Inferno Anthology (235 page)

Smiling, she remembered Tony, incredibly handsome in his tuxedo and incessantly complimentary of her and her gown. Cinderella at the ball couldn’t have felt more special. Like Prince Charming, he only had eyes for his bride. That admiration continued onto the jet. Once the cockpit door closed and the lights dimmed, his devotion grew to fervent passion.

Suddenly, Claire realized the implication of her blanket. If they’d reached their destination, she needed to dress and quickly. “Are we at our honeymoon?”

He turned from his computer and smiled. “You didn’t need to wake. You look so beautiful and peaceful.”

Keeping the blanket wrapped around her, she went to him and knelt beside his chair. “I think I was worn-out.” Her emerald eyes glowed as she put her arms around his exposed midsection. Looking into his milk chocolate eyes, feeling his warmth, and inhaling his scent, she thought to herself, he’s really my husband.

Tony’s eyes met hers, then scanned toward her blanket. Smiling, he said, “It was a busy day, Mrs. Rawlings.” The
Mrs. Rawlings
made Claire’s eyes sparkle. He gently kissed his wife and playfully attempted to see under her blanket.

“And an eventful night, Mr. Rawlings.”

“It isn’t over. We’re just stopping in LA to refuel. We have much more flying before we reach our destination.”

This made Claire think. “So, we’re going to Hawaii?”

“Would you like to go to Hawaii?” Claire said she would, she’d never been. He loved to make her squirm. “Well, we’ll have to find out where we end up, won’t we?” He kissed her again.

The plane was now standing still. Eric and the pilot entered the cabin and bid hello to Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings. Apologizing for the interruption, they promised to be airborne in less than thirty minutes. Tony told them it was fine, just please do whatever was necessary, as soon as possible. They had a honeymoon to get to. The two men promised they would and opened the outside door to the cabin. The rush of fresh air was no longer cold. They definitely weren’t in Iowa anymore.

Tony placed the laptop on the floor and invited Claire to his lap. She climbed up, rested her head on his strong chest and listened to the beat of his heart as he spoke about Los Angeles. His hands tenderly explored under her blanket, gently caressing her soft skin. He asked if she’d ever been there. Claire said no, she’d been to northern California, San Francisco when she was young on a family vacation. She remembered going to Alcatraz. Her dad, being a policeman, thought it was neat. But she didn’t. She recalled during the tour actually going into cells. There were audiotaped voices and sounds of cell doors closing. She didn’t like it at all. He hugged her. “I promise not to plan a visit to Alcatraz in our future. How old were you when you went there?”

“I think I was twelve.” Claire looked up at his face. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, I was just wondering.” Tony went on to tell her about Eli and MaryAnn’s home in LA, actually in Malibu. Tony said he’ll need to bring Claire to one of their parties. He wasn’t much into the whole Hollywood scene, but even he had to admit, Eli and MaryAnn could throw an awesome party. Eli’s guests usually included people Claire had seen in movies or on TV. Eli could be an ass, but he was great at what he did, and there were multitudes of people who would kill to attend his parties. Tony described MaryAnn and Eli’s house as an architectural marvel situated on Malibu beach, hanging off a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

“I would love to see it sometime. Do you stay with them when you travel to LA?”

“No, I-I mean
we
…” He smiled. “…we have an apartment in Hollywood, not far from Malibu.”

Claire smirked. “Maybe sometime you could tell me how many apartments
we
have?”

“
We
have many residences. It’ll take time to familiarize you with all of them.”

She couldn’t wrap her mind around the idea. She had places in Iowa, New York City, Chicago, Hollywood, and other locations.

“They’re not all as grand as New York and Chicago. I spend more time there.”

“Yeah, well you never saw my apartment in Atlanta,” Claire replied. “I’m pretty sure compared to it, they’re all palatial.”

Claire and Tony were talking and laughing when the door reopened. She quickly closed the blanket as the pilot announced they were ready to leave
.
She began to stand when Tony pulled her toward him.

“Umm, don’t you think I should be in a seat belt when the plane takes off?”

Reluctantly he released his hold, but not before opening her blanket and grinning. Claire kissed him, moved to the other chair, situated herself, her blanket, and buckled the seat belt. Within minutes they were airborne, and she drifted to a fitful sleep.

