by Holly Rayner
“Don’t pretend to be innocent. You are doing this on purpose. You want me tired and weak so I can’t pester you about your French boyfriend. But you better try harder than that, baby sister.” Brianna seemed to be gaining energy as she spoke, the cobwebs clearing from her voice. “I always have enough energy to ask about your love life. Speaking of, how are things with Monsieur Garnier?”
“You don’t care how my performance went?” I asked.
She huffed. “Your performances are always spectacular, so I hardly think I need to listen to you talk about how much everyone loved you. Plus, I’m the one who was woken up at one in the morning. That means I get to pick the topic. So, Julien. Go!”
I sighed. “He owns three hotels and a company that builds yachts. And he’s also a race car driver.”
Brianna whistled. “Busy guy.”
Knowing what I now knew about Julien’s love life, I couldn’t help but find multiple meanings in her words.
“Yeah, I’d say so.”
“Is he nice? Will I be invited to the wedding?”
“Hardly,” I said. “I think we will be better off as friends.”
“Uh-oh. What happened?” I could imagine Brianna dropping down into the couch cushion, legs curled under her, head resting on her arm. It was her “concerned sister” look.
As much as I didn’t want to talk about everything that had happened, I also did want to talk about it. I needed to. I felt like the only way to clear my head would be to get everything out.
I told her about the performance, Julien blowing me a kiss before the race, hugging me into his side when he won the first heat. I explained the decadence of the party, the way everyone knew him and liked him. And then, I told her about Geneviève. Brianna, in perfect big sister fashion, growled and gasped at all the right places. I told her what Geneviève had said about Julien, how she’d pointed out all of the women he had been with.
“He took you to a party full of his ex-girlfriends?!” Brianna asked, nearly shouting.
“You’re going to wake up your kids if you aren’t quiet,” I warned.
She lowered her voice to a whisper-hiss. “What a sleaze-ball. Come back immediately. I don’t care how gorgeous he is; he is not worth it.”
“Well, I’m not even sure they were all his girlfriends,” I said, not sure why I felt compelled to defend Julien. “Geneviève just said that he’s dated a lot of them.”
“Still, he could have warned you.”
I finished the story, growing sad as I told her how he had asked me to dance and fixed my shoe.
“It was like a real life Prince Charming,” I said.
“I honestly can’t believe you managed to get up and walk away from that,” Brianna said. “It was the right thing to do, but still, I don’t know if I would have been able to.”
Was it the right thing to do? Perhaps, if I hadn’t become so attached so quickly, I could have stayed. Like Geneviève had said, I could have enjoyed the ride while it lasted. But I had become attached. Julien had weaseled his way into my heart, and in a way more than just a quick fling. I’d found myself contemplating a relationship with him, something I didn’t even think would be possible after my divorce.
For the sake of my own heart, it was probably good that I’d left. Staying only would have made it that much harder to admit that I didn’t mean as much to him as he meant to me.
“Are you still with me, Ash?” Brianna asked.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m still here. Just…thinking.”
“Well, stop that,” Brianna said. “Thinking is only going to lead you back to thoughts of a gorgeous race car driver with an accent and a plush bank account. Instead, tell me what you’re going to do when you get back home.”
That opened up an entirely new can of worms. Where was home? I technically still had an apartment in Vegas, but no job. I’d surely already been replaced at the bar. So, where would I go?
“I could come stay with you?” I suggested, hopeful. “I haven’t seen Charlie or Elliott in ages, and if I’m being honest, I don’t have another job lined up.”
“Plus, you just made $100,000,” Brianna added. “You can afford the time off.”
I laughed. “Oh my God. You’re right. I almost forgot about that.”
“So, at least one good thing came out of your time in Monaco.”
Before I could say anything, there was a knock on my door.
“I don’t need housekeeping today,” I said, loudly reiterating what the “Do Not Disturb” sign hanging from the doorknob already said.
“I’m not housekeeping.”
I froze, my heart leaping into my throat.
“Who was that?” Brianna asked. “Who’s there?”
“Shhh.”
“Oh my God, it’s him,” she said giddily. “What are you going to do?”
“Hang up, if you aren’t quiet,” I warned, trying to work out what I was going to do. Julien already knew I was in the room because I’d stupidly yelled through the door before looking, so being very quiet until he went away would be ineffective.
“Please don’t hang up. This is the most excitement I’ve had in months,” Brianna pleaded.
I lifted myself off the bed and crossed the room, setting my phone down on the credenza next to the door. I ran my fingers through my still-damp hair and pinched my cheeks, hoping to give my makeup-less face a bit of perk.
“Please open the door, Ash. I’d really like to talk to you,” Julien said, his voice tender.
I softened slightly at the use of my nickname. He’d never called me that before.
When I opened the door, he was standing in front of me in a plain black T-shirt and dark jeans, his hair a disheveled mess, as though he hadn’t even bothered to run his hands through it after waking up. Somehow, though, he still looked incredible. In fact, he might have looked even better in jeans than he did in suit pants. It was a beautiful sight to behold.
