            “So have I,” she murmured against his lips. “I thought the plane would never land—I think it was the longest nine hours of my life!”

            “But you’re here now, and we have the whole summer ahead of us,” he smiled.

            “Oh, it’s going to be so amazing,” she said, pushing her fingers through his hair and pulling him close.

            A few minutes later, the driver’s voice came over the speaker. “Mr. Miller, sir? We’re approaching the city now.” Dylan hit a button and thanked him, then hit another, opening the expansive sunroof overhead.

            “Check this out,” he said, standing on the seat and poking his head through the sunroof, inviting her to do the same. “We’re going to take a little tour of Prague.”

            Tia stood too, and the two of them took in the sites, Dylan pointing out landmarks and famous sites, and Tia adding what she’d learned during her research. She’d tried to learn about the places she’d be visiting; as a teacher, she had a keen interest in culture, art, architecture, and history; but she’d only had enough time to get the basics. Lexi had helped, gathering travel brochures and doing some research on the internet for her, and reading the literature on the plane helped her get at least a little background info on the cities she’d be visiting. There were so many, though, that it was hard to keep them all straight.