Regrets (Follow Your Heart Book 2)

by Caragh Bell

  Luca drained his glass of wine and beckoned to the waiter to bring more.

  Mimi observed him filling his glass to the brim. He really did drink too much. She loathed when her glass was filled up to the top; it suffocated the wine.

  ‘So, are y’all from yonder going to make it?’ enquired Victoria, smiling sweetly at Mimi.

  ‘Yonder?’ she repeated, confused.

  ‘Gay Par-ee,’ she explained.

  Mimi sipped her wine. ‘Oui, I theenk so. They are vairy ’appy that Luca ees getting married.’

  ‘Y’all will love The Four Seasons,’ added Victoria. ‘I reckon it’s a swell place to stay.’

  ‘You got that right.’ Frank tore a bread roll in half.

  ‘Frank!’ Victoria’s tone was sharp. ‘No bread.’

  He ignored her and spread some butter thickly over one half. ‘So, this wedding is going to cost me a fortune, huh?’ He laughed uproariously.

  Mimi took a deep breath. One should not talk about money.

  Luca swigged his wine. ‘Only the best, Frank. She’s worth it.’ He put his glass back on the table with a clatter.

  The wine had really gone to his head. He knew that Charlotte disapproved, but he didn’t care. Things had been fraught since Ireland. He figured it was the stress of the wedding. Plus, he had forgotten to call her from Vegas and she had been pretty pissed about that. It would soon all be over; they would be married, living in their apartment and living the dream.

  He watched Frank munch on his bread. His gaze shifted to Victoria who was sipping ice-cold Evian and smiling at the right moment. Would he and Charlotte end up like that? Polar opposites?

  Marriage was tough. He knew that from his own parents. It took guts and commitment. Was he ready to take the plunge? Who knew? It was too late for doubts now, anyway.

  Lydia played on his mind. Ever since their brief encounter, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. It was only natural, especially given that their reunion was filled with drama.

  The feeling of cold feet he was experiencing was related to that weekend in Ireland, there was no doubt about that. She was like unfinished business. Now that they had buried the hatchet, it should be easier. Did he still fancy her? Hell, yes. What red-blooded male wouldn’t? It was no big deal. He fancied the girl in the coffee house too. It didn’t mean he was going to sleep with her.

  He was mature now; he had it down. He had made a commitment and he was going to see it through.

  He regarded his father’s handsome face impassively. He sure as hell wasn’t going to wind up like him.

  ‘I got it, Jacques.’ Luca held the door of the Bentley open for his grandmother. Giving her his hand, he guided her out of the car. She seemed to be getting smaller, frailer somehow. His heart constricted. She was getting old.

  ‘Merci, Luca,’ she said softly. ‘Can you escort me upstairs?’

  Luca nodded and called out to Charlotte, who was sitting in the back of the car, waiting.

  ‘I’ll just take Mimi up, Char!I’ll be back in five!’

  ‘You got it,’ she answered. ‘I’m just checking some emails from work so take your time.’

  ‘Work?’ said Mimi, quizzically. ‘Late at night?’

  They walked past the concierge and into the apartment building.

  ‘She’s dedicated, Meems. I guess that’s a good thing.’ Luca looked uncomfortable. He totally knew what Mimi meant. It was too much sometimes. She was like obsessed with the office. He loved his job at the gallery, but once he was out of that place, he was gone. He separated those two worlds.

  Mimi pressed the button to call the elevator. The gold dial at the top of the doors moved anticlockwise, indicating that it was on its way.

  Luca held her thin hand and stroked it. She was like a fragile little doll. How did he not notice it until now?

  They stepped into the lift and the doors closed. Mimi turned to her grandson and grasped his chin, so that he was looking at her square in the face.

  ‘Do you love cette fille, this girl?’ she demanded.

  He looked startled for a second but then pulled himself together. What the hell did she mean by that?

  ‘Sure I do, why do you ask?’