He sighed when he saw me, clearly relieved. “I’m glad you’re still here. I was worried that maybe you’d left already.”
“My flight is tonight,” I said.
“I know.” He bit his lip. “I just thought you might find somewhere else to stay or something.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and shook my head. I’d spent the better part of the previous evening imagining the things Julien would say to me if I ever saw him again, and every scenario had taken a solid bend towards romantic. This conversation, however, felt oddly formal. It seemed to confirm my suspicion that the romance element had been a construct in my own mind.
“I’m not sure what happened last night, but I just came here to ask you to stay,” he said. “Don’t get on the flight tonight.”
“You want me to stay?” I asked, hardly daring to believe what I was hearing. Was he asking me to stay with him in Monaco? Did he actually care about me?
“The closing race is in two days, and I know everyone would love if you would perform again. You were incredible yesterday, and it would bring the whole tournament full circle.”
I nodded slowly, reality seeping back in. “So, you want me to stay and sing again? It’s for a job?”
Julien leaned against the door frame, a nervous smile pulling the corner of his mouth up. “I guess I’m not ready to lose my good luck charm just yet.”
I hated how my heart jolted at even the idea that he needed me, wanted me. But still, it wasn’t enough for me to stick around to be his plaything. Two more days didn’t seem like a lot of time, but it would be a lifetime if I had to watch him romp around at parties with other women.
It wasn’t worth it. After how things had ended with Jonathan, I wasn’t in a stable enough place to survive being heartbroken again.
“Don’t do it!” I jumped and looked around before I realized Brianna was still on the phone. “Come home, Ash.”
Julien screwed up his face and looked from me to the phone. “Who’s that?”
I picked up my phone, turned down the volume, and held it to my ear. “It’s just my
sister, who needs to learn how to keep her big mouth shut.”
“Don’t let him reel you back in,” Brianna continued. “He isn’t ready to commit to you, and you need to come back home and find someone who is.”
I nodded in agreement, glad Julien couldn’t hear her anymore. Julien, however, seemed restless now that Brianna had so vocally told me to reject him.
“You’ll be paid,” he said, trying to sweeten the deal. “After your performance yesterday, it won’t be hard to fill the stadium if we advertise that you’ll be singing again. I can double the money.”
My mouth went slack, and it was a wonder I managed to keep hold of my cellphone.
“Did he just say, ‘double the money’?” Brianna asked.
“Uh-huh,” I mumbled, still not quite believing it myself.
“Do it! You’ll be rich!” she yelled. “Screw him and his intentions. Take the money and run, baby!”
Julien was smiling so broadly I began to wonder if he could hear Brianna shouting at me to “Take that playboy for all he’s worth!”
Unable to balance my own surprise, Julien’s presence, and Brianna’s loud whoops and cash register noises, I canceled the call and shoved the phone into my pocket.
“Two hundred thousand for a performance at the race?” I asked, head tilted to the side.
Julien held out his hand to shake on it. “Two hundred thousand.”
I stared at his fingers, feeling vaguely like I was making a deal with the devil, and then wrapped my hand around his. “I’ll do it.”
Chapter 12
Ashlynn
After accepting Julien’s unbelievable offer, I lounged around in my pajamas all day, utilizing the free room service and streaming English movies on the television. Julien had to rush back to the stadium for the second heat, so he couldn’t stick around.
“I don’t mean to make the offer and run, but I have a full day today,” he said.
I waved him away. “I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”
“If you’d like, we can go out tonight. There won’t be as many parties as last night, but—”
“I’m just going to stay in tonight,” I said. “Thanks, anyway.”
No more parties for me. The less time I had to spend around Geneviève and any of the other women Julien had been with, the better.
Unlike the night before, I slept for a solid nine hours. I suspected it was a mixture of jet lag and having things with Julien at least partially sorted out. I stumbled out of bed as though I’d just awoken from a coma, and it wasn’t until I was out of the shower and dressed that I noticed the white piece of paper that had been slipped under my door.
It was only one line, but the handwriting was sharp and crisp, the cursive looking like it could be used as the example in a penmanship book.
Meet me out front as soon as you’re ready. – Julien
Apparently, he had been concerned enough that I would turn him down if he invited me in person that he’d decided to send a note. Honestly, I took a small amount of pleasure in that idea. After the party, it felt good to make him work his way back into my good graces, even if he would never be in quite as good as he had been at the start.
I was practically ready, so I slipped on my brown sandals, grabbed a wide-brimmed straw hat, and set off to meet him, not quite sure what the meeting would have in store.
Julien was standing in front of his hotel, hands buried in the pockets of his tan pants. He had a cream linen shirt tucked into the trousers and was wearing a pair of leather loafers. He looked like a model in a summer fashion magazine. It annoyed me how easily he could make any look work for him.
He turned around as the doors opened, and a smile split across his perfect face. “You came!”
“I didn’t have a choice. Your note was very cryptic, and I hate mysteries.”
“Good to know,” he said with a wink.
“So, what’s up?” I asked.
