The Open Road: A Second Chance Romance Read online

  Finally, Sam knew that the girls had only contacted Jason O’Neal because they loved her. Was it misguided? Yes. Was it foolish? Absolutely. Was it downright stupid? No doubt. But it was done out of love. So, despite how much she was dreading actually meeting Jason, she couldn’t hold that against her friends. She was lucky to have them. She was lucky to have grown up with such an amazing, loyal friend as Charity. And she was lucky to have met someone so kind and caring as Jessica. Two good friends. That’s all Samantha needed in her life, wasn’t it? Yep, just two good friends.

  Jason sat at the casino bar sipping an imported beer and absentmindedly watching baseball on one of the many high-definition televisions hanging over the bar. He and the bachelorette, Charity, had been corresponding by text message, and they’d agreed to meet here at 3:00 p.m. The woman had told him she and her friends were staying in this hotel for the weekend. The casino was located a few buildings down the strip from where Jason was staying and, admittedly, more than a little nicer than his own accommodations. Jason didn’t mind. Of course, now, with Bethany and the girls’ settlement money, he could afford to stay in the most luxurious suite of any of the hotel casinos. But he chose to stay in the same hotel he and Bethany had stayed in when they visited a few years ago. At that time, they’d only been married for a year and were on a very tight budget. They had just scraped together enough money for a small down payment on their first house, and their student loans were about to enter the repayment period. Not exactly the right time for a trip to Vegas, but they’d not been anywhere since their honeymoon, which itself was a simple weekend beach trip to Destin.

  Neither Jason nor Bethany came from money. Bethany’s home was completely broken. Her father, before he left, was abusive, and her mother stayed zapped out on whatever anxiety meds she could get her hands on. Jason’s own homelife was a bit healthier, but far from extravagant. His parents were still together and, by all accounts, loved each other very much. Jason’s mother was a retired school teacher. His father had worked a factory job most of his life. Unfortunately, when Jason was in high school, the plant his father worked for was moved overseas, and Mr. O’Neal was forced into early retirement. The elder O’Neals had enough to get by, but certainly not enough to help out much with Jason and Bethany’s wedding. Jason had used the proceeds of student loans from his last semester of school to pay for the ceremony. Had Jason not received Bethany’s settlement money, they would likely have been paying for that wedding well into their forties. But the student loans were paid for and gone now, along with the reason he’d acquired them in the first place—the vain hope for a happy future.

  It was now 3:15 p.m. and the woman and her friends were late. This didn’t bother Jason, either. More than likely, if he wasn’t waiting to meet the women, he would be sitting doing the exact same thing in a different hotel bar that was much the same as this one. When he got bored of the baseball game, he watched the people in the casino. The bar was located in the middle of the large casino floor. From his vantage point, Jason could see the lobby, as well as most of the slot machines and table games. A steady stream of individuals from all walks of life checked in at the front desk and then filed past to the elevator. He noted the smiles on their faces. Regardless of age, race, or sex, not a sour or unhappy look could be seen. Everyone was excited to begin their stay in sin city.

  Jason watched groups of frat boys who carried their belongings in backpacks and duffel bags. They constantly alternated between scanning the room for good looking women and teasing each other mercilessly. Their female counterparts were also ubiquitous. The sorority girls rarely looked up from their phones, and when they did, it was usually only to glance at one of their friends’ phones or to take a selfie with one another.

  Married couples, both young and old, passed by Jason in regular intervals. The young ones were hard to watch because their fresh, excited faces reminded him exactly of how he and Bethany had been when they’d checked in on their own vacation a few years ago. But the older ones were even more difficult to observe. Jason had been people watching for a half hour, and the oldest couple he’d seen looked to be in their eighties. They were spectacular. The husband wore a buttoned-up Hawaiian shirt, blue chino shorts, white orthotic shoes, calf-high black socks, overlarge, square black dilation sunglasses, and a black baseball cap bearing the words “Korean War Veteran,” which showed a long horizonal strip with red, white, and blue vertical stripes of varying thickness. The woman wore a blouse decorated with colorful flowers and butterflies and pants of the same color and material as her husband’s shorts. She carried a purse as large as a burlap coffee bean sack. The woman’s purple hair was so thin Jason could easily see her scalp beneath the wispy curls. When the couple finally finished at the front desk, instead of going up the elevators to their room, they shuffled hand in hand straight to the slot machines and plopped down next to one another.

