Flight to Paradise (Flight Trilogy, Book 1) (22 page)

“Stately homes and gardens make Buckhead the Beverly Hills of Atlanta,” the magazine articles had recently stated.

She noticed Rex come alive; pivoting his head from left to right, seemingly intrigued by the elegant homes nestled into large wooded lots.

“Pretty, isn’t it?” Keri asked.

“I had no idea this place existed. So, which one is yours?” He chuckled.

“A few more minutes and we’ll be there.”

“Well, don’t disappoint me.”

* * *

Turning off West Paces Ferry and down Habersham Road, Rex admired the collection of early to mid-20th century architectural styled homes: from Georgian and Tudor to Italianate and Greek Revival. Magnolias and pink and white dogwoods bloomed against shadowy-green lawns featuring beds of flowering azaleas.

The idea of making a trip “all the way back to Atlanta,” as he’d told Keri, “was not necessary.” After all, they were only dating. In his eyes, the formality of “meeting the parents” was normally reserved for those with more serious intentions, like marriage. He was definitely not thinking “marriage”, and he for sure didn’t need her parent’s approval to sleep with their daughter. Therefore, as far as he was concerned, making the journey to Atlanta was a big waste of time.

But his interest changed while cruising down the quiet tree-lined streets of Buckhead. Landscaped traffic islands at neighborhood intersections flashed the colors of spring. Southern mansions spread out atop rolling green lawns conjured up thoughts of
Gone
with
the
Wind
. He wondered if slavery still existed in the South. Keri’s parents might even have household servants: maids, butlers, cooks.

I
had
no
idea
my
little
peach
was
rich
!
Dude
,
I
hit
the
jackpot
!

The more he saw, the more he liked.

Her
folks
must
be
loaded
.
Sweet
!

The unthinkable suddenly became thinkable, and once he saw her parents, he would know for sure. If they showed the level of affection and concern for their “little girl” he expected, it was a done deal.

This
is
when
marriage
makes
sense
.

* * *

Keri slowed, turned into a driveway and rolled through an opened wrought-iron gate. The winding drive cut through an immaculately manicured lawn beneath towering pines and up to the front of a large Georgian style home.

She felt the nerves in her stomach tighten as she pulled to a stop. Two thoughts replayed in her head: how would her mother react to Rex, and what would Rex think after the weekend was over.

“Wow!” Rex said. “Is this where you call home?”

“Well, it’s my parent’s home.”

“Dude! The South has,
definitely
, risen again.” Then, with his best Southern accent, he said, “Why, Miss Scarlett, you should have told me about you-alls plantation in Buckhead.”

She looked at him with a grin. “My mother will definitely love you if you can keep that up.”

Keri’s mom popped out of the front door of the large white Georgian before Keri had time to switch off the ignition. She plastered Rex with a big Southern hug and stepped back, still holding his hands and keeping her gaze fixed on his face. “Darlin’, I think you’ve got a keeper.”

“Mom!” Keri said, sounding a bit embarrassed.

“Rex, I am so glad to finally meet you, though, I think I could have picked you out of a crowd from Keri’s description.”

“I have also been looking forward to meeting you and Mr. Hart. Keri is a very special woman and I knew she must have wonderful parents. I can already see I was right.” He leaned closer to Keri’s mother and said, “And to be honest, Mrs. Hart, I would have never imagined Keri’s mother to be so young.”

“You’re sweet,” her mom said.

Rex turned and looked up at the house towering over him. “I love your home, Mrs. Hart. It’s my first trip to Buckhead and I was just telling Keri how beautiful this area is.”

“Rex, please…call me Barb.” She smiled. “Would you like a quick tour?”

Rex glanced over at Keri.

“Mom, don’t you think we should get our bags inside first?”

“Heavens no! I’ll have James take care of them, dear. He knows which rooms ya’ll will be staying in.”

She took Rex by the arm. “Now let me show you the house.”

“That would be great, Mrs. Hart…I mean, Barb.” She gave Rex a smile of approval.

