Up for Love in London Read Free Page A

don’t you
come up for a coffee? I just finished serving dessert.”
    “That’s why I
rang. Give me a few minutes and I’ll bring my tablet too. I’ve got
some great shots of you and Brad by the Eiffel Tower. I meant to
email them earlier but you know how time flies in this job.”
    Do I ever. It
seems like only last week the entire crew was out walking in
Luxembourg Gardens, digesting after a hearty meal of steak frites
and red wine at Chez Francois. Olivia was playing with her latest
digital camera, which is about as complicated to operate as this
aircraft.
    I didn’t
realize that was when Brad met his new girlfriend Jennifer. She got
tipsy on wine during dinner and grabbed onto Brad’s free arm as we
all meandered through the park. I thought she was cute - harmless
and a bit immature. She laughed and draped herself over him while
Olivia clicked shot after shot. “It’s my first flight to Paris. I
want pictures with all the crew, even the pilots.”
    “Lauren? Are
you still there?” Olivia’s voice jolts me back to the present.
    “Yes, sorry.
See you soon, okay?” and I hang up.
    I really don’t
want to see any pictures of Brad, but surprisingly, I’m curious
about Jennifer. I only met her once, but it’s easier to put one and
one together in retrospect. I realize Brad and I weren’t an ideal
match, especially since I’d like a steady beau, someone to have fun
and share my life with. Maybe not marriage, not yet, but something
more substantial that what I’ve had so far. Olivia had called Brad
a serial monogamist. She might be right, though I’m not sure about
the monogamous part during his “transitions.” He said nothing had
happened with Jennifer yet, but I’m not completely naïve.
    I don’t know
how long I’ve been sitting, staring at the coffeemakers, when I
feel Olivia’s hand on my shoulder. “Lauren, I’m sorry to hear about
you and that bastard Brad. But I’ve got some great photos of you –
maybe for an online dating site?” She pulls the other jump seat
down and sits beside me.
    I feel a lump
rising in my throat and tears sting my eyes. “How did you
know?”
    “Richard just
told me, he overheard me talking to you, but darling, you know what
a small world this business is. It doesn’t take long before
everyone knows what you’re doing.”
    She leans in
for a hug. “Don’t be upset. You deserve better, and until you find
him, have fun, like I do.”
    My tears are
more from embarrassment than they are from heartbreak. Everyone
knows it was Brad who got tired of me, for all he said I was the
“perfect woman.” I suppose that phrase alone should have warned me.
My parents taught me that no one is perfect, and that when you love
someone, you accept that—without being a doormat.
    But Olivia is
right. The world is full of men. Finding them is another matter.
Some women are just naturally outgoing and men flock to them. For
me, dating is hard work. I don’t want to go out with someone if
there’s no immediate chemistry. Even then, I get nervous about what
he might expect. And if I’m more interested than he seems to be, I
feel like a puppy at the pound on adoption day.
    “Do you have
any plans for the layover?” I ask.
    “I’m going to
visit family. And I’m returning on the earlier flight so I won’t
see you then either.”
    The interphone
rings again. It’s Richard, asking for Olivia’s help in the aft
cabin.
    “Duty calls.”
We both stand and she hugs me again. “I’ll email but in the
meantime, let me be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas or as
we say in the U.K., a Happy Christmas. I hope Santa is good to
you.”
    “Thanks Olivia.
Same to you.”
    I’m wiping away
a tear when Charles pulls aside the galley curtain. “I hope I’m not
interrupting.” He seems slightly embarrassed. “It seems as though
you just lost your best friend.”
    “Hardly.” I
sniff and continue. “Would you like something?”
    “A coffee would
be wonderful.”
    “Decaf