by Taisha Demay
The flight from Niagara to Paris was something April didn’t want to repeat. At least not this particular one. Not only were there crying babies, but the woman seated beside her kept trying to engage her in conversation, even though she wore a pair of noise-canceling headphones. By the time they finally landed at Charles De Gualle, she was more than ready to deplane and start her vacation.
After clearing customs, April waited along with other passengers at the carousel for their bags and luggage. One after another was claimed, but she still had yet to see hers. Ten minutes later, she realized they wouldn’t turn up. She headed to the customer service office to file a claim. Once that had been completed, they let her know they’d call should her suitcases turn up.
Knowing she’d need a few things to hold her over, April did a little shopping. While out, she found herself standing in front of La Chose La Plus Douces The Sweetest Things, wondering if he was inside. While she was lost in her thoughts, she hadn't noticed the sound of running feet until someone roughly snagged her purse and packages from her arm and took off running.
“No! Damn it!” She yelled after the thief, a feeling of helplessness washed over her. Because she certainly couldn’t chase him down in the shoes she was wearing, she’d never catch him. “Fuck!” April seethed, could this day get any worse?
Inside the bakery, Jean-Luc Reneau was busy filling molds with a chocolate and caramel mixture when he heard a loud feminine screech.
Glancing over at the window, he saw a man running past, with what looked like a purse and bags in his hand.
Realizing he had to act, he stopped what he was doing, not bothering to remove his apron, rushed out and chased after the thief. Catching up with him, he tackled the thief to the ground. Once he’d retrieved the stolen items, proceeded to return them to the mademoiselle in distress, but something unexpected happened. For the first time in his thirty-five years, Jean-Luc thought he was having a hallucination. It couldn’t be her—April Hill. The last time he’d seen her was over a year ago, right before she disappeared from his bed and his life.
His eyes hungrily drank in the sight before him, while absently handing back the items. He knew he was staring but couldn’t stop. She looked even better than he remembered. Same rich maple skin and eyes the color of the darkest chocolate she looked squarely at him.
“Hello, April.”
Her smile was tight. “Hello, Jean-Luc.”
“When did you get back to Paris? Not that I’m unhappy to see you—I just never expected it.”
She laughed nervously. “Yeah well, neither did I. Would you believe I won a trip?” She glanced passed his shoulders at the building. “I see you’ve made some changes.”
“A few months ago. It was my Aunt Madeline's idea. Why don’t you come in, and I’ll give you a tour. Then, we can sit down and have some cappuccino and those danish you like?”
April glanced around nervously. “Actually, I can’t. I should be going before something else happens. It’s really been a long day.”
His hands clenched in frustration. “I woke up and you were gone. You left without so much as a ‘goodbye.’”
“What happened between us was a mistake. It was something we shouldn’t have done.”
Jean-Luc’s jaw tightened. “Why would you think that?”
April studied the man in front of her. He looked exactly the same as she remembered. His dark blond hair longer and slightly mussed. His light green eyes probing. Underneath the white apron, he wore a blue shirt with narrow yellow stripes; both sleeves rolled up exposing muscular forearms. Black, cotton trousers encased powerful thighs. He was such a contrast from her ex, who always appeared immaculately dressed, nothing out of place. She couldn’t remember ever seeing him rumpled. “It doesn’t matter. It was a long time ago.”
“Not that long ago.”
“Long enough for both of us to have moved on with our lives,” she replied, keeping her voice neutral.
“We need to talk.”
“For what?” she asked calmly.
Jean-Luc wanted to shake her. “About everything. Also, I want to pick up where we left off before you disappeared. You’re here again, April. I want you back in my life.”
April didn’t know how to react to that. It certainly wasn’t what she expected him to say. “That ship has sailed, and we can never go back.”
“Damn it, April. Don’t you think we deserve to see if there could be a future between us?”
She caught a momentary glimpse of pain in his eyes. He looked like he’d been through hell. She knew what that felt like and had no desire to make a return trip. He was the man who could send her there again—if she let him.”
“I’m sorry. I should have never come, Jean-Luc. I’m not interested in resurrecting something from the past. A lot of time has gone by; a lot of things have changed, including me.”
His mouth tightened. “Is there someone else?”
“You don’t have the right to ask me that.”
“Oh, I think I do, considering it was me you left behind without so much as a ‘goodbye’ or letter of explanation.”
She knew he was right, but wasn’t about to admit it. “Look, Jean-Luc, I don’t have the time nor the inclination to stand here and argue with you about whatever it is you think we had. That’s something that happened in the past and should remain there.”
Jean-Luc narrowed his eyes. Why was she denying the feelings she obviously still had for him? Her attitude was so distant, so cold. Where was the warm, sensual woman he had known? In an attempt to make some kind of contact with her, he lifted his hand, but she stepped out of his reach. That action shocked him.
“I’ve missed you, April.”
She had missed him too. But, the magic that had transpired between them was an illusion, easily conjured up and likely to vanish just as fast. April wanted to question him about what she’d heard on his answering machine, a woman claiming to be his fiancé, but she decided she really didn’t want to know.
