Maybe Baby (17 page)

"We already work very closely with them," I reminded him. "We've been back and forth to Copenhagen so many times, working through the weekend..."

"
That's why we think it's more productive if the three of you work more intensively, on location, with the Fogh group." Jens adjusted his glasses on his slightly off-center nose. He flopped down into the chair beside mine and stretched out his legs. "Actually, they requested it. They'd rather work with you guys on a daily basis until the project's complete, so it means you'll have to stay in Copenhagen until just before Christmas."

Until Christmas? I was a little dumbfounded. I wasn't expecting that at all.
"I'll need to talk to Niklas about this."

"
Why? If it was his career, he'd go in a heartbeat." Jens wasn't one of Niklas's biggest fans. Mainly because Niklas was the reason our Friends-With-Benefits status had ended. "Besides, you can fly home at the weekends, or he can go visit you there. And if the project ends well, the big bosses are saying they see big bonuses and promotions ahead for all three of you. So. Are you game?"

I nodded. He was absolutely right about Niklas. He wouldn't consult me if an opportunity like this was in his grasp. He would say yes, and then tell me about it when the wheels were already in motion. Any of my concerns would be disregarded or downplayed. So I nodded again and told Jens I was most definitely game. Niklas and I needed a break, but neither of us was willing to take the next step. Now it was done.

There was already a packet of information waiting on my desk when I left Jens's office. He'd known I would say yes. The only thing I had to do was book my airline tickets and pick the hotel-apartment I wanted to stay in. So I booked my flight and chose a two-bedroom apartment near Rosenborg. And then I sent a text to Niklas with the news. I waited for an answer, but there was none.

Eddy wasn't and I met for a late lunch at Restaurang Publik in PUB, hoping we could avoid the crowd. When I arrived, Eddy had managed to secure a table for us and was battling off the latte mammas looking for tables of their own. She'd already ordered for us and, from the looks of it, she wasn't in the best of moods.

"
I fucking hate these women" Eddy muttered as she attacked her plate of
raggmunk
: Swedish-style potato pancakes served with back bacon and lingonberry sauce. I was picking at the "health plate" she'd ordered for me.

"
Are you trying to tell me something?" I gestured at the sad-looking plate of mixed greens, topped with cottage cheese and tasteless chicken. "Have I started getting a little roly-poly?"

"
No. They didn't have any
raggmunk
left." Eddy grimaced. "Jesus Christ, what is that smell?"

We both looked at the woman sitting at the table b
eside ours. She was changing her infant right at the table.

"
Are you fucking insane?" Eddy snapped at the woman. "You don't change babies in the middle of a restaurant! That's what bathrooms are for!"

A waitress rushed over and escorted the young mot
her to the ladies' room, preventing another Eddy meltdown. Now that she was calm again, I jumped right in and told her, "Jens is sending me and my team to Copenhagen until we finish our project."

Eddy gave me a suspicious look.
"And you didn't initiate this?"

"
No. That would be a little extreme, don't you think?"

"
Not considering how Copenhagen-crazy you've been lately." Eddy smirked. "How many times have you been there?"

"
Not as often as you're implying."

"
So what does Niklas say?"

"
Nothing so far."

"
Haven't you told him?"

"
I sent him a text, but he didn't answer."

"
A text? Come on, Laney, you need to talk to him face to face."

"
I will. I'm not just going to pack and move without telling him."

"
You talk like it's permanent."

"
I'm only there for a few months."

"
Mighty convenient, all things considered."

"
Okay, you know what? Let's forget it. Tell me how you're doing. Everything okay with you and Andreas?"

"
No," she said tersely. "He said he wants to take a break from us."

"
Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry!" I took her hand in mine and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Why didn't you say anything? Why haven't you called me?"

She shook her head.
"It's embarrassing. I can't believe he's doing this. And the girl he wants to 'explore things with' is like... twelve, practically!"

"
Eddy... really?"

"
No, but she looks it. She's a model for Elite Stockholm and she can't be any older than maybe eighteen or nineteen. How am I supposed to compete with that? I can't. And that bastard expects me to just continue running the business, while he gallivants around Europe with her."

I held her hand and listened as she told me about how long she'd suspected he was being unfaithful, how it brought out her old insecurities and made her so crazy that she'd finally moved out of their apartment and was borrowing a friend's apartment in
Södermalm while he was in Singapore. "The worst part of all of this is that it makes me miss Colin."

"
Have you heard from him lately?"

"
No, not since Rome." She brushed her bangs back and let out a long sigh. "Shit, Laney, none of this is really about that stupid girl or Andreas. Not really. It's because I still love Colin. Shit. You told me this a while ago. I should have listened."

"
Did you tell Colin how you feel?"

"
He's seeing someone now," she said quietly. "He told me he'd always have feelings for me, but he didn't know if he could go through everything with me again."

Eddy blinked quickly.
"I hate this. I hate that I've been living with Andreas and getting caught up in his bullshit, when the person I really want is Colin and he can't take my bullshit anymore."

We sat together for a long while without saying a word. I wasn't used to Eddy being the vulnerable one. Of the two of us, she was the one who always had snappy comebacks, who never overanalyzed comments or life in general, she was the one who used to prompt me to just go with the flow. When she and Colin were together their instability never seemed to affect her—she always laughed it off or joked about how their fights always led to great make-up sex—but now I understood it was a
lways an act. 

