Chapter 16
It didn't faze him that she dodged the department store cameras like a cat did water and questioned the functionality of the clothes he selected for their trip. Alec was nearly giddy with relief that she was acting more like old Parker by the minute- in small ways only he could tell. The way her eyes danced when something shiny caught her attention, the ever-so-slight skip she had to her walk, the unconscious way she touched everything, making tactile memory and (he guessed) quality checking.
She stayed close to his side as they gathered the clothes, a suitcase set, and a few bits of stationary she insisted upon before they quickly made their way to the register. They still had over three hours to go before their flight and plenty of time to spare given the only 40 minute trip to the airport.
She walked away from him at the register to look at a pair of very intricate night-vision binoculars. He smiled at the cashier who furrowed her brows at Parker's interest in the set.
"She's a…birdwatcher," he offered the older woman and was met with a sarcastic, "Umm Hmm."
At the register Alec saw a collection of pocket sized poetry books and he nonchalantly picked one up. It opened coincidentally to the page with the poem, Love is Patient. He read it to himself quickly and impulsively put the tiny tome atop his pile.
He turned to Parker, just as she straightened up to make her way back over to him. The words to the poem hummed in his head and he marveled that she was with him once again.
They were back in the car and on their way to the airport within minutes. Parker was meticulously removing the price and size tags from their purchases and packing them into the luggage set.
"How high is the threat level?" she asked as she pulled the tag off of a green knit sweater. She thought the bulky article impractical…but it was pretty.
"Honestly, we're going in a bit blind," he replied, "I tried to run a satellite sweep but the signal wasn't strong."
"You have access to satellites?" she asked incredulously.
He smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders, "Not legally. I sorta piggyback off of the government signals."
She smiled back at him, impressed once again by his capabilities.
"You're…useful," she offered genuinely.
"Ummm…Thanks, I guess," he turned to her quickly, one eye brow raised in irony.
She chuckled at his reaction and he joined in.
Even that was new to her- laughter. But she liked it. She liked him. He was her friend and she needed him. A smile settled on her lips and somehow she felt as though a huge smile had filled her up inside. She felt lighter.
"So, we're operating under the assumption of full alert," she asked and he burst out laughing again.
"What," she asked sincerely confused before a bout of giggles overtook her too.
"Why…are we..laughing?" she managed to get out between gasps and stomach-aching cackles.
"I don't know," he answered as he reined in his amusement, "but it feels good. I missed this….I missed you."
She took a deep steadying breath and dabbed at the corners of her eyes where tears of laughter gathered. She heard what he said and wanted to tell him that she'd missed him too but realized that it couldn't be true. How could she have missed something she didn't know existed? It wasn't possible- or was it? She knew certainly that with him she felt comfortable and she'd even go so far as to say safe and for now it was the most whole, the most balanced she'd ever felt.
They pulled into the airport's long-term parking a short while later and as Alec tapped into the airport's surveillance for any potential lookouts, Parker finished packing her new wardrobe. She had to admit, he had good taste in clothes. They were a little too fancy for her tastes and not as durable given her usual level of activity but they were the prettiest things she'd ever owned.
"Are you ready?" he called to her again breaking into her faraway thoughts.
She smiled and nodded but before she could turn to open the door he stopped her.
"And, this is for you." He held out a small, black, velvet-covered box.
She looked at the box curiously before she reached over and took it from him. She opened the box and her eyes grew wide. A beautiful yellow diamond ring set greeted her as she lifted the box's lid.
"…for you, Mrs. White," Alec reminded her as she stared at him blankly.
"To sell the story," he continued and reached over to take the rings out of the box. He took her left hand and slipped the rings onto her wedding finger. She noticed for the first time that he was already wearing one.
Her rings fit perfectly and the large yellow diamond set inside a circle of smaller white diamonds on a platinum band looked elegant on her slender hand.
She stared at the beautiful jewelry, oddly touched by his gesture even though she knew it wasn't sincere.
"Are we ready," he asked and she silently nodded her reply.
They each turned to their respective doors and exited the car.
They grabbed their luggage, adjusted their clothing to offer a bit more cover, locked the car and headed into the terminal.
Game faces were on- they were both very aware that their mission was officially stared.
Parker visually scanned their 180 and Alec turned on the RF monitor that let him listen to anyone who came within four feet of them, talking into a comm or walkie.
They made their way to the check-in desk without detecting any unwanted attention and after they'd received their boarding passes Parker found them seating along the wall where they could have a clear view of anyone approaching.
Parker sat on the edge of her seat and faced him to help block them both from any facial recognition. As she did so a stray tendril tumbled loose from beneath her cap and before she could tuck it back, Alec's hand was at her face gently lifting the hair behind her ear.
He acted unthinkingly and she knew it. It reaffirmed the closeness that had once been between them and reminded her of the encounter in the bedroom but she didn't shirk away from him and though his hand left her face, his eyes held hers.
