One Way Ticket to Paris: An emotional, feel-good romantic comedy

by Emma Robinson

  Shannon looked startled. ‘Your ex, Tim?’

  Who else would she be talking about? ‘Yes, my ex-boyfriend, Tim.’

  Now Shannon looked cross. ‘The ex-boyfriend who you were dating for eight years and who still didn’t know whether he could make arrangements more than two weeks in advance in case he got an offer of a gig in some shitty bar?’

  Kate took another glug of wine. ‘Yeah. That one.’

  ‘Are you actually insane?’ Shannon tapped her temple with her forefinger.

  Kate sighed. ‘Nothing happened between us. It was just friends going out, listening to music.’ So why did she feel so guilty about it?

  Shannon leaned back in her chair. ‘So, Luke knew all about it?’

  ‘No.’ And that was why she felt guilty.

  Shannon started to shake her head. ‘You are crazy, Kate. Luke is such a nice guy. You’ve been so happy with him. You’ve got the kids. What’s happened? Is there a problem between you?’

  Where should she start? Shannon was right – Luke was a great guy. But that wasn’t the problem. How could she make Shannon understand how she was feeling?

  ‘The thing is, some days it’s just hard work being a mum. No individual task is difficult – getting them dressed, making meals, keeping them busy – but the whole thing is relentless. You asked me earlier if I ever regret having kids and the honest answer is, yes, there are moments when I do. I sort socks into pairs to the backdrop of the third episode of Paw Patrol and think of all the other things I could be doing if I didn’t have the children. I mean, some days a trip out to the freezer in the garage feels like a mini-holiday.’

  Kate pulled a face and Shannon laughed gently. ‘Is it always like that? I mean, aren’t they at school during the day?’

  Kate sighed. ‘No, it’s not always like that. Usually the feeling passes and I feel okay again, but lately I just feel overwhelmed all the time. These last few months, I’ve just felt… lost.’

  That was the best way Kate could describe it. She looked in a mirror or heard herself speak and didn’t even recognise herself. She’d lost interest in going out or inviting people over. Didn’t really care what she wore or whether she’d brushed her hair. She even found herself boring. How had it happened?

  Shannon leaned forward and rubbed her arm. ‘But you’ve had a tough time this year, honey. Losing your dad and all.’

  Kate shook her head. She was grieving for her dad, yes. But this had been going on for longer than that. ‘You asked me about Luke, and he is part of the problem. I love him and he’s a great dad, but he just doesn’t understand what it’s like for me. It’s not just looking after the kids, that bit’s okay. It’s all the other stuff.’

  She hadn’t expected Shannon to understand the baby stuff, but this was about relationships, feelings. Shannon was usually good at this, but right now she looked like she didn’t understand a word Kate was saying. ‘What other stuff?’

  Kate flailed around for examples. ‘Taking the kids to parties, buying a gift for the party, remembering the dates for school events, buying costumes, helping them write out twenty-eight Christmas cards, scheduling play dates…’ As Kate reeled off the list, she could feel her chest get tighter and tighter. Each of these things sounded tiny, pathetic and easily achievable. Put together, they stretched out like the Andes. Insurmountable.

  Shannon frowned and sipped at her water. ‘But do you have to do all these things?’

  This was like talking to Luke. How could she make Shannon understand? ‘Yes. If I don’t do them, no one will. That’s what I’m trying to say. Luke doesn’t even think they are important.’

  When she had told him that they had to sign the children up for swimming lessons, he had suggested that they start taking them at weekends for a ‘bit of a splash about’. When she’d found out about a dressing-up day at the last minute – and he had picked up a couple of costumes from the supermarket on his way home from work – he had thought she was mad sitting up until three a.m. to make home-made ones instead, after seeing a photograph on Melissa’s Facebook at eleven p.m. He had been in bed at two a.m. when she had cried and wished she could have called her mum. But she couldn’t keep doing that. It wasn’t fair on her mum. She had enough to deal with.

  Shannon put her head on one side. ‘And are they important?’

  For the love of God… ‘Yes!’

  Shannon put her head on the other side. ‘Why?’