“What is up, mademoiselle, is that I would like to give you the true Monte Carlo experience,” he said, flourishing his arms out to either side, like he was performing the final act in a magic show. “Since you will be staying for a few more days, I thought it was only right that I use my local expertise to give you the most thorough tour in the history of tours.”
“You want to take me around Monte Carlo?” I asked.
He nodded. “I want to show you the sights, point out the best restaurants, and make these next two days worth your while.”
I wanted to remind him that the fee he was going to pay me to sing at the closing ceremony of the FP100 had already made my time in Monte Carlo well worth it, but I decided to play along. I was tired of being holed up in the hotel room, and being that this was my first time out of the States, I was a little hesitant to do too much wandering on my own.
Even if spending the entire day with Julien was a little more quality time than I felt I was ready for, if I wanted to experience Monaco, it didn’t seem like I had another choice. Unless I wanted to call up my good friend Geneviève. I shivered at the thought.
“Okay, yeah,” I said, nodding my head. “That sounds great. Is Gérard going to pick us up?”
Julien raised one eyebrow. “Do you think having a personal driver is the true Monte Carlo way?”
I shrugged. “Kind of. Isn’t everyone who lives here crazy rich?”
“Perhaps,” Julien said with a laugh. “But I have a better idea. We’re going to take a walking tour.”
“Don’t you have things going on today?”
“I rearranged my schedule. I don’t have any races today, so it was just going to be some press stuff and luncheons—nothing I wouldn’t gladly cancel to spend the day with you.”
The full effect of Julien’s undivided attention was dizzying. His blue eyes nearly sizzled my skin as he studied my face for every reaction.
“Well, if you’re sure,” I said, trying to sound as though I didn’t care one way or the other, when the reality was that I felt completely flattered.
I didn’t know if he was making a conscious effort to make me feel special or whether this was just Julien’s idea of a good date, and he’d done the exact same thing with too many other women to count. Either way, I was too excited at the prospect of exploring the city to care.
My days since arriving in Monte Carlo had been packed full of events and drama. Enough so, that I hadn’t taken much time to stop and look around. So, as soon as we walked through the driveway to the hotel and turned onto the public street, I felt as though I’d opened my eyes for the first time.
Monte Carlo was a city built into the cliffside. Narrow roads twisted and turned around buildings set into the rock face, and no matter which way we seemed to walk, we were moving up. Buildings seemed to be stacked on top of one another, reaching higher and higher until they began to blend in with the sky. We passed ornate limestone buildings that were directly next to metal and glass office buildings. Monte Carlo seemed to be where history and consumerism intersected.
Julien pointed out famous shopping districts, where some of the world’s most famous designers had offices, and the Casino de Monte Carlo. We stopped at stands run by local vendors to eat food I’d never heard of, but recognized vaguely as combinations of seafood, bread, and cheese.
We spent hours strolling through the city, eating our weight in delicious local foods, sitting on benches and watching throngs of tourists and wealthy locals move about. And while I was glad Julien didn’t try to take me to the ocean, it was nice to smell it in the air and feel it in the breeze.
Spending the day with Julien—not worrying about our relationship or his feelings about me or my feelings for him—but just focusing on the world around me, felt incredible. It was the most fun I’d had in too long to remember, and I couldn’t believe I’d almost missed out on the experience by going home.
“I would have been leaving to catch my flight right now,” I said when a clock in a nearby square rang out that it was four in the afternoon.
I rolled my eyes at him, deciding not to mention that I’d just been thinking the exact same thing. Julien’s ego didn’t need any help from me. Also, I was too busy trying to catch my breath after he’d called our day together a “date” to come up with any coherent thoughts.
“I smell something sweet and fried,” I said, lifting my nose into the air.
Julien laughed. “We have dinner reservations in two hours.”
“We do?” I asked.
“Well, we do if you’d like to join me,” he said. “I promise I was going to ask. I wasn’t just going to assume you wanted to go with me. I want to give you the full Monte Carlo experience, not kidnap you.”
“I’ll go,” I said. “You haven’t led me astray so far.”
We kept walking, but with every step, the smell of whatever sweet treat was cooking nearby grew stronger. When my stomach growled, I turned to Julien, my lower lip stuck out in a pout.
“I need that smell.”
“You need it?” he asked, eyebrow raised dubiously.
“I’m famished. Starving. I can’t take another step,” I said, feigning weakness, my knees buckling as I moved.
“I honestly don’t know where you are putting all of this food,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m twice your size and I’m stuffed.”
“Everyone knows dessert goes to your second stomach.”
Julien pulled out his wallet and headed towards a metal window cut into the side of a nearby building where a man was frying what looked like churros.
“I’m not even going to pretend to know what you’re talking about,” he said with a chuckle.
“Smart man,” I said, tapping my temple. “Buy dessert and don’t ask questions.”
While Julien stood in line, I moved to a bench on the corner where the sea breeze blew freely, and I couldn’t help but think that Monte Carlo was beginning to feel more like paradise with every passing hour.