Redwood Bend

payments on the house or land. And he was her only heir.
“Your gran will be fine with it, Dylan. Listen, try not to take this personally—it’s a shitty time for businesses like ours. Can’t make a living if you can’t gas up the planes.”
“I feel responsible. I feel like—”
“Bugger off,” Lang said. “We knew what we were doing. We did what we wanted to do. We could’ve gone to work for a commercial carrier and been furloughed ten times by now. We had it good, we just didn’t have it forever. I’m not divorcing you, I’m just going to try to get another job.”
“Carry your cell,” Dylan said unnecessarily. Of course he’d have his cell with him.
“I’ll talk to you in the next couple of days. Don’t let this gut you, D. It’s just change, it’s not the end of the world. We do what we have to do.”
“Right,” he said. “Good luck, man.”
The truth was, Dylan could manage his livelihood just as Lang described, though it would be reasonably modest. But then Dylan, alone, didn’t need much. He just hated cutting all those other people—Lang, instructors, charter pilots—out of the loop because the company fell on hard times. And since he had a chance to try to save it, he had to at least give it a shot. But he was running low on time and Hollywood had a reputation for moving with all the speed of bureaucracy. If Jay didn’t have anything soon, Dylan would have to get back to Montana and try to drum up something to pay the bills. He was open to anything from crop dusting to renting a big truck and turning his airline into a moving company.
When they signed off, he called Jay Romney. “I hope you have something encouraging to tell me,” Dylan said. “If you don’t, I’m going to have to—”
“I have excellent news, and thanks for your patience. I have an interested director and a script I optioned last year that I think you’ll love,” he said. “The director is Sean Adams—big name with a lot of juice. He’d like a meeting. Can you meet us at my office on Monday at noon? I’ll have lunch catered in.”
“I’ll be there,” Dylan said. “And, Jay, until we have something nailed down, not a word to anyone.”
“Absolutely. Tell me your nearest airport, son,” Jay said. “I’ll have a chartered jet bring you in.”
Dylan burst out laughing. “Is that right?” Dylan could’ve brokered that deal if he’d been at home. “I’ll get there. I’ll give you my ticket stub and you can reimburse me.”
How funny was that—apparently there were some business entities that still made use of charters.
Dylan would fly down. He’d try to make a deal. Because his best friend might be right, it might be time for a change. But just in case Lang didn’t get a flying job right away, Dylan was going to find a way to keep Lang and other employees who were left behind in paychecks. He could sacrifice a few months on a set to get that done.
He’d have to give himself at least one extra day in L.A. before meeting with Romney and Adams—a day to buy some “meeting clothes” since all he had with him were jeans and boots—pretty roughed-up clothes at that.
He dialed again. “Gran, hi,” he said. “I’m headed to L.A. to meet with Jay Romney. Are you going to be in L.A.? I’d like to see you.”
“I’m here for another month, at least,” she said. “Will you stay here?”
He hesitated. He had a feeling he was going to crave a little time alone. “I…ah…I think I’m going to take a rain check on that, Gran. I’ll get a hotel room. But I definitely want to get together. I’ll call you when I have some kind of schedule. It’ll be easier to plan once I know what Jay has to say and whether he needs more of my time. I’ll be sure to fill you in.”
“Dylan,” she began. “Are you coming alone?”
The question almost paralyzed him. The impact of what he was doing hadn’t quite hit him until his grandmother asked. “Yes,” he said. “Of course.”
“I see,” she said. “Well, call when you get here. I think we’ll have plenty to talk about.”
For now he had plenty to think about. He really was leaving this time, and once he left he couldn’t imagine being able to come back. He had a home in another place and no work in this little mountain town. All he had here was the most awesome woman he’d ever met, and no way to stay with her. He wasn’t sure how to tell her that and even considered just running for his life, something he hadn’t hesitated to do