With something that soundedalmostlike a smile, she said, "You'll see."
Huh?"When?"
"Any minute now." It was the same thing Maisie had said, and I was still trying to process it when Delaney softly added, "Don't say no to anything because of me." And then, she hung up, leaving me totally clueless.
When I gave Maisie a questioning look, Griff suddenly cleared his throat. He turned to Maisie and said, "There's a problem with the plane."
I blinked.Plane? What plane?
Maisie eyed Griff with exaggerated concern. "What is it?"
Looking nearly pained, he replied, "It's a big metal tube full of people. But that's not important right now."
And then, in unison, they both turned to look at me.
So, they were quoting fromAirplane!?
I looked back, wondering what the heck was going on – until something else yanked my attention away. It was a trio of fakeHare Krishnas, wrapped in orange, mystical robes, matching one of the movie's opening scenes. I knew they were fake, because I'd served two of them coffee, and the other worked at a fudge shop three doors down.
The fudge guy stepped toward me and held out a single long-stemmed rose. With a serene smile, he said, "Take this flower."
Another movie quote?I stared at the rose, and then at him, and then back to the rose, which was a lot bigger and redder than any airport flower had a right to be.
Next to me, Maisie whispered, "You should probably take it."
So I did, only to have the second of the trio step forward and hold outhisrose, repeating the same line. By the time the third Krishna had come and gone, I was clutching the flowers loose and crooked like a bridesmaid who'd missed rehearsal.
I was still fumbling when something inside me cracked, and a laugh slipped out before I could stop it.
A moment later, I was laughing even harder as two women near the ferry dock stepped forward wearing old-fashioned flight attendant scarves. They smiled brightly for the crowd and began demonstrating safety procedures with exaggerated seriousness, fastening invisible seatbelts, pointing calmly to nonexistent exits, and miming the inflation of oxygen masks that very clearly didn't exist.
It was then that the parade started, coming from a corner around the street. It began with two men in orange vests directing non-existent airport traffic, followed by a whole slew of characters I knew and loved – an air traffic controller trailing a giant electrical plug followed by a man holding a sign that readIS THERE A DOCTOR ON BOARD?Right behindhimwas another man holding a second sign that readOR A PILOT?
I couldn't stop laughing as the rest of them paraded by – a disco-dancing couple straight out of the 1970s, passengers brandishing rulers and wrenches, and Franny and her friendssporting T-shirts emblazoned with the wordsI SPEAK JIVE. Overhead, a giant inflatable pilot bobbed nearly two stories high.
And, at the very end of it, was a surfer dude riding the shark bike, for reasons I didn't quite get.Sharks? On a plane?
I mean, the movie was crazy, but unless I was horribly mistaken, even its sequel was completely shark-free.Wasn't it?
Still, the surfer dude made me laugh as he hollered out straight in my direction, "Go get 'em, VIP!"
Unless…Maybe I wasn't the one he'd yelled at?
Sure enough, a subtle shift behind me made me whirl around to look. And there he was.
Ryder.
Oh. My. God.The lunatic was wearing a pilot's uniform. His posture was relaxed, his sleeves were rolled, and his tie was crooked in a way that looked intentional.
Silly or not, the uniform only emphasized everything I'd missed – his broad shoulders, his amazing eyes, and the way he filled up space without even trying.Damn it.Only Ryder could show up dressed like this and still make my stomach flip.
Talk about unfair.
Over his shoulder, I caught sight of Maisie, grinning from ear to ear like this was the best thing she'd seen all summer. Beside her, Griff shook his head, his lips twitching, with a look on his face that said,My friend has completely lost his mind.
Somewhere around us, the crowd began to drift – the laughter fading, footsteps moving on, and the performance quietly dissolving into the usual chaos of Main Street.
But allInoticed was Ryder.
