I have great news!” She slipped her heels off and rubbed her aching feet.
Zachary appeared in the doorway of the living room, his arms folded. His dark hair mirrored his dark expression.
“You missed brunch,” he said. “The whole thing.”
“I’m sorry!” Keira implored. She threw her arms around his neck but found he was resistant, so decided to change tack. She put on her sultry voice. “How about we argue about it and then I make it up to you?”
Zachary shoved her arms off of him and stomped into the living room, where he slumped onto the couch. The room was immaculately clean. Even his PlayStation had been dusted. He was more pissed off this time than ever, Keira realized.
She sat next to him and gently rested a hand on his knee, stroking the denim texture beneath her fingertips. Zachary stared ahead at the TV that wasn’t on.
“What do you want me to do, Zach?” she asked softly. “I have to work. You know that.”
He exhaled and shook his head. “I get that you have to work. I work too. The whole world works. But not everyone has a boss that clicks his fingers and makes his staff come running like drones!”
It was a fair point.
“Wait, you’re not jealous of Josh, are you?” Keira asked. The thought was laughable. “If you only saw him!”
“Keira,” Zachary barked, finally looking at her. “I’m not jealous of your boss. At least not in that way. I’m jealous that he gets so much of you, of your energy and your focus in life.”
Now it was Keira’s turn to sigh. She understood where Zach was coming from on one hand, but on the other she wished he could be supportive of her success. She wanted him to ride out this wave while she was at the bottom of the ladder. Things were about to get easier, once she’d made this next step in her career.
“I wish he didn’t, either,” Keira agreed. “But putting that much effort and energy into my career isn’t going to change. At least not for the next month.”
Zachary frowned. “What do you mean?”
Keira wanted to keep her excitement contained out of respect for Zach but she just couldn’t help herself. She almost squealed as she said, “I’m going to Ireland!”
There was a long, long pause, as Zach absorbed the information.
“When?” he said, coolly.
“That’s the thing,” Keira replied. “It’s a last-minute change of staff. Josh broke his leg. It’s a whole long story.”
Zach just glared as she rambled, looking at her expectantly for the punch line.
Keira hunkered down into the couch, trying to make herself seem as small as possible. “I leave tomorrow.”
Zachary’s expression turned as quickly as a flash storm. If he’d been rain clouds before, he was now thunder and lightning.
“But the wedding is tomorrow,” he said.
Keira grabbed both his hands in hers. “The timing sucks, I’ll be the first to admit it. But I swear Ruth won’t mind.”
“Won’t mind?” Zach snapped, yanking his hands back. “You’re in the wedding party!”
Suddenly he was on his feet, pacing away, running his hands through his hair. Keira leapt up and rushed to him, attempting to placate him with affection. But Zach was having none of it this time.
“I can’t believe this,” he gasped. “I spend all day hosting a brunch with your family, listening to Bryn going on and on about how hot her new meditation teacher is and all her vacuous opinions – ”
“Hey!” Keira said, angry now. Criticizing her big sister was not okay.
“And instead of thanking me,” Zach continued, “you drop this on me! How the hell am I supposed to tell Ruth?”
“I’ll tell her,” Keira suggested. “Let me be the bad guy, I don’t mind.”
“You are the bad guy!” Zach exclaimed.
He stomped out of the living room. Keira followed helplessly. They’d been together for two years and she’d never seen him this angry before.
She followed him into the bedroom and watched as he pulled her suitcase out from under the bed.
“What are you doing?” she asked, exasperated.
“Taking this out,” he snapped back. “You can’t go without a suitcase, can you?”
Keira shook her head. “I know you’re angry but you’re taking things a bit far.”
She took the suitcase from his hands and slung it on the bed. It fell open as if inviting her to start packing it. Keira had to fight the urge inside of her to start filling it up.
Zach seemed to momentarily lose his strength. He deflated, sitting on the end of the bed with his head in his hands.
“You always choose work over me.”
“I’m sorry,” Keira said, not looking at him as she grabbed her favorite sweater from the floor and flung it discreetly into the case. “But this is an opportunity of a lifetime.” She went over to the dresser and rummaged through her bottles of moisturizers and perfumes. “Ruth hates me anyway. She only put me in the bridal party because you asked her to.”
“Because that’s what you’re supposed to do,” Zach said sadly. “You’re supposed to do family stuff together.”
She turned and quickly added the items to her case. But Zach noticed what she was doing and his ever darkening expression grew darker still.
“Are you packing?”
Keira froze and chewed her bottom lip. “Sorry.”
“No you’re not,” he said in a cold, measured way. Then he looked up and said, “If you go, I don’t know if we can stay together.”
Keira raised an eyebrow, nonplussed by his threat. “Oh really?” She folded her arms. Now he’d gotten her attention. “You’re going to give me an ultimatum?”
Zachary threw his arms up in frustration. “Don’t act like you’re not forcing my hand! Can’t you see how embarrassing it will be for me to turn up tomorrow at Ruth’s wedding without you?”
Keira sighed, equally frustrated. “I don’t understand why you can’t just tell them that I’ve landed an awesome opportunity at work. Something that I couldn’t miss.”
“My sister’s wedding should be something you can’t miss. It should be a priority!”
Ah. There it was again. That word. Priority. The thing that Keira would never admit to Zach wasn’t him but her career.
“I’m sorry,” she repeated, feeling her resolve finally weaken. “But it’s just not possible. My career has to come first.”
She hung her head, not from shame but