I was on my way back to the office when Niklas finally returned my call. He was brusque with me. I didn't blame him. He probably assumed I'd initiated this temporary move to Copenhagen. And when he finally insinuated it, I corrected him.

"
I didn't initiate anything, Niklas. Jens and the client decided this was best. And it's not just me moving. Marius and Johan are going, too."

I was nearly at the office and stood in the centre of Dandelion Park. Around me, tourists milled, maps clutched in their hands. A few were poised to ask me for help but I avoided making eye contact with them, and headed for the crosswalk.

"So when is this move supposed to take place?"

"
As soon as possible. I told Jens I needed to speak with you about it, but he was pretty insistent."

"
What if I'd said no?"

"
Niklas, this is my job. It's not like this is some whimsy of mine."

"
You don't need to work. I could take care of everything."

"
I like my job. I want to work. I don't want to be one of those ladies who lunch."

"
I just don't like this, Laney."

"
I know, sweetie, but it's work. And it's only for a little while. You could always come down at the weekends to see me, and I could come back to Stockholm."

"
I feel like I'm losing you."

"
Baby, you're not losing me." I retorted quickly. "I'm going to Copenhagen to finish a project. And when the project is over, I'm coming back to Stockholm."

"
Will you still be here when I come back from Göteborg?"

"I don't go until next Wednesday.
"

"
We'll talk about this on Sunday, when I'm home again." His voice was distant. I could imagine him standing by the window in his office, staring down at the food hall Östermalmshallen and its rich red brick facade.

I said okay, but it didn't matter if he was annoyed about my going. I'd already agreed to go, and so had my team. I knew that Sunday would be a litany of co
mplaints about why I was going. I had the feeling Niklas would turn the discussion into an analysis session, but I wanted to avoid that. I didn't want to justify going. I loved my job. Writing copy and working with my team of art directors satisfied me. And we both knew that if the tables were turned, he'd go without consulting me. And he'd expect me to simply accept it.

My temper was a bit short when I finally walked into the office. I'd already relived in my head the conversation with Niklas and found myself wishing I'd had far more assertive arguments. I should have confronted him about his own ambition but it would have done no good. I dropped my bag on the floor by my desk. The soft leather sagged and my iPhone clattered onto the floor. When my phone beeped, I thought it would be another message from Niklas. Instead, it was a text from Mads. It was short and simple.

—
I'm here now.

And that was exactly what I needed to make me smile again.

He was waiting for me in the hotel bar. My heart danced a little when I saw him, but I didn't rush over to him, or scream with delight, or any of the other reactions my body was trying to coerce me into. I listened to my brain as it said, Play it cool. Don't make a scene. Wait until you're upstairs to do anything crazy. So, instead, I sidled in beside him and said a casual "
Hej
" and kissed his razor-stubbled cheek.

He wrapped his arm around my waist and kissed my lips.
"Can't believe I'm here with you."

"
It feels weird." I was glad it was so crowded in the bar. I was still afraid I'd bump into someone who knew Niklas and me. "I'm so used to you and me in Copenhagen."

We kissed again. Mads held me closer, his hand slid from the middle of my back to my ass. He gave it a good squeeze.
"You've got the most amazing ass," he said, his lips just barely grazing mine. "Maybe we should skip these drinks, and go back to my room."

"
Maybe we should," I agreed, and then we went downstairs to the bustling lobby and headed for the elevator banks. Mads kept his hand on the base of my spine and his touch filled me with a longing to be naked and at his mercy. We were nearly at the elevator when I heard someone calling my name. I recognized the voice.

I stopped and turned. There was no point in trying to avoid a confrontation. My de facto stepdaughter, Siri was striding towards me. Her impossibly high heels clicked on the floor.
"What are you doing here?" she said. She trained her eyes on me, then Mads. "I thought you were going to Göteborg with Dad."

"
I'm meeting some colleagues." The lie rolled quickly from my tongue. A little too quickly and easily. I gestured at Mads. "Siri, this is Mads. Mads is from the Copenhagen office."

Siri, with her perpetual pout, tossed her blonde hair back and flicked her eyes over Mads. She said a quick hi and then regarded me again.
"I'm surprised to see you in this part of town. You usually never come to Södermalm."

"
Yes, well, like I said, I'm meeting colleagues. We're actually on our way upstairs for a meeting."

"
You skipped spending time with my dad for a meeting?"

"
I have to work, Siri. I think your father understands that."

Mads interrupted.
"We should go. Hillevie and Jonas are waiting upstairs."

"
Yes, of course. Look, Siri. I've got to go."

Mads and I boarded the elevator, keeping a safe di
stance until the elevator doors slid to a close. I was shaking. I had barely laid eyes on Siri in weeks, and now she'd shown up when I was with the man who was the reason I was betraying her father. I flinched when Mads tried to take my hand. "Not yet," I murmured. "Not yet."

"
Was that Niklas's daughter?"

I nodded.
"And she's probably calling him now."

I tried not to think about Siri. I wanted to forget about her completely but the arrogant expression on her face, the way she'd flicked her eyes at me and then Mads, rankled me. I was convinced she'd sussed us out—otherwise why would she ask me how I could ditch her father for work? She'd never cared before what I did with my time. Mads did what he could to distract me. He had an arsenal of tricks, but none of them were working tonight. My brain was fucking with me, and there wasn't much to be done about it.