  ‘Luca,’ she said warningly. ‘Tell me zee truth. I am not convinced.’

  He removed her bony hand from his face and tried to look stern. ‘Cut it out, Meems. She’s going to be my wife. I love her.’

  ‘You are sure?’

  ‘I’m sure.’

  ‘I theenk she will bore you. I theenk zat after a while, you will grow tired of her.’

  The elevator pinged, signalling their arrival at their destination.

  Luca escorted her out on to the landing. His head was spinning. Had Mimi lost her mind? She had never spoken so frankly. He didn’t want to hear this kind of thing. It made him nervous.

  ‘Look, you’re tired. Go straight to bed and I’ll call you tomorrow.’ He ushered her inside the apartment.

  She turned gracefully and kissed his cheek. ‘Bonne nuit, mon petit.’

  The door closed. Luca tried to shake the uneasy feeling that was flooding through his body. Mimi was his rock: his role model. He couldn’t bear the thought of her disapproval. It tainted things. It made him question them. Frowning, he entered the elevator once more. Maybe she was going gaga. Maybe she had lost her senses. Charlotte was the real deal. She was perfect.

  What was Mimi’s problem?

  Chapter 24

  Charlotte had gone out for a run when he woke up the next morning. Her side of the bed was empty.

  As usual.

  He stretched and grabbed his phone from the locker beside the bed. There were a couple of emails from clients and a promotional from Amazon.

  He didn’t even open the work emails. It was the weekend and he was serious about not mixing his leisure time with anything. He wished Charlotte would do the same. She was so obsessed with the office.

  Idly, he activated his Facebook app. He preferred to tweet, that was for sure, but he still kept an eye on what was going on. In the old days, he was constantly being tagged in photos by various women he had slept with; since Charlotte, things had been low key.

  He had blocked Lydia immediately after she had left for Paris. He didn’t want to see or hear about her again. His policy had worked; by eliminating her from his life, he had coped. He wasn’t afraid to open his Facebook and see things that she had liked, or comments she had made. His main objective was to remove her from his thoughts. He thought he had succeeded.

  Now that they were cool again, he could unblock her, right? She didn’t use Facebook that much; he remembered that about her from the Cork days. It’s not like she would be flooding his News Feed with status updates and photos.

  He didn’t know why, but he needed to see her face. It was like a burning desire. Just a quick look at her profile picture wouldn’t hurt … right?

  He clicked on his settings and looked at his block list. It mostly consisted of old flames – women who had wanted more from him than he was willing to give.

  Then he found her. With a beating heart, he pressed ‘unblock’. Then he pressed the ‘add friend’ button. She would receive the request and hopefully accept it.

  It was the mature thing to do, no doubt.

  The door slammed indicating that Charlotte was back. He dropped his phone with a clatter.

  ‘Hey,’ she said, pulling off her Lycra top and releasing her hair from its ponytail. He watched her as she pulled off her shorts and grabbed a towel.

  ‘Can I come with?’ he asked lazily.

  She gave him a hot look. ‘Sure.’

  He jumped up and followed her into the bathroom. She was just stepping into the shower. Grabbing her from behind, he pushed her up against the cool tiled wall and kissed her neck.

  He wasn’t sure if it was guilt about Lydia or the fact that he needed to release some sexual energy, but he didn’t wait around. Parting her legs, he entered her from behind and began to thrust. He pre
ssed her face against the tiles, working out his frustration, trying to forget.

  She pushed against him, trying to lift his weight off her, but he ignored it. He needed to climax; he needed to let go.

  It was all over in a few minutes. Charlotte brushed her hair back from her face, her cheeks red.

  ‘What was that?’ she asked, her eyes troubled. ‘You seemed possessed or something.’

  Luca stepped backwards out of the showers and rubbed himself vigorously with a towel. ‘Sorry, baby. I just wanted you so bad.’

  She wrapped her arms around her waist protectively and backed away. ‘It was weird.’

  He stopped drying himself immediately. ‘Weird?’

