Page 148 of Ten Years and Then…
Nora, the same time
They were in the hotel room, after another swim in the basement pool and half an hour in the steam room afterwards. Nora felt clean and clear-headed and ready to go. “What’s the plan for this afternoon?”
Rachel had mapped out every step of the trip so far; Nora assumed this afternoon—and tonight—would be no different.
But her aunt didn’t answer right away. She was still fiddling with her phone. She finally let out a frustrated grunt and tossed it onto the bed. “What the hell, Bianca? Why won’t you answer me?”
Nora blinked. Did she hear that right?
“Rachel, did you just say Bianca?” Her aunt turned to her, and she wasn’t fast enough to hide the surprise on her face. “You did! I knew something was going on! What are you up to?”
Rachel looked like she was caught between laughing and screaming. She sat heavily on the bed and sighed deeply. “Fine. You caught me. This whole trip is a setup. Daniel’s cousin called me in October. We had a long talk, and we both agreed—the two of you needed an intervention.”
She had seen Bianca Tuesday night outside the Lebanese restaurant! And Rachel had been watching for someone specific at the ballet. And again at the Galeries Lafayette yesterday.
For an instant or two, she was angry. Outraged.
What gave them the right to play God with her life, or Daniel’s?
She stared at her aunt, and the anger drained away.
Rachel was the person she trusted the most. Just like Bianca was for Daniel.
That’s who they were—the most loyal, loving and stubborn people in her and Daniel’s lives.
Of course they had the right.
And they were right.
She still loved Daniel. She loved him two years ago. She’d never stopped loving him.
And she never would.
Daniel, a moment later
This was insane. Beyond insane. What was Bianca talking about?
She was starting to calm down. She still held his hands. “It’s all because I love you, Danny. And Rachel loves Nora. And you and Nora needed a push.”
This was all a setup? This whole trip?
It all made sense now. Why Bianca was obsessively checking messages on her phone. Why she was constantly looking for someone, at the ballet, out shopping yesterday, pretty much everywhere they’d gone.
If anyone else had told him what Bianca just said, he’d have stormed out. Cursed her name. Booked a flight home for tonight.
But it was his Bee, who always, always looked out for him, his whole life. Who would never, ever hurt him, no matter what.
And she was right. He loved Nora. That hadn’t changed. It wouldn’t ever change. It had been two years since the cruise and he was still single. Still alone. Still missing her.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” he said, chuckling. “Not in a million years. But I probably should have.” He sat down on the bed, by the dead phone. She sat next to him. “Tell me from the beginning.”
So she did.
It started with a little detective work (“Thank God I remembered you told me Rachel was on Nora’s father’s side, so I knew her last name. I would never have tracked her down without that.”), then a two hour phone call (“She’s really easy to talk to, it was like we knew each other for years.”).
Then they’d made the general plans for Paris (“Swear to God, I was thinking about Paris for New Year’s anyway. You know how hard I’ve been working—I deserved a vacation!”) and the specific ones, and that’s where things started to go wrong (“I’ve never been to Paris, how was I supposed to know there are two opera houses?”).
“So you were texting each other this whole time?” That must have been tedious. And he could see how it might lead to miscommunications.
