Just My Luck by Rosalind James Page A

exactly.” She sounded a bit more serious now. “Kristen was planning to come down here, and she was nervous about it. About being by herself. And I thought, maybe I’ll come with her for a few months, get a job, share a place. If you’re into adventure sports, you want to come to New Zealand, you probably know that. So I mentioned it to Brian.”
    “And he didn’t like the idea,” Nate guessed. OK, then. Not a lesbian. He was startled by the depth of his relief. Even though he still thought it would’ve been hot.
    “No. That wasn’t it. He said it sounded fun, and I should go ahead.”
    “And that was bad?” He was completely confused now. “It was a test, and he didn’t know it, cocked it up? Poor bugger.”
    “You think? Say it’s you. You’ve been with a woman for six years.”
    “Six years?”
    “Yep. Six big, long years, ever since college—sorry, University. So you’ve been with her all that time. Living with her for years. And she says, I think I’ll go live in a new country without you. What’s your reaction?”
    “Am I meant to be in love with this woman?”
    “Well, hopefully. If you’ve been with her that long.”
    “Then the answer is, over my dead body,” he said immediately.
    “I mean,” he pulled himself up short, “I’m not a Neanderthal. If she had to do a work thing, something like that, that’s one thing. But she just wants to go off someplace new? I’d be thinking she was breaking up with me. That she was going to be meeting somebody else.”
    “You’d be jealous,” she said. “You’d be upset.”
    “Too right I’d be jealous. Like I said, I hate to lose. Course, I can’t quite imagine being with somebody for six years anyway. Not without being married, or engaged, or something.”
    “I guess I assumed that would happen,” she admitted. “That we were moving toward something. But it didn’t, just stayed the same. And when we had that conversation, the way it went, I realized it was never going to change. That he didn’t want any more than what we had, at least not with me. I was just a . . . convenience. Who wants to be that? So that was pretty much that. We didn’t go out with a bang. Definitely a whimper. Not even a dramatic breakup scene. And it hasn’t been too bad, being on my own. Different, but not too bad. So I guess I wasn’t all that invested either, was I?”
    “A bit hard being alone at Christmas,” he pointed out.
    “Yeah,” she admitted. “Not alone, but not with my own family. Or Brian. But most times when I miss him, I think I just miss how much easier it is being part of a couple. And having that central person in your life, that person who knows you. Which isn’t exactly the same as being passionately in love, is it?”
    “Do you want to be passionately in love, then?”
    “Well, yeah. Don’t you?”
    “Don’t think about it much. Too focused on the footy.”
    “Does one rule out the other?” She sounded startled, and he realized he’d let his honesty run away with him.
    “No, wait,” he said in confusion. “I didn’t mean I wouldn’t. I just mean I haven’t.” He could almost see his chance slipping away, even from up here. Turned to look at her, and the expression on her face confirmed it. “Oh, bugger. I’m making a hash of it again, aren’t I?”
    “I don’t think either of us is doing too well,” she decided. “Telling you about my old boyfriend is pretty much Dating Mistake Number One, I do know that. I’m starting over on the dating thing with no skills, as you see.”
    “I wouldn’t say no skills,” he protested, starting to walk again, realizing that he had a goofy smile on his face. Geez, she amused him.
    “Really? I have skills?” she asked, sounding ridiculously pleased.
    “Well,” he conceded, “you’re not much on the flattery, and your style’s a bit unorthodox. But you look good. That’s a fairly important skill.”
    “Look pretty, and shut up. Gotcha,” she said gloomily.
    He