Keri could see that her mother found Rex to be quite the toy. She followed them into the house and listened as her mother guided Rex through the ten-thousand square foot house like a tour director at a museum. She ended her tour in the guest room where Rex would be staying. “I hope this will be okay,” she said.

“It’s perfect, Barb,” Rex said.

“Mr. Hart will be home soon and dinner will be served at six sharp.” She turned to Keri. “Now, sugah, you know your father.”

“Yes, I know. He doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

“Keri, why don’t you show Rex the garden or take him on a walk? You still have an hour or so before dinner. I need to see if I can help Nora Jean in the kitchen.”

“We’ll be fine,” Keri said, “And don’t you worry, I’ll take good care of Rex.”

After her mom left, Rex said, “Your mom is wonderful.”

“She can be, when she wants to.”

“What about your dad? Sounds like he rules around here.”

“He’s all business, sorta hard to read until you get to know him, but don’t let him intimidate you.”

“Not a problem.”

Her dad had a gift for sizing up people within minutes after he’d met them, and he was seldom wrong. She knew once he met Rex, he would instantly see the wonderful qualities she had fallen in love with.

“You should have seen him before his heart surgery. Since then, he has calmed down considerably.”

“When was his surgery?”

“Six years next month…seems like forever ago, but he has been doing great.”

“Amazing what they can do.”

“Yeah. We would have lost him if it hadn’t been for the surgery.”

* * *

Once her dad arrived, he and Rex exchanged a manly handshake and a few minutes of casual conversation. Rex found Keri’s dad easy to talk to and not the least bit intimidating, as Keri had warned. They made their way to the dining room while Nora Jean, the Hart’s maid, served the table.

Dinner conversation centered mostly on Keri’s life in California and how she and Rex had met. The more Rex talked about his life—his parent’s home in La Jolla, his attending the University of Southern California, and his recent earnings from real estate ventures—the more Keri’s mom smiled. She appeared to be impressed. The fact that he was not a true-blue Southerner didn’t seem to be a factor. Her dad showed no emotion.

Throughout dinner, Rex grew more and more comfortable, especially enjoying the attention he was receiving from Mrs. Hart. She laughed at all of his jokes and hung on his every word as he told stories about his life growing up in California. Mr. Hart held a stern face, rarely cracking a smile. Knowing that Mrs. Hart held the keys to the kingdom, Rex disregarded the old man’s lack of interest.

Rex felt it was all too perfect. After seeing the big picture, the little peach he’d plucked was juicier than he’d imagined. He had her mother eating out of his hand; her old man’s ticker was ready to seize at any moment; and the palatial Southern estate, rivaling Tara in
Gone
with
the
Wind
, was ripe for the picking. If he played his cards right, it could all be his in a matter of a few years, and just in time.

The stories of his lucrative real estate deals had all been lies. In actuality, Rex had lost hundreds of thousands of dollars of his dad’s money sprinkled among speculative stock purchases, bad real estate ventures, gambling, and frivolous exotic car deals. His dad had recently become so furious at Rex’s numerous blunders that he threatened to cut him out of his will all together. Rex knew the days of leeching off his parents were over and wouldn’t be surprised if they willed him a mere token of their wealth when they died, leaving the balance to charity.

After dessert, Rex stood and said, “Mr. and Mrs. Hart, you have a lovely home, and I would like to thank you for having me this weekend. But the main reason I wanted to meet with you was to tell you in person I am in love with your daughter.”

Keri’s mother gasped.

Rex turned to Keri seated beside him. “Keri, I know this might come as a surprise, but I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t think you felt the same way about me as I do about you.” He reached down and took her hand. “Keri, will you marry me and make me the happiest man in the world?”

CHAPTER 36

Ryan’s flight from Atlanta touched down in Dallas, Saturday afternoon about three o’clock. Each mile of the short drive home twisted his gut like a rubber band.

Emily would be waiting, and the thought of telling her what he had decided made him want to puke. If the threats she had made Thursday night were real, it could mean the end to his marriage.

