‘You want me to go to New York? Okay, the answer’s yes! I’d love to!’
In fact, now Olivia thought about it, there was something to be said for escaping the inevitable enquiries of family and friends, colleagues and clients, about her embarrassing personal tragedy. In Manhattan, she could blend seamlessly into the throng of anonymous tourists and citizens, her woes concealed from scrutiny.
‘Sorry, not New York, Liv. Malta.’
‘Malta?’
‘In fact, I’ve already arranged the meeting with my contact over there. We were going to try and do it by Skype but Niko asked for a personal visit as his grandparents would struggle with being interviewed via webcam. They’ve been married for sixty years and his parents have been married for forty. It’ll be fantastic if you could interview both couples. Malta holds the record for having one of the highest marriage rates in the EU coupled with one of the lowest divorce rates. Something good must be going on over there in the southern Mediterranean sunshine!’
‘Malta’s never been on my wish list, I’m afraid. Look, Rachel, I’m really not sure about this. I don’t think I should be leaving the country at the moment. I’m not convinced Miles and Lewis can handle my caseload, and there’s the apartment to—’
‘Did Henry give you his blessing to keep popping back into the office to inspect your colleagues’ progress whenever you like?’
A squirm of embarrassment snaked through Olivia’s abdomen. ‘Well, no, not exactly …’
‘What did he say precisely?’
‘“You’re barred from the premises”?’
‘So there’s no real reason why you can’t go to Malta other than your inability to accept that Edwards & Co can function without you?’
‘Well, no, but …’
‘And we might as well tackle the elephant in the room now. Did you talk to Nathan last night?’
‘I tried to call him, but …’
‘But?’
‘Well, his voicemail was on and I didn’t want to leave a message.’
‘So you call him again later!’
Olivia began to feel steamrollered. Her breath quickened and her temples felt as though they were being squeezed in a vice-like grip – with friends like Rachel who needed enemies! Of course, she was right; she did need to talk to Nathan, but he was in Singapore now and it just didn’t feel right, winding up their life together over the phone. She’d sent him a short text before he left two weeks ago, telling him she’d received the petition, and would be in touch to discuss it at some point, and she had got a one-word acknowledgement back, which had hurt more than she had expected. She knew he’d been about to board the plane, but how could things have got so bad that they were reduced to communicating via text message?
‘And don’t you think this trip to Malta will be the perfect distraction? Keeping busy will stop you from descending down the slippery slope into melancholy.’
‘I’m not descending into melancholy!’
‘Great, that’s settled then. You are officially my unofficial research intern. What I’d like you to do is undertake a series of trips to ascertain …’
‘Hey, back up there, Professor Denton, I’m not sure I heard you right. Did you just say “a series of trips”?’
‘Yes, marriage breakdown statistics have ballooned all over the world. It’s not just a UK phenomenon. Not every country allows divorce, of course. Some, on the other hand, have quite relaxed divorce laws. But as I’ve said, your brief is to concentrate on the institution of marriage. Much more inspiring, wouldn’t you say? I expect the evidence collated by you in Malta to confirm that similar cultural backgrounds factor highly in the longevity of marriage. Then, there’s Hawaii.’
‘What!’ Olivia spluttered. ‘I can’t just jet off to Hawaii!’
What exactly was happening here? Was this some sort of parallel universe?
‘Olivia Hamilton, correct me if I’m wrong, but I recall a very wistful expression on your face two years ago at my mother’s seventieth birthday party when you announced you had always wanted to visit Hawaii.’
‘Well, yes, but I didn’t mean now … and not by myself,’ she added softly because she had hoped to one day explore the exotic volcanic islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with Nathan by her side. ‘A trip to Hawaii is “bucket list” stuff – something to do before you die!’
‘But who of us knows when that will be?’ Rachel rushed on, excitement exuding from every word and preventing her from detecting the snippet of sadness in Olivia’s tone. ‘Oh my God! I never dared hope my dream research project would be possible. I’d resigned myself to focusing on the negative factors in divorce required by the university’s grant parameters.’
‘Look, Rach—’
‘And then there’s Denmark.’
‘Denmark?’ squeaked Olivia, her throat hoarse from the rising panic.
‘The happiest country in the EU, according to recently published research, yet graced with one of the highest divorce rates. Why is that?’
‘But Denmark—’
‘And there’s Paris: the “City of Romance”—’
‘Okay. Stop. Right. There. I am definitely not signing up for a round-the-world trip! No way. No chance.’
‘Oh, not all in one go. No. Malta is scheduled for next week, but you can go to Hawaii in May. Denmark is already fixed for October because it’s extremely difficult to arrange an interview with Professor Andersen, my counterpart in Copenhagen. And last, but not least, there’s Paris in November to finalise your conclusions. You’ll need to submit your written report to me by the first of December so I can collate the evidence and have my submissions ready for a Christmas deadline, but you’re due to return to Edwards & Co then, anyway. It’s perfect timing!’
‘Perfect? Perfect?’
All in one dreadful month, she had been shamed in front of her colleagues when served with documents to terminate her marriage, had been informed she was professionally expendable and forced to concede control of her caseload to the questionable practices of Miles and take an involuntary sabbatical, and now, instead of her oldest friend offering a sympathetic shoulder to cry on – accompanied by an offer of remedial cocktails and a late-night curry – she was being cajoled into packing a suitcase and jetting off to Malta. To say she felt overwhelmed was an understatement, and fear of what lay in her future nailed its splinters into her heart. She had one last line of defence to pursue, though.
‘What about the soup kitchen?’
‘What about it?’
‘I can’t let them down. Greta is always short of volunteers at this time of the year …’
‘I’m sure they’ll manage.’
‘No, I can’t let her down, and I’m helping one of the guys there with his paperwork and—’
‘Okay, what if Dennie and I put in a few shifts whilst you’re away?’
‘Really, you’d do that?’
‘Of course.’
‘Well, that’s great, thanks.’
‘So it’s a yes then?’
‘Can I have some time to think about it?’
‘No. I’ll have the Air Malta plane tickets biked over to you. And, Livvie …’ Finally,