by Sophie Love
She prodded a piece of asparagus with her fork and sighed. Thanksgiving food was usually her favorite, but she had no appetite today.
“Is the jetlag bothering you?” her mom asked, gently, stroking her daughter’s arm.
Keira shrugged. “Amongst other things.”
“I truly am sorry things didn’t work with you and Cristiano,” Mallory added. “He seemed like a nice boy.”
“He was,” Keira replied, sadly. “Just not my nice boy.”
From the other side of the table a cheerful and slightly tipsy Bryn spoke up. “I told you, didn’t I? Didn’t I say your relationship was just a brief affair? And didn’t you bite my head off for it?”
“Bryn,” Mallory snapped. “Now is not the time for ‘I told you so’s.”
Keira couldn’t even clap back with some biting remark about Bryn not having a clue what she was talking about, because things seemed to be going pretty well with Felix. He was smitten with her, obviously, and despite the age gap they seemed to have a lot in common. They even shared the same sense of humor.
Mallory continued speaking. “Let’s just be thankful that we’re all together today.” She looked at Keira. “I’m very proud of you, darling, for asking for Thanksgiving off so you could spend it with us. Putting your family above your work and Paris is a very touching thing to do.”
Despite the sadness inside of her, Keira smiled. She was glad that she’d come home, even if in doing so she’d brought about the untimely end to her relationship with Cristiano.
Keira phone pinged with a message then. It was from Maxine.
I hear you’re back in town for thanksgiving! Still want to come to our soiree this evening?
It had completely slipped Keira’s mind that she’d made plans with Maxine weeks ago, before Paris, even before Italy. She recalled how furious Bryn had been about it, how she’d stated that thanksgiving was a time for family, although Keira felt that it had more to do with her irrational hatred of Maxine.
Keira mulled it over in her mind. She missed her friends. Had barely seen them in the last two months. And having a boozy evening with them would surely be a great way to get over her stinging heart.
But when she looked around the table, from Felix’s face to Bryn’s to Mallory’s, she realized that she was exactly where she wanted to be.
She typed a response.
Sorry hun, not tonight. I’m having some family time. Catch up soon? X
Maxine replied quickly.
No problem. See you soon x
Keira smiled to herself and put her cell phone away. She didn’t want anymore interruptions tonight.
“Now,” Mallory said, placing her knife and fork neatly across the middle of her now clean plate. “Who wants some port and pie?”
“Port?” Keira giggled. “Since when do we have port at Thanksgiving?”
“I brought it,” Felix said. “It’s a wonderful dessert wine. And it gets you quite merry.”
Keira laughed and shrugged. “Okay. May as well!”
Felix stood to fetch the pie and bottle of port, and came back with four glasses as well. They looked like shrunken wine glasses. He must have brought them with him, which Keira thought was quite a sweet gesture.
He poured them each a glass of the thick red liquid, then they all picked their glasses up and clinked them together.
“Happy Thanksgiving!”
*
It was time for Keira to return back to work. She’d had a nice break with her family and had finished writing her article, adding in Cristiano’s proposal and her rejection. She was nervous to see what Nina and Elliot made of the ending of her piece. It certainly wasn’t the fairytale ending she expected they were after.
Keira woke early and showered and dressed for the day. When she left her bedroom, she saw that Mallory was, once again, in the kitchen brewing a pot of coffee.
“Mom, you don’t have to get up so early for me,” Keira told her.
“I want to,” Mallory replied. “I love having you here. Even if it is only temporary.”
That reminded Keira of the other thing she had to be nervous about today. The raise she was going to ask for. It was madness that she was working so hard for a rich magazine but couldn’t afford her own place, that she’d been forced to move back in with her mother. But Nina’s stern words rang in her mind, about her getting what she wanted; she’d have to take action if she ever wanted things to change.
She leant against the kitchen counter as Mallory poured two coffees and handed one to Keira.