  Kate screwed her hands up tightly. She could feel the wave coming up over her shoulders. ‘Why? Why? Well, because, because the kids want to do these things.’

  ‘They want to write twenty-eight Christmas cards?’

  ‘Well, no, maybe not that one.’ Kate had spent three hours at the table with Alice that night. By the end of it, Alice had been in tears because Kate had yelled at her that it was the last possible day they had to get them done. The last three, Kate had written herself, and it had taken several attempts to accurately forge Alice’s handwriting.

  Shannon nodded. ‘And the birthday presents. Why don’t you just stick five pounds in a card?’

  Kate was shocked. ‘Because that shows no thought at all.’

  Shannon picked up her glass of water and raised it at Kate as if she had won this argument. ‘Exactly! That’s my point, nut-job. Less thinking, less hassle. And probably less plastic shit in the environment.’

  Clearly, Kate hadn’t managed to convey the magnitude of the problem to Shannon. ‘But what would the birthday child’s mum think?’

  Shannon frowned again. ‘What mum?’

  ‘The mum of the child. She would think I didn’t care.’ Kate could just imagine the boxes and boxes of brightly wrapped gifts on the present table and her sending Alice in with a measly envelope. And what if the envelope got lost because someone thought she’d just brought a card, and then they would think she hadn’t bothered to send a gift at all. And then Alice might never get invited to another party again.

  This wine was giving her heartburn.

  Shannon shrugged. ‘And she’s a friend of yours, this imaginary mum?’

  Friends? Well, Nina was her friend, but Nina wouldn’t care what she brought. In fact, Nina wouldn’t be insane enough to host a children’s party in the first place. ‘Well, no. Not especially. I’m not really friends with many of the mums; I just see them in the playground at drop off and pick up.’

  ‘So why the hell do you care what they think? Next? What other inane tasks are you doing which are time-consuming yet irrelevant?’

  Before Kate could answer, a tall, dark attractive man entered the bar behind Shannon and strode over to their table. He held out a hand to Kate. ‘Hi. I’m Robert. You must be Kate.’

  Wow. So this was Shannon’s boyfriend. He was a very good-looking man. That baby was inheriting some pretty good genes on both sides. Kate shook his hand. ‘I am, yes. It’s nice to meet you.’

  He smiled and turned to Shannon, who was staring straight ahead, her mouth tight. ‘May I speak to you for a few moments?’

  Shannon still didn’t look at him. ‘I’m with my friend right now. I will speak to you tomorrow.’

  Kate had seen that face before. It was scary. It was Shannon’s ‘take no crap’ face and there was no debating with it. Not if you wanted to escape alive.

  Robert had obviously seen it before too, as he nodded agreement. ‘I’ll be around for a while tonight; I’m going to get a drink and sit at the bar. Maybe we can speak once you’re finished here.’ He smiled goodbye to Kate and backed away. Kate almost felt sorry for him.

  Once he was out of earshot, she leaned towards Shannon. ‘Don’t you think you should…’

  But Shannon cut her off with a cough as she sat up straighter in her chair. ‘I think a lot of this is your own fault.’

  Had she heard her correctly? Shannon was supposed to be her friend. She was a plain speaker, but she was also supportive. Kate must have misunderstood. ‘Pardon?’

  Shannon was tapping on the table. ‘I’m n
ot saying it’s easy, being the one at home. But I think you’re bringing a lot of this on yourself.’

  Kate felt the hackles rise at the back of her neck. This was not what she had been expecting. ‘On myself?’

  Shannon nodded. ‘You care way too much about what other people are thinking.’

  Kate clenched and unclenched her fists under the table, pressing her nails into her palms. ‘Really?’

  ‘Yes. All these other mothers who aren’t even your friends and who probably don’t actually give a shit if your kid has the right costume or if you’ve baked an amazing cake for the bake sale. And it’s not Luke’s fault, either.’ She raised her mineral water to Kate. ‘You did this to yourself.’

  Kate felt as if her face was on fire. Shannon had absolutely no idea what she was talking about. How dare she! ‘You don’t understand. You don’t have children.’

  Shannon shrugged. ‘Maybe not, but I can see how much you’ve changed. And not entirely in a good way.’

