Author: K.C. Hardy
Publisher: Casbury Lane Press
Pages: 262
Genre: Christian Inspirational Fiction
Days before boarding the plane to Italy
for her daughter’s wedding, Julie Whitaker receives an unexpected phone call
from her past. The memory of Mark Jennings, a handsome and charming Top Gun
pilot, had haunted her for decades. Their fairy tale wedding was everything
she’d ever dreamed of, but it quickly turned into her worst nightmare.
Starting a new a life without Mark proved to be much harder
than Julie had imagined. But in her darkest hour, God revealed Himself in a
miraculous way, giving her the strength she needed not only to battle
depression, but to face a diagnosis of breast cancer that threatened to cut her
life short.
Now, amidst the splendor of the Italian Alps, on the eve of
her daughter’s wedding, Julie’s thoughts are catapulted back to Mark and the
reason for his call. After thirty years,
will Julie have a chance to see him once again? And would she even want to?
Based on true events, One-Way Ticket Home will take you on
an unforgettable journey of love, loss, hope and forgiveness. With grace,
candor and an indomitable wit, K.C. Hardy reminds us that it is often in our
darkest hours, that the strength of the human spirit shines the brightest.
For More Information
- One-Way Ticket Home is available at Amazon.
- Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.
First Chapter:
Chapter 1
San Antonio, Texas
June 6, 2008
It happened just as Julie Whitaker turned off the last set
of lights in the office. The ever-present amber glow from the receptionist’s
desk lamp cast long shadows that gave the normally bustling workplace an eerie,
ghost-like feel. Always the last to leave, she stayed long after coworkers had
darted off to cart their kids to soccer practice or squeeze in last-minute runs
to the grocery store. Having successfully raised two independent daughters,
Julie no longer had such obligations. There were no children to pick up from
school, drive to soccer, piano, or basketball. There was no husband who
expected her to have dinner hot and ready when he walked through the door. She answered to no one…that is, except Clark
O’Brien, her boss, mentor, and friend for the past ten years.
And Julie liked it that way—the freedom…the
independence...the idea of being able to jet off on exotic vacations whenever
she pleased. An idea that always enticed her but which she never had acted
upon. Ironically, there still was no time for such luxurious pursuits. There
were interviews and database checks at the court house. Deadlines and court
dates always loomed. Which was exactly why the grating, high-pitched ring of
the phone was even more irritating than usual.
It could only be coming from one place—her desk. She could
ignore it, activate the alarm, turn the key in the deadbolt, walk the twelve
steps to her car, and be done with work for the next fourteen days. Or…she
could answer it. Julie knew who was on the other end of the line. Just before
shutting down her computer, she’d shot off a last-minute email to Clark.
The message was short, and should have come as no surprise.
Clark,
The Sanchez case has been completed and sent to the D.A.’s
office. I’m shutting down my computer after I finish typing this and will see
you in two weeks. The offer still stands for you and Jodi to join our family in
Italy if you
would like. Let me know, and I’ll overnight the tickets to you.
Ciao,
Julie
Why couldn’t she just ignore the ringing like any other
rational person on the eve of their first vacation in over two years? Why?
Dedication. The trait that had helped guarantee her job
during the recent string of layoffs was now irritating her. She zigzagged
across the room, dodging cubicles that impeded a straight shot to her office.
Defiantly determined not to be here a single minute longer, she didn’t bother
switching on the light in her office, much less sit down. Breathless, she
answered the phone before voicemail picked up.
“This better be good, Clark, because
my vacation actually started three hours ago!”
“Then what the heck are you still doing at work, Whitaker?”
She almost dropped the phone and had to smother the gasp of
shock that made her knees buckle. It wasn’t Clark. There
was no mistaking that deep husky voice that sent her heart pounding and her
head reeling from the instantaneous churning of emotions. It was a voice she
hadn’t heard in over twenty years.
“Jules, you there?”
Running her tongue over her lips to both lubricate and pry
them apart, she answered his question with a question of her own.
“Mark. What a surprise! How’d you get my number?”
Working as a private investigator, Julie knew how easy it
was to locate anyone, anywhere. And if she was being perfectly honest with
herself, she’d secretly longed for this call. Yearned for this somewhere inside
the most private chambers of her heart. The lack of closure had left a gaping
wound that hemorrhaged for years deep within her soul. A casualty that resulted
from the swift, premature severing of their relationship. Forcing emotions and
memories to be buried so deep, only Roberta Flack’s sultry voice, late-night
showings of Top Gun, or the familiar, nostalgic, musky scent of his signature
cologne could unearth them. Still, a part of her wondered: why now? Why after
all this time?