“It’s been an extremely long day, and I’m exhausted. Goodbye, Jean-Luc, it was nice seeing you again.”
With strength born from desperation, she moved away from him. With one last glance, she turned and hurried up the street up to a taxi rank. It wasn’t long before one was available, April climbed inside, telling the driver where she wanted to go.
Jean-Luc didn’t bother going after her, he was shaken by her unapproachable manner. What had happened to cause this? One thing’s for sure, he was determined to find out—once he figured out what hotel she was staying in.
Back at the hotel inside her room, April stepped out onto the balcony, looking out amongst the landscape. In the distance was the Eiffel Tower, one of the places she intended to visit while she was there. As she took in the scenic view, her thoughts went to the conversation with Jean-Luc, pleased with herself at the way she handled the unexpected meeting with him, glad he hadn’t broken through the barrier she’d erected between them. She consoled herself that their brief affair had been only a tryst, and nothing more. Although pregnancy had resulted in it, he didn’t need to know that. Besides, she’d miscarried soon after learning of it, and was determined not to revisit that heartbreak ever again.
Sooner or later she knew she’d have to tell him but in her own time. April was thankful she hadn’t revealed to him what hotel she was staying in. Perhaps he’d gotten the message and wouldn’t try to find her. But, judging from the determined look in his eyes, he just might. Glancing down at her hands, she realized they were shaking. Just having him in such close proximity, threw her off-kilter. Truthfully, she had wanted to fling herself into his arms just to feel his comfort and strength, knowing the barrier she’d built around herself wasn’t as impenetrable as she thought.
Well, she would start repairing the small crack in that wall. She wasn’t going to be vulnerable to any man. The highs weren’t worth the lows. Using the mortar of memory and reinforcement of humiliation from her breakup with Paul, she would painstakingly rebuild her de
fenses. It was idiotic and stupid to go there in the first place. What had she hoped to accomplish by doing so? He was out of her life. Though it was her choice, it was the right one. There was no sense in trying to relive the past. Back inside, April picked up the menu from the hotel’s restaurant, perusing the selections, which were both in English and French, to get her jumbled thoughts together. She really needed to forget what might have been and look to the future. There was no sense in wondering about the what if’s.
Le Phare The Lighthouse pub was an out of the way establishment not frequented by tourists, which was the reason the locals liked it. The interior, though it was dark, still had a welcoming feeling. Needing someone to vent his frustrations to, Jean-Luc thought of Nail Sawyer, his best friend, and accountant.
He spotted the tall, slender man with chestnut brown hair and dark eyes seated at a table overlooking the street, walking up to join him.
“Are you alright? Nail asked the moment he appeared.
“No, I’m not. As a matter of fact, I’m having one helluva day.” Pulling the chair away from the table on the other side, Jean-Luc. sat down. “April’s back.”
“What? When?”
“I’m thinking today,” he replied, just as a server approached their table to take his drink order.
It had been two hours since he’d seen her, talked to her. If that thief hadn’t stolen her packages and purse, he might not have. His mind reeled. April had returned, and he still found it hard to believe, because he wanted to touch her, kiss her.
But, what was the reason? He’d like to think it was because she’d missed him. He felt as though his blood was just starting to flow through his veins again after lying stagnant for so long. The shock was beginning to wear off and hope was taking its place.
“Did she explain why she left?”
“No, she didn’t. Although, I did ask.”
“Damn, that’s too bad. Are you planning to see her again? At least get some answers.” Picking up his beer, Nail took a healthy swallow.
“Yeah, once I figure out what hotel she’s staying in.”
Nail frowned. “You didn’t ask?”
“No, I was so shocked to see her, it hadn’t occurred to me to find out.”
His mind raced back to the day he had woken up to find her gone. He’d wanted to go looking for her, but where would he have started? Now that she had returned, for however long, Jean-Luc was determined to make sure she never walked out of his life again.
“I gotta tell you, my friend, I saw the state you were in afterward; you were a mess. Might I suggest you get those answers; I don’t ever want to see you like that again.”
“That, my friend, is a lot easier said than done,” Jean-Luc replied, taking a swig of his beer.
“There are only eight hotels where tourists usually stay; why don’t you start at the ones near the Seine and go from there?”
He nodded. “I’m going to do that.”
When April opened the door the last person she expected to see was Jean-Luc dressed in a pair of well-worn jeans, a navy blue polo shirt and boots on his feet. A smile played on his lips as his eyes flowed over her, and she found it difficult to speak. “How did you find me?”
“It wasn’t easy,” he replied while crossing the threshold.
Resisting the urge to fling herself into his arms, she crossed hers over her breasts. “Well, you shouldn’t have bothered coming.”
He regarded her words. “I’m here because I need some answers.”
April bit her lip in frustration. “Well, you wasted your time; there’s nothing we need to discuss. It’s not like we were in a relationship; it was only one night.”
Something stirred in his eyes at her statement, then was gone. “It felt that way to me. So, whether you want to, or not, you’re going to give me the answers I need.”