  She turned away. ‘I like to see your eyes when we make love.’

  He dropped his towel, darted over and pulled her into his arms. ‘I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you feel bad.’ He kissed her hair and rubbed her back.

  He didn’t know what had come over him. It was like he was desperate to have her. Hell no, he was desperate to forget.

  He wanted to blot out everything and have mindless sex. Anything to stop thinking about Lydia. Anything to blank out the dangerous thoughts that filled his head.

  ‘Leed!’

  She waved madly from the Arrivals Gate. ‘I’m here!’ she called.

  He marched towards her, pulling a small case. Abandoning his bag, he whisked her up into his arms.

  ‘It’s so good to see you!’ she gasped as he swung her round and round.

  ‘I ’ave dreamed of zees,’ he said breathlessly, putting her back on her feet. ‘You look so belle.’

  Leaning in, he took possession of her mouth and kissed her hungrily. She melted into his embrace, letting his tongue invade her mouth.

  The French must have invented French kissing because they are so good at it, she reflected, enjoying herself.

  It felt good to be held; it was bliss to feel strong arms around your waist. They clung to each other until they heard a loud ‘Ahem!’

  Mathis tore himself reluctantly away and turned around. Colin was staring at them in fascination.

  ‘Your hair is so curly like mine!’ he said, beaming.

  Mathis fingered his curls and looked puzzled. ‘Oui, eet ees.’

  ‘Hi, I’m Colin,’ he continued, shaking his hand vigorously. ‘I’m Lydia’s cousin.’

  ‘Ah, yes. I remember you. You came to zee restaurant last year.’

  Colin looked unsure. ‘I don’t remember meeting you. I think I would have remembered as you’re so cute.’

  He grabbed Mathis’s bag. ‘I’ll carry this, so that you have two free hands to feel up my cousin.’

  ‘Eh?’ Mathis couldn’t follow his chatter.

  ‘He said to follow him to his car,’ explained Lydia, kicking Colin’s leg. ‘We’ll have to squeeze in the back as it’s very petit.’

  Colin drove at his usual speed and soon they were pulling up outside his apartment.

  ‘Et voilà,’ he said, turning off the ignition. ‘We’re here.’

  Val was sitting on the couch having a beer when they arrived. Colin placed his car keys on their designated hook by the hall mirror.

  ‘Val! We’re home!’

  ‘Hey,’ he said, getting up and holding out his hand. ‘Nice to meet you.’

  Mathis smiled. ‘I am ’appy to be ’ere.’ He shook Val’s hand vigorously.

  Colin took his coat and hung it in the cupboard.

  ‘As you are a chef, Mathis, I thought you’d like something different to eat tonight.’ Colin paused dramatically. ‘So … I’m making Indian food.’

  Mathis shrugged. ‘I like zees.’

  ‘Come on.’ Lydia pulled him by the arm. ‘I’ll show you my room.’

  ‘Enjoy,’ said Colin grinning. ‘I’ll just get started on my naan bread. Val, turn up the TV there, just in case.’

  Again, Mathis looked lost and Lydia was glad of it. Giving Colin a pointed look, she led him away.‘Your room ees so nice,’ Chris observed seconds later. ‘It ees like a ’otel.’

  Lydia laughed. ‘It’s Colin, he’s super house-proud. It’s like having a maid.’ She opened the window to let some air in.

  Mathis encircled her waist from behind and started nibbling on her ear.

  ‘I need to be with you now,’ he murmured. ‘I dream of zees.’

  Lydia turned around and pulled off her T-shirt. He unclipped her bra and released her aching breasts. Bending his head, he sucked her nipples one by one until she moaned.

  It had been so long. So long since she had felt human contact in this way. She yanked his head upwards and kissed him passionately on the lips. Then she pulled his T-shirt up over his head and they faced each other.

  She traced his biceps with her fingers, lightly trailing her fingers up and down the muscular swells. Slowly, she stroked his nipples and then moved downwards until she found his belt. He looked at her with half-closed eyes.