“So what did you think about Felix?” she asked her daughter as she adopted the same position.
Keira laughed. “I mean he’s old, there’s no way round that.”
Mallory laughed. Keira continued.
“But he seems good for Bryn.”
“You don’t think it’s because your father left, do you? That she’s looking for a substitute for him?”
Keira shrugged. “Maybe. But does it really matter? They clearly make each other very happy. I’m just shocked someone managed to calm Bryn down.”
“Yes,” Mallory said. “That’s quite a feat in itself.”
They giggled together. Keira was glad to have grown closer to her mom recently. If there was anything good to have come out of her time with Cristiano, it was that she’d learned to appreciate her family more like he did his.
Keira caught sight of the clock then. “I’d better go,” she said, draining the last bit of coffee from her mug. She kissed her mom on her cheek. “Love you, mom. I’ll see you later.”
Mallory smiled and wished her daughter farewell.
Keira hurried out the apartment and took the stairs rather than wait for the elevator. Out on the streets, she was hit by a blast of cold air that brought with it nostalgia for Paris. As did the busy streets. The traffic jams. Even running down the steps to the subway reminded her of the metro.
She squeezed onto the train, squished up between lots of other commuters, and ran through her speech in her mind for Elliot. First off there was an apology, for not ending the article in the way she knew he’d wanted her to, then there was a retraction of the apology because it was her life, not a reality show, and she could do what she wanted with it, before moving onto a request for a raise, because didn’t she deserve to be rewarded for the increase in subscriptions? The more she went over it, the more nervous she became, and the more her mind conjured up terrible scenarios of how he’d react.
By the time she got off the subway she’d convinced herself that Elliot would fire her. That he’d hate the article and find it ludicrous that she’d ask for more money and then decide he’d had enough of her. She trembled as she walked down the street towards Viatorum’s HQ.
She reached the large glass doors and pushed them open. A few people looked up from their desks and waved at her. Nina and Elliot were nowhere to be seen.
Keira went to her small office and placed her purse on her chair. She’d spent very little time in this room since Elliot gave her it as part of her promotion. It didn’t feel like hers just yet.
There was a knock on the door. Keira turned and saw Nina in the doorway.
“We’re in the meeting room,” she said. “Come in when you’re ready.”
“Oh,” Keira replied. “You want a meeting right away? Neither of you have read the final draft of my article yet.”
“We’ll read it in there,” Nina replied. “You have hard copies for each of us, right?”
Keira nodded. But it was the last thing she’d wanted to hear. Having one of them read her article and hate it was one thing, but for it to be done publically was quite another.
She took the copies out of her purse and straightened her hair before heading to Elliot’s office.
“Keira,” he said in his efficient manner, looking up. “Welcome back. Come in. Take a seat.”
She glanced around, seeing that on one side of the desk sat Elliot, Nina, Heather and, to her surprise, Lance. The only place she could re
ally sit was directly opposite them. It felt like being in a job interview.
She sat, uncomfortably, and placed the copies of her article on the table.
“I didn’t know you were coming, Lance,” she said. “I’m afraid I don’t have a copy for you.”
He chuckled in his usual jolly-Santa-Claus way. “That’s alright. Elliot doesn’t mind sharing with me.”
He clapped Elliot on the shoulder. Elliot looked like he both did mind very much and would prefer Lance not to make physical contact with him ever again. They were a bit like chalk and cheese, Keira realized as she looked at them now.
She handed the copies out and sat back in silence as everyone read quietly. Nina had her red pen ready and got to work immediately.
Keira couldn’t help but ring her hands in her lap as she watched their eyes scanning the words she’d written, trying to work out whether they’d got to the drama of Cristiano punching Zach, or whether they’d made it to the controversial proposal part at the end.
She suddenly noticed Nina look up at her, her mouth parting as though surprised. “How much of this is embellished?” she asked.
“None of it,” Keira told her, her voice squeaking.
