Page 35 of Embracing Love

“What’s up?” asked Nadine.

“I’m not sure,” Tanya replied, honestly. “Jetlag, maybe. I’ve been feeling unsettled for days. At first I thought it was Milan.”

“Milan?” asked Nadine, “what’s wrong with Milan?”

“It’s not Paris.” They both laughed at the absurdity of the comment.

“You seem to be settling in well.”

“I am. I think I almost feel at home in Paris. I don’t know how I’m going to handle six months in Milan, I was glad to get out after a few weeks. The people are lovely. You know Mario and Chantelle, then there’s Gianni, and so many other new faces. It’s just that…it’s like starting over, you know.”

Nadine listened patiently while Tanya tried to express what she’d been feeling. It was everything. Vincent, his pregnant girlfriend, and work. Many things. She’d never shared much about her past with Nadine and Tanya didn’t want to ruin this weekend by seeking counselling advice.

She was determined to make the most of this weekend and to enjoy it for what it was.

Yet she couldn’t help herself; desperation did that sometimes. “They’re having another baby.” She paused and looked around the room which was slowly starting to fill with people.

“Who?”

“My ex-husband and his girlfriend. Baby number two is on the way.”

“I didn’t realize you were still hung up on him.”

“I’m trying not to be.” Lately, she’d been thinking of Gabriel more. She had been using him as eye candy, and he’d replaced Luc when her mind sometimes drifted.

Her time in Milan had made her feel more unsettled than ever, and she’d felt more like a nomad than ever, moving from country to country, for a short while, with nothing permanent, no roots, to go back to. She had come to understand that her ‘escape’ plan wasn’t working the way she’d envisioned when she had first left San Francisco.

She couldn’t escape from her loneliness.

“We’ll talk later. Thierry and Stephan are coming over.” Nadine looked beyond Tanya’s shoulder and waved. “I promise we’ll talk this out. Are you coming back to the office?”

Tanya shook her head. “I’m flying straight back on Monday morning. I’ve been away from the Paris office for a few weeks.”

Nadine’s face dropped.

“We’ve got the weekend,” said Tanya, now suddenly wishing she’d taken a few days more.

Thierry and Stephan greeted them enthusiastically. She got the impression that people from the Milan and Paris offices were looking forward to seeing each other—it seemed odd that the only opportunity they got to do so was at this event all the way in the US.

But the yearly convention was greatly looked forward to by people on the other side of the Atlantic.

“We missed you, Tanya.” Thierry told her.

“I’ve missed being away.” She replied. “The jet-lag’s a killer, isn’t it?”

“I'm happy to be here,” replied Stephan. “It could be a twenty-four hour flight and I wouldn’t mind.”

“It’s a great way for us to meet people from other offices,” Thierry added.

“I suppose it is.” Tanya looked around and waved Mario and Chantelle over. Another round of enthusiastic introductions followed.

“When are you coming over next?” Thierry asked Nadine.

“Sometime in August.”

“Two gorgeous women. What more could you ask for?” said Luc as he and Mitchell suddenly joined them all. Tanya exchanged a polite ‘hello’ with him, and they all stood around making small talk. Nobody spoke about work much until Luc asked, “What about the new London office?”

Tanya looked over to Nadine, since she didn’t know much over and above the fact that Michael had just been there and things were still in the early stages.

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