Chapter 30
Thirty
Throughout that long, endless autumn, Travis lived for only one thing: the weekly postcards he received from Liana.
They came from Madrid, Milan, the Bahamas, New York, London, and Paris, and all of them contained the same one-word message: THINKING.
Travis tacked the cards up on the bulletin board in his office, and by the second week in December the board was nearly full.
He had done his best during their long months apart to ignore the tabloid coverage of her every move.
As badly as he craved the slightest detail, he was wary of tabloid lies.
He refused to let gossip screw things up for them.
Not after they had gotten this far. And in all his meetings with Agnes about her wedding, neither of them had ever broached the subject of her daughter or what had transpired between Travis and Liana in Spain.
Four days before Agnes’s Christmas Eve wedding, an item in the Wall Street Journal caught Travis’s attention.
His heart stopped when he read the headline: “Supermodel Liana McDermott Named Face of L’élégance.
” Travis read and reread the article that outlined the multi-year, seven-figure deal that would make Liana the cosmetic giant’s top public persona.
Stunned by the news, he tossed the paper aside and sat back in his chair.
“She’s not giving it up,” he whispered. “She’s not going to choose me.
” Glancing up at the collage of postcards, Travis hurt like he never had before.
He had been so sure. After their time together in Spain, he’d been so sure she would come home to him. “I can’t believe I was such a fool.”
He thought he was ready to see her again.
But as he watched her come down the aisle in a burgundy silk gown that hugged every curve, he realized he was utterly unprepared to see her and even more unprepared to say goodbye to her.
The fake tan was gone, and she carried a bouquet of Christmas flowers as she went through her duties as her mother’s maid of honor.
As a bridesmaid, Enid wore the same gown as Liana.
Agnes, stunning in a beaded floor-length ivory dress, glowed with happiness.
After a brief hello and a kiss to Liana’s cheek in the receiving line, Travis, who was there as Agnes’s guest, did his best to stay out of the way so Liana could attend to her mother. But right after dinner when the dancing started, she came looking for him.
“What are you doing back here in the corner?” she asked with amusement dancing in her violet eyes. “My mother invited you to sit with the family.”
“I didn’t want to be in the way.”
Her eyebrows knitted with confusion. “You wouldn’t have been in the way. Will you dance with me?”
He studied the hand she held out to him, wondering if he had the wherewithal to hold her one last time and then let her go if that was what she wanted. “Sure.” Taking the hand she offered, he followed her to the dance floor.
Holding her in his arms and remembering the way she fit so perfectly against him made Travis breathless with longing. “You look so beautiful tonight.”
She smiled up at him. “This time I got to pick the dress.”
“I like the color.”
“I knew you would,” she said. “I missed you.”
“Me, too.”
“Something’s wrong.”
He shook his head.
With her finger on his chin she brought his eyes back to her. “I know you, remember?”
“I remember everything.”
“Let’s get out of here.”
“You can’t leave your mother’s wedding.”
Liana glanced over to where her mother danced with David. They were so caught up in their joy they might have been the only two people in the room. “I don’t think we’ll be missed.”
Travis let her lead him from the dance floor and into his office.
She shut the door and leaned back against it, zeroing in on the bulletin board full of postcards. “You kept them all!” she said with a delighted smile.
He shrugged.
“What’s wrong, Travis? Have you changed your mind about us? Did I take too long to think about it?”
“No.”
“Then what is it?”
He reached for the folded newspaper on his desk and held it up for her to see. “This. This is what’s wrong.”
She crossed the room to take the paper from him. “Oh,” she said, wincing. “You heard about that, huh?”
“Yes,” he said through gritted teeth. “I heard about it.”
“And you think I’ve chosen my career over you.”
“Haven’t you?”
Liana put the paper down on his desk and walked over to look out the window. “After you left Spain, do you know what I did first?” She turned to him. “I called my agent and told him that as of the twenty-fourth of December I’d be retiring from modeling.”
“But what about—”
“Wait, Travis. It’s your turn to hear me out.”
Frustrated, he ran his hands through his hair and leaned back against the desk.
Liana went to him and rested her hands on his chest. “I was so relieved to see you in Spain—that you had come all that way to see me and to fix things between us. . . ”
Travis looped his arms around her waist.
“And that you were willing to give me as much time as I needed showed me how much you love me. I knew before you left Spain that there was nothing left to decide. So I used the time you gave me to fulfill outstanding obligations. I dissolved my company and gave my employees plenty of money to go quietly so the press wouldn’t jump all over me—well, anymore than they were already, that is.
I worked twelve, fourteen, sixteen hours a day for months to get free so I could come home to you. ”
Filled with hope, Travis dared to ask, “But what about L’élégance?”
“Ah, yes, L’élégance,” she said with the smile that had made her an international sensation. “I agreed only to a print campaign, and they offered me seven million a year for two days a month. I thought the businessman in you might see that as a pretty good deal.”
Travis gasped. “Are you shitting me?”
“Would I shit you?” She slid her arms up around his neck. “I didn’t think you’d mind too much if I spent two days a month in New York, that is if you’re willing to let me out of my duties here at North Point. I hoped you might even come with me once in a while.”
“For seven mil a year, I think we can arrange a few days off.” He bent his head and found her lips. “Are you sure, Liana? Really sure?”
“I love you, Travis, and I love being here at North Point. Remember when you told me this place spoke to you when you first saw it?”
He nodded.
“When I came through the gates tonight it felt just like coming home.”
Overwhelmed with emotion, he hugged her, drinking in the distinctive scent he’d missed so much.
“Now, I don’t want you to get too excited about all that money.” She trailed kisses over the light stubble he had left on his jaw for her. “I’m donating half of it to the cause I’ve agreed to lend my name to.”
He was busy kissing her neck. “What cause is that?”
“The National Down Syndrome Society.”
Travis froze mid-kiss and pulled back to look at her.
She reached up to brush the hair off his forehead.
“I told them my future brother-in-law has Down’s and I’d like to help.
They asked me to be their national spokesperson, and they want to announce it at a press conference after the holidays.
” Her mouth lifted into a shy smile. “I’d love for you and Evan to be there with me. ”
“Yes,” he whispered as he kissed her. “We’ll be there. Thank you, Liana.”
“No, thank you—for showing me I could do and be anything I wanted and for giving me the courage to take control of my life.”
“You always had it in you, sweetheart.”
“What I want more than anything else, though, is you.” Her cheeks flamed with color, and Travis had never loved her more. “Is that question you asked me in Spain still on the table?”
“Hold that thought.” He left her with a light kiss and went around his desk. Opening the top drawer, he reached for a jeweler’s box and returned to her. “I bought this the day I got home from Spain.” He opened the box, withdrew the ring, and held it out to her. “Will you marry me, Liana?”
“Yes.” She wiped away the tears that spilled down her cheeks. “Yes, I’ll marry you, Travis.” Launching herself into his arms, she held on for a long time.
When she finally released him, Travis slid the ring onto her left hand.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, taking her first good look at the shimmering emerald-cut diamond.
“So are you.” He kissed the hand where she now wore his ring. “I’m going to do everything I can to make sure you’re never sorry you chose me.”
“I chose us, and in the end, it was the easiest decision I’ve ever made. I know I’ll never be sorry.”
“Oh,” he gasped. “Listen. This song . . . I heard it after you left this summer.” He put his arms around her and looked down at her. “You are the story of my life, Liana. I hope you know that.”
“And you, Travis, are my true north.”
“Welcome home, sweetheart.”
Thank you for reading True North.