Love Like Theirs (The Romance Chronicles—Book #4)

CHAPTER ONE-1

CHAPTER ONE

Keira opened one eye. As her mind transitioned from sleep to consciousness, it dawned on her where she was. Bryn’s couch. Again. Just like yesterday and the day before and the day before that.

She groaned, squeezing her eyes shut again, willing herself to go back to sleep. When she was asleep all that stuff with Cristiano disappeared. She could pretend she’d never broken his heart, that she’d never walked away from possibly the best love of her life. In her dreams, she could also pretend she’d sorted herself out, that she wasn’t still sleeping on Bryn’s couch, wasting her days watching reality TV, avoiding all her friends’ calls, and constantly delaying her boss Elliot’s request for her to choose a location for her next overseas assignment.

The room was dark in the weak early December light. As she lay on the couch, staring up at the shadows on the ceiling, Keira became aware of the sound of running water. The shower. Bryn must already be awake, which was unusual considering it was a Saturday morning and Bryn had been hungover every Saturday morning of her adult life.

Confused, Keira sat up, the old couch creaking beneath her, and heard the gurgle of the coffee machine. She sniffed and the aroma filled her nostrils. Bryn was up and making coffee? That wasn’t like her sister at all! Something was up. Bryn was the slob of the pair, but these days it was Keira who lay around all day getting nothing done. But she couldn’t help it. After everything that had happened with Cristiano, she just wasn’t ready to face the world.

Keira heard the click of the bathroom lock, then the sound of Bryn’s heavy footsteps as she bounded down the corridor. Keira could hear her whistling a toneless tune. She came into view, wrapped in a yellow towel, with another wrapped around her head.

“Oh, you’re awake,” Bryn said, stopping in her tracks and smiling broadly. “I made coffee. Want some?”

Keira frowned suspiciously. “Why are you in such a good mood? It’s Saturday morning. Come to mention it, why are you even up?”

Bryn laughed. “I had a quiet night in. Turns out when your liver isn’t busy trying to filter poison out of your body, you feel kinda good.”

“I’ve been trying to tell you that for years,” Keira mumbled. She sunk back onto the couch, resuming her position looking up at the ceiling. A second later, Bryn’s face appeared over her. Water dripped from stray tendrils of hair onto Keira’s face.

“You do a very convincing impression of a corpse,” Bryn told her.

Keira scoffed and folded her arms across her chest, looking away from her sister.

“That’s even better!” Bryn joked.

Keira just ignored her. She heard Bryn move away, heading back to her bedroom to get ready for the day. Keira felt bad for being so snappy with her sister, especially considering the huge favor Bryn was doing her by allowing her to live in her apartment rent free. But then she remembered the myriad times Bryn had been snappy and ungrateful with her and decided that a little bit of role reversal wasn’t so bad.

She heard Bryn pad back into the living area. “I’m pouring you coffee,” she announced.

Keira sighed and sat up. “I don’t want coffee,” she said. “I don’t want anything that will interrupt my sleep. I just want to sleep forever.”

She looked over as Bryn ignored her request, pouring her a coffee into the biggest mug in the house. She came over and handed it to Keira.

“I’m not letting you waste another day on that couch watching Netflix and feeling sorry for yourself,” she said, handing her the cup. “Drink this. Wake up. When was the last time you showered?”

Keira frowned as she took the steaming mug. “Thursday evening.”

Bryn rolled her eyes. She whirled back to the kitchen counter and poured herself a mug.

“Why are you up so early anyway?” Keira muttered, taking a little sip of the coffee. It was scalding hot. She placed it down on the side table.

“Because…” Bryn sung, reaching onto her tiptoes to fetch a new bottle of her favorite caramel syrup. “Felix and I have plans.” She landed back on her heels, syrup in hand, and grinned at Keira triumphantly.

Felix. Felix. Felix. That was all Bryn ever talked about these days. She’d gone from being a serial man-eater to a committed girlfriend. In any usual circumstances, Keira would have been thrilled for her sister finally settling into a steady relationship, but Felix was the same age as their mother and Keira couldn’t help getting a bit creeped out. It felt a bit too Daddy-Issues for her liking. The fact their own father had abandoned them when they were infants only added credence to her theory.

“What kind of plans?” Keira asked.

She saw a distinct blush creep up Bryn’s neck. She shrugged in what Keira instantly recognized as an attempt to look nonchalant. “Oh, just a bit of home decor shopping.”

Keira narrowed her eyes. Why would that be making Bryn blush? Perhaps because it was the kind of thing an adult did, and that was something Bryn, much like Peter Pan, had sworn against ever becoming. Or perhaps because her party-loving sister was embarrassed to admit she could have as much fun choosing lamps with her lover as she once did raving all night in a New York City nightclub. Or…

“When you say home decor you don’t mean an ornamental cat for the mantel, do you?” Keira asked, swiveling to get a better look at Bryn’s face.

“No,” Bryn replied in her same sing-songy voice. “I mean more like furniture.”

Keira gasped. “Why are you picking out furniture with Felix?”

Bryn instantly flushed a deeper shade of red. “He has a new apartment, that’s all. It doesn’t mean anything. Stop looking at me like that!”

“Are you moving in with him?” Keira demanded, firing another quick question at her floundering sister.

“I don’t know,” Bryn laughed. “Who knows?” She buried her head in her coffee mug, attempting to hide her grin with it but failing miserably. There wasn’t a coffee cup in the world wide enough to conceal the wideness of Bryn’s smile.

