Page 64 of The Hopelessly Bromantic Duet

Most of all, my mind jumps to the best part.

Seeing Jude on the reg.

Asking him to be my boyfriend risk-free.

My heart thunders so wildly, and I nearly set a hand on my chest to calm it down. Surely, Richard can hear it.

I smile, too big for work, but I don’t care. This solves everything. This is the best news ever. There’s only one question—Richard hasn’t said when the new job begins.

“So, when do I make the change?”

He glances at the wall as if the answer resides on a clock. “Monday,” he says evenly, as if he were giving me a deadline on a deep-dive piece.

Holy shit. I could be making more money in a week. I could have enough to pull this off—romance and work.

Sex and a career.

Jude . . . and me.

“So, I’ll work out the week in finance, then I’ll move desks on Friday,” I say, trying but failing to hide my enthusiasm.

This is some kind of luck. This is like finding Jude on Cecil Court. This is rom-com meet-cute fate.

“No. You can have the weekend off to pack and unpack, of course,” he says.

“Pack?” I don’t have that much on my desk. What’s he talking about?

“Oh!” He chortles, like I’m a silly boy. “The job’s in New York, TJ.”

Ohhhh.

Right.

My shoulders sag.

“Media and TV and marketing. That’s a New York post,” he says, likeduh.How did you not know this, you idiot we just promoted?

“Yes. Of course,” I say lightly, swallowing past the knot of disappointment lodged in my throat.

“We’re sending you back to New York,” he adds. “On Friday. So you can start Monday.”

The floor drops from under me, and for a few seconds, the office spins. My head spins. The whole city whips on its axis. “This weekend?” I repeat.

“Yes. Friday is this weekend,” he says, clipped, like he doesn’t have time for ridiculous questions.

Understandable.

“What happens to the job here?” I ask, and I’m not sure why. It’s not like I’ll beg to stay. When you’re twenty-three and get a big, fat raise, you follow the job.

You don’t follow the man.

“We’re going to outsource your post to a freelancer. The New York bureau is eager to have you back. HR has all the details. Hope you enjoyed your time in London. Be sure to go to Fortnum and Mason before you leave.”

I’m dismissed in a daze, and the HR woman waits for me in the hall, then takes me to her office, and we review the details. My flight to New York is Friday night. The company will cover the lease here for three months, as per the contract, and 24News will help me find a new place in the city.

That’s all.

Like a zombie, I walk to my desk, sink onto the chair, and stare out the window.