  Jason wondered what he and Bethany would have been like if they’d made it to that age. Would they have spent their twilight years travelling the country like they’d always wanted? Or would they have eventually turned into homebodies, enjoying a comfortable life in suburbia, looking forward to visits from Hannah and Chloe and their respective families. Would Bethany have gardened, or maybe she would have been a founding member of the neighborhood poetry club? Would he have spent his time gossiping with other retirees at the local coffee shop, or would he have spent hours at the hardware store before puttering the afternoon away in the flower beds? Would he and Bethany have taken their grandchildren to Disney World during the kids’ summer break or maybe to the beach?

  Instinctively, Jason knew that, regardless of how the years changed his beloved Bethany, she would only grow more beautiful in his eyes. No matter how many wrinkles had lined her face or how much gray had spread throughout her head, he would have always found her enchanting. Already it had happened. Even in the five and a half years they were married, the birth of Hannah and Chloe had added stretch marks and uninvited pounds to her graceful figure. When she lamented that fact as she stared in the mirror, imagining her body the way it was before the children were born, Jason would take her in his arms, gently lay her down onto the bed, and slowly kiss each and every lovely stretch mark on his wife’s stomach, telling her softly how much he valued them, as they evidenced the fact that she bore his children, and each one was like a celebration of the life they were building together.

  “Jason? Jason O’Neal?” Jason was sure by the tone of the woman’s voice that she’d called his name several times before he snapped out of his daydreamed and turned his attention to her. He shook out the cobwebs and looked up to see three very attractive women all staring at him. One, a lithe blue-eyed blonde, was speaking to him. “I’m Charity. Nice to meet you, finally.” Jason rose and shook her hand. “This is Jessica,” said Charity, indicating a tall dark woman with liquid golden eyes.

  “A pleasure,” said Jessica, taking Jason’s hand.

  “And this is Samantha,” said Charity, indicating the third woman. This one possessed an entirely different beauty than her two taller, thinner friends, but she was no less gorgeous. She had dark curly hair, porcelain skin, and green eyes that would have reminded a less oblivious man of fresh herbs grown on a windowsill. Any normal male in his twenties would have either been rendered speechless after the introduction to these three beauties or struck so dumb that he immediately began to ramble nonsensically. Jason did neither. He perceived their attractiveness, but it had no more impact on him than the pink rays of a sunset would affect a blind man.

  “Charmed, I’m sure,” Samantha deadpanned, shaking the man’s hand. Jason might have been immune to the women’s physical beauty, but he recognized something in Samantha’s voice loud and clear—pain. He’d spent so much time with the emotion lately it was like an old friend. And he could recognize this old friend in others just by the look in their eyes and the sound of their voice. He could see the hurt in Samantha’s green eyes now. He chose to ignore the recognit
ion. There was something in the way the woman said the word “charmed” that told him she wasn’t really in the mood to be psychoanalyzed.

  “So, uh, did you all have a nice flight?” asked Jason.

  “Yeah, other than the skeezy captain asking me if I wanted to come to the front and see his cockpit,” said Jessica.

  “He didn’t?” asked Jason chuckling.

  “Yes, he did,” said Charity. “It was awesome.”

  “No wonder you girls are late,” said Jason. “I can imagine a tour like that must take some time, Jessica. He probably had to show all the knobs that needed to be turned and how to pull back on the stick to make the plane go up.”

  Jessica chuckled, Charity laughed until she snorted, and Samantha’s jaw hit the floor.

