Backstage Romance: An Austen-Inspired Romantic Comedy Box Set by Gigi Blume (ebook reader with highlighter txt) 📕

Awww. What a guy.

“I have a plane to catch,” I sobbed. “Santa Fe airport.”

He held up a finger. “Let me just get my keys.”

And just like that, this nice man who hardly knew me took me to the airport. No questions asked. Surely he didn’t want to hear how much of a scoundrel his brother-in-law was. It wasn’t my place to expect him to. Here we were on Christmas Day, the sun just a flicker on the horizon. He could have been cozy and warm, waiting to capture his daughter’s reaction on camera when she found her presents. But something in his weary expression showed a genuine concern.

“Are you going to be okay? I could park and walk you in.”

We were idling at the drop off curb. The airport was so tiny and empty I imagined he could leave the car there and nobody would complain. But I didn’t want to keep him from his family.

“No, I’m good.” I attempted a smile. “Thanks for the ride.”

I reached for the door handle to get out of the car.

“Listen,” he said, gently bidding me to wait. “I don’t know what happened between you and my brother-in-law—and it’s none of my business. I’m sure you have a valid reason for leaving. But just so you know...Wyatt’s a straight up guy. He might be a wayward clown. A little lost sometimes. Actually he’s kind of a yo-yo.”

“I’m...not sure where you’re going with this.”

“The point is, whatever dorky thing he might have done, that man is in love with you. It’s all over his face. I’ve never seen him like that.”

He shrugged, having fulfilled his obligatory brother-in-law endorsement.

I gave him a half-smile. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” he replied. “Have a safe flight.”

Minutes later I was inside the terminal wondering what I’d do to pass the few extra hours besides feel sorry for myself. Jaxson wasn’t due to arrive for a while and even though I was hurt and mad, a small part of me was hoping for a grand gesture from Wyatt. One of those airport scenes in every rom-com where the guy crashes through security to stop the girl from boarding a plane. But Wyatt was probably still sleeping.

Turned out, I didn’t have to wait at all. It was the Australian accent that caught my attention. I spotted Jaxson Knightly chatting it up with one of the aforementioned security guards. Probably the only security guard in this cute little airport. They’d gotten coffee from somewhere. I clutched my little bag of empanadas. Would it be worth it to trade one for a cup of joe? Nah.

“How are you here so early?” I asked Jaxson after we said our hellos.

The security guard had to get back to work and tipped his baseball cap to me. Jaxson clapped him on the shoulder. “See ya around, mate.”

That Jaxson. Made friends everywhere he went. He smiled at me. “You want to know why I arrived so early. Well, the truth is, I’ve never flown such a distance in one go. So I erred on the side of caution.”

“You are not making me feel overly confident to get in a plane with you.”

He laughed, a deep rumble comforting my scuffed up heart. “It’s perfectly safe. Ready to go?”

“Yeah.”

If he was wondering where my traveling companion was, he didn’t show it. He escorted me to his plane, all fueled up and waiting for us. We slipped on our headsets and once we got the A-OK from the control tower and ran all the checks, we were on our way. My stomach flipped at first, but I soon got used to the sensation of flying in a tiny aircraft. Jaxson maneuvered like a pro—he even looked the part of a G.A. pilot with his leather jacket and aviators.

“Thank you for coming all this way to get me,” I said into the headset. It really was too kind of him to leave his wife on Christmas morning. They were still technically newlyweds. “My brother said Emma might come with to keep you company.”

“She wanted to come,” he replied. “But she’s in no condition to fly.”

“Oh no. Is something wrong?”

A huge grin split his face. “Everything’s perfect.”

Oh. OH! He meant...wow. Emma Woods expecting. My thoughts turned to Wyatt, how Emma was his celebrity crush. How I secretly wished he were here. Then I kicked that thought to the curb. No. I slapped it across the face, beat it to a pulp, and then kicked it to the curb. Take that, sentimental feelings.

“Congratulations,” I said. “That’s great news.”

“Thanks. We’re still keeping it close to our chest, though.”

We buzzed along through the sky with the sun at our backs. The sights down below were stunning. The rocky terrain of the desert coming to life in hues of pink and purple. It was almost cathartic.

I wondered what Wyatt was doing just then. Would he just be waking up? How long before he noticed I was gone? Would he go outside to see the sunrise on his beautiful pine nut orchard?

Annoyed with my pestering thoughts, I shoved my hands in my coat pockets. One of them had something pokey inside. My hand dug it out and I was sad all over again. The miniature Charlie Brown Christmas tree. I thought I’d left it behind. Wyatt must have tucked it in my pocket after our fight.

I ran a finger over the tiny plastic pine needles and the little scrap of blue felt serving as Linus’ blanket. My heart ripped open anew with the memories contained in that silly tree. How Wyatt kissed me and told me he loved me. It didn’t seem like he was lying at the time. Steven’s parting words still echoed around in my brain. That man is in love with you.

Tears burnt the edges of my eyes. Maybe there was some truth to that. Wyatt’s kisses were certainly convincing enough. It didn’t matter, though. It was over. And now I would never watch Peanuts the same way again.