This time, nothing could be allowed to go wrong. The tiniest glint of uncertainty in her eyes or quiver in her voice and the game would be over. After all these years, she knew Reidar all too well. He would instantly exploit any crack in her façade, reclaim control and subjugate her until she obeyed him like a well-trained dog once more.

But whatever happened and no matter how he reacted, she knew how to act to make him pick up a pen and sign. And as soon as that was done, she would grab her prepacked bag and head for the door.

She almost didn’t dare to believe that in just a few hours, they would have left. And be on their way to Paris, of all places. The most romantic of cities. Finally, it was goodbye to all the sneaking and hiding. To all the coded text messages, to worrying about being caught red-handed any moment. Not to mention the stress of having to go to bed with the wrong man every night.

Tonight, they would be able to move about freely in public. If they felt like it, they would be able to sit down on a bench and just hold each other. She would be able to put her head in his lap and see both him and the stars at once.

She and her lover.

She tasted the word. Lover. She liked it. It sounded both tender and sinful. And how they had sinned. Both at his house and hers, in the shower and in the car. Not to mention on the secluded strip of beach by the Rå River, where they’d done things she hadn’t even thought possible.

And now, that chapter was coming to an end. Soon, he would go from being her lover to her beloved. They were going to leave Copenhagen Airport behind, drink champagne toasts and enjoy that their dream had finally become reality.

But it hadn’t come easy. At first, he’d been reluctant and refused to listen, and she had felt a bit like a whiny child. It was only after she presented him with an ultimatum, threatening to reveal their little affair to any and all interested parties, that he had come to his senses.

Threats and hysterics were not normally her style, but she couldn’t go on living a lie indefinitely. And now, in hindsight, it was clear he was in exactly the same boat. Suddenly, he stepped in and took charge, making plans for how they were to proceed.

She’d picked Paris as their destination, but he had bought the tickets, splurging on business class even, and when she thought about how in just a few hours they would be sitting there, holding hands, enjoying their extra legroom, she had to pinch herself to make sure she was awake.