Page 18 of Meet Me in Paris

• A dinner cruise and kiss on the Seine

• Holding hands at the Paris Opera House

• A romantic French dinner

• Being serenaded at the airport

I instantly felt foolish. A bucket list of places to see would have made sense. But a list of romantic experiences I wanted to have, pulled from my favorite movies? It felt so childish.

He’s probably done every one of these things with Collette.

I let myself picture it for a sliver of a second,then stuffed the paper back into my pocket. “Never mind.” I eased around him to follow my sisters down what remained of the tunnel.

After a long moment, he jogged after me and fell into stride at my side. I could almost hear the questions in his mind. To his credit, he asked none of them.

Time to change the subject to safer ground. “Hunter, there’s someone else I may be spending some time with on this trip. This whole tour guide thing? It can only work as long as you’re okay with that.”

“Someone else. Oh. That’s good.” A heavy clearing of his throat. “So you met someone, then.”

Sort of? Technically. “It’s fairly new.”

“Ah. Is he from back home?”

I kept my voice light. “No, he’s from here. Speaks English, thankfully. My French is atrocious.”

“I get plenty of practice, and I still struggle with it sometimes.” He walked too easily, sounded too relaxed. “I’m glad you’re happy, Kennedy. I really am.”

Happy. Yes. I was totally happy. Who wouldn’t be, with the news of an inheritance on the horizon and the possibility of moving to Paris? Any woman spending time touring Europe with her sisters, all expenses paid, would be ecstatic. I even had a handsome French man waiting to show me around town. There was plenty to be happy about.

Maybe if I reminded myself enough times, I’d start to believe it.

“Thank you,” I said, hopefully managing to hide my thoughts behind a blank expression. There would be no point in asking about his dating life. He didn’t wear a wedding ring yet because he and his fiancée, Collette, weren’t married yet. Hunter’s parents hadn’t flownto Paris, nor had Collette flown to Arizona. The entire town would have known. Jillian would have live-streamed it, if she had her way.

But it would surely happen soon, which meant this week was my last chance to spend time with my best friend.

“Are you happy?” I asked quietly.

“Of course. I’m in Paris.” His pitch seemed too high to be natural, but it could have been my imagination. Then Hunter checked his watch before picking up the pace, forcing me to hurry to keep up.

I didn’t blame him. I wanted out of this conversation too.

Soon the light ahead revealed a wider area with a group of people standing around. Jillian and Alexis stood among them, whispering to each other. Jillian looked better, at least. The door to a stairwell lay beyond.

“That’s the tour,” Hunter said, his voice too cheerful. “I’m glad none of you got snatched by the dead. They usually get one or two tourists per day.”

Just then, a skeleton jumped out from behind a column of skulls and shrieked like a banshee.

Jillian yelped and threw herself behind Alexis, who released a delighted squeal. The group of tourists broke into heavy laughter, some whipping out their cameras.

A second later, the skeleton ripped off his plastic skull head. A bearded man stood there in a black bodysuit with a white skeleton printed on it, grinning at the group.

“My coworker,” Hunter explained, approaching the man. “Well timed, Alphonse.” They bumped fists and chuckled at the expressions on my sisters’ faces.

“Glad they were the right ones,” Alphonse said. “The wife would’ve been angry if I got myself fired for doing you afavor.”

Jillian folded her arms. “That wasnotfunny, Hunter.”

Hunter watched me. “Then why is Kennedy smiling?”

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