CHAPTER THREE

Mallory leaned across the table and filled Keira’s now empty glass with more rosé. Keira grimaced. She didn’t care for the sickly sweet pink wine her mother favored, but there wasn’t much she could do about it. When it came to Mallory Swanson, refusal was futile.

Bryn caught Keira’s eye from across the table and smirked. She hated the pink wine just as much as Keira did. At least it provided them with a private joke they could share.

“So Keira,” Mallory said, addressing her youngest daughter.

Keira broke her gaze from Bryn to regard Mallory. She could tell by the way her mother’s eyes were slightly narrowed, and the way her wine glass was askew in her hands, that she was slightly tipsy. Which meant that she was about to ask something very personal, as was her way when she’d had a glass or two.

Keira braced herself. “Yes, Mother?”

“Have you heard from Cristiano?”

There it was. The gut punch.

Before Keira had a chance to even groan, Mallory flinched and flashed angry eyes at Bryn.

“Don’t kick me, young lady!” she exclaimed. “If I don’t ask she doesn’t tell. How else am I supposed to know what’s going on in my daughter’s life? One minute he was Mr. Right and then he was Mr. Gone. I want to know what happened.”

Petulance was another one of Mallory’s tipsy habits.

Keira sighed. “It’s okay. It’s about time I talked about what happened.” She put her wine glass down. At least if she was the one commanding the conversation she’d have an excuse not to drink any more rosé. “I haven’t heard from him since I broke it off. I really thought we’d be friends. It felt like a mature separation, you know? Like we could both tell it wasn’t right. But then he disappeared off the face of the earth. No communication whatsoever. I mean, am I an idiot for ever thinking you can be friends with an ex? The same thing happened with Shane.”

“Oh, darling, I’m not the one to ask,” Mallory replied. “You know too well how disastrous my love life has been.”

If Keira had a bingo card for things her mom discussed when she was drinking, she’d probably have ticked all the boxes by now. Career. Tick. Painful broken heart. Tick. And now, the real kicker: Dad.

Keira knew the story all too well, but that didn’t stop Mallory from bringing it up constantly. He was her one true love, they were young but thought it would work, he couldn’t handle the responsibility of children, he’d left her destitute in a big city with two young kids. Though she’d never met her dad, Keira was absolutely certain his absence played a role in her own inability to sustain a happy relationship. And he was definitely the reason Bryn was setting up house with an old man.

Mallory waved her glass in front of her face, sloshing some pink liquid onto the table in front of her. “I will say this though. Broken hearts, like broken bones, are stronger once they’re repaired.”

Keira quirked an eyebrow. That was actually quite insightful coming from Mallory.

“Who are you quoting that from, Mom?” Bryn piped up. “Oprah Winfrey?”

“I don’t remember who,” Mallory snapped. “It might have been in a fortune cookie. It doesn’t matter. The point is, you will get over this and you will learn something and you will heal and your heart will go on.”

“Ooh, I know that one. That one’s Celine Dion,” Bryn said.

Mallory frowned at her. “Will you stop with your jokes, Bryn! I’m trying to make Keira feel better.”

“You are, Mom,” Keira said meaningfully, speaking for the first time in ages. “You’re actually helping a ton. Bryn is too, in her own way.” She smiled at her sister. Bryn had put up with a lot from Keira over the last few weeks, from her moping around all day in unwashed clothes to her short temper. Now felt like a good time to let them know about what had happened with the real estate agent earlier that day. “Actually, I have a bit of news. Good news.”

“Oh?” they both asked in unison.

Keira felt suddenly shy. Renting a condo was such a big step for her, for all of them really. It would mark her transition, finally, from young adult to woman. For Mallory, it would be the end of her constant worry about her youngest getting along in the world. For Bryn, it would mean the return of her own independence, the lessening of responsibility, the lightening of the burden she’d always had to carry as the older of the two sisters.

“I’ve put a deposit down to rent my own apartment.”

There was a moment of stunned silence. Then Bryn began to whoop. Mallory broke into a wide grin.

“Darling, have you really?” she asked.

Keira smiled shyly and nodded. “Yup.”

Bryn was out of her seat suddenly. She came up around Keira and threw her arms about. “Oh THANK GOD!” she cried.

Keira laughed in her tight embrace. “Okay, okay, I know I’ve been a pain, but really!”

Bryn released her grip a little. “It’s not that you’ve been a pain,” she said. “It’s just that Felix… well, he asked me to get a place with him. I’ve been dragging my feet…”

“I knew it!” Keira exclaimed.

