She turned on the shower and waited for it to heat up, then stepped inside. As the warm water rolled over her skin, she knew she needed to deliver the news to Alec in person. They were supposed to meet at eleven, but that was hours away.Hours.She didn’t want to wait until then. She didn’t want to be alone with the reality. Which meant heading to theGood Day USAstudios. She’d get there before his big meeting. Or she’d wait in his dressing room until he was done. Done taking the job in news.
She decided to give Alec a heads-up text before she left.Change of plans. Coming to the studio to talk. Hope that’s okay.As she stepped into her jeans, she hit send and wondered why she had to be so impatient. A notification popped up on her phone. A red exclamation mark in a circle.Message not sent.What a pain, but this happened sometimes. She needed a new phone. Whenever she had a spare minute. She powered it down, hoping a restart would solve the problem.
Bundled up in mittens, boots, and a wool coat in a bright turquoise hue to brighten her mood, Brooklyn hustled downstairs to go find Alec. Sweet, adorable Cy, wearing an extra layer under his uniform, was toddling toward her as she got off the elevator. He still hadn’t given her an answer about the job, and at this point, it might be best to simply let it go. They could keep their everyday dynamic, the one that was comfortable and wonderful. She didn’t need to squeezeeverythingpossible from life. Some things simply didn’t work out.
“Ms. Monroe, you aren’t going to the office, are you?” Cy asked.
“I’m not. We have the day off. I’m heading up to the network studios. I’ll need a cab, please.”
“Another TV appearance?” he walked alongside her as they made their way to the lobby doors.
“No. Paying a friend a visit.”
“I kept hoping I’d see you over the holiday weekend, but I think our schedules must have been off a bit.”
“I was spending a lot of time with my family.”
“If you can spare a minute, I’d like to talk.”
“Of course. What’s up?” It seemed polite to ask the question, even when she felt certain of what he was about to say.
“I know I haven’t given you an answer about the job. And I’m sorry about that.” He seemed weighed down from the simple act of bringing up the topic.
She hated seeing him like this and was desperate to give him an easy out. “Please don’t apologize. Cy, I love having you as my doorman and I’m happy to keep things that way. Don’t give it a second thought.”
“So you’ve hired someone else?”
She shook her head. “No. I was waiting on you, but it’s fine that you don’t want it.”
His face lit up. “But I do want it.”
“You do?”
“Yes. It just took me some time to work things out with my wife. Compromise isn’t easy. I even spent a night on the couch, which I haven’t done in years.”
Brooklyn reached for his arm. “Oh, no, Cy. I didn’t mean for this to cause problems. I never wanted that to happen.”
“It’s okay, Ms. Monroe. Sometimes you don’t want the same things. And you have to find a way to work it out. Because you love each other and want to be together.”
Brooklyn smiled. Cy was a font of life lessons. “But you did work it out? You’re coming to work for us?”
“Yes. I can start in January if that’s okay with you. I promised the building I’d give them enough time to replace me. Oh, and I’m going to need ten days off in March so my wife and I can go on a cruise.”
Suddenly Brooklyn had a whole new attitude. There were always silver linings. Glimmers of hope. Always. “Absolutely. No problem. That sounds perfect. I’ll miss seeing you in the lobby, but I can’t wait to see you at work instead.”
“Thank you. I’m excited.” He glanced outside. “If you’re going to head uptown, you’d better go before the snow starts.”
“Sounds like a smart idea.”
Cy ambled outside and managed to hail a cab right away, waving Brooklyn to the curb. “Try to stay warm today,” he said as he held the door for her.
“Thanks, Cy. I appreciate you.”
Brooklyn gave the driver the address, then sat back in the seat. Now that she no longer had the pleasant distraction of a chat with Cy, the matter at hand began weighing on her. She knew how she felt about getting her period—it only made her want to try again to get pregnant. But she was equally eager to work things out with Alec. She feared his reaction to the news. She was scared that he’d be relieved. He was, after all, officially off the hook. Of course, she’d never wished for him to be on that hook. She needed Alec to want her because that was the only thing that made sense to him. Because it was what his heart wanted. No hesitation. Zero doubts.
She laughed to herself quietly. Was she being completely unrealistic? Everyone had doubts, so she wasn’t sure why she would expect Alec to be any different. Everyone had that annoying-ass little voice in the back of their heads that made them wonder if they were making a mistake. You could be 99.9999% sure you wanted something. But there would always be that .0001% that was like the devil sitting on your shoulder.Is this really the right thing to do? Is this person right for me?
Traffic was a bit of a bear, as it always was in the city when snow was threatening. Feeling impatient, she powered up her phone again and tried to send the text from earlier, but the message didn’t go through. She held her phone closer to the cab window, as if that might help with reception, and tried again. But nope. It didn’t work. “Dammit.”
