Page 70 of Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye
His eyes bulged. “Grapes? On pizza?!”
“YESSS! There’s nothing better than a slice straight from the oven with bacon, roasted red peppers, gooey gorgonzola, a splash of honey—and grapes. Mmm! It’s the perfect mix of sweet and savory. Don’t knock it till you try it! My favorite place in Brooklyn makes it, got me totally hooked.”
Tarquin pretended to gag. “Eating grapes is like scoffing squishy eyeballs. I’d have to be off my head to tuck into that.”
“C’mon! It’s not that bad!” Leia gaped. “God, you and Sarah! She says I must’ve been dropped on my head as a child, altered my taste buds.”
“She might be onto something, baby.” Tarquin winked.
Leia laughed and jabbed a playful elbow toward his ribs, but Tarquin dodged away just in time. “Balfour, you’re so gonna get it!”
“I bloody well hope so!” He flashed a flirty smirk and returned to her side as a surge of wind blew across the Thames, ruffling their hair. “Make sure we go out with a bang, eh? Something to remember.”
“Yeah,” she answered pensively, her eyes lingering over Tarquin’s lips. “It would be nice to stay longer, but…” Her gaze rose, roaming to London’s City Hall up ahead, a glass globe that leaned away from the river like it was too close for comfort. “I miss New York. It’s home.”
Unfortunately. Tarquin cleared his throat. “Did you hear back about that museum job?”
“No! I didn’t even get a second interview! The one time I’m on holiday and want work to call, they don’t. I have a hunch my boss is trying to figure out how to let me down easy. You’d think she’d be a pro by now. It’s the third time I haven’t gotten this position.”
“Really? That’s taking the piss. Maybe you should quit, just design full-time.”
“It has crossed my mind.”
“It has?”
“Yeah. I’ve been saving most of my divorce settlement for a rainy day. Maybe it’s time to open my umbrella.” She giggled.
I could never tire of her laugh. Tarquin smiled. “I hope you cleared him out.”
“Funny, that’s what Simon said.”
“Do you bump into him often around New York?”
“Not really. He lives in Garden City, a suburb on Long Island, but I definitely see him a lot.” Leia tightened her purse’s drawstrings. “He’s kinda famous.”
Why are all the women I like into actors? “He’s in films?”
“No, he’s an athlete—in the NHL.”
Oh! Like her dad. “Like father, like former son-in-law. That’s so…Canadian?”
Leia nodded. “Yeah, but if I could do it all over again, I’d never have married him.”
Ouch, that doesn’t sound good. Did Leia stray? Did her husband? He’s a bloody fool if he did. “So, you’d erase all those years, those experiences—”
The Spice Girls blasted into song from Leia’s coat. “Oh. Sorry!” She winced, digging into her pocket. A quick glance at the screen and she tucked it away. “It’s Saz. She’s working late—I’ll call her later. Sorry, you were saying?”
“Oh, just that you regret being married?”
“I do, yeah. It would’ve saved a lot of anxiety and heartache, and god knows how many hours in therapy. You name it, I’ve done it: couples counseling, cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness sessions.”
“You did all that, plus therapy for PTSD?”
“Yeah. I’m the poster child for therapy.” Leia bounced her eyebrows. “Still fancy me?”
“Of course! Therapy is nothing to be ashamed of.” Unless you’re me. The truth is I’m too ashamed about my depression to even seek help.
“I totally agree,” said Leia. “I mean, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t embarrassed in the beginning. I didn’t tell a soul. But then I thought, this is helping me heal, making me stronger. That’s good, right? So why hide it?”
