Page 19 of The Paris Chapter

‘I’m off all men,’ I joked to him. ‘But I’d make an exception for you.’

Oscar chuckled. ‘She’s a delight. Where have you been hiding her, Ethan?’

‘I’m wondering the same thing myself,’ Ethan replied.

I looked over at him curiously but he didn’t meet my gaze. We arrived at the restaurant owned by Juliette’s family then. ‘Cinq?’ I said, looking up at the red sign.

‘It means five in French because they offer a five-course meal,’ Ethan explained as he opened the door, letting me pass through ahead of him.

Inside was as red as the sign. There were red booths and cushions on the smaller tables, red drapes across the window, and hanging on the walls, all the prints and paintings were different shades of red. It was very eye-catching. The lights were low and the background music funky. There was a bar that took up one wall. The whole place was packed and lively. It looked like one of the city’s hotspots.

‘You like?’ Juliette said, smiling at the awed look on my face. ‘Wait until you try the food! Maman, I made a new friend!’

Juliette’s parents came over and greeted me warmly, then we were shown to a booth in the corner. I scooted across and Ethan sat next to me, the other two opposite us.

‘There is no menu; they change the five courses weekly and everyone gets the same,’ Ethan explained as a waiter appeared and poured red wine for us all. Oscar and Juliette were talking across the room to people they knew at the next table.

‘So this was where you used to work?’ I asked, looking around and trying to imagine him here.

‘Talk about a learning curve. It was fast-paced and challenging and I loved every minute of it,’ Ethan said, smiling at the memory. ‘They gave me such great experience. I only had a twelve-month contract as someone was working abroad and they returned; I would have stayed otherwise.’

‘It must have been hard to leave Juliette.’ I tasted the wine. It was glorious.

‘Hard?’ Ethan looked across at me.

‘I thought that maybe you two…’ I trailed off awkwardly.

‘Oh, no, we were never together. Juliette is a free spirit.’

Juliette heard this comment and smiled at us. ‘What Ethan means is, I’m not a, how do you say, a relationship person.’

‘Juliette has broken a lot of hearts in Paris,’ Oscar said, giving her a fond look.

She shrugged. ‘I don’t want to be shackled by anyone,’ she said. ‘But Ethan likes relationships. What do you think of relationships, Tessa?’

I looked at Ethan, who was blushing furiously. I tried but failed not to find it sweet. ‘I don’t know. I used to be like Ethan, but now I wonder if we shouldn’t all be like you, Juliette.’

‘Ah, a man hurt you,’ she said, nodding wisely. ‘He was a fool? Is that right?’

‘That’s right,’ Ethan said. I wasn’t sure if he was confirming her English or the sentiment. Or both.

‘Yeah, he did, and now I’m wondering if I even believe in love any more,’ I said, wondering if the wine was loosening my tongue too much. ‘Which isn’t great for a romance writer. Ethan has been trying to help – he took me to the love wall. And to a bookshop today.’

‘That was very nice of him.’ Oscar raised an eyebrow at Ethan.

‘He’s just trying to make up for the fact he gate-crashed my holiday,’ I joked.

Ethan shook his head. ‘No, I want to help you, Tessa.’

‘That’s very sweet,’ Juliette said as she and Oscar looked at one another.

‘Oh, good, the first course,’ Ethan said loudly then.

I took a long gulp of wine because Ethan’s words had made me feel much better than I knew they should have.

We had a lively meal. Juliette loved telling stories and she asked me to correct her English, but honestly, it was pretty fluent. And when Oscar and Ethan chatted in French, I heard again how Ethan’s French was brilliant. It made me wish I could join in. It was such a beautiful language. Everything sounded sexier in French somehow. It might have been the red wine though. More kept appearing as if by magic.

When the men went to talk to a mutual friend, Juliette came to sit beside me. We’d just had the final course, a glorious chocolate tart, and I was full and pretty drunk.

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