Live with Grace -EDITING

Ch. 2 Leaving Life Behind

Sigh forgot how small her car was. He cursed himself for asking her to bring him to the airport. Now he was cramped in the undersized car with her for at least thirty minutes, which was way too long.

After they had sex, Sigh vowed that he would let her go when he returned and hire someone unattractive. Maybe even a guy. That would take away all temptation.

But guys could be detrimental too. He learned after the accident, the guy friends that stuck around were the ones that could hang out at bars all night and keep up with his drinking. Now looking back, he wished those friends had stopped him and told him he needed help.

And he needed help. When he hit rock bottom, the bottle seemed to be his only friend. No one would talk about the accident, or Grace, because they all felt awkward bringing it up. Eventually, he stopped talking about her all together. He found the second he mentioned the name Grace, everyone in the room hushed and you could hear a pin drop. He went to a counselor, but she didn't help. Instead she just pointed out the obvious. He was depressed and mourning. Duh.

Ashley giggled in the seat next to him. Crap, did she say something and he missed it?

"I'm sorry, did you say something, " Sigh politely asked her.

She smiled at him, "I asked where you were, silly?" she responded with that silky voice.

"Oh, I was just thinking," he replied, hoping he made it clear that the conversation would end there.

"I hope it was about me," she giggled again.

God she annoyed him. Why did he ask her to bring him to the airport? He knew there was going to be a long drawn out goodbye.

Every time he had sex with her, he regretted it and wished he were more resistant to her lure. He knew she was using him for his money. It wasn't about a relationship or even the sex, it was about job security. And it worked. He was ashamed to admit it, but it was working. She sucked at her job and he wanted to fire her every day, but the minute she turned him on, he would ignore her total lack of intelligence or ability to perform her job.

Sigh didn't respond, hoping she would get the point.

Instead, Ashley continued, talking non-stop about her plans for the coming weeks. Her voice was juvenile and it had a high pitch to it, which was making him grind his teeth.

He begged each light to stay green as they drove through the City and smiled when the hangar came into view.

Finally, three whole weeks of peace and quiet. Three weeks without temptation and maybe even getting rid of Ashley. He could finally feel the freedom.

Ashley pulled her small sports car right onto the small runaway and Sigh climbed out of the passenger seat before the car even came to a complete stop.

Ashley frantically put the car in park so she could join him outside. He grabbed his bags from the back seat and quickly approached Jules, his pilot, with a smile of relief.

"I'm happy to see you too," Jules teased as he took Sighs bags. Ashley awkwardly ran after them in her high stiletto heels. Jules gave Sigh a knowing smile and swung the bags into the backseat of the small plane.

"Ready whenever you are," Jules told him as he climbed into the front cockpit, chuckling to himself.

Sigh smiled back at him. He tried to make the departure short, avoiding the kiss she practiced in her head all day. She extended her arms out for a hug, only to be disappointed when he turned to climb in the plane, not even noticing.

"Remember, I won't have reception at the cabin, so e-mail me if you have an emergency. I'll check it every couple of days," he told her, as he pulled the door shut in front of him. She nodded and forced a smile as she waved goodbye.

He could tell she was disappointed. She stood alone on the runway, her white skirt clinging to her tanned legs like another layer of skin. She blew him a kiss and watched as the plane pulled away, standing there like a lost puppy.

"Jules, get me the hell out of here."

Jules laughed, a deep rumbling sound, as he called out to the radio tower for clearance to take off.

"Hey, at least you have women like her chasing you down. When you're my age and look like me, you're grateful when your wife still kisses you goodnight," Jules lightheartedly told him.

"Oh, but you're a happily married man. I haven't found anyone worthy of marriage, let alone spending the rest of my life with. I get that," he gestured to Ashley walking towards her car, "Her head's completely filled with the same stuff those boobs are filled with," Sigh commented, watching as Ashley became smaller and smaller in the window until the runway disappeared altogether.

"Oh, in time my friend, in time."

"Yeah, I keep hearing that, but I'm not seeing it. I guess I'm the only man alive who complains about having beautiful women who only want me for sex," Sigh laughed to himself.

"No, you're becoming a real man. She'll hit you like a ton of bricks when she comes," Jules told him.

"Yeah, well she already came and God took her away from me," Sigh responded before he turned his attention to his ringing phone. He pulled it out of his pocket, looked at the screen and declined the call when he saw Ashley's name.

"Instead, I get girls like Ashley. She's good to look at, but when you touch her, she burns your hand," Sigh added.

"Yeah, well. I wish I had your problem."

"Until you had it," Sigh laughed.

"So, where are you staying?" Jules changed the subject.

"At a friends from college. He and his wife have a cabin in the mountains."

"Oh, that's nice."

"Yeah, I haven't seen him in years, so I owed him this trip."

"Well there you go. Kill two birds with one stone. You get a nice vacation and get to see an old friend," Jules responded, pressing various buttons on the cockpit.

"Exactly. Hey, I could even get lucky and find myself a nice, quiet country girl," Sigh joked.

"That would be even better. A nice Thanksgiving present for you," Jules laughed.

"Yeah, a country girl. That could be a nice change of scenery," Sigh agreed, looking out the window.