Diplomacy

was still smiling at the last comment he had made. Something about him being early.
    “Well, I was promised a tour,” Jack answered abruptly.
    “You’re in luck then. Since I started here as a tour guide, I know the place inside and out.” Lucas started to feel a little more at ease with the 158 | Z a h r a O w e n s

    idea of having a full hour to talk to Jack. Maybe it was good to clear the air, put their relationship to rest once and for all.
    “So how’s Maria?” he asked tentatively.
    Jack looked up, but not directly at Lucas. “She’s fine… I hear.
    She’s working in the Sudan, for UNICEF.”
    Lucas stopped and turned towards Jack, feeling his heart jump.
    Noticing the Brit was no longer beside him, Jack stopped and turned. “We’re divorced, Lucas.”
    Jack’s voice sounded unemotional, but it still made Lucas breathe heavier. Now they really needed to talk. If Jack was divorced, perhaps their relationship might have actually meant something.
    “Jack…” Lucas stared at the floor, afraid to look the American in the eye. “We need to talk about… a few things.” He looked up. “Why don’t we go to the PR lounge and grab some coffee. We can talk in relative privacy there.”

    LUCAS was grateful the small lounge was practically deserted when they stepped in.
    “I didn’t know about you and Maria, Jack. I’m sorry.”
    “No, you’re not,” Jack was quick to rebut, smiling at Lucas. He was starting to relax around Lucas again, falling back into their old repartee.
    “Okay, maybe I’m not,” Lucas answered, clearly remembering how Jack would always pick out the times when he didn’t really mean it.
    “What happened?”
    Jack chuckled. “You happened, silly.”
    Lucas felt tears well up in his eyes as the power of Jack’s statement sunk in. Stop acting like a girl, Luke. He shook his head. “Then I’m truly sorry. Sorry for leaving like that, sorry for not having the patience to stick around, sorry for being too scared to stand up to Maria, and sorry for putting our careers before everything else!” He felt Jack’s hand cover his and then the American spoke softly.
    “Not a day has gone by that I didn’t think about you, Luke. After the hospital, when Sean told me you had left, I didn’t understand, but when Maria acted so smug about you leaving to save my career, I knew D i p l o m a c y | 159

    she had something to do with you… not saying goodbye. I just didn’t know how much of it was her blackmail and how much was your decision.”
    Jack picked up Lucas’s hand and kissed it tenderly, sending shivers through the young man’s body. “I’m not making any assumptions here.
    I’m sure there’s someone else in your life by now, so just tell me and I’ll leave you alone.”
    Lucas needed to be honest with Jack; he just didn’t know how.
    “Well, there is and there isn’t. It’s a little difficult to explain.” He waited for a moment, trying to decide how much he was going to tell him. “Why don’t I give you the tour, and I’ll drop you off where you need to be for your interview. Afterwards, come and meet me at the second floor of the DC-2 building and I’ll try to explain.” Lucas took a deep breath. “So what are you interviewing for? Secretary-General?” Jack snorted. “No thanks; no more high profile jobs for me. I’m happy to stay in the shadows. They apparently need a Senior Interpreter who is fluent in three official U.N. languages and has experience with international politics.”
    Lucas smiled. “Sounds like you. English, Spanish and French right? Be sure to mention Danish, Swedish, Norwegian and a little Dutch.
    They may not be official languages around here, but the delegates of those countries may need you for those, too. I don’t see why they wouldn’t give you the job, Jack; you’re perfect.”
    Jack smiled shyly. “Well, we’ll see what they say, okay?” THE interview went well, and they were clearly impressed that a man of Jack’s experience was willing to take a simple interpreter’s job.
    He had been open and honest with them, explaining his interest in going back to college part-time, while trying to rebuild his life after his divorce and seeking out a job away from public scrutiny.
    The men doing the hiring knew they’d be foolish to let this one slip by and hired him on the spot.

    ON the way to the place where Lucas asked to meet, Jack started wondering what Lucas was going to show him. The Brit had been fairly 160 | Z