  Fumbling, she tried to open it. It remained fastened until he gently removed her hand and unclasped it in one movement.

  ‘’Eet ees not so difficile,’ he muttered. He removed his jeans and boxers together and stood in front of her, proud and erect.

  Suddenly she grew shy. He plainly wanted her but she felt nervous about stripping in front of him. It had been so long.

  ‘I ’elp you,’ he offered, unzipping her skirt and letting it drop to the floor.

  Soon she was as naked as he was and they stood immobile, waiting for one of them to make the first move. She was wet with desire, all the months of pent-up frustration demanding to be released. Closing her eyes, Luca’s image flashed through her mind but she hastily banished him. She needed to concentrate on the man standing opposite her; he was real, he was here and he cared about her. The fact that he wasn’t Luca was not his fault; she would have to get over it.

  Without waiting any longer, she lunged forward and pushed him back onto the soft sheets. His strong arms surrounded her and his warm smooth skin felt heavenly pressed up against her own. He kissed her neck like he couldn’t get enough, kissing her repeatedly and burrowing his head in her shoulder. She opened her legs and urged him between them – she couldn’t wait any longer, she had to have him inside her.

  She was breathing heavily now and whispered for him to hurry up. He understood and entered her in one swift movement, filling her completely. Slowly, he began to move and she gasped in delight. It felt so good. So, so good. How had she survived so long without this sensation?

  ‘Dinner!’ called Colin from the kitchen.

  ‘Ignore-le,’ she moaned. ‘Just keep going!’

  They climaxed together and she cried out softly.

  ‘Oh, Chris,’ she whispered, kissing his shoulder. ‘That was so nice.’

  He pulled her close and kissed her temple. ‘I ’ave missed you vairy much,’ he said quietly. ‘I weesh we are not separated.’

  She snuggled closer but said nothing.

  She luxuriated in the heat emanating from his body, his leg entwined with hers, his strong arm around her waist. Mathis was the complete package; he was hunky and sexy; he was clearly mad about her.

  He was everything she needed and should want.

  But he wasn’t Luca. He would never be Luca.

  She kissed his nose and sat up. ‘We should get up soon. He can’t stand lateness, especially when it comes to food.’

  As if on cue, Colin yelled their names from the kitchen.

  ‘Coming!’ called Lydia, pulling Mathis up. ‘Come on, I’m starving.’

  ‘Korma or vindaloo?’ Colin pointed to the two bowls on the table filled with curry.

  Mathis took a seat at the table.

  ‘I’ll try some of zee vindaloo – I like sings ’ot.’

  Colin ladled a big spoon of steaming curry onto a plate. ‘I bet you do,’ he murmured under his breath, staring at Mathis in awe.

  ‘He’s so cute,’ he mouthed to Lydia.

  She giggled and held out her plate. ‘I l
ike things spicy too.’

  Colin gave her an arch look. ‘It sounded that way a few minutes ago, if you know what I’m saying.’

  She blushed. ‘We weren’t that noisy – I mean, I was aware that …’

  ‘Stop!’ Val covered his ears. ‘I don’t want to know.’

  They ate companionably in silence.

  Mathis mopped up his sauce with his Peshwari naan. ‘You make zees bread too?’ he asked.

  ‘I do indeed.’ Colin smiled radiantly. ‘I love to cook.’

  ‘You are good, vairy good.’ He chewed thoughtfully. ‘En France, we do not eat so much curry.’

  Lydia sipped her beer in delight. It was all so natural, so easy. She hadn’t felt this upbeat in ages.

  ‘Let’s do something cool tomorrow,’ she suggested. ‘Where would you go in the city to show it off?’

  ‘The English Market?’ said Val. ‘He’d like all that being a chef and all.’

  ‘Or we could stay in bed.’ Mathis smiled at them all. ‘Zat ees why I come ’ere.’