“I thought you would have moved on.” Her voice had a slight bite to it, as she continued, “After all, weren’t you and Minuette going to be married before we met?”
He furrowed his brow, confused. “How did you know about Minuette?”
“Does it matter how I know? My question for you is, was it true?” she asked curiously.
“Yes. Until she decided I wasn’t good enough and called the whole thing off.”
“I see. Well, that’s not what I heard. In fact, according to her, she was looking forward to becoming your wife.”
“Well, she lied. She never intended to marry me, and was only using me for her own selfish reasons.”
April didn’t know if she wanted to believe him or not. But, something inside her, said he was telling her the truth. For a long minute, she didn’t respond. “I don’t know why you’re insisting on dredging up the past. There’s nothing to be gained from it. You may as well go; I don’t have the energy nor the inclination to keep rehashing it.”
“Damn it, April! Did what we share even mean anything to you?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know.” There was sadness in her voice, glancing away before focusing on him again. She knew he deserved to know the truth but wasn’t sure she was ready to give it. “I left because not only had I slept with an engaged man, I had been unfaithful to the one I was seeing.”
“Is that the other reason you left?”
“Aren’t those reasons enough?”
Shoving his hands in the pockets of his trousers he released a sigh. “You could have stuck around and talked to me. Instead, you just ran.”
She absorbed his words. “We can’t change the past, Jean-Luc.”
“True, but we can influence the future.” He saw the guarded look in her eyes when she raised hers to meet his. “For over a year I thought of nothing but you. No matter how hard I tried to get you out of my mind and my heart, I just couldn’t. I want us to walk, talk and really get to know one another.”
He let his words sink in. Knowing he shouldn’t push her, but he had no clue how much time he had. The seed had been planted, and he wanted to demand why she still kept insisting they didn’t have a chance?
“That’s not an option.”
Without thinking, he moved quickly toward her, wrapping his arms around her firmly as he lowered his head, covering her mouth with his own. Her gasp of surprise and panic was lost in the heat of his kiss. Molten heat jolted through April as her body pressed against Jean-Luc’s. There was a desperate hunger in his kiss, and he fed it by intensifying the kiss as a familiar ache began to grow deep inside her along with a torrent of emotions.
“I’ve missed you, April,” he murmured against her throat. “I’ve missed this.”
She groaned against his warm mouth. She’d missed this magic too. Too bad a knock at the door and a voice announcing, “Room service.” Broke the spell. Moving away from him, April opened the door, allowing the young man to wheel a cart containing her order into the room.
Jean-Luc stood silent for a moment. No matter how much she insisted it was over between them, she had responded to him. “I have to leave, but I’ll be back. When I do, we’ll talk.”
His only response was a look of complete exasperation accompanied by a slight shake of his head. Turning, he walked over to the door, pulling it open and stepping out into the hall, shutting it behind him. He needed time to convince her he was serious. He had to find a way to get April to lower her defenses. He couldn’t lose her again.
Chapter 3
Still reeling from her encounter with Jean-Luc, April needed to vent her worries to someone, so she decided to FaceTime with Donna.
“So, how’s Paris?”
April sighed. “I saw Jean-Luc.”
Donna’s eyes widened. “Seriously? What happened?”
“He wanted to know the reason why I left the way I did.”
“Can you blame him? I mean, really, April, why does that surprise you? It’s obvious you made quite an impression on him.”
She knew her friend was right. “I know it wasn’t the kindest way to end things. But, it had to be done. Nothing good would hav
e come of us continuing it. It was bad enough I was unfaithful to Paul in the first place.” Her mouth twisted in a rueful grimace.
“Did you tell him what he needed to know?”
April gave her a sheepish grin. “Not exactly. Although, I did tell him I knew about his engagement to another woman, and I told him about being involved with Paul.”
“But, you didn’t tell him you’d gotten pregnant and later lost the baby?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Don’t you think you owe it to him? He has a right to know.”
“You’re right, I just...”
Donna frowned. “You’re just what?”
“I don’t want him to think I did it on purpose,” April admitted.
“Why on earth would he think that?”
“Because I kept it from him all this time.”
“He’s not going to think that.”
“Says you. We have to consider after a year of being kept in the dark, there’s a possibility,” April returned.
“Then, I think you should tell him anyway and let the chips fall where they may,” Donna advised.
“Alright.”
“Call me and let me know what happened, okay?”
She nodded. “I promise. Talk to you later.”
Closing the laptop, April leaned back on the couch and prepared herself for the worst.
As promised, Jean-Luc returned, and they ordered a meal from room service.
“You mentioned earlier that you wanted us to have a talk.”
He looked up from his plate. “Don’t you think we should?”
“It’s not that I don’t believe we should. It’s just that so much time has passed and things change; I’ve changed. I’m not the girl you met a year ago.”
A strange sadness briefly clouded his expression. “Really? I don’t believe you. I think it frightens you this could actually be something permanent. Truthfully, I’m hoping it does. I have always thought everyone was entitled to one miracle in his life, and I’ve had two. The first was the day we met, and the other was you walking back into my life.”