“She’s great!” Daniel offered.
Miriam glanced at her brother then looked at Ben. “She is great but she’s also a little sad. I caught the look on her face from time to time.”
Ben nodded. He thought as much. You don’t just get over a broken heart overnight.
They made the airport in good time as the traffic was light at this time of day. Ben parked and they made their way through security. They met their pilot and co-pilot who both shook Ben’s hand as this was the first time they were meeting the man who was the partner of such lovely women. They were ushered on board and the kids were gushing at the luxurious interior. Miriam was especially surprised to discover there was a bedroom on the plane with an actual bed!
“Well, we’re going to be flying overnight. We arrive at 8AM Milan time. You can take the bed and the men will tough it out on these fully reclining chairs,” he said with a grin.
Miriam’s eyes lit up with excitement and Daniel appreciated being called a man by Ben.
The pilot announced they would be leaving the gate soon so everyone buckled in. They watched the safety video and got comfortable. Ben realized this really was the first time he’d actually been comfortable on a plane. The seats were wide and plush and his head was actually cradled by the headrest. He sighed. Great, now he was spoiled.
Soon they were in the air and on their way. There would be a refueling stop in New York then their next stop would be Milan. Daniel was taking pictures out the window.
Ben flipped on his computer and linked to the onboard network to get Internet access. He sent a quick note to Gabriella letting her know he was on his way and would arrive at 8AM her time. He also sent a note to the company in Melbourne that he was on his way with the prototype and would arrive sometime late on Monday or possibly Tuesday morning. Finally he sent a note to Margaux letting her know he’d see her next week. A reply came back from Gabriella. She was ecstatic that she’d be seeing him soon. She was feeling so lonely! She said she couldn’t reach her kids tonight as they were likely out with their friends again. Ben smiled and replied with a note telling her how much he loved her, how he was looking forward to holding her in his arms and kissing her. He said to not worry about her kids because he knew they missed her and loved her and were so proud of her. He couldn’t say more as he didn’t want to give the surprise away. He shut down the computer and stowed it in his bag once more.
Daniel found the galley and they settled down for a meal. After dinner they watched a movie together which was interrupted by their fueling stop. Once they were back in the air they finished the movie and Ben announced it was time to get some sleep. Miriam slipped away to the bedroom and Daniel and Ben reclined on their chairs.
“Ben?”
He surfaced from the light doze he’d drifted into. “Hmm?”
“I wanted to thank you. For everything,” Daniel said with a serious tone.
Ben blinked his eyes open and looked across to the boy. “You’re most welcome.”
“You love my Mom, don’t you.”
Ben didn’t hesitate. “With all my heart, yes.”
Daniel nodded and smiled. “Goodnight Ben.”
“Goodnight Daniel. Sleep well.”
Ben lay there listening to the hum of the jet and thinking about this young boy across the aisle from him. Thinking how different their lives had been but how fortunate he was to have met Gabriella and her kids to become part of their lives. He was really looking forward to seeing Gabriella’s expression when she saw Miriam and Daniel’s happy faces.
With that thought warming his heart, Ben allowed himself to be lulled asleep.
The morning promised to be a good one.
Gabriella was on pins and needles. She saw on the board that Ben’s jet had landed and he should be on his way into the terminal. She was practically vibrating with excitement. It felt like ages since she’d seen him.
When he’d called her from Costa Rica and offered to invest so much of his money in the company she was desperately trying to save he proved beyond a shadow of doubt how much he believed in her. She’d never felt so honored in her entire life. Ben not only loved her, he trusted her implicitly. That took her breath away. Her husband would never have done that. Daniel was far more in love with his money than her and he trusted no one with it other than himself.
She craned her neck to see the doors where Ben would come out. Each time they opened her heart leapt up into her throat but some stranger would walk through instead. Her nerves were fraying when the door opened once more and Ben walked through pushing a cart. She was surprised by the number of bags on the cart. Then she saw he was pushing the cart with one hand while holding up his phone with the other?
“MOM!” squealed two very excited voices.