Still at cruising altitude Claire awoke with Tony sleeping soundly in the neighboring recliner. Finding her air legs, she eased her way to the back of the cabin, which held a small shower and dressing room. From twenty thousand feet the view out the window held only blackness separated by a scattering of stars differentiating sky from sea. She found an overnight bag, undoubtedly packed by Catherine. It contained shower, hair, and cosmetic supplies, as well as a black negligee and a summer blouse with capris. She smiled. The negligee would have been nice, but Tony didn’t seem to mind the blanket.

After a quick shower and fresh clothes she felt more alert. Her watch read 8:20 AM, but a glance out the window told her it was still dark wherever they were. They’d been traveling over eight hours; she assumed they’d be in Hawaii soon. Finishing her make-up she smiled, thinking of sunshine and beaches. She didn’t know how long they would be in Hawaii or on which island. The idea sounded wonderful and Tony enjoyed surprising her, but she wistfully thought about being involved in the planning.

Walking unsteadily back into the cabin, Claire found Tony sitting at the table with his laptop and coffee. He turned to watch her enter. “Good morning, Mrs. Rawlings, you look beautiful. I wish you would have awakened me. I could have joined you in the shower.” He grinned over his cup.

“I don’t think we both would fit. Besides, you looked too peaceful.” She sipped the warm auburn liquid and allowed its robust aroma to revive her senses. Tony explained they’d be landing on Oahu in Honolulu in an hour. It would only be about 3:00 AM, but they would deplane, find some breakfast and walk around before continuing their flight. She asked, “Continuing? We aren’t staying in Hawaii?”

“No, Hawaii is just a fuel stop, but we’ll need to revisit sometime for you to sightsee. It’s a lovely place.” His eyes taunted. “But not as lovely as where we’re going.”

“And we are going where?” Claire asked, intrigued. Tony’s eyes sparkled, the black almost completely overtaken with the soft brown hue. His grin mischievous, he didn’t answer. “And how much longer until we get there?”

“Mrs. Rawlings, you’re very inquisitive. What if I told you that we won’t reach our destination until tomorrow?”

Claire thought about that, twenty-four more hours of flying and realized he wasn’t talking about twenty-four hours. He was talking about the next day. “Well, Mr. Rawlings, I’d say, it sounds like we are crossing the International Date Line.” She smiled smugly.

He looked at her with admiration, and addressed Eric, who was refilling their coffee cups. “My wife is not only beautiful, she’s also incredibly intelligent.” He kissed her head as he stood. “I believe I’ll freshen up before we begin our descent.”

With that, he disappeared behind the wall at the back of the cabin. Claire noticed his laptop open on the table. A quick
Google
search of land west of the International Date Line would’ve been beneficial. The screen was, of course, locked, so she’d just need to rely on her memory. Then she wondered if they were staying in the northern hemisphere or heading south? Sighing, Claire sipped her delicious coffee. She’d have to wait. She didn’t have a choice.

Before they left the plane, Tony told Claire to get her purse from her overnight bag. Jokingly, she asked if she needed it to pay for breakfast. No, she needed her passport. “When did I get a passport?” He reminded her they’d discussed it months ago and Brent had filed the necessary paperwork. Apparently, this all happened while she was recovering from her accident. She couldn’t remember any of it, yet there it was: her picture, her signature, and her name
Claire Nichols
. Tony promised to apply for a new one with her real name
Rawlings
as soon as they returned to Iowa and a new ID. He smiled. Her new credit cards had already been requested.

Hawaii was anticlimactic. She smelled the humid sea air as they descended the steps to the solid ground. The gentle tropical breeze enticed her skin, but they didn’t see anything other than the inside of the Honolulu International Airport, as they searched for and found a restaurant that served breakfast.

After eating, they needed to pass the TSA desk. Eric handled the inspection of the plane and bags. Tony and Claire needed to show their passports. When they were with the TSA agent she asked their destination. Claire didn’t know. Begrudgingly, Tony answered, “Fiji. Nadi, Fiji.”

Claire remembered Fiji was a group of islands. She wasn’t sure how many, in the South Pacific. As they walked back to the plane she squeezed his hand and smiled. He wasn’t pleased his surprise was spoiled, but she knew where they were going, and it made her happy. They had six more hours of flight.

