As the plane cruised high above the sky, Gael sat on the sofa with Angela nestled to his left and Honey to his right. It didn't take long after the take-off that Angela had fallen asleep. She had her legs up on the sofa and her back pressed against his side while he read some documents on his iPad.
The flight was thankfully smooth so far, and he'd asked the crew not to disturb him after the seatbelt sign was off. So for the next two hours, Gael had some peace, hearing only Angela's and Honey's faint snoring next to him.
At some point, he squinted his eyes and lowered the tablet on his lap, then rubbed his forehead to ease the headache. Angela stirred in her sleep, and he looked at her. He had an arm around her, and she was hugging it, her head resting on his shoulder. He couldn't help but lean down and kiss the top of her head.
The corner of his lips curled upward at the reminder that Angela thought she had a choice back at her apartment. He was determined to go back to New York with her one way or another and won't be leaving without her again, so she didn't really have a choice. Gael wouldn't admit that despite her question earlier, and she didn't ask afterward.
He pressed another kiss on her hair and lightly pulled her closer as he leaned back, extremely satisfied that she was finally here with him.
Angela whimpered and stirred again. He thought he had disturbed her sleep, so he stayed still and waited for it to pass until she suddenly woke up in a gasp.
"Hey… What's wrong?" he worried.
She slightly leaned away to look up at him and be able to see his face. Her forehead was damp, and she was a little breathless. Still holding on to his arm, she squeezed it as if to check something and exhaled a sigh of relief. "I…uh…I heard a gunshot."
Realization dawned on him. Angela just had a nightmare because of the incident that happened with the Robinsons. Gael shifted in his seat and placed his tablet away before facing her again. He handed her a bottle of water and wiped her forehead with his handkerchief. "You must have been really scared back there."
Taking a small sip and closing the water bottle, she nodded. "I just want to forget all about it. Were you working?" she asked, glancing at his iPad that's set beside Honey.
"Just doing some reading for tomorrow's meeting," he answered. Her expression fell, and she appeared to be guilty when she bit her bottom lip. "What's with that look?"
"Your meeting tomorrow must be so important. You could've used tonight to prepare for it…but instead…"
"Hey…" Gael slid a hand on the side of her neck and brushed his thumb against her cheek to soothe her. "Don't worry about it. I've already prepared for days. I was just reading to pass the time."
Angela nodded. She spun around to face him properly and crossed her legs. She had already changed into a set of loungewear pants and long sleeves, and her hair was tied up into a ball at the back of her head. Stray strands of hair fell to the side of her face, making her look effortlessly beautiful.
"Well, I need a distraction, so tell me about this meeting. I mean, if you're allowed to tell me," she said in a hurry as if realizing that his meeting tomorrow could be confidential.
Gael smiled and opened his hand as he laid it on his lap. At first, she looked at it before placing her hand on it. He gave it a squeeze, knowing that Angela was trying hard to be strong, and one of the ways she dealt with it was to not think about it and talk about something else. He felt terrible that she experienced that tonight. It must have been traumatic for her. "Of course. It's not a secret." He kicked back and rested against the backrest. "I'll be meeting up with some potential investors for the new company."
Her eyes widened in excitement. "You mean the investment company you're opening? It's finally happening." She smiled back, remembering that he had told her about it once in passing back in Esmea and the second time a couple of days ago. He nodded but didn't say anything, so she wondered, "Are you nervous? Excited?"
He took a deep breath and released it in a sigh. "Both. I don't want it to fail."
"I'm sure you'll do great."
Angela gave him a reassuring smile. Gael really wanted to bring his family out of the dangerous world, and she found it admirable. He'd been working so hard to make everything work, and with The Phantom Empire, the new oil company, and this one, it only goes to show how much effort he was putting into it.
The captain spoke through the speakers, informing them that they're about to land, so they buckled up their seat belts and braced for the landing. Twenty minutes later when they were about to leave the plane, Gael spoke to a few of his men while Angela stayed on the sofa with Honey on her lap. Rick came to their section and whispered to Gael before the latter came back to her. His men descended with her luggage, and she slowly rose from her seat.
"Is everything okay?" she probed when he reached her side.
"It looks like there'll be a blizzard in the morning."
"What about your meeting?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. I'll see when morning comes. For now, let's head home. Did you bring a coat?"
"Oh…" She blinked, trying to think if she packed one in her suitcase and checked the weather outside. It was dark, but there was snow falling from the sky. "I don't think I brought one."
"Hold on a sec." Gael went to the bedroom, and when he came back not a minute later, he brought a thick black coat with him. "Here."
"What about you?" she wondered while he helped her wear the coat.
"I'll be fine." He put on a long black trench coat and scarf around his neck, then he took her hand and led her out of the plane. A cold, harsh wind blew past them as they walked towards the waiting SUV.
Although Gael had told her it was cold in New York right now, Angela didn't expect it to be this cold. She was so used to the subtropical climate in Esmea, where its summers were hot, and winters were cold with infrequent frost, but this was more than she's used to. It was colder than the first time she came here with him. Her ears immediately flushed.
It was nearly five in the morning. And the sky was still dark as they arrived at Gael's house. His men did a quick sweep inside before they left the two of them alone. She waited in the living room while he spoke to them and her knees bounced up and down, finding herself suddenly feeling nervous about all of this.
She knew she would be staying in his house because where else would she be staying, right? But Angela wasn't sure she was ready to stay in the same room as Gael again. They were doing okay, but they weren't the same as before.
"Ready to head upstairs?" he asked, and she nodded.
Once they landed on the second floor, Gael walked her towards a room that wasn't his. He opened it and switched the lights on. The walls were light gray, and the pieces of furniture were white. It looked clean and neat, but it was obviously unoccupied, knowing that he wouldn't let anyone else stay in his house.
He rolled her suitcase in the middle of the room and turned to her. "I know we're not there yet. So I figured you wanted to have your own room. No one has slept here since it was renovated. I hope this room's okay."
Angela's heart raced. She always wondered how Gael could know what she had in mind even without her telling him first. It was endearing, but at the same time, there was a slight pang in her chest when she knew they wouldn't be sharing beds, even though that's what she wanted in the first place. "Thank you," she said as she entered the room.
"Have a good rest. I'll see you in the morning." He kissed her forehead and headed out of the door.
In a panic, she reached and tugged the sleeve of his shirt. "Wait."
"Yeah?"
"Can you stay? I don't want to be alone tonight."
Gael contemplated for a second before he nodded and unbuttoned his coat. "Of course."
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