As the garage door opened, the sight of Emily’s car wrenched his nerves, one last time. He sighed.

I
might
as
well
get
this
over
with
.

He entered the house through the garage door leading into the kitchen. He noticed Emily’s purse parked in its usual place. The smell of roast cooking in the oven hit him first, followed by the sound of soft music coming from the in-ceiling speakers of the whole-house sound system. He walked into the den and stopped, stunned by what he saw. Candles flickered on the mantle above the fireplace, the carpet was freshly vacuumed, and every pillow was perfectly placed.

He cautiously made his way up the stairs to the master bedroom. The thought crossed his mind that she might not have expected him to return home today. What would he do if he caught another man in the house?

He eased the door open. Emily met him with a smile and said, “Hi, Honey. How was your trip?”

Honey
?

She was barefoot wearing tight white jeans and a black V-neck camisole top—beautiful, sexy, and braless. She reached up and kissed him on the lips.

“Fine. I guess.” It would have made more sense if he had found her in bed with another man.

“Listen, I know you’re tired and probably famished. Let me go check on dinner while you change into something more comfortable.”

Unsure how to respond, he quietly did as she suggested.

He wondered if she was even aware he had been to Atlanta to see his mom. He couldn’t remember if he mentioned it to her. It didn’t matter. What
did
matter was how she would react when he broke the news to her that his mom would be moving in with them in a few months.

He walked into the kitchen and asked, “What’s the occasion?”

She stopped what she was doing and walked over to him. “Ryan, I need to apologize for the way I reacted when you told me about your poor mother. I feel awful.”

“Ah…sure. That’s okay.”

“No! It’s not okay. I’ve thought about it, and if your mother needs us, we need to do everything we can to help her. If that means her moving in with us, then that’s what we’ll do.”

“What made you change your mind?”

“You.”

“What do you mean ‘you’? What did I do?”

“It’s not anything you did, it’s just that I love you so much. I can’t stand the thought of ever hurting you. I know how much you love your mother. It’s time I got to know her better—especially since there might not be much time. We need to do everything we can to make her life as comfortable and happy as possible.”

Hearing her words made him forget anything she had previously said or done. He pulled her close and hugged her. “Emily, I love you more than you will ever know.” With her arms wrapped around him, her head up against his chest, he heard a muffled whimper. “What’s wrong?”

She sniffled, then said, “Can you ever forgive me? I’ve been such a witch these last few months. It must be the stress from my work and all the traveling.”

“Listen, it’s going to be fine.
We’re
going to be fine—all three of us.”

“I needed to hear that,” she said, wiping the tears from her cheek. “What about your mom?”

“She’s fine. We have plenty of time to decide what to do. For now, let’s just focus on us.”

“That sounds good.” She kissed him and then said, “I’m so lucky to have you.” She gazed up into his eyes with a seductive grin; a look he hadn’t seen in a long time. “I think somebody might get lucky tonight.”

“What about dinner?”

She reached over and turned off the oven. “Who said you couldn’t have dessert first?” She took his hand and led him to the bedroom.

* * *

Emily planned to make their reunion a night Ryan would never forget. Starting tonight, she wanted him to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was madly in love with him and willing to sacrifice anything and everything to make him happy. She was even willing to cook. After all, she knew the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach, but more importantly, the way to a man’s wallet was sex, and Ryan was no different than any other man—dogs, all of them.

While Ryan was visiting his mother in Atlanta, Emily had come to the conclusion their marriage was dead, and she needed to move on with her life. All the crap with his mother happened at the perfect time.

Her career was booming and she was more than able to provide for herself. In addition, she had been offered a lucrative job in Atlanta as the vice president in charge of residential real estate for the southeastern division of the corporation that owned Excalibur Homes. The president had personally hired her with the intentions of her working closely with him on future development projects. How could she turn it down?

But before she dumped him, she had a few things she needed to take care of; she called it her financial insurance plan.

CHAPTER 37

Rex beamed a smile at Keri, then asked, “Keri, will you marry me and make me the happiest man in the world?”