  “Oh, man, I’m going to love this guy,” said Charity. “Bartender,” she yelled at the man cleaning a glass behind the bar. “Three shots of tequila, please, and another beer for my new friend.” She sidled up next to Jason and spun on her stool to face the others.

  “I did not expect that,” said Samantha.

  “Expect what?” asked Jason.

  “A joke,” replied Sam. “In your videos, you don’t come across as funny.”

  Jason had to swallow quickly to keep from spitting out the mouthful of beer he’d just drank. “Wow, this one doesn’t beat around the bush, does she?” he asked Jessica and Charity.

  “Don’t mind her, Jason. She was in a bad accident several years ago,” said Jessica. “Unfortunately, to save her life, the doctor had to replace her heart with one made out of marble. She hasn’t been the same since.”

  “Yes, it was tragic,” offered Charity. “Dr. Tran did all he could, but in the end, she just wasn’t able to feel normal human emotions again after the surgery.”

  “Ha-ha,” said Samantha.

  Confusion showed in Jason’s eyes as he glanced at each of the girls in turn. He knew he was missing out on some inside joke, but he didn’t want to probe lest he elicit some story about Samantha’s past she might find embarrassing.

  “Actually, this trip is our last-ditch effort to try and restore the poor girl,” said Jessica. “We were hoping if she were allowed to be out in public and mingle with other actual humans, then she might remember what it’s like to be one herself.”

  “Shut up, or I’m going to go back to the room and I’m not coming out until Sunday,” said Samantha.

  “See there, Jason,” said Charity, “that’s exactly what we’re talking about. Who in their right mind would lock themselves in their room while they are in Vegas?”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” said Jason, coming to Sam’s rescue. “I can see the appeal. I’ve not felt much like being around other people myself lately. I know you girls must have watched my video from LA. I wasn’t at my best. Locking myself up in a room with a comfortable bed and room service for a bit doesn’t seem too bad right now.”

  “Okay, then,” said Charity, raising her eyebrows, “maybe the two of you—”

  “Charity!” interrupted Sam and Jessica at the same time.

  “Too much,” said Jessica. “Jason, you know how every group has that one friend who always takes it one step too far? That’s this one,” said Jessica, pointing at Charity.

  “That’s okay. I’m a big boy. I can take a joke, or … a brutally honest assessment of my humor, in her case,” he said, nodding at Samantha.

  “Sorry,” said Sam, “I wasn’t trying to … I just … I didn’t mean…”

  “No, no, I know, it’s weird. This whole entire internet video travel blog thing is weird,” he said. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s just have a good time. What plans do you three have while you’re here?”

  Just then, Jason’s beer and Charity’s three shots of tequila arrived.

  “You mean, what plans do we four have while we’re here,” said Charity, putting an arm around Jason.

  “Exactly,” said Jessica, taking two shooters and passing them to Charity and Samantha. She then picked up Jason’s mostly empty beer glass and set it aside, sliding the fresh one in front of him and taking the final shot of tequila for herself.

  “Hold up,” said Jason. “You should know from the videos I’ve got stuff I want to accomplish in this city.”

  “We do,” said Charity. “And we’re going to be there with you. You said Vegas would be a tough spot for you so we’re here to help. After the debacle in Los Angeles, it looked like you might need it.”

  Jason didn’t respond. He just looked down at his feet.

  “Wait a second. What about our plans?” asked Samantha. “You emailed me an itinerary.”

  “Yeah,” agreed Jason, looking up. “I thought you said you were in town for a bachelorette party.”

  “Exactly,” said Charity. “I’m the bachelorette, so this weekend, I’m the boss. And I say I want to hang out with Jason.”

  “And, sweetie, we never actually planned on doing anything on that itinerary,” said Jessica shaking her head at Samantha. “You should know by now the real plan was to hang out with Jason all along.”

  “They’re not going to take no for an answer, are they?” asked Jason.

