Love Like Ours

There was something in her eye, a secret she was keeping from Keira. It only increased Keira’s feelings of trepidation.

Taking a breath, she changed course and headed for Elliot’s office.

When she entered through the door, he looked up. To Keira’s surprise, he stood and opened his arms to hug her. Keira awkwardly moved into his embrace, feeling like a kid hugging a distant uncle. Friendliness didn’t suit him.

“My hero returns,” Elliot said, taking his seat again. “I’m sure you’ve heard the news?”

“What news exactly?” Keira asked.

“About the subscription increase.”

“No…” Keira admitted.

Elliot continued. “They’re soaring. Lance is thrilled. He said as long as we can keep this up he’ll have no need to intervene in the magazine’s direction at all. Everything can stay exactly as it is. As long as you keep doing what you’re doing.”

Keira wasn’t entirely sure how to interpret that. “In what way?”

“The love articles,” Elliot said. “The Romance Guru.”

Keira felt a sudden heaviness in her chest. Hadn’t Elliot actually read her last article? She was in love now. Genuine love with a real human man who wanted to be with her. Not like Shane who had other priorities. This time, Cristiano had traveled across the world for her, leaving his home, his family, his work and his country behind. There was no more Romance Guru, not if it required her falling in love again!

“I’m sorry,” Keira began, “Are you saying that you want me to write another Romance Guru article?”

“Of course,” Elliot replied, looking confused. “It’s all anyone wants. Our readers. They love it. Can’t get enough. Insatiable. And we need to keep up the momentum. So we’ll have to send you away again immediately.”

Keira’s heaviness turned to panic. “No,” she gasped. “You can’t. I’ve only been back two nights!”

How long would it take for Bryn to get her claws into Cristiano? For Maxine to start sniffing around? For her mom to terrify him into leaving? She couldn’t up and go again!

Elliot looked confused. “Keira, everything’s planned,” he said flatly. “Heather has got the flights booked already. Paris, Keira. PARIS. This is the best assignment yet and we’re handing it to you on a plate. The rest of the staff out there would kill for this.”

“I’m sorry…” Keira stammered. “But I can’t. I truly love Cristiano. This isn’t a game for me. I don’t want to leave him. And I don’t want to go somewhere else and try to find love.” She took a deep breath. “If that’s what you need me to do, I’d rather quit.”

Elliot was shaking his head, his eyes averted. To Keira’s surprise, his shoulders began to shake. Was he crying? She knew how close things had come at the magazine to imploding, and she knew how much Elliot had given up for Viatorum, how much it meant to him. But this was her life as well. Surely someone else could take up the Romance Guru mantel? They could even pretend to be her for all she cared! What would it matter to the readers after all?

But then she realized his shaking shoulders were not tears, but laughter. She frowned, annoyed, unable to understand what could be so amusing to him.

“Keira,” Elliot finally said. “I’m not asking you to leave Cristiano. I want you to go together.”

Keira paused, stunned by the revelation. “Together?”

“Yes!” Elliot cried. “Our readers love him. People are painting pictures of him and putting them on the internet! He’s all anyone can talk about on the forums.”

“Forums?” Keira repeated.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Had her descriptions really painted such a good picture of her Italian tour guide that she’d inadvertently made him into some kind of hero?

“I don’t get it,” she said. “You want us to go together?”

“Your love story is a hit, Keira,” Elliot told her. “People want to know how it works out. Hashtag Team Shane or Hashtag Team Cristiano. Who will she marry?”

“MARRY?” Keira cried. “What is going on? I think you’re all getting a bit ahead of yourselves. I’ve only known Cristiano for a few weeks. I’m not thinking about marriage. And he isn’t either!” She folded her arms, feeling defensive, like some kind of spectacle.

Elliot softened his voice, clearly picking up on her distress at last. “Keira, what we want to see is more of you and him. What would it look like in Paris? Can your love last in a new place? Of course in Italy, on his home turf, it worked. And back here when you’re surrounded by your creature comforts it works. But somewhere new? What about that? Neutral, equal ground. Can love last in a foreign place?”

Keira blinked at him, stunned into silence. “You want to… put my relationship under stress to see if it breaks?”

Elliot tipped his head to the side. He clearly hadn’t thought about it that way. “Well, I mean, I wasn’t expecting it to break you up. Just curious.”

“Curious,” Keira repeated, feeling more and more put out. “This is my life, Elliot. My real, actual life. I’m not a lab rat.”

Elliot shook his head. “I’m saying this all wrong,” he said. “Look, the whole idea is that you guys get to spend a month in Paris. You do the travel thing, the love thing. Write it all up. The readers are happy. You two are happy. I’m happy. Period. The End.”

“Except it’s not the end, is it?” Keira challenged. “Because you want some kind of conflict. You want the stakes to be raised.”

“It’s just the best angle,” Elliot told her calmly. “To see if you can come back with your love just as strong.”

Keira had no doubt that a month in Paris wouldn’t break her relationship. It would stay strong, she was certain. What she objected to was the way that Elliot talked about it. Like she was part of an experiment or a story book, rather than a real person with real emotions.

Elliot leaned his arms on the table in a more open stance. “Keira, what does your New York City life look like at the moment? No apartment of your own. Staying at mom’s.”

“How do you know about that?” Keira stammered.

“I have my ways” he said, shrugging.

She remembered the time her mom had called her in Italy to convince her to stay on the magazine. Elliot had prompted that call.

“Have you been speaking to my mom?” she asked suspiciously.

He looked guilty but replied innocently enough. “Mallory and I chat occasionally.”

Keira took a sharp inhalation of breath. Why did her mom feel the need to interfere so much in her life?

“So,” Elliot continued, sweeping it under the carpet. “Really, being in Paris would give you the privacy you need. A whole month just the two of you. No sister in the way, no mom interfering.”

It did sound good, Keira thought. What difference would it make if they embarked on their relationship in New York City or Paris? Other than the fact that here they were crowded with people all eager to meet Cristiano. At least in Paris it would just be them. They’d be anonymous again.

“After this article,” Elliot added. “I might be able to loosen the reins a bit here at Viatorum. Promote you. Then you can pick your own assignments. If this works, and we get the angle right for the Romance Guru, I’ll let you take control of the whole thing. No more last minute postings. No more Antonio’s.”

Keira grimaced as she remembered the first tour guide she’d been paired with in Italy, the pot bellied, cheese-smelling, perpetually-gruff Antonio.

“You really mean that?” she asked. “One more assignment, with Cristiano, and then I’ll be able to set the path for the Romance Guru as I choose to?”

“As long as you’re still going abroad and writing travel articles,” Elliot said, “I don’t care where you do it.”

Keira wanted to test this theory a little. “Australia?” she asked.

“Why not?”