1 Chapter 1. The First Twelve Hours

A beautiful tall blond woman walked into the first class for a flight from New York to Bangkok; her seductive light green hooded eyes made her feel something. Isla is her best friend, and she is usually the tallest of the bunch. However, this gorgeous blond woman is taller than them. She wears a white shirt, tight jeans with a YSL belt, and Balenciaga X Adidas Ankle Boots; she brought quite a large bag.

"Hi." Her voice is deep and cheerful. "I just want to inform you that I'm a doctor, a surgeon." She flashes a badge from one of the best hospitals in New York: Rayleigh MacKenzie, M.D., orthopedic surgeon.

"Thank you for informing us."

"No problem." She smiles again, sweetly.

Rose Isabelle Jenisen, of Danish-Thai descent, feels short standing in front of the beautiful blonde, who happens to be a doctor. This twenty-hour flight with a hot doctor will be thrilling. Rose couldn't help but steal glances at the stunning doctor as she walked past them. She noticed Rayleigh easily stowing her large bag in the overhead compartment, her tall, lithe frame moving with effortless grace.

"I'll take you to your seat." Rose gives her best smile to the doctor after Rayleigh tells the air hostess her first-class seat number.

The name tag showed her the name of the air hostess; her dark brown hair was in a tight bun; the uniform looked great on her body; and her honey-tanned skin complimented her beauty. "Thank you, Belle."

"Uh?" Rose can feel that she has had a heart attack.

"Your name, am I mistaken?" The doctor smiles, and they get into her seat.

"No, but people mostly call me Rose." Her ears start to turn red.

"Belle suits you more," she says, speaking closer to her ears. "Let's help you." She stuffed her bag into the compartment above her seat. They stood so close that Rayleigh could smell the sweet, fruity fragrance from the air hostess; she loved it.

"I don't know if a doctor will be this good at complementing." The jasmine scent, mixed with a bit of the hospital's fragrance, is all over the tall doctor's body. Rose finds it hot.

"The more, the merrier, American?" One of her hands is gently gripping her waist. Keep her closer. It's absurd, she knows, but she has the urge to keep the air hostess closer. She's not usually this touchy with a stranger, but the woman in front of her intrigued her deeply.

"No, Thai."

"Fascinating." She lets the air hostess go.

"Nice to see you, Dr. Rayleigh."

"Will I be seeing you again?" Rose can't contain her smile when the beautiful doctor asks her the question.

"We've got a twenty-hour flight, doctor." She smiles. "Can I get you anything to drink, doctor?"

Rayleigh looked up and smiled warmly. "Yes, actually, I'd love a glass of red wine, if you have it."

"Absolutely, I'll give it to you right after the plane takes off and the seat belt sign has been turned off." This was the first time, in her five years as a flight attendant, that she'd felt this flustered around a passenger.

Rayleigh thanked her with a dazzling smile. "You know, I always enjoy a good glass of wine on long flights. It helps me unwind."

"I can imagine," Rose replied, nodding. "This is a long one, all the way to Bangkok."

"Indeed," Rayleigh said, "but I have a feeling this flight might be a bit more interesting than most."

Rose felt her cheeks flush as Rayleigh's piercing green eyes met her own. "I, uh, I hope you have a pleasant flight, doctor," she stammered, quickly excusing herself to attend to the other passengers.

"I'll be at your service then, Rose Isabelle." She smiled while Rose returned to her place, helping the other passengers with their luggage or seats.

Her ears are still bright red, and her face is warm; it's usually the other way around. She flirts, and people get all shy and blush, male or female; they're all the same for Rose. Isla stares at her with questioning eyes. "What was that, Rose Isabelle Jenisen?"

"She's hitting on me."

"And you get all flustered?" They whisper with each other, all the first-class passengers already seated. They're now waiting for business and the economy to fill up.

"Can you? Blame me? She's hot!"

"Ugh, our captain is hotter." Isla rolled her eyes.

"She's your girlfriend! Doesn't count!"

After every passenger is settled inside the airplane, the air hostess closes the doors. A melodious voice comes from the speakers: "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen from the flight deck; this is your captain speaking. My name is Chantana Duangkamol, and on behalf of the flight crew, we would like to welcome you aboard Thai Airways flight number TG902, New York to Bangkok, Thailand." Isla always loves hearing her girlfriend's voice. Their relationship has been great for two years and is going stronger.