From the other side of the table, Mallory began to cry. “My two girls, growing up so fast.”

Of course, the last box on the bingo board could now be ticked. Cry!

*

Keira headed out into the cold evening, pulling her coat about her. The dinner with her mom and Bryn had been rejuvenating. She’d enjoyed it far more than she’d expected.

Bryn had headed off to Felix’s for the night, so Keira would have the apartment to herself. She was tired, though, and felt like going straight to bed. She’d be back in the office tomorrow and wanted to be fresh for it. She’d been a grump for the last few weeks. Hopefully her positive attitude would carry over until tomorrow.

The subway sign appeared up ahead. As she headed toward it, Keira felt a vibration in her pocket. Her cell phone. She reached inside and took it out.

To her surprise, this time it was a text from Cristiano. Her heart seemed to stop beating as she opened it up.

Whoever this is, leave Cristiano alone. He’s moved on.

Keira stared at the message, blinking in shock. It wasn’t from Cristiano at all, but from someone using his phone. A new girlfriend?

Her stomach sank. All the good work that had been done that evening seemed to suddenly unravel and spool inside of her. How could he have moved on so quickly? After all those conversations they’d had about him only wanting to date women he could imagine marrying. How many were there for him to have found a new one in such a short space of time! Being marriage material in Cristiano’s eyes clearly didn’t mean that much after all. Had Keira been duped?

She thrust her phone back into her purse. Fuming, she hurried down the subway steps and on to the waiting train. She slumped into a seat and gazed at the blackness out the window.

Her mind raced a mile a minute, picking apart all the times they’d spent together, searching for new meaning, new clues in the moments they were together.

But the more she thought, the more her anger lessened. Instead of holding on to the worst possible scenario her mind could conjure – that Cristiano had lied to her about being careful with his heart – she managed to talk herself down to a place of reason. Sometimes the rebound relationship was the best relationship. He’d been her rebound from Shane and the time they’d spent together had been wonderful. Perhaps this new woman was just his rebound rather than his next wife. Perhaps he’d learned that from Keira, that sometimes it was okay to be with a person just because you wanted to, rather than always having some grand plan in place.

She remembered Mallory’s words, about each relationship being an opportunity to learn and grow, to move onward and upward. Cristiano might indeed be going through the same thing. And Keira could feel, tangibly, that she was as well. Rather than holding on to her fury, to her bruised ego, it had only taken her the subway ride to start to let it go.

She got off the train and headed back up to street level, exiting the subway a wiser woman than she’d been when she entered. When she’d gotten on the train she was upset but as she left, she was relieved. This was the real line in the sand with her Cristiano. This was the real ending. It was time to move on, once and for all.

CHAPTER FOUR

Keira wrapped her knuckles against Elliot’s office door. It was open, but she still felt the need to be polite.

“Morning, Keira,” he said, turning over his shoulder to look at her. “Come in, come in.”

Keira entered, taking a seat opposite him. She always felt intimidated by Elliot’s office, like she was a school kid facing the principal.

“Everything okay?” he asked, tipping his gaze up to meet hers.

Keira swallowed the little lump of nerves that always formed in her throat when speaking to her boss. “Yes. I wanted to apologize, actually.”

“For what?” Elliot replied, frowning.

“For the last few weeks since I got back from France. I haven’t been my best.” Now that she’d begun speaking, she wanted to get it all out, and her words spilled off her tongue quickly. “And I know I’ve been avoiding picking a location for the new assignment, I think I just needed time after Cristiano. I was worried, you know? Another assignment, another broken heart. But I should have just been honest rather than avoiding the topic, so I’m sorry.” She took a deep breath, then smiled, feeling satisfied to have finally aired her worries.

“Oh,” Elliot replied, a bit blankly. “To be honest, I hadn’t noticed.”

Keira frowned. “You hadn’t? But you’ve emailed me pretty much every day asking where I wanted to go on my next assignment.”

Elliot shrugged. “I send a lot of emails, Keira. Look, I’m writing one to you as we speak. Guess I don’t need to now.” He clicked some buttons and then folded his arms and looked at her.

There was a long pause. Keira blinked. “Well, what was in the email?”

“Oh yes,” Elliot said, snapping back to attention. “It was about your new assignment abroad.”

“My…” Keira let that sink in. She narrowed her eyes. “You mean you’ve decided where it is?”

They were supposed to consult her! That was the agreement they’d come to, that she’d pick her own locations from now on. Elliot had agreed to it. How could they go back on that now?