  Instinctively, Kate put her hands to her waist. She knew she wasn’t as trim as she used to be. But that had nothing to do with this.

  But Shannon was shaking her head. ‘I’m not talking about looks. You are beautiful. I’m talking about your personality. Your outlook. Your general demeanour. Where has your fun gone?’

  Fun? Kate couldn’t even remember what fun was. The word ‘fun’ was followed by other words these days. Fun Factory. Fun Palace. Funfair. None of which were Kate’s idea of a good time. It was very easy for Shannon to sit there and go on about ‘fun’ when her life was exciting and different and she had the freedom to do what she wanted, when she wanted. Just wait and see how much fun she had once the baby was here and she had to juggle her life the way Kate had to. Kate felt the roar start in the back of her chest. She couldn’t stop it.

  ‘You just wait until you have this baby. It is nothing like you’re expecting.’

  Shannon raised an eyebrow. ‘I’m not intending for it to take over my life, though.’

  ‘Ha!’ That had come out a lot louder than Kate had intended. ‘That’s what everyone says. You have no idea what it’s going to be like. No bloody idea whatsoever.’ Kate was drunker than she realised. Her tongue was going and she couldn’t stop it. ‘It’s so easy for you to judge! To sit there telling me what I am doing wrong with my life! I know I am in a mess, I know. But you can’t tell me how to fix it, can you? Can you?’

  Tears were rolling down her face. Where had they come from?

  Shannon took her hand. ‘Kate, I’m sorry, I…’

  But Kate felt a fool. A stupid fool. For the second time that evening. She pulled her hand away from Shannon’s. ‘I’m going to my room.’

  ‘No. Don’t go, please, I need to…’

  But Kate was on her feet. She swayed slightly as she scooped her room key from the table. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Shannon

  Robert had one of the most expressive faces Shannon had ever known. If something was on Robert’s mind, it was on his face. A grin or a scowl; she couldn’t decide which was more attractive.

  Right now, his mind must be pretty mixed up, though, because she couldn’t read his face at all. Except that it seemed determined. ‘We need to talk.’

  Shannon was trying to disentangle her blazer from the back of her chair so that she could follow Kate. She had completely spoken out of turn. The look on Kate’s face! What a terrible friend. It wasn’t her place to tell Kate what she should and shouldn’t feel. Trying to fix her problem, telling her what to do when all Kate had wanted was for someone to listen to her. Who did Shannon think she was? A man? ‘Not now, Robert. I need to speak to Kate.’

  He caught her by the arm and scowled. ‘Yes, Shannon, now. You have been avoiding me all day. It’s ridiculous; we’re not children.’

  Shannon froze. Looked down at his hand around her forearm and then back at him. He let go.

  ‘Désolé. I’m sorry. I just really want to talk to you. I can’t bear this.’ He ran his fingers through his hair.

  Shannon rubbed her arm. He hadn’t hurt her, but how dare he think he could grab her like that? ‘I have not been avoiding you. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but we have the entire European team to look after. We are supposed to be working.’ She didn’t have time for this conversation. Kate was probably in her room by now, alone and upset. And it was Shannon’s fault. She needed to go to her right away.

  ‘And tomorrow we will be with the sales team all day. It is late now. They are all asleep, or will be soon. Let’s go to your room and talk. Or mine?’ Last night after their row and tonight in the hotel would be the longest they had slept separately for months. Apart from Shannon’s recent trip home to the US, that was. She hadn’t invited him to come with her then.

  It had felt a little lonely, waking up without him this morning, although it had helped not to have to conceal her nausea. It would be the most natural thing in the world now to take his hand, go back to the same room and curl up together. There was no one from Sentek around so, as long as they set an early alarm, they would probably get away with it.

  But Shannon was tired. Really tired. She didn’t want to blame the unborn child for her fatigue – poor little guy or girl was getting a rough enough deal as it was – but it was most unlike her to feel like this. Normally an event like this would make her energised, running on adrenaline and black coffee. She couldn’t even blame alcohol, as she hadn’t touched a drop since her first suspicions that her sickness might be womb-related. ‘Robert, I am honestly just too exhausted for this right now. I’ll speak to you tomorrow night, when the others are on their planes home. Bonne nuit.’

