After a harrowing 45-minute ride with Schumacher, they finally reached their hotel. Yuiko immediately took charge, intimidating the friendly receptionist into rescheduling breakfast from 9 am to 8 am, exclusively for them.

Adam's quip about the early hour earned him nothing but a stern look from Yuiko. She informed him of their evening meeting in the lobby before briskly heading to her room and shutting the door behind her.

With Yuiko momentarily out of the picture, Adam felt the need to decompress. Without even checking his room, he made his way out, drawn to the beckoning blue of the Mediterranean Sea. As he walked, he dialed a number on his phone.

It rang twice before being picked up.

"Let me guess, you were waiting, phone in hand, biting your nails, wondering when I'd call?" Adam teased.

“More like worried about your man baby ass and your fear of flights. Did you take my advice and have a drink? That’s how I calm down passengers who moan and whine.” The voice on the other end was playful.

"Have a drink? Ana, I drank everything they had on that cart. And you are definitely not winning any awards for flight attendant of the year with those strategies," Adam chuckled, pausing as the vast expanse of the sea unfolded before him. "You should be here. Take a break, come surf with me.”

"Pff, no rest for the wicked baby bro. Today I'm in Finland, tomorrow Germany, then off to the States,” Ana replied, the sound of a lighter flicking and her inhaling deeply audible.

“Always on the move, huh? What's the plan? Pay off mom’s house with all that flight money?” Adam's tone was light, but there was an underlying seriousness.

“Or maybe her star child will. She tells everyone her son is an engineer.”

Adam sighed, switching his phone to his other ear as he approached the beach. The sound of waves crashing provided a soothing backdrop. “Not the time to measure egos. They stopped me at the goddamn gates to feel me up, then the turbulence was so bad it was like riding a freaking tractor here.”

" I know how they do it. They see a hottie and they make the machine beep," Ana explained, a hint of mirth in her voice. "Did mom panic because you're leaving her alone for nine days? Did she pack you zacuscă?"

"You know she did, but it’s gone," he paused. "I ate it at a gas station, with one of those croissants you like and a coffee."

"For fuck’s sake Adam!" she laughed at the mental image. “If anyone asks, I’m an only child. So, how’s the boss?”

"The boss is tiny and extremely upset. She took me being late very personally.”

"Tiny? Why are you trying to make it sound like it’s a bad thing? You like them small and feisty. Seriously, would you kiss her if I paid you?"

"Are you 10?” Adam countered, sitting on a boulder after he got tired of patrolling the same patch of beach. After a moment of thought, he added “Only to shut her up. She’s nice to look at, would be cute if not for the stick so high up her ass I’m surprised she can even sit.”

"Look at him, he's all grown up and frustrated with work," his sister chimed in, a gentle tease in her voice.

"She said she'll print out the schedule and my entire email history so I can catch up on it. The girl is manic," Adam grumbled, a hint of annoyance seeping through his words as he kicked at the sand beneath his feet.

"What did you expect? To relax? You're at work, little brother, and you better rock that gig, your career depends on it," Ana reminded him.

“Takeo won't kick me out until I want to leave. I bet my left nut on it," Adam confidently responded, smirking slightly.

Ana sighed, a hint of frustration in her voice, "Adam, your nut isn't as valuable as you think it is. And don’t bet so much on being friends with the big boss, these corporate types would eat their babies for profits. Just send me some pictures and behave like the grown man mom raised you to be."

"Girls have never complained about me. But this little one is corporate to the bone," he grumbled, his gaze fixed on the horizon.

"Then just look her in the eyes and give her the 'kind reminder'. That’s corporate for ‘Fuck you’. Now, I need to pick up my uniform from the cleaner’s. Behave yourself, don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"So basically anything but getting pregnant?” he retorted, ending the call with a chuckle.

The waves beckoned, and after the tumultuous flight, Adam was eager to immerse himself in the Mediterranean's embrace.