Keira was stunned. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her sister had finally been tamed. The drama was worthy of one of her articles!

“Anyway, stop trying to change the subject,” Bryn said, suddenly. “We were talking about you and how you’re turning into a couch potato. You can’t spend another weekend at home. Please, get out and do something. It’s really not good for you to sit around inside all day.”

“It’s cold out,” Keira moaned.

“So?” Bryn replied. “Wear a hat! You’re born and bred New York City, you can handle the cold!”

Keira chewed her lip. She remembered a text that had come through from Shelby last night. She hadn’t responded yet, but her friend had invited her to a party Saturday evening, which was tonight.

“Actually, I’m going out this evening,” Keira told Bryn, sounding smug.

“You are?” Bryn asked, arching an eyebrow in obvious disbelief.

“Yes,” Keira replied bluntly. “I’m going to a party. I was going to ask you to come along.”

“I’m glad to hear it. But I can’t. Felix and I are having an early night.”

Keira laughed loudly. “Who are you?”

Bryn laughed. With a little shrug she said, “People change.”

When Keira gave little more than a grunt in response, Bryn sat down beside her and rubbed her back. It was very unusual for Bryn to be so caring.

“I know you’re hurting,” she said in a soothing, maternal voice. “But dwelling on the pain does not help you heal. You need to get up and face the day. A shower would be good for you.”

“Fine,” Keira grumbled. “I can take the hint.”

She got up from the couch, her muscles aching as she did. The crick in her neck was becoming a permanent feature now.

“I’ll be gone by the time you’re done,” Bryn said.

“Okay, have a nice time,” Keira replied. “Send my hellos to Felix.”

Bryn blushed immediately.

Keira went into the bathroom, shaking her head at the complete transformation of Bryn. It was amazing how much the love of a man had changed her sister, she thought, as she peeled off her grubby pajamas and turned on the water. She stepped inside the cubicle, closing it behind her.

As the water ran over her hair and skin, Keira marveled at the role reversal she and Bryn were going through. As much as Bryn had changed for the better, Keira felt that she herself had changed for the worst. The end of her relationship with Cristiano had hit her like a freight train. It was even affecting her work. Elliot was eager to send her abroad again for another assignment, but they’d had three meetings about it now and each time Keira had found an excuse not to commit to a location. When he pushed, she’d remind him of how he’d promised her more creative freedom after the last assignment, and that would shut him up temporarily. But it couldn’t last forever, she knew that. Just like how living in Bryn’s apartment and sleeping on her couch couldn’t. Keira would have to pull herself together sooner or later.

She washed the lather from her hair, realizing as she did so that Bryn had been right. A shower was just what she needed to rejuvenate her mind. Perhaps going to a party this evening would be good for her, even if she didn’t feel like it. Sometimes what you want and what you need are different things, Keira reminded herself. Those words had become her personal catch phrase whenever she found herself beating herself up over what happened with Cristiano. Just because she’d wanted him, didn’t mean he was right for her. Still, sometimes it was easier to believe her own words than those of others.

She stepped out of the shower, wrapping herself up in fresh towels, and went back to the living room to find some clean clothes for the day. All her stuff was still in boxes and suitcases, but she’d become so accustomed to this way of life now she knew where to find most things. The top she was after would be in the shoe box under the coffee table. She crouched down to reach it. As she did, her gaze fell to her cell phone. She fought the familiar compulsion to check and see whether Cristiano had been in touch, instead grabbing the box and rummaging through it for the top she wanted. As she pulled it out, she remembered the last time she’d worn it: Paris, during one of their romantic strolls through the rain-soaked city. Her heart ached immediately, and she dropped the top, grasping instead for her phone, her willpower suddenly gone.

She had no notifications but checked every app individually just in case he’d decided to get in touch through some slightly more obtuse means than text or email; a “like” on one of her photos, for example, or posting a link to a relevant news story on her wall. But with a sad sigh, Keira realized there was nothing. Cristiano had made no attempt to reach out to her, even subtly, since she’d ended things in Charles de Gaulle Airport.

The uncomfortable sensation in Keira’s chest made her realize how much she needed to see her friends tonight. A party might not be the best environment for her right now, but being with Maxine and Shelby would be. For the first time in a long time, she found herself looking forward to human company.

*

Keira hurried up the steps of Shelby and David’s house. It was freezing, and she was dressed in a barely there black dress. She shivered on the step as she pressed the bell over and over, impatient for the door to be opened.

At last it swung open, letting light, music, and chatter pour out at Keira. She rubbed her arms and looked up to see Rob, David’s brother, at the door.

“Hey,” he said, looking her up and down. Then an amused frown appeared between his eyebrows. “Keira Swanson? Is that really you?”

“Yup,” Keira replied. “Can I come in? I’m freezing!”

“Of course!” Rob replied, moving out of the way. Keira hurried past him, out of the darkness and into the brightly lit corridor. He closed the door behind her. “I didn’t recognize you. You’ve changed.”

“I’m not twenty-one anymore, if that’s what you mean,” Keira replied, shirking off her jacket.

Rob took it from her, hanging it on a spare peg. “Was that the last time I saw you?”

Keira nodded. “Yup. Graduation from college.” The heat from the apartment began to warm her and she stopped rubbing her arms quite so vigorously. “So, how are you?” she asked Rob, attempting to make polite small talk.