They distributed the contents of the tray between them. Lotta declared she’d be happy with any of the pastries and ended up with an iced cinnamon bun that was delicious.
‘So you’re in?’ Ingrid asked Oda.
‘Yes, I think so,’ she said, raising an eyebrow to Lotta for confirmation.
‘Definitely. You’ve saved my life, Oda. And your work is the perfect mix of contemporary and heritage. It’s going to be amazing.’
‘Great!’ Ingrid said. ‘So can we move on to how you’ve managed to turn my workaholic big brother into a love-struck teenager?’
Lotta almost choked on her mouthful of bun, but at least it gave her a couple of seconds to think about what to say.
‘Ingrid!’ Oda said, laughing. ‘It’s none of your business.’
‘If you knew Mats better, you’d be as curious as I am about Lotta’s magical powers.
‘Honestly, there’s nothing to tell,’ Lotta said. ‘We’ve only been on two dates, so it’s very early days.’
‘But you know he’s leaving the city and going to live on an island, and you’re still dating him.’
‘What’s that got to do with it?’ Oda asked.
‘Mats has had bad luck with women,’ said Ingrid. ‘I think because of what he does, he mixes in these circles of materialistic women who just want him because he’s a rich banker. Lotta didn’t even know he was rich when she met him, and now she’s still seeing him even though she knows he’s going to pour all of his money into this island hotel.’
Wow. No wonder Mats was reluctant for her to meet his family. She felt the need to defend him but was aware that this moment could make or break any future relationship she might have with Ingrid.
‘None of that matters to me. He’s kind, thoughtful, considerate, and okay, he’s handsome, but all of those things are still true wherever he lives. Whatever his job is.’
‘You think he’s handsome?’ Ingrid said, scrunching her nose.
‘Oh, he’s handsome,’ said Oda. ‘That man can wear a suit.’
Lotta laughed, feeling the tension release, but still feeling the need to fight Mats’ corner. ‘I don’t want to be rude, Ingrid, butyou have to respect the fact that he might be your brother, but he’s also my very new boyfriend. He might not want me to know everything about him, and if he does, he can tell me himself. The same way I’m telling him the best bits of myself and waiting until later for the rest.’
Now Ingrid smiled. ‘I’m sorry. You’re right. And it’s only because we know how great he is that we’re excited someone else has noticed.’
‘It’s okay. I have sisters and they have opinions on everything that’s none of their business too,’ she said gently. It felt bold to reiterate what Oda had already pointed out to Ingrid, that it was none of her business, but also important.
‘Don’t break his heart.’
Lotta was taken aback but recognised that with everything Ingrid had said up to now, she’d been trying to say this. She couldn’t promise not to break his heart anymore than he could promise not to break hers. She was wise enough to know that breaking a heart wasn’t always intentional. ‘Don’t worry,’ she said, ‘I don’t intend to.’
After Ingrid left to get back to work, Lotta and Oda made plans for the next steps. In a couple of weeks, when Lotta came back to Oslo, they would meet with the Folk Museum to present a shortlist of designs that Lotta would already have signed off with Snug head office in London, and they would do some filming with the influencers.
Lotta went back to the hotel feeling elated, and before she packed up to leave for Mats’ place, emailed Clemmie outlining the progress she’d made on the trip and asking for confirmation they would go ahead with Oda. Now she could concentrate properly on enjoying the last evening she and Mats would have together for a couple of weeks.
She packed her things up, checked out of the hotel and walked the short distance to Mats’ apartment. It was aroundfour-thirty, so she was surprised to find he was already home from work when she let herself in.
‘Hey,’ he said, smiling. He came over and lifted her bag off her shoulder, then wrapped his arms around her waist and bent to kiss her. ‘I’ve missed you.’
‘Missed you too,’ she said, leaning into him, loving how solid he felt. He was wearing jeans and the same cable-knit jumper he’d been wearing the first time they’d met.
‘I thought we could open a bottle of wine and order in?’ He picked up her bag and case and took them into the bedroom.
‘That sounds perfect.’ She took her coat off and hung it next to Mats’ on the row of pegs beside the door. ‘I met your sister today,’ she called while she sat down on the bench to take her boots off.
She heard a groan, and he came into the hallway looking worried. ‘What did she tell you?’
‘Nothing terrible,’ she said, smiling and quite enjoying the dynamic between him and Ingrid play out. ‘She wondered why I’d bother seeing someone who’s going to move to an island, that was one thing. And she said you’ve had bad luck with women.’
