Chapter 53
“Want to check me?” Jimmy asked the man.
“That’s not necessary, sir,” the man said, turning away.
“Disappointed?” Jake asked Jimmy.
“Screw you,” was Jimmy’s immediate response. “Better check your pockets to see if the guy slipped you his phone number. He seemed real interested in that part of your body.”
Jake grinned and made a show of searching his pockets. “There’s a lot here to interest him.”
* * * *
On the plane, a group of giggling twenty something women were occupying the emergency row.
“I’m sorry, but we’ve reserved these seats,” Barry told them.
“Are you real cowboys?” one woman asked, not looking the remotest bit interested in moving.
“Yes, miss,” Jimmy said, flashing her a winning smile and touching the brim of his hat before taking it off. “But you’re in our seats.”
This led to more giggling and a suggestion that they could sit on Jimmy’s lap.
“Thank you, miss, but my lap’s already spoken for.” He indicated Barry and Jake.
Giggles were replaced by groans of mock disappointment. The woman in the aisle seat was sure, given the chance, she could change Jimmy’s mind.
“No thank you,” Jake said, obviously getting tired of standing in the aisle. “So if you could find your own seats and let us take ours?”
“Sorry,” the woman in the window seat said, standing up and gathering her things. “Come on, Tracey, Loren, we should move.”
The others agreed grudgingly and soon had their bags in their hands and moved farther down the plane.
“First Jake with the security guard and then Jimmy with those girls,” Barry wondered aloud while taking his seat between his men. “I feel left out.”
“Jenny,” Jimmy and Jake said together.
Barry sighed. “Ah yes, my future secret online trysts with the delightful Jenny.”
He received a dig in the ribs from either side.
* * * *
Green was not a good color on his red cowboy.
“It’s that fucking pasta,” Jake complained before letting rip with a loud burp.
“I had it and I’m fine,” Jimmy pointed out. “In fact, half the plane had it and they’re not getting sick.”
“So not helping,” Barry told Jimmy before standing and retrieving the barf bag from Jake’s seat pocket.
Jimmy returned with, “Hey, maybe you’re pregnant?”
Jake shot Jimmy a look of exasperation. He burped again and quickly grabbed the bag that Barry held out to him.
“Yuck, that stinks!” Jimmy said.
“Jimmy, shut the fuck up!” Barry growled softly before turning back to Jake, who was leaning forward in his seat, gulping air.
Jimmy got out of his seat and kneeled in front of Jake. “You okay, Jakey?” he asked quietly, rubbing the man’s knee.
Jake burped again.
Barry rubbed Jake’s back, and asked, “That all of it?”
Jake nodded then retched some more.
When it looked like Jake had voided his stomach completely, Barry handed him a wet nap and told him to go to the bathroom to wash his face and rinse out his mouth.
Jake nodded and Jimmy moved back to allow Jake to stand.
“What’re we supposed to do with that?” Jimmy asked, nodding at the air sickness bag on the floor.
“I’ll call the flight attendant,” Barry said, reaching up for the button.
When the man came, he saw what had happened and said he’d be back with his trash bag.
“Could you also bring some crackers and maybe a couple bottles of ginger ale if you have it?” Barry asked.
“Sure thing,” the man said before going up front.
Barry stood and got his carry-on bag out of the overhead locker. He fished out the travel sickness pills that Jimmy and Jake hadn’t wanted earlier.
“You take good care of us,” Jimmy said softly, retaking his seat.
“I love you,” Barry replied equally as softly. He handed Jimmy a couple of pills. “Just in case. And they might help you sleep, too.”
The flight attendant returned with the requested items, plus another couple air sickness bags and more wet naps.
“Thank you,” Jimmy told the man, who nodded.
Jake returned.
“Feeling better?” Jimmy asked.
“Yeah.” Jake retook his seat.
Barry encouraged Jake to drink some ginger ale and eat a cracker or two.
Jake gave Barry a weak smile when Barry handed him the travel sickness pills. “Aren’t you going to say, ‘I told you so?’”
Barry shook his head and took Jake’s hand. “None of us could know there’d be a lot of turbulence over the Atlantic.”
“It isn’t that bad,” Jimmy said.
“My blue cowboy, the seasoned flier,” Barry observed.
* * * *
Barry looked out the window as the train pulled out of Liberty International railroad station. They’d left a cold and damp Manchester and had arrived in a cold, crisp and snowy New Jersey. But it was good to be back on home soil so to speak, even though Colorado was well over a thousand miles and a couple of days away.