“Can I get you another, ma’am?” The bartender’s raspy voice broke me from my daydream, causing me to jump.
“Oh, no, thank you.” I shook my head and held my hand up in a halting motion.
“Gotta love delays,” came from the man who had taken a seat beside me. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts, I hadn’t even seen him sit down. “I’ll take a scotch on the rocks when you get a chance,” he requested from the bartender, then turned his attention back to me.
“Yeah, tell me about it,” I replied. “As if I wasn’t anxious enough about the eight-plus-hour flight ahead of me.”
“Where ya headed?” the man asked.
“Munich.”
“Ah, kindred spirts. So am I.” He lifted his glass of scotch the bartender had just placed in front of him in a toast. Following suit, I picked up my wineglass and clinked it together with his.
“I’m Jillian, by the way.”
“DeAndre,” he replied with a smile. The kind of smile that made you feel instantly basked in comfort. He seemed to be around my age and handsome in a very familiar way, reminding me of someone in both looks and mannerisms, but who, I just couldn’t pinpoint it at that exact moment.
“Are you traveling on business?” I asked.
“Nope, headed to the Christmas markets.”
My eyes widened, and I hurriedly swallowed the sip of wine I had just taken. “Oh wow, me too!” A rush of excitement overcame me. Suddenly I wasn’t feeling so alone. I quickly chased away my momentary bout of enthusiasm. What were the chances that he’d be on the same tour as me? That was even if he was doing a tour at all. Even if he was, he probably was just waiting on his travel mate to get here and join him. It had never bothered me to be around other couples until a few months ago when I was officially no longer a couple that I became keenly aware and felt like the odd man out. DeAndre reached into his backpack and pulled out his travel documents. They looked strangely familiar, and as I got a closer look, I realized it was because it was the same tour company as mine. “This is so cool! We’re doing the same tour,” I remarked as I scanned the dates and hotels.
DeAndre smiled, revealing a deep dimple in his left cheek. “So, what are you trying to escape from?”
I creased my eyebrows, wondering how he had picked up on that. “I’m not—” I started.
“No worries.” He laughed. “You don’t have to tell me. I just thought...you’re sitting in an airport bar on Thanksgiving, getting ready to go on vacation by yourself…” He shrugged, took one last sip from his glass, then held it up, summoning the bartender for another. Did I really look that pathetic that he could see right through me?
“I’m not escaping anything. I guess you could say maybe…I’m reflecting.”
“Got ya.” He winked.
“Well, what about you? You’re here, on Thanksgiving...by yourself…I presume.”
“You presumed right.”
“So, I guess I should be asking you the same question.” I raised an eyebrow.
“Let’s just say, I’m reflecting too.” He smirked, avoiding my question the same way I had avoided his. “Hey, bartender, can you get my friend here another glass of wine?”
I started to protest, and he waved his hand in a dismissing motion. I couldn’t help but smile. I remembered when I was a child, my grandmother would say certain people came into our life for a reason. I wasn’t sure if that was true or not, but at that moment, I was so happy DeAndre decided to take that empty seat on the barstool next to me—the same one Evan would’ve been sitting on if he were here. I wasn’t sure the reason for DeAndre coming into my life or if there even was one, but for the moment he was temporarily filling a void Evan had left behind.
CHAPTER 2
EXHAUSTION DIDN’T EVEN begin to describe how I felt when the plane landed. I seemed to remember dozing off somewhere over England. I knew this because I was constantly tracking our location on the monitor on the back of the seat in front of me in between binge watching the latest season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on my phone. It was then that it finally occurred to me who DeAndre reminded me of—Shy Baldwin, Midge Maisel’s ticket to making it big or at least I hoped he was. I hadn’t finished up the season yet, so I wasn’t quite sure how her quest would end. DeAndre and I parted ways when we got on the plane. My seat was near the back and his was closer to the front.
I stood up and stretched my legs, waiting for my chance to grab my bag from the overhead compartment. My seat partner who had been sitting next to me, an older man who had no problem sleeping the entire way, stood up as well with a bright smile on his face. I envied him; he was ready to go as I stood there ready to pass out. I forced a smile and he said something to me in German. I nodded, having no idea what he had said, and strained my mouth once again, forming something that I was hoping resembled a smile. Even the muscles in my face were tired. I looked down at my watch. It was still set for New York time, which was 2:37 a.m., while my phone