  “I don’t think so,” said Sam. “When Charity gets something in her head, it’s best just to go along with her. Otherwise, she’ll just pester you to death until you give in or go crazy. I’m starting to think Jessica is the same way.”

  Jason looked back at the ground and then let out a heavy sigh. “Okay, Charity. I’ll hang with you guys this weekend, and you can come along with me as I relive my trip here with Bethany … on one condition.”

  Charity raised her eyebrows. “Okay, what’s that?”

  “Samantha, do you still have that itinerary?”

  “Uh, yeah, it’s on my phone.” She gave the screen a couple of taps, pulling up the email and showing it to Jason.

  “We do everything on your list too. At least as much as we can until you guys have to go back to … um, where are you from again? Virginia?”

  “Roanoke,” said Sam. “And we fly out Sunday afternoon.”

  “Okay, then. We pack as much fun as we can into the next three days until you girls have to go back to Roanoke. Is that a deal, Queen Bachelorette?”

  “Deal,” said Charity, extending her hand, the smile on her face showing she was pleased as punch with the arrangement.

  “So, what’s first?” asked Jessica.

  “A toast,” replied Jason. “Bethany and I came here on our one-year anniversary. The first thing we did after checking in was stop at the bar, order drinks, and toast our first year together.” It was fleeting, but the girls saw a hint of sadness pass over his face.

  “Very good,” said Charity, grabbing her shot glass of tequila and raising it. The other three followed suit with their own glasses. “May I do the honors, Jason?”

  “Sure.”

  Charity looked thoughtfully at Jason for a moment. “May we always remember the good times our loved ones have blessed us with,” she said. Then she looked poignantly at Samantha. “And may those good times give us the courage to walk the open road ahead of us.”

  “Here, here,” said Jason.

  “Here, here,” repeated Sam and Jessica, and they all took a drink.

  “Your friend certainly has a way with words,” said Jason as an aside to Samantha.

  “Some might say she doesn’t know when to keep her big mouth shut,” Sam replied.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Samantha didn’t so much awaken the following day as she came to. And she came to listening to the sound of two people chatting and giggling in the next room, as well as the noise of a blow dryer. She groaned and rolled over, pulling the pillow tightly around her head, trying to shut out the sounds. For a moment, she didn’t know where she was. She cracked her left eye open a sliver and took in her surroundings. She was alone in a hotel room. The queen size bed next to her was unmade. Clothes, some of them hers, toiletries, and cheap Las Vegas souvenirs lay strewn about the room. Sh
e tried to look down at herself, but couldn’t see much out of the cracked eyelid. She did wonder about the shirt she was wearing. She saw purple fabric sticking out from underneath the blanket. She distinctly remembered wearing a black shirt yesterday on the plane.

  Slowly, the events of the previous day began coming back to her. After checking into the hotel, she, Charity, and Jessica had met the sad internet boy, Jason, at a bar yesterday afternoon. The four of them went for a walk down the strip, stopping at one of those sidewalk booths to get giant margaritas in souvenir cups. Then they’d watched some goofy show where people wearing body paint banged on trash can lids. Samantha winced. She could almost hear the incessant banging still ringing inside her head, making her headache that much worse. Neither, she, Jessica, nor Charity had money for the tickets to the show. When Jessica had explained to Jason the tight budget they were on, he offered to pay for them and wouldn’t take no for an answer.

  After the show, they’d had dinner at a rock and roll café. Again, they drank and, again, Jason paid for everything. When the check came, the girls objected to taking any more of Jason’s money. Paying for the show tickets was one thing, but food and drink was out of the question. Jason would have none of it. He’d said he was having more fun than he’d had since Bethany had passed. It was money well spent in his opinion. He told the girls he would not go any farther with them unless they allowed him to pay for everything from here on out: food, drink, souvenirs, it didn’t matter. Everything. And he said he would get angry if they brought up the subject of money again.