“I was looking for someone.” He said, dropping his hand to his thigh. Rosa nodded.
“Did you find her?” She asked. Francis looked at her with a frown.
“Why are you thinking that it is a her?” He asked, a slight smirk on his lips. This time it was Rosa who shrugged.
“Because you are a handsome man.” She said, giving him a wink. “Besides, what man travels for more than twelve hours to look for another man?” She paused for a second reflecting on her question in such an age of sexual freedom. ‘What I meant was…” She tried to correct herself, but Francis waved his hand.
“I know what you meant.” He said. “I just was giving you a hard time.” Rosa shook her head.
“Thank goodness, I would have talked myself in to knots trying to get out of that one without offending anybody.” She sighed exaggeratedly and wiped her brow. Francis shook his head. “You didn't answer my question though…did you find her?” Rosa watched as Francis seemed to ponder his answer to her question. Then finally he spoke.
“I thought I did.” He said. “But it turned out that I was wrong.” Rosa nodded her head slowly and then reaching over she patted the top of his hand.
“I'm sorry for that.” She said. “Sometimes the worst thing that can happen is finding out that someone isn't who we think they are.” Francis nodded sorrowfully. Rosa had no idea just how right she was.
Chapter 8
It took another two airplane bottles of whiskey for Francis to begin talking again after Rosa had reminded him of his own subterfuge. But there was something about her that seemed to lure him in. Just as Anne’s innocence had pulled him to her, there was something about Rosa that made her almost magnetizing.
“So you have no wife and no girlfriend, huh?” Rosa squinted at him skeptically. He nodded. “I find that very hard to believe.” She reached over and pinched his arm lightly. “Nope, you feel real alright.” She raised an eyebrow. “Wait a minute…you're not a mass murderer are you?” She paused, her eyes widening. “Or a descendant of Vlad the Impaler coming to New York for a taste of fresh blood!” She giggled at the ridiculousness of her comment, but when she noticed that Francis wasn't laughing she stopped. “Shit, sorry, I did it again, didn't I? God, me and my big mouth!” She reached over with one arm and as best she could, she hugged Francis. The scent of her tickled at Francis’s nose. It wasn't a deplorable scent, not like most of the mortals he had met on his travels so far. No, there was something about Rosa that was different. He leaned in to the hug and took a deep breath, finding out everything he needed to know about her body chemistry. There was definitely something different about Rosa.
A few seconds of an awkward sideways hug passed before the woman at the front desk called for Mr. Holmes and Miss. Oleya. Francis stood up from his seat, his legs buckled slightly as he fought to keep his balance and Rosa giggled.
“I suppose it's a good thing that we’re both headed for the same terminal.” She said, standing up beside him and wrapping her arm around his waist. “Come on, we’ll get you a coffee on the way to sober you up. And not the cheap stuff they have in here, we’ll get you a cup of the good stuff.” Rosa gently pushed Francis forward as they made their way out of the first class lounge and towards their terminal.
After a quick stop at the gourmet coffee shop, Rosa led Francis through the crowded walkway to their terminal. It was a relief for both of them when they were ushered straight on to the plane. Rosa helped Francis in to his seat, and then realizing that her seat was just across from his, she decided to take the one next to him instead.
“You don't mind, do you?” She asked sweetly. Francis wrapped his fingers around the large coffee cup in front of him and shook his head.
“It'll be nice to have company for once.” He said. Rosa smiled and reaching across, she helped to guide his cup to his mouth.
“Be very careful, it’s hot.” She said, tilting the cup slightly so that Francis didn't take too much at once. He sipped the hot coffee and she guided his hand back down to the tray. Francis looked at her with a faint smile on his lips. There was no doubt that Rosa was who he had been looking for. She was everything that a mother should be, but more importantly her body chemistry was right. She had it, whatever it was. He could smell it on her. She would survive the birth of a child, the birth of his child. “What are you looking at?” She asked frowning while a smile still touched her lips.
“You.” He said. “Just, you.” Rosa shook her head.