Nina was still wearing her stunned expression. “You mean Cristiano really-”
“Shh!” Lance said, interrupting her before she could finish her sentence. “I’m not there yet. Don’t spoil it!”
Nina pointed at her ring finger and raised her eyebrows. Keira held up her bare left hand, sans ring, answering Nina’s question silently. Nina gave her a deeply sorrowful expression, and Keira could tell it was coming from Nina-the-friend, not Nina-the-colleague, that she was genuinely concerned to learn about what had transpired between Keira and Cristiano on their last evening. She gave Nina a sad smile, one that said “I’m doing as okay as can be expected.”
Nina’s response was a sympathetic look.
It was Elliot’s turn to gasp next. “Keira… is this? Did you…?”
He’d clearly reached the same part.
“Shh!” Lance cried again. “Don’t ruin the ending.”
Keira once again, pointed at her bare hand, this time for Elliot’s benefit.
“Are you okay?” Elliot asked.
Keira nodded. “It’s fine. It had to happen. It wouldn’t have been right to…” She looked at Lance and lowered her voice. “…you know.”
Suddenly Lance gasped and clapped a hand over his mouth. “Cristiano PROPOSED!?” he exclaimed. “How exciting!”
“You need to read the next bit,” Nina told him.
Lance looked back down at the paper. He gasped again and snapped his gaze up to Keira’s. “You said NO?!”
Keira shuffled down in her seat, wanting to disappear. This was the most uncomfortable dissection of her life choices she’d ever gone through.
“I’m sorry,” she began. “I know you all would have prefered a happy ending. But this is my life and I can’t marry someone just because it makes a good story.”
“Keira, let me stop you there,” Lance said.
She bit her lip and prepared herself for the fallout.
“You have nothing to apologize for. You said no. It’s your life. Your choice. If we wanted fiction, we’d have hired a fiction writer.”
“You don’t think we’ll lose readers because of this?” she asked, wincing.
“Perhaps. Perhaps not. It’s a risk.”
Keira hadn’t expected this. She wasn’t prepared. All her rehearsals went out the window.
“So you’re not going to fire me?” she stammered.
“Of course not!” Elliot said. “I mean I’d have prefered it if you’d said yes but we wanted reality. Truth. That’s the whole appeal of the Romance Guru. Our readers relate to you because you make the same kind of mistakes they do.”
“Mistakes like turning Cristiano down?” she asked sadly.
Nina spoke up then. “I don’t think it was a mistake. I think a lot of our readers will support your decision to remain independent.”
“I agree,” Heather said suddenly. She’d be so silent, everyone turned to look at her, having quite forgotten she was in the room. Considering her role there was just to take the minutes, it was rather shocking for her to blurt out her opinion. She blushed. “I mean that from the point of view of one of your fans.”
“Well we’ll have to see what happens,” Elliot said. “Once the article is out. Let’s wait and see what the feedback is before we negotiate the next assignment though. If this does crash and burn we’ll need to think of something different for you going forward.”
Keira realized then that that was why Lance was here today in the first place. If she’d turned in a safe article everyone was happy with they’d be negotiating her next contract right away. Instead, everything was left in limbo, because she’d made a decision that might have cost her a lot more than just her relationship with Cristiano. It might have cost her her future at the magazine.
EPILOGUE
Keira strolled through Central Park, her hands wrapped around a coffee cup to warm her from the icy November air. It was a bitterly cold day. New York was preparing for Christmas now, with Thanksgiving already relegated to a distant memory.
She’d not heard from Cristiano since they’d left one another at the airport in Paris. She’d had a feeling back then that she wouldn’t, that their love would exist just in that moment, and that after it was over they would cease to be in one another’s lives. It saddened her to think Cristiano was gone completely, but what point was there in keeping a flame like that alive when there was no future?