They landed in Nadi, Fiji, at 10:30 AM Monday, December 20, after flying over eighteen hours. As their plane approached Nadi, Claire watched out the window, mesmerized by the turquoise water and sparkling white beaches. If Tony were upset about the TSA agent, witnessing Claire’s anticipation returned his own excitement.

Once they landed, Eric loaded their luggage onto a small plane with a propeller and pontoons. He wished them an enjoyable honeymoon and promised he would be waiting when they returned. Apparently, their final destination could only be accessed by air.

Tony and Claire then took a forty-five-minute flight to a private island. Their altitude was low, allowing them to enjoy the sights: dolphins swimming, gorgeous secluded white sand beaches, palm trees, and tropical rain forest vegetation. Outside the open windows of the plane was a true paradise, an oasis away from the rest of the world. Claire had never seen anything like it, and told Tony over and over how amazing it all looked. They landed on a crystal-clear aquamarine lagoon lined with a horseshoe of pristine white sand.

Waiting on the beach was their personal staff: two chefs, maid, hostess, and boat captain. Claire had become accustomed to being waited upon, but these individuals
lived
to please Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings. The staff gathered their luggage, and they all walked a winding path to their
bure
, a Fijian word for straw hut. The humid tropical breeze blew Claire’s hair as her sandals sank into the white sand. Holding her husband’s hand, they approached their temporary dwelling.

It was the most luxurious straw hut Claire had ever seen. Situated on a cliff above the water, they had stunning views of the ocean. First, they entered a gracious living room with a cathedral thatched ceiling, woven bamboo covered walls, and polished mahogany floors. Each room of their bure contained ceiling fans as well as the possibility of air conditioning. Claire couldn’t fathom why anyone would possibly want air conditioning. There were huge bi-folding doors which opened the entire frontage to private decks overlooking the water or tropical vegetation. Each deck contained lounge furniture for relaxation. The front deck even had a private infinity pool. As they stood in the living room and looked, the pool appeared to extend into the lagoon and beyond into the ocean below. The staff took their luggage to the large master bedroom complete with a four-poster king-sized bed. Roaming from room to room, Claire found a luxuriously designed bathroom which opened to a private outdoor lava rock shower and generous soaking tub designed for two. Thankfully, surrounding the outdoor shower and tub were lush tropical plants. After the tour of their temporary home, their hostess, Naiade, asked if they were ready to dine. Claire was famished. Tony informed Naiade they would be pleased to dine on the deck.

The only thing missing from their bure was technology, which was just fine with Claire. She was accustomed to the lack of connectivity; however, Tony was relieved once he learned he had access to the Internet with his laptop. He explained, he needed to stay in contact with Tim, Brent, and others from his businesses. He reminded Claire, “You, my dear, only need to stay in contact with me.” Pulling her close, he added with a grin, “I promise to help.”

She pressed herself closer and kissed his neck. “I think I can handle it.”

“Be careful, Mrs. Rawlings, we may miss our meal.”

Claire smiled. “I believe we have plenty of time for that. Right now, I’m hungry!”

Apparently, they could make suggestions to their chefs at any time. They decided for the next ten days seafood would be the entrée of choice. They both enjoyed trying native dishes. Naiade told them about some activity options, including: unlimited access to a boat with a private captain, where they could enjoy a ride to watch marine life, island hop, or snorkel. A living barrier reef was nearby. They could also kayak or hike into the jungle.

From the dining deck they enjoyed an amazing view of the ocean, with a wonderful sea breeze. The chefs prepared yellow fin tuna, fresh fruit, organic vegetables, and freshly baked bread. It all smelled and tasted scrumptious.

It was early afternoon locally when they finished their meal and Claire was exhausted. She’d just traveled over eighteen hours, lost an entire day crossing an imaginary line, and gotten married. It was enough to tire anyone. Tony recommended relaxing in the outdoor soaking tub which opened to the endless blue sky. Over the next ten days, they would discover it was even more enticing under the stars and moon.

Tony may have suggested the tub as a place to relax, but Claire anticipated he had other plans. The tepid tub water, gentle sea breeze, sound of the waves lapping the beach, and romantic atmosphere combined to help increase Claire’s energy level. Tony said he understood they’d been traveling a long time, but to him it wasn’t tiring, it was confining. He wanted to release some penned up energy. Appreciating the amorous setting, Claire knew she would’ve been disappointed with anything less.