Gabriella froze when she saw Miriam and Daniel rush around from behind Ben’s back. Then her kids were in her arms and she was crying tears of joy as she clung to them.
Ben put his phone away and smiled at the three hugging each other as they laughed and cried. Gabriella reached out and pulled him into their midst and soon they were all hugging.
When she finally got control over her emotions Gabriella looked at Ben with pure happiness as she kept her arms around her kids. Both were grinning at Ben with their shared joy at surprising their mom.
“Thank you Ben! Oh my god, I can’t tell you how much this means to me!” she cried.
“I was going to be in the neighborhood anyway and I had that big jet all to myself so I thought, why not,” Ben teased.
Gabriella took his face between her hands and kissed him as her kids looked on with surprise. Daniel turned away with a grin and Miriam bounced on her tip toes as she smiled at them.
When she pulled back Ben’s head was spinning. “Wow,” was all he was able to say.
She hugged him again then gave her kids another hug.
“Mom! Are we going to see Milan or stand around the airport hugging all day?” Daniel complained as he smiled at her.
“Fine! Let’s go!” she grinned. Ben got behind the cart once more and followed them through the airport to the parking garage. He had such a warm feeling in his heart seeing Gabriella so happy and reunited with her kids.
They barely managed to get everyone and all the bags into the small car Gabriella was driving. It was fortunate that she’d rented the largest one she could get to fit Ben’s large body. Daniel and Miriam giggled in the back seat at Ben’s antics of squeezing into the car.
“It was all they had!” Gabriella said, supressing her own giggles.
“It’s fine! I understand spleens are redundant organs anyway. Off we go!” Ben said theatrically.
Gabriella drove them to the apartment in the fashion district. Miriam’s eyes were glowing with excitement while Daniel just took in the sights. They took a few moments to get settled into the apartment and checked it out. There were two bedrooms and a pull out bed in the living room which Daniel would use.
Now that she had her family with her Gabriella was excited about taking them to see everything. They only had the weekend so she chose a few things. They visited the main cathedral, Duomo di Milano, then saw the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Daniel took pictures of the group as they went.
Her kids really wanted to see the company she was working at but she couldn’t visit with Ben because the staff were planning a little party for him on Sunday night. She promised they would all get a tour then.
They were passing through a road with several tech shops on their way back to the fashion district. Ben fully expected to be making several stops to check out the clothing before they reached the apartment. He spotted a camera shop. He’d watched Daniel shooting and reviewing all day and a smile came to his lips. He called a halt and dragged the curious family members into the shop.
“Daniel, I think it’s time to upgrade your equipment. You’ve proven you have the eye and the skill. You should have the tools to push you to the next level. I’d like to invest in that if you and your mother are ok with it,” Ben said seriously. Daniel’s eyes lit up with excitement and Gabriella beamed a smile at Ben. She nodded and Daniel grinned with excitement.
“I know nothing about cameras or the different brands so I’ll rely on your knowledge. Is there a brand you’re interested in?” he asked the boy.
“Nikon,” the boy blurted.
Ben smiled. Obviously Daniel had done some research. “Ok, let’s look at some of those.”
Daniel rushed forward and looked in the display cases. Gabriella kissed Ben’s cheek and pointed across the street to a store which sold watches. He nodded and she left with Miriam who was all smiles.
Ben saw Daniel was still looking at what looked like entry level cameras. They looked like they were better than what he had but it wasn’t what Ben was thinking of. He caught the eye of one of the hovering salesmen.
“Hello! My friend here is ready to upgrade to professional level Nikon equipment,” Ben said emphasizing the word. Daniel looked back at him in surprise.
The salesmen smelled money and smiled smoothly. “I see. Then perhaps he might be interested in a full frame model.” He led Ben and a dazed Daniel across to the high end cameras. “The D6 is new and it has the latest image processor chip.”
Ben watched Daniel’s face and with each technical phrase he saw the young man’s expression twitch and change. So far everything Daniel was hearing he liked.
“It all sounds like noise to me. What do you think Daniel? Do you think this camera might meet your requirements?” Ben asked seriously.