She continued.
"There was confusion with the concierge, and I was under a great deal of stress."
I looked at her.
"Victoria."
She stopped.
"An apology doesn't need to explain why the person receiving it should understand your behavior."
Her face tightened.
She looked toward the floor.
For a moment, I thought she would become angry again.
Then she took a breath.
"You're right."
I waited.
She swallowed.
"I shouldn't have thrown your boarding pass."
I nodded.
"No."
"And I shouldn't have touched you."
"No."
She hesitated.
Then added, "I'm sorry."
I studied her.
There was sincerity in her voice.
Perhaps.
But there was also fear of losing access.
And I couldn't tell which mattered more.
I decided I didn't need to know immediately.
"Thank you for acknowledging it."
Her shoulders relaxed slightly.
Then she smiled.
"Perhaps we could put this behind us."
I looked directly at her.
"That depends on what you mean."
She seemed confused.
"I mean I'd rather not have an unpleasant misunderstanding affect our business relationship."
I took a breath.
"Victoria, the issue isn't whether I'm personally offended."
She waited.
"It's how you treated another passenger before you knew who he was."
Her smile faded.
I continued.
"If I hadn't owned the company, would you have moved when the crew asked?"
She looked away.
For several seconds, she didn't answer.
Then she whispered, "I don't know."
It was the first honest thing she had said to me.
I nodded slowly.
"Then that's worth thinking about."
She looked toward me.
For a moment, her expression became almost vulnerable.
Then she straightened.
"I understand."
I wasn't sure she did.
But I hoped she might eventually.
She returned to her seat.
And I opened my notebook again.
Because before the aircraft even landed, I knew the incident would require far more than one apology.
The aircraft landed in Denver shortly after noon.
Our ground crew met the jet at the designated parking position, and passengers disembarked through the private terminal.
I waited until most of them had left.
Victoria walked past my seat without looking at me.
Her expression was carefully blank.
Richard Bennett gave me a small nod as he departed.
The woman traveling with her teenage son smiled politely.
Then Elena approached.
"Mr. Cole, may I ask you something?"
I looked up.