“What’s the title of the piece?” she asked, trying to focus on the task at hand in order to keep her mind off of Shane.
“The Country of Love,” Lance said, spreading his hands in front of him theatrically.
“Another love piece?” Keira asked, shocked.
“Of course!” Lance cried. “It’s your talent, Keira. Your last piece was remarkable.”
“Only because I fell in love…” she said.
Lance nodded eagerly. “Exactly. It was beautiful. I want to see that again. So I’m sending you to the most romantic places. I want you to speak to the locals, discover their secrets. Do the Italians really know about true love? Why is it considered the most romantic place on earth? What secrets do they hold about romance?”
He was grinning widely, encouragingly. But for Keira, panic was starting to set in.
How could she write about love when her heart had been shattered into a thousand pieces? In Ireland she’d struggled with the assignment because she was naive, foolish, and inexperienced. This time she was going in bitter and jaded. It would never work.
“Is there any flexibility on the title?” Keira stuttered. “Any scope to change the angle? I don’t want to get typecast as the love writer.”
Lance looked bemused. “But you are the love writer, Keira. The romance guru. It’s what people want to read from you. Your unique selling point. Your USP.”
She couldn’t quite believe it.
But what choice did she have? Lance had gone above and beyond for her, making sure she had the best assignment. There was no choice, she had to take the piece. Everyone wanted her to, and her career depended on it. She’d just have to fake it.
Or, perhaps, she wouldn’t have to fake it. Perhaps she’d meet a new guy. Not another Shane, not someone she could fall head over heels in love with, but a passionate Italian man she could have a whirlwind affair with. No strings, no love, just lust.
She smiled to herself. Perhaps this was the cure to her broken heart! Love might be the last thing on her mind right now, but perhaps a fling with a hot Italian guy could be just the antidote she needed to get over Shane.
She looked at Lance and quirked an eyebrow.
“Thank you,” she said. “When do I leave?”
CHAPTER FOUR
“Tomorrow?” Bryn exclaimed, perching on the arm of the couch.
Keira nodded and hurried around the small apartment, collecting her things and throwing them into her case. She was buzzing with excitement.
“Can you believe it? You get your space back for three whole weeks.”
“But you’ll miss Halloween,” Bryn wailed. “Malcolm and Glen wanted to take us to a party.”
Keira rolled her eyes. “What a shame,” she said sarcastically.
Just then the doorbell buzzed. Bryn went over to answer it, using the intercom system to see who was there. She looked back over her shoulder at Keira, her eyes narrowed. “Why are Shelby and Maxine standing on my doorstep?”
Maxine and Shelby were Keira’s two oldest friends, whom she’d met at college. Bryn hated them, though Keira didn’t understand why and assumed it was jealousy.
“I completely forgot,” Keira gasped. “I invited them over for drinks ages ago. It was supposed to be for a catch up before Shane arrived and took all of my time. Is that okay?”
“I clearly don’t have a choice,” Bryn replied, looking put out. “Shame, though. We could have had a really fun evening just the two of us since you’ll be gone for so long…”
“Sorry,” Keira replied, shrugging. “I didn’t know it was my last night at the time I made the plans. I’d assumed you’d be out on a date with some guy like most nights.”
There was a knock on the door, and Bryn stood with a huff to answer it. As the door swung open, Keira heard the happy exclamations of Maxine and Shelby. She hurried over and took in the sight of her two friends – petite Shelby with her long, white-blond hair, and super-fit Maxine with her short black curls and dark skin.
“Keira!” they cried, throwing their arms around her.
“It’s been too long,” Maxine said into her ear.
“I was certain you were never coming back to New York City,” Shelby added in the other.
Keira drew back. “I know, I’m sorry. Everything happened so quickly – getting sent to Ireland, breaking up with Zach, moving out the apartment. I just haven’t found time to get my thoughts in line.”
Bryn, who was still standing holding the door open, added, pithily, “It was a family only time, you know?”
“Sure,” Maxine said with a stiff smile.
Keira tugged her friends further into the apartment. “Come on, let’s drink. And talk.”
“And pack,” Bryn added in a parental way.
They all tumbled inside, chatting with giddiness. Bryn reluctantly opened a bottle of wine for them to share, then sat at the kitchen island with a huff, handing a glass to each of Keira’s friends with a dark expression.
“So, you’re off to Italy?” Shelby asked, grinning with excitement. “How long for this time?”
“Three weeks,” Keira replied, folding clothes and placing them in her case. “It’s sort of my niche at the magazine at the moment. I go abroad and write an article on love. They’re calling me the Romance Guru.”
Shelby and Maxine exchanged a glance, one that Keira could immediately read into.
“I know, I’m hopeless with relationships. Two breakups in as many months, right? But I can just play a character.”
“You mean lie?” Maxine asked with a laugh.
“If I have to,” Keira replied, recalling how much she’d struggled writing the last piece. Then she’d been a cynic trying to deny the fact she was falling in love with Ireland, and, more specifically, Shane. Now she was supposed to be taking the other view, of being a hopeless romantic, a convert who would easily and willingly lose herself in love and passion. She felt anything but.
“You’ll just have to fall for a hot Italian guy,” Shelby added.
Keira smirked. “Wouldn’t that be nice?” she mused, though she felt as though a nun in a monastery had a better chance of a passionate love affair than she did at this moment in time.
“You’re going to miss Halloween,” Maxine added, glumly.
“I know, it’s a shame,” Keira replied. “It’s my favorite holiday. But they go all out in Italy too. It’s actually like a four-day public holiday, I think. The day of the dead, All Souls’ Day, All Saints’ Day, it’s a massive deal. A huge party.”
Shelby folded her arms in mock affront. “Basically you’re saying that your Halloween experience will be tons better than ours.”
“No!” Keira laughed, protesting. “Well, maybe.”
Everyone laughed. Except Bryn, of course. She was staring into her wine glass, pouting.
“Anyway,” Keira said, “we can have a great Thanksgiving together. I’ll be back by then.”
Bryn’s head snapped up. “We’re having Thanksgiving at Mom’s this year, remember. Just the three of us.”
“That’s the meal,” Keira contested, growing impatient with her difficult sister. “I can spend the rest of the day with my friends, can’t I?”
“Of course you can,” Bryn huffed. She went back to staring into her glass.
Maxine raised her eyebrows. She and Shelby were used to Bryn’s attitude but Keira just couldn’t understand why Bryn had to be so possessive over her. She was allowed other people in her life! Bryn was super independent herself and always had loads of friends and boyfriends, was always on the go rushing around to events. Yet as soon as Keira wanted to spend time with someone other than her she got in a mood. Honestly, sometimes Keira felt like she was the elder of the two. Bryn could be a spoiled brat sometimes.
“Thanksgiving sounds so far away,” Shelby mused.
“I know,” Keira replied. “I feel like I’ve barely had a chance to be in New York. It’s like I’ve been on vacation here! I thought I’d have more time to catch up. I haven’t even found a new apartment.”
“Speaking of new apartments…” Bryn said.
She was looking at Keira’s cell phone on the counter. The screen was alight from having just delivered a text message. And Zach’s name was clearly visible on her screen.