  She headed out of the bar in the direction of the elevators. What room number was Kate again? As soon as she got this sorted out with Kate, she would also need to call Adam. Hopefully, she could persuade him to contact Faye and tell her to stay away. That there was nothing to be gained from her confronting Shannon. In fact, that she might end up even more hurt. At the same time, Shannon would bawl him out for giving Faye her work address. What the hell had he been thinking? Much as she had promised herself she would never speak to him again, it needed to be done. And soon. What time would it be in Chicago right now?

  Robert was following her. Why was he not getting the message? ‘Shannon. I can’t go to bed until we have spoken about this. I don’t understand…’

  His intensity was something that had drawn her to him in the beginning. Shannon herself was pretty straightforward – what you saw was what you got. This Parisian man with his tempestuous outbursts and dramatic pronouncements had been exciting and different. Right now, though, she could do without it. She stopped and closed her eyes. ‘Robert. I can’t do this.’

  He threw his hands in the air. ‘What is so difficult? I love you. You love me. We are in a relationship. I have a daughter. She has a birthday.’

  For the love of God, why wouldn’t he shut up about this for one minute? A wave of frustration rose in her chest, her fists clenched by her side. ‘I do not appreciate being trapped, Robert. Springing your daughter on me like…’

  His eyes widened. ‘But I didn’t! I didn’t! It was a… a… what’s the damn word? Coincidence!’

  Shannon crossed her arms and looked at him. Did he think she was a total fool? ‘Yeah, because Parisians often go for dinner on those tourist boats. Especially twenty-year-old girls. I hear they just can’t get enough of the frogs’ legs.’ She turned and stalked out of the bar. Faster this time.

  It was Robert’s fault that she had spoken to Kate like that. Seeing him had wound her up so much that she’d snapped. At the wrong person. Get to Kate. Fix it.

  Why was he still following? Usually he found her sarcasm humorous. Not today. His voice was getting louder. ‘So now I am a liar, too?’

  She was about to snap again. He really needed to back off now. ‘Come on, Robert. Don’t be an idiot. You hassle me all day to meet your daughter and then, as if by
magic, she appears.’

  Robert put his fingers to his scalp and started to pull his hair at the roots so that it stood in dark peaks from his scalp. His voice got even louder. ‘You gave me no choice! Vero was out nearby and suggested she came to the boat to say hello. What was I supposed to say? “No, Veronique, you can’t meet my girlfriend even though I have been dating her for a year.” How would that have looked? She’s my daughter, Shannon.’

  One of the many things that Shannon would not accept from a man was being shouted at. Especially in public. They were outside the elevators by now and there was no one around, but the principle was the same. She loved this man, but right now she wanted to be as far away from him as possible. She had a million things to say and she had to put them in the right order. Now was not the right time. Kate, and Adam, were more urgent. Robert was going to have to wait. She lowered her voice. ‘I am not talking about this now.’

  She turned towards the elevator and pressed the call button, still with no idea which floor Kate was on. In the safety of her own room, she would call Kate’s mobile. If she didn’t answer, she would contact reception. The room was on the group booking she’d made in her name for the sales delegates, so they would let her know the number.

  But Robert was too riled to recognise the signs that he should stop badgering her. He continued to pull at his hair, but at least had the decency to lower the volume of his voice. ‘You always say this! “Not now, Robert. Later, Robert. I am not in the mood, Robert.” The party is next weekend. Why not right now?’

  Shannon whipped around. She had tried to warn him. Had asked him to wait until tomorrow. She had wanted to do this calmly, sensitively. But now he was going to get it.

  Her hands clenched either side of her body and she took a step towards him, her voice low but angry. ‘Why not now? Well, let me think. Maybe because we are in a hotel lobby and anyone could walk in at any moment. Maybe because we have sales people here from across Europe who are – incidentally – absolutely crapping themselves about presenting their sales figures to you tomorrow. Or maybe – just maybe – it’s because I am pregnant and I am absolutely freaking devastated about it!’