Page 12

“No, Lex, the last line of the book—you know, the one about the best friend who’s also a good writer? It’s you, it is!”

“Aw, Lucy—”

“Oh, hold this?” Lucy handed Alex her champagne and pushed back some curls to adjust a sparkly rhinestone earring.

Alex blinked, catching a shadow on her friend’s neck. “Lucy, what’s that purple mark? Looks like a bruise…or a hick—”

“Oh, that.” Lucy cleared her throat and snatched back her flute. “I burned my neck. Bloody flat iron. It looked worse three days ago.”

“Looks sore. For a minute, I thought maybe, you and Charlie finally—”

“Yeah, right!”

Mark’s eyes crept open.

Alex stroked his thigh. “You okay, babe?”

He rubbed his eyelids which hovered at half-mast. “I’m fine, yeah.” His Irish lilt sounded deflated and unconvincing. “All this rushing about is catching up with me. This shoot has been a killer.”

They swayed back and forth in their seats as the bus careened around an army of orange pylons. Seeking stability as much as intimacy, Alex wrapped her arms around Mark’s neck, pulling him closer. “Well, that’s because you, my talented boyfriend, give everything to your roles. No wonder you’re exhausted. But, in three weeks, it’s holiday time! New York City in December is so beautiful, and I’ll finally get to show you Florida. I know meeting my mom won’t be a highlight, but we’ll make the best of it.”

Mark glanced at Lucy and hunched farther into his girlfriend. “Mouse, there’s been a slight change in plans.” He murmured so only she could hear.

“A slight change?”

He drooped his head, evading her eyes. “It’s my next job, A Promise Unspoken, the movie in Newfoundland…Canada…” Mark winced. “It’s been moved up…to this year.”

Alex scrunched up her eyebrows. “This year?” The smile abandoned her face. “But you already told your agent and the director—we’re spending December in the States.”

“I did, but they’ve had to move up the start date to save the production. Some funding fell through. The producers tapped into tax credits that are only available now. We start filming this month—”

“Instead of March?” Her sharp tone, punctuated by a loud metallic squeak from the bus caught Lucy’s attention. “How long have you known?”

Mark’s eyes wandered. “For a bit.”

“How long is a bit?” Alex’s arms retreated from his shoulders.

“Four weeks—”

“Four weeks!”

“I wanted to tell you in person.” Mark swallowed heavily. “Production will go through to mid-February…with two days off at Christmas.”

With his mother’s house finished, Alex had thought she would see more of Mark now, not less. “So, just like that, our holiday is cancelled?”

“Not cancelled, babe, postponed. We can go straight after the movie wraps. I still want to meet your mum—and your sister and brother.”

Alex sagged in her seat and looked out the front window, the landmarks rushing past dissolving into watery blobs. Mark breathed in deeply. Noticing the tears collecting in her eyes, he clasped her hand.

“Think of it this way, Mouse: the postponement might be a good thing. It gives you time to start smoothing things over with your mom. You don’t want to go all that way and end up fighting the entire time. That would be such a waste—”

“No, you know what’s a waste?” Alex’s throat pinched tight. She pulled her hand away from his, crossing her arms. “Cancelling again…especially after last April. I can’t believe this, Mark. You said we’d go for sure this time. You said work wouldn’t interfere with another holiday…and now we won’t be together at Christmas either.”

“I know, but it’s out of my control. I can’t say no to the producers, can I? Not if I’m already signed on.”

“Actually, you can, Mark. You just won’t.”

“Come on, Lex.” His fingers wrestled with his shirt collar. “There was nothing I could do. It’s not my fault.”