Page 175 of Lovestruck at Sundown
“My job at Haute Magazine would get in the way if I were to accept this,” I said, immediately regretting having said the words, but there was no turning back. “Preparing myself for the exhibit and all it entails would be time-consuming.
“Then quit your job at Haute to work on the exhibit and keep your job at Empire. I only need you once a week. I’m sure you can manage that.”
That would be the ideal scenario for me, but I didn’t know if that would be possible. “They need me to travel to Paris for a week in January and then again for an entire month to preparefor the opening. I can’t just drop everything here and leave,” I said. “And I enjoy working with you. It’s my dream job.”
“I enjoy working with you, too,” she said, her eyes wrinkling as the corners of her lips tugged into a small but warm smile. “You’re efficient, punctual, and well-mannered, and those are qualities I greatly appreciate in the workplace. We make a good team, and there is no way I would allow you to leave, especially considering how well my column is doing. I’m superstitious about these things, so the team can’t change. You stay.”
Her phone chimed, and she checked the notification as I freaked out about what her last statement meant.You stay. Did that mean I wouldn’t be able to accept the exhibit offer?
“We can plan ahead,” she said, resting her phone on her lap. “We can schedule two interviews a week starting mid-December. That way, I’ll have the materials ready to submit to the editors when you leave.”
“You would do that?” My eyes widened with genuine surprise. Abigail was highly respected in the magazine, and I had no doubts that if she wanted me to stay on her team, she’d make it happen, even if I quit my job at Haute.
“As I said,” Abigail reiterated, “things are going well as they stand, and I can’t allow any changes.” She winked at me and returned her attention to her phone.
I was going to quit Haute, remain on Abigail’s team, and accept Louis Beaumont’s offer. The moment I made that internal decision, an overwhelming feeling of euphoria took over me. As much as I enjoyed working at Haute, there were plenty of things I could do without. Pursuing a more artistic route for my career made sense. It felt right. For years, I had wanted to be and feel free, and I’d finally achieved it in other areas of my life after so many ups and downs and challenging, painful situations. Saying goodbye to my 9-to-5 was an item onmy checklist that I hadn’t realized was there.
We arrived at the airport, and Aaron dropped us off on the tarmac close to the plane. A crew member was waiting to help us with our luggage, so I said goodbye to Aaron and followed Abigail up the stairs.
A man with golden hair was sitting in one of the rear-facing seats, so I could only see the back of his head. An undeniably familiar scent invaded my nostrils as I approached him, and I gasped when I saw him.
Abigail dropped her backpack on an empty seat and said, “Good evening, Mr. Sjöberg.”
William rose from his seat and turned around to face us. “Good evening, ladies.”
“What the hellare you doing here?” I rushed toward William and embraced him, burying my face in his chest and breathing him in.
“Is this how you greet all your guests?” He laughed, and Abigail chuckled behind me. “Someone needs to teach you some manners.”
William is the high-profile movie executive flying to Munich?
“Shut up and answer my question.” I squeezed him even tighter, unable to fathom William was inside this plane with me.
I broke off the embrace to allow him to shake Abigail’s hand.
“I’m here to grant Empire Magazine an exclusive interview about some exciting updates in my career,” William revealed. “And since I’m done with the press tour, now seemed like the perfect moment to do this.”
“What updates?” I shook my head, confused. William and I talked daily, but he hadn’t told me anything about anycareerupdates. “What do you mean?”
“Will you be conducting the interview today, Billie?” Abigail interrupted me, crossing her arms at her chest and raising a quizzical brow. “Or can we learn to cultivate our patience? We wouldn’t want our guest to explain himself twice.”
My face heated up, and I didn’t need to check myself in the mirror to know my cheeks were burning pink. “I’m sorry,” I said, working my lower lip. “You’re right.” William being our guest today didn’t mean I could stop being professional, and Abigail was expecting nothing less from me. She’d told me she thought I was well-mannered back in the car, and here I was, making her second-guess herself about it.
The flight attendant told us we were ready for takeoff, so we stowed away our belongings and buckled up. I sat next to William, and Abigail sat across the table in front of us in a rear-facing seat.
The captain briefly explained over the speaker what to expect for our trip to Stockholm—not Munich,Stockholm. I bit my tongue and repressed the urgent need to ask about it.
“I lied, Billie,” Abigail said in an almost comically flat tone. “If I told you we’d be flying to Stockholm, it could’ve raised suspicions, and one of William’s requirements for granting us this interview was to keep it a secret from you.”
“Ah.” I playfully nudged William’s arm with my elbow, not one bit surprised by his petition. “It’s okay. I understand.”I’m used to his surprises.
I squeezed William’s hand as the airplane took off on the runway.
Why are we going to Stockholm?
What bomb are you about to drop on us?
I had so many questions, but I knew I needed to wait patiently for the interview to begin.