“Well, I asked for your input,” Elliot replied simply. “And I didn’t get it so I asked Heather to go ahead and book something anyway. This is a fast-paced environment, Keira. If people don’t get back to me, I’m not going to sit around waiting forever.”

He sounded completely emotionless. But Keira felt totally betrayed. Not only did they exploit her heart for entertainment, but now they were going back on their word? Frustration boiled inside of her.

“Where are you sending me?” she asked in a clipped voice.

Elliot looked at his watch. “I’ll tell you in the team meeting.” Then he clapped his hands. “Come on.”

Keira’s head spun from her talk with Elliot. It hadn’t gone how she’d expected at all. She watched Elliot waltz from the room, her mind reeling. Had he forgotten their arrangement or did he just not care? And what about Nina? She, at the very least, should have known not to plow ahead without Keira’s consent! She was supposed to be Keira’s friend, be on her side, but as she progressed through the Viatorum ranks she’d started siding more and more with Elliot.

Dazed, Keira stood and followed Elliot from the room, into the adjoining conference room. Other writers had started to file in, coffees in hand, and take seats. Keira realized that there were yet more new faces among them. She’d been so cloistered in her own office for the last few weeks she hadn’t even noticed or bothered to speak to any of them. She felt guilty about that now. It wasn’t that long ago that she was a brand new writer here, desperate for assurance and friendship. She resolved to try harder.

“How’s everyone doing today?” she asked a group of newbies, directing her question at a young woman with long braided hair and a septum ring.

The girl blinked, as though shocked Keira was speaking to her. “Good,” she said in a high-pitched squeak. “It’s assignment day, so I’m looking forward to finding out my new assignment.”

The rest of the group just nodded. One of them even blushed. Keira had never had such an effect on people before. It was easy to forget that she was in a senior role here, that she was a writer who breezed in to meetings and then was out of the office for weeks at a time. They probably thought of her what she thought of Elliot, or of Lance once upon a time. It was the most peculiar feeling.

“I’m Keira, by the way,” she said, reaching out to shake the girl’s hand.

“Yes, I know,” the girl said. “I’m Meredith.” She had a warm smile.

Keira took a seat beside her. “You’re new, right?”

“Ish,” Meredith replied. “I started while you were in France.” She looked suddenly shy. “I loved your article, by the way.”

“Oh,” Keira said, “thanks. I’m kinda trying to move on from all that.”

“All what? You mean Romance Guru articles?” Meredith’s eyes widened. “You can’t! They’re amazing!”

Keira didn’t have time to reply because Elliot began the meeting.

She felt a pit of dread open up in her stomach. Whatever they had planned for her, she had to be strong. If she didn’t want to do it, she’d quit. It was that simple. Though of course, easier said than done.

“Let’s start with a huge round of applause for Meredith,” Elliot started. “Her New York City graffiti tour e-article was a smash hit.”

Everyone clapped and Meredith beamed. Keira felt happy for her. When she’d started at the magazine, it had been under Joshua’s command. He made everyone feel like a failure. The work environment was much better now, much more supportive.

Elliot continued. “Next, I think you’re all interested to know where our Romance Guru is off to for our special December publication.”

“Lapland?” one of the new kids said.

“See if she can seduce Santa,” a fresh-faced boy added.

Everyone laughed. Everyone but Keira.

“No,” Elliot said. “We decided on something a little different.”

This was it. Crunch time. Every muscle in Keira’s body tensed.

“We’re sending her on a cruise of Scandinavia. This time, the assignment is to prove that someone suffering from a breakup can avoid a knee-jerk rebound affair. This time, we want our Guru to not fall in love.”

Keira was stunned. She’d had the words I quit waiting on the tip of her tongue, but now she had to swallow them down.

“Impossible,” the fresh-faced joker from before said. “She’ll fall for the tour guide, and you all know it.”

He was teasing, of course, but Keira was in too much shock to pay him any attention at all.

“Which is why we’re not having a tour guide,” Elliot added. He looked at Keira. “You have fifteen days. Other than the course of the ship – which will take you through Denmark, Finland, and Sweden – the rest is up to you. You’ll be navigating yourself entirely.”

Keira was lost for words. As it began to sink in, she felt her worries melt away. She wasn’t going to be expected to bruise her heart this time! Sure, she would still have to dig deep and make her article personal, but she wouldn’t need to put herself on the line.

The joker had one last quip to make. “So, basically she’s just writing a travel article?”

Everyone laughed. But Keira only had one thing to say, only one word to describe what her mind was imagining; the Northern Lights, fjords, snow-capped mountains, and meatballs galore! Finally, she managed to untie her tongue. “Wow.”