“How are you doing?” Julie mustered in the most nonchalant
voice possible.
“No complaints. And you?” Typical Mark Jennings. He could’ve
been in a Tomcat,
taking fire from all directions, and if someone would have
asked how he was doing, he would’ve responded “piece of cake.” It was part of
what made him so good at his job.
“I’m doing great.”
He cleared his voice. “So you’re into the Sherlock Holmes
thing now, huh?”
“Yep…gotta keep an eye on everyone like you out there,” she
teased.
“I bet you make one heck of a private eye.”
“You’re darn right I do,” she laughed. “What about you? You
still flying with the Navy?”
“Still flying. But now I’m with American. Been with them
nine years. In fact, that’s why I’m calling. I bid the San
Antonio run at the end of the month and was wonderin’
if you’d like to meet up for dinner? For old times’ sake?”
Typical Mark, cutting
right to the chase. She knew what she should say, what she had rehearsed saying
over the years, if this opportunity ever came along again. The phone call from
him twenty years ago unraveled the cocoon she so carefully and meticulously
constructed. The sound of his voice sent years of therapy, healing, and pieces
of her splintered heart swirling erratically into oblivion.
Twenty years ago she had every reason to say no. Back then
there was too much to lose. But now things were different. And yet, for some
unknown reason, Julie found herself hesitating.
“I don’t know if
that’s such a good idea, Mark…” She couldn’t believe her own words even as they
left her lips. Every part of her yearned to see him. To get lost in his
hypnotic eyes and run her hands through his unruly, thick, sandy hair. She
yearned to trace her fingers across his full lips and down his toned arms.
He was quiet for a moment. “What have you got to lose?” he
asked, breaking the silence as if reading her thoughts.
Everything, she wanted to say. This time there was no longer
a marriage, a husband, or children—lives that could be ruined. All the reasons
for not meeting him before no longer applied. And yet she wavered, for the one
life that could still be ruined was her own.
“I’ll think about it, Mark.”
“That’ll work I guess.”
Suddenly, she was anxious to cut the conversation short
before she was reduced to the vulnerable woman who still lurked inside. Even
decades later, Julie feared succumbing to the seductive charm of the man who
somehow always managed to make her weak in the knees. “Mark, can I get back to
you? I’m not trying to cut this short, but I was actually about to
leave—”
“For vacation. I gathered that,” he laughed but with zero
mirth. She sensed a tinge of annoyance creep into his voice.
“I thought you were my boss.”
“Wow! You must be really comfortable with your boss!”
“I am.” Julie knew Mark well enough to know exactly what he
was insinuating, that her relationship with Clark must
extend beyond business. It couldn’t be further from the truth, but she decided
to let him squirm a little in the realm of the unknown.
“Well, think you could have an answer for me when you get
back?”
“Sure…I’ll let you know in two weeks.”
“Two weeks?”
“I’m going to Italy
for my younger daughter’s wedding.”
“Your three year-old’s getting married?” he teased.
“My twenty-six year-old is getting married.”
He let out a long whistle. “Time certainly flies, doesn’t
it?” His voice took on a somber tone.
“Does it ever!” Julie sighed, nostalgic. It was a sentiment
she had felt a lot lately—
one that had sent her to Sam’s on more than one occasion to
stock up on economy packages of Kleenex.
“Jules…”
“Yeah…”
“I really hope we can meet up…”
She didn’t say she hoped so too. “I’ll call you when I get
back. And thanks for calling. It’s great hearing from you.”
“Be safe over there.”
“I will…thanks.”
Julie sank deeper into the chair after putting down the
receiver. The blinking green light on the laptop bounced off the beige walls in
the dark room, sporadically illuminating the framed pictures of her girls. Baby
pictures. Pictures of them riding their first bikes. Pictures of their proms.
Identical pictures taken at their graduation from the University
of Texas with the tower lit up
behind them amidst a sea of fireworks. There were so many accomplishments,
milestones, other loves, and other losses. She had lived a life largely without
looking back. Mostly free of regrets.
That is, except for one….
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