Following the captain's announcement, there was a there was a pre-flight safety briefing. It's a detailed explanation before takeoff for airline passengers about the aircraft's safety features. Rose stands in the aisle where Rayleigh sits. She looks at the doctor, who stares at her and gives her a wink. Rayleigh smiles widely, biting her lower lips. Instead of being shy, she now boldly stares at the air hostess.

"Cabin crew, prepare for takeoff." A man's voice speaks to the speaker for preparation.

"I'll see you later, doctor." Rose didn't see a smile on Rayleigh's flustered face right after she left.

-

Rayleigh took her pad out after the plane's seat belt light was off, then started to write her journal and her presentation. She went to Bangkok, Thailand, to attend the Medical International Symposium and the International Forum on Orthopaedics and Traumatology. She's one of the speakers. "Remind me again; why the hell did I agree with all this?"

She pulls out two books from inside her bag, and when she stands to take her bag out of the compartment, a few men try to help her. She smiled and said, "Thanks for the help; I appreciate the gesture."

"Then, maybe we can."

"I'm a lesbian." She shoots down the offers even before those men can say anything: "Plus, it's just two books; I can take it all by myself. Anyway, thanks again." She smiled and sat down.

After that, she doesn't care about anything, puts the headphones on, and starts listening to music while reading a book. Rayleigh also began to write in her medical journal based on some of her patients, their conditions, and the method of medication. She didn't realize that someone was looking her way, smiling after seeing the doctor chase the guy away.

"Do you need any help?" Rose walks closer, and in a few minutes, she and Isla are going to prepare some drinks and snacks.

"Ah, I need to use the wifi," Rayleigh answered without seeing who was talking to her. She pulled a black card from a small wallet inside her pocket. Rose's eyes widen; she's young, hot, a doctor, and rich. "Oh, it's you, sweetheart." Her voice turns soft.

"Anything more?"

"No, thank you, Belle." She smiled at her and went back to her book. Rose couldn't believe the woman was still insisting on calling her that. But she loves hearing it anyway. Her father used to call her that, but after he passed away in high school, no one called her the way her father did until Dr. Rayleigh happened.

Rose opened the wifi tab for the doctor as she saw the latter was busy with her book and iPad. She will probably need long hours of wifi. Rayleigh asks for a glass of red wine and mineral water when Rose returns to offer her a refreshment.

"Anything else you need, doctor?" Rose asked again; she had already told Isla that whatever happened, she'd be the one who served that hot doctor.

"Cuddles."

Rose stopped for a moment, a bit surprised. She used to flirt with people, asking for a kiss, but cuddles? This is new.

"Well, you need to wait for that."

"For you? Sure." And Rayleigh goes back to her book and scribbles some notes. Rose stared in amusement at the doctor and Isla, who had watched their interaction while mouthing 'wow' to Rose.

After a few hours of peace and silence, people can hear murmurs from behind. Rayleigh couldn't care less about the commotion from behind; some people even screamed in horror.

The air hostess from the economy class is running to the front, looking for someone to help. Isla is in the aisle between first class and business when she looks at how terrified her coworker is. "What happened?"

"Someone stabbed a passenger with a pen; they were fighting before the stabbing happened. Is there any doctor in business or first class?" She looks horrified.

"There is." Rose quickly answers, "Isla, you help them calm down the other passengers, and I'll talk to the doctor." Isla quickly followed Rose's instructions.

Rose walks fast to Rayleigh's seat, seeing the latter still immersed in her books and notes. Before Rose can say anything, Rayleigh is already aware of who's standing closer to her. "Anything happens, miss Isabelle?" She doesn't even need to look at who is standing next to her; the familiar scent she starts to love is intruding on Rayleigh's nose.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Dr. Rayleigh, but we have an emergency in economy class. A passenger had stabbed someone."

"Oh, what are the odds? Please show me the aircraft medical kits. And just in case, bring me a bottle of vodka."

"Okay." Rose is trying to keep her calm; it's her duty to be calm and composed, but hearing a stabbing incident in an airplane terrifies her. In her two years of work, this is her first emergency. Rayleigh sees it, and she holds the air hostess's hand gently.

"Calm down; Belle, your doctor, is here." She smiles. "Now, show me where's the aircraft medical kits."

== To be continued ==