"Honeymooners?" A deep Southern American accent interrupted their moment. Parker's face hardened in a split second and she flung toward the questioning party her mind already assessing how to attack. Alec sensed her act-first, ask-later tension and he grabbed her wrists before he looked up at the older gentleman.
The sounds of little children grew louder too, as a group of three including an older woman approached the Southern man.
"Uhm,…yes we are," Alec answered the man and he stroked Parker's wrist with his thumbs, coaxing her to be calm. She acknowledged his touch and he felt the tension in her body lessen even as she retained her unreadable face to the man in front of them.
The older man's face broke into a wide grin as the woman eased beside him and wrapped one arm around his waist. The two children sat behind them absorbed in their video games.
"Yup, we remember what that was like. Don't we Elle?" The man beamed at the woman at his side.
She smiled up at him and turned her attention back to Alec and Parker before she nodded sweetly.
"Fifty years, three kids, and five grandkids, and she's still as pretty as the first time I saw her." He kissed his Elle on her forehead and she blushed shyly.
"Oh, Derek. Stop that now, you're embarrassing these young people," Elle playfully chastised her husband.
"Grandma, grandma, can we get some gum before the plane's ready?" one of the children ran up to the couple.
Elle smile indulgently at the little girl and then to Parker and Alec, "Duty calls. Please excuse me. Congratulations on your wedding and honeymoon."
She took the little girl's hand and started walking off.
"That's my cue," Derek added, "Another secret to fifty years, I never let her out of my sight lest some young buck gets a bright idea to put the moves on my lady." He winked at Alec and tipped an imaginary hat at Parker.
"Be good to each other and never go to bed angry," the old man imparted finally before he extended his hand for his grandson and they followed Elle and the little girl to the newsstand to purchase their gum.
Parker waited until the family was out of sight before she turned quickly to Alec, unsure how she felt about the encounter.
"It's okay," he whispered, "I really don't think they were packing heat. The little ones though, they did look a bit shifty. Maybe we should go check them for wires."
She looked at him for a second before deciding that he was joking.
"It's not funny." She sat back and hung her head low as she spoke, "anyone can be with Hastings. They specialize in unexpected attacks. You're too trusting."
He exhaled slowly, stretched out his long legs and reached into his carry on for the book of poetry.
"The old man was standing over at the coffee stand when we were heading to the check in desk. He's wearing two rings, his wedding ring and a championship ring from the 1959 University of Texas football team. You're wearing a University of Texas cap. It caught his attention. He was walking over to his wife and grandchildren when he saw us sitting here. He's a UT alumni and he assumed you were one too so he was just being friendly. And we must have convinced him that we're honeymooners because he felt comfortable enough in our similarities that he showed how much he loved his wife to complete strangers. I haven't stopped scanning since we left the car and no one's come within four feet of us with any suspicious conversation and I could tell you that the man at the far end of the terminal is an undercover cop because he's been on that same page for the past 20 minutes and the woman against the wall in the other seating area over there is acting nervous and suspicious not because she's a potential attacker but because she's having an affair. She keeps rubbing the inside of her ring finger with her thumb and looking around possibly for someone who knows her or her spouse.
How's that for trusting." Alec finished and propped open his book.
Parker scanned the terminal and saw all the things she'd missed in her single minded search for Hastings operatives.
She was surprised at all the things Alec observed. Once again she was impressed by him, and once again she acknowledged that she felt safer at his side. He was a worthy partner.
She leaned back slowly and hung her head as he'd hung his.
"I apologize," she offered humbly, "You are…very useful."
She smiled and she saw out of her periphery a deep dimple sunk his cheek. He was smiling again.
"What are you reading?" she folded her arms and leaned her head close to his shoulder.
Alec flipped the book closed, keeping his page marked with his thumb. He showed her the cover of the book and she nodded her acknowledgement. He pulled the book back and continued his silent reading.
"Do you find value in poetry?" she asked him curiously.
"It can be very calming, sometimes. Then sometimes it makes you think, or clarifies things you're already thinking about."
"Really; like what?"
"Well,…take this one by E.E. Cummings," he shifted in his seat and began reading, "I carry your heart with me, I carry it in my heart, I am never without it, anywhere I go you go, my dear; and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling…."
He paused his reading to find her staring at him, her eyes glazed and far away.
"Parker?" He reached out to touch her hand
"That was…," she nodded, unable to continue.
He squeezed her hand slightly before letting go, "yeah, I know."
"Does that one calm you or make you think?" she asked when she found her voice again.
He thought for a moment before he answered, "Both."
He looked at her and held her gaze. The hair on her back of her neck stood on end and her chest radiated that now familiar warmth.
"Now boarding- flight 567 to Knock International Airport, Ireland, with connections in London, United Kingdom, Gate 15 A…"
The voice on the terminal's loud speaker called their attention.
"That's us," Alec said waving the tickets. He marked his page and slid the book back into his carry on.
Parker smiled and nodded gently before she stood up and grabbed her bag, the strains of Alec's voice reading the poem still echoing in her thoughts.