Still, she couldn’t help feeling sad about it as she walked through Central Park, remembering his childlike glee, his wide-eyed beauty when he’d stood here himself. It was already beginning to feel like a long distant memory.
Keira was avoiding the office. The online version of her article had gone live at midnight. Now, at seven a.m. in the morning, the hard copies would be on sale in stores across the east coast, with her face splashed across the covers, Cristiano gazing at her adoringly, lovingly, in the contrived image that had eventually paralleled their real love. Whether her readers loved her or hated her after this was soon to be seen.
She waited for a call or email, something from Nina that contained stats or feedback from the forums about what people thought of her twist of an ending.
If the article was a hit, the Romance Guru would be off again. Another country. Another lover.
Elliot had asked her to come in with ideas for future articles and a list of locations ready to instruct Heather to arrange her next trip immediately.
But the real person behind the nom de plum, Keira Swanson, had mixed feelings about jetting off again. Right now, there was only one place on her list: New York City. Home.
The thought of opening her heart up to a new love and new experience right now seemed impossible. What that meant for the future of her career, Keira did not know.
Just then, her cell phone began to ring. Keira stopped at a bench and placed her coffee cup down, then took her cellphone from her purse. It was Viatorum calling. She answered the call.
“Any news?” she asked, wincing.
“It’s a hit, Keira,” came Nina’s voice. “People love it. They think you’re fearless, inspirational, a modern heroine. You’ve done an amazing job.”
“Thanks,” Keira said, but the praise felt hollow. An amazing job, but at what cost?
“So,” Nina added. “When you’re in the office we’ll have that proper talk about your salary and bonus. And where you want to go next. Do you have any ideas?”
Keira stood there, alone, sad, wondering what was next…
NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER!
LOVE LIKE THEIRS
(The Romance Chronicles—Book 4)
“LOVE LIKE THIS creates a world of emotions and turmoil, describing superbly the mind of a young lady (Keira) and her struggles to balance her social life and her career. Sophie Love is a natural storytelle
r. LOVE LIKE THIS is very well written and edited, and I highly recommend it to the permanent library of all readers that appreciate a romance that can be savored during a weekend.”
—Books and Movie Reviews (Roberto Mattos)
LOVE LIKE THEIRS (The Romance Chronicles—Book #4) is book #4 in a new, sweet romance series by #1 bestselling author Sophie Love. The series begins with LOVE LIKE THIS (Book #1), a free download!
Keira Swanson, 28, has sworn off of love. With her heart still hurting from her breakups with Cristiano and Shane, she will not allow her magazine to use her for another love experiment.
Which is fine by them, because they want to send her off on a different kind of trip: to prove that someone suffering from a breakup can avoid a knee-jerk rebound affair and manage NOT to fall in love. To emphasize the point, they will NOT assign her a new tour guide. Instead, Keira will take a cruise to the Scandinavian countries and have to navigate herself.
Keira is thrilled to accept the assignment. There is nothing she wants more than to be alone, and go to the Northern climes, where she can cool her head, and where surely she will not find love.
But Keira does not anticipate the beauty of Copenhagen and of Stockholm (“the Paris of the North”) or the stunning hospitality of the Scandinavians.
With Christmas on the way, resisting a new love may be harder than she thinks….
A wholesome romantic comedy that is as profound as it is funny, LOVE LIKE THEIRS is book #4 in a dazzling new romance series that will make you laugh, cry, and will keep you turning pages late into the night—and will make you fall in love with romance all over again.
Book #5 will be published soon!
“Sophie Love’s ability to impart magic to her readers is exquisitely wrought in powerfully evocative phrases and descriptions….[This is] the perfect romance or beach read, with a difference: its enthusiasm and beautiful descriptions offer an unexpected attention to the complexity of not just evolving love, but evolving psyches. It’s a delightful recommendation for romance readers looking for a touch more complexity from their romance reads.”
—Midwest Book Review (Diane Donovan re: For Now and Forever)
