AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You too, Julien.”
They stared at each other until the silence grew heavy and awkward.
“Anyway,” she said and wrenched her eyes away from him. “I am sorry to be the bearer of this shitty news.”
“It’s okay, I promise. I wish I could help you. I’m happy to dig around a little if I can, talk to my sisters, see if they think something weird is going on. If my parents are doing something unethical, I’d rather find out from you than from the newspapers.”
“Thank you. I hate to ask you to spy on your own family.”
“I haven’t exactly been thrilled with my parents recently either.” Julien pulled his knee to his chest and wrapped his arm around his shin—the same arms that had once been wrapped around her.
“You moved across the ocean. That’s not a great sign.”
“They were asking for it,” Julien said. “Two years ago when you got your promotion to farm manager, Mom said it was nepotism at its worst, that no way were you qualified to run Arden and the place would fall apart in a week. Then Arden had its best season ever. Then Mom said it was unladylike for a woman to run a horse farm. Then it was the rants about how disgusting and disgraceful it was you had an ‘attractive male assistant’ you were obviously sleeping with. That’s when Salena and I started packing.”
“You moved out just because your mom thinks Merrick and I are sleeping together?” Remi asked, astounded Julien would still care about her after all this time. “Everyone thinks Merrick and I are sleeping together except for Merrick and me.”
“My issues with my parents are yet another really long story. Let’s just say it was the last straw. Salena suggested we sublet a place in France for a few months. She used to live in Paris and knew I’d like it. I’m starting college again in January so I told my parents I was getting a little place in Paris until I started school..”
“Not so little,” she said, glancing around what she hoped was a two-bedroom apartment. He said Salena wasn’t his girlfriend so she guessed that meant she wasn’t sleeping with him. “Although I can’t imagine your parents or your sisters living in a three-floor walk-up garret apartment. No offense.”
“None taken,” Julien said, clearly finding the idea as amusing as she did. “But, for all its downsides, this place has one very big upside.”
“It is very pretty,” she said.
“And it has an amazing view.” Julien turned around and opened the curtain behind him that shielded the window.
“Holy…” Remi rose out of her seat and walked to the window. Julien moved to the side and Remi sat next to him on the bench.
Through a gap in the buildings she could see the Eiffel Tower in all its illuminated nighttime glory. She stared at it in silence and sensed Julien’s eyes on her, not the tower in the distance. Four years evaporated in an instant. Four years ago they were talking by the fireplace and now a window overlooking Paris. Four years come and gone in an instant.
“I used to dream about living in Paris,” she said after a long pause. She couldn’t quite believe that she was here in Paris with Julien Brite gazing at the Eiffel Tower. It was perfect—the cool of the city pressing against the window, the lights dancing on the tower, Julien at her side looking at her and nothing else. Not just perfect but a perfect moment—why did she keep having these with him? “When I was a little girl. Too manyMadelinebooks, I guess.”
“Who?”
“It’s a girl thing.” Remi gazed at the top of the tower, wondering what the city looked like from the top. Maybe she would see it before they left. Maybe Julien could take her there tomorrow.
“What did you dream about?” Julien asked, his voice low as if the entire city were trying to listen in, but he wanted to keep their conversation between only them.
“Oh, the usual kid dreams. Living in Paris, speaking French, eating croissants all the time.”
“They are pretty amazing here,” Julien agreed.
“Then I got older, and I still dreamed of Paris. When I was a teenager it seemed like the most romantic place in the world. I wanted to get my first kiss in Paris. Which, sadly, did not happen.”
“Where did you get your first kiss?”
“In the Kentucky Theater in Lexington. Not nearly as romantic as Paris. You?”
“Um…the capital building actually. School field trip. Some girl in my class thought it would be rebellious to make out in the capital rotunda. The statue of Abraham Lincoln was watching us. Not romantic. A first kiss in Paris with the Eiffel Tower watching us would have been much better.”
“Definitely,” she said, smiling. When she turned her eyes back to Julien, she found him still looking at her. He wasn’t smiling but the look on his face was better than a smile.
“Can I tell you something crazy?” she asked.
“Please. The crazier the better.”
“I look for you at every race,” she confessed. “Every single one of them. Kentucky. California. New York. Florida. Doesn’t matter what the race is, what track we’re at, I always look for your face in the crowd. You’d think after all this time I would quit looking for you. Is that crazy?”
