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Nicole arrived in New York at three a.m. London time. Her eyes were red from utter exhaustion. She hadn’t slept a wink on the flight. Her brain was overflowing with excess information and thoughts circling round and round in her head. She snatched her luggage from baggage claim, heading for the bathroom. She needed to splash some water on her face and get her thoughts in order. She couldn’t fall apart in front of Audrey.
As she was leaving the bathroom, she walked passed a newsstand, seeing her face plastered across the front page of at least three tabloid magazines. She squinted, reading the headlines, “Reece Collins and female friend caught swimming with the fishes.” “Reece loves to give it from behind.” “Brit boy likes to slam the Yank.”
Nicole was suddenly nauseous and lightheaded as the color drained from her face. She was now an international, amateur porn star. Yeah, that’s something every girl wants on her resume.
She blew out a breath from between her lips, straightening her shoulders. She wasn’t going to let this destroy her. She was going to work through every debilitating obstacle thrown her way and conquer this foe.
She stopped at the Starbucks, ordering a venti white chocolate mocha with an extra shot. There was nothing better than a jolt of caffeine when she was feeling low.
She took a seat in the café, pulling her laptop out of its case and firing it up while she waited for her editor, Audrey to arrive. She had a few hours to wait before her flight home, so she decided the best way to forget her problems was to lose herself in the troubles of her characters. Soon enough, she was tapping away, her coffee forgotten at her side.
She looked up from the screen only once to discover a few people staring at her. She quickly lowered her head back to the computer, surreptitiously covering her face with her hair. She didn’t know if they recognized her from the pictures, but she wasn’t taking any chances.
She was scanning over what she’d written as Audrey arrived, sitting down beside her.
“Sorry I’m late. It’s been hectic at the office. How are you?”
Nicole glanced around. No one was looking their way. “I’ve been better; how about yourself?”
Audrey patted her hand. “Things will improve shortly. A new scandal will come along, and your sexcapades with Reece Collins will fade into oblivion.”
Nicole hmphed. “Have you gotten many offers for my porn video?”
“We’re in negotiations,” Audrey replied, laughing. “Stop worrying so much. You’re not the first person caught on film at an inappropriate time.”
“I know, but you don’t know what I’m going to be walking into when I get home.” She was avoiding all phone calls with a 9-1-9 area code.
Her editor took pity on her. “If it gets too bad, come back and stay with me. I liked your company before you left for merry ole’ England.”
“Thanks. I’ll think about it.” She reached into her laptop case, retrieving a folder. “These are the revisions you wanted. I hope they meet with your approval.”
Audrey’s eyes skimmed over the words. “It looks good. I’ll go over it thoroughly when I get back to the office before passing it on to the proper channels.” She straightened the pages, clipping them together. “I want you to keep working on your next novel. Just write, even if you think it’s terrible. Type until your fingers bleed, and then type some more. Were you able to get any research done?”
“Yes, I got some really good stuff.” She grew quiet, thinking about the ruins and Reece.
“It’s going to get better, Nicole.”
She glanced up, tears in her eyes. “I know. I don’t know how our heroines do it.”
“Do what?”
“Live with a broken heart.”
“They do it because we give them the strength to do it. Give yourself some of that strength while you’re at it.”
“I’ll try.”
“You will, or you will not; there is no try.”
“Thank you, Master Yoda.”
Audrey smiled, but she looked tense as well. “He’s been calling the offices. My voicemail is inundated with messages.”
Nicole felt her eyes widen. “You didn’t tell him anything, did you?”
“No, I’m not under any obligation to offer him that information.”
