Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
I had found a new job at a fashion magazine, HAUTESCENE, that had just put its first online issue out six months before. The editor, Nell, seemed like the perfect boss: no-bullshit, competent, and a champion of women in the workplace.
All in all, I couldn’t wait. And even though I was feeling a slight nostalgic tinge from looking around my old bedroom, I knew it wasn’t like I was going to the moon. Dad would kill me if he didn’t get to see Ada at least once a month, and I knew that even with a great new job and an apartment in my favorite city, I’d still want to come back home.
Finally, I tore my gaze from the walls and went downstairs where my father, brother, and daughter were all waiting for me.
“Ready to go, Mommy?” Ada asked. She blushed as she looked up at me, and her big sapphire eyes wide with excitement.
I nodded. “All ready,” I said. “You have your bunny?”
Ada smiled and held up her toy.
“Good,” I said. “We’re all set.”
My dad and Topher took the U-Haul and I buckled Ada into her car seat before climbing behind the wheel and starting the engine. As always, car trips made Ada conk right out so I drove to New York accompanied only by my thoughts. My mind started to spin – I’d only been back once since leaving almost four years before, and that had just been for my interview at HAUTESCENE.
It was a huge city – one of the biggest in the world – and yet I couldn’t help but feel a flash of trepidation at the thought of running into Nico. My new office was right around the block from the building where Ulrich Sports had rented their offices ... not that I’d checked to see if he was still around, or anything.
Get a grip, Harper, I told myself as I sped up and merged onto the highway. This is a new chapter – time to act like it.
Thankfully, there wasn’t much traffic, but it still took most of the afternoon to get to my new apartment. It was in Brooklyn – nothing fancy, but it would do for the time, and there was even a playground right down the street where I hoped Ada could play. My daughter was shy – sometimes it made me laugh as I wondered where on earth that had come from – but I was hoping that when she started pre-school, she’d break out of her shell a little. I’d only been a little older than Ada was now when my mother had died and my dad had moved us to Boston, but thinking about that now made those years feel as distant as Pluto.
“We’re here, baby,” I called over my shoulder as I eased my car into a spot on the street. The U-Haul was already here, blinkers flashing and my dad and Topher scurrying back and forth with boxes and pieces of furniture. People were streaming by on the street and I couldn’t help but grin, already feeling buoyed by the familiar, frantic energy of New York.
“Nice place, sis,” Topher said, raising an eyebrow at me. I followed his gaze to a group of college girls, standing on the corner in short-shorts and halter tops.
“You’re such a perv,” I said, groaning and rolling my eyes.
“I think I’ll come visit. Often,” Topher said, his eyes still glued to the skinny twentysomethings. “Hell, maybe I’ll even move here.”
As I set the last box down in my apartment, I wiped my brow on the back of my arm. It was a mild day out, but I was sweating like a pig from the effort of hauling boxes and furniture. There was no denying it – at thirty-two, I definitely needed to start working out or else I was going to risk getting a gut ... and somehow, with my new gig at HAUTESCENE, I had a feeling that wouldn’t fly at all.
After wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans, I went looking for Ada. The apartment was thankfully big enough for her to have her own bedroom, albeit a small one, and I had plans to decorate it in her favorite colors, pink and mint green. She was sitting on the floor of her room pulling her stuffed toys out of a box and arranging them.
“What’re you doing, love?” I asked as I walked over and squatted down next to her.
Ada turned to me and beamed. She had a great smile, but sometimes it reminded me so much of Nico that it was almost painful.
“Showing them their new home,” she said, enunciating carefully. “They couldn’t breathe in there,” Ada added as she pointed to the moving box with a chubby hand.
I nodded. “Very smart,” I told her. “I’m lucky to have such a considerate daughter!”