Page 136 of One Time in Paris
She’d talked to her brother—briefly—about it all over the phone. To her surprise, he’d done her the favor of flying to Costa Rica after visiting Aiden in Scotland, in order to make certain that Mum and Sergio had help.
And though she hadn’t outright quit yet, she knew now that she had to. She’d told him she and Aiden needed time to figure out how to make their marriage work, and Callum had said he’d understood.
But now it was clearer than ever: her time atLa Haciendawas at an end.
It had to be.
And for some reason, that made her sadder than she expected. But even worse was the fact that she might need to be away from Aiden for several weeks—maybe even months—until she sorted the situation.
As though he could read her thoughts—which sometimes she wondered if he could—Aiden squeezed her hand. “You all right?”
“I’m just thinking about how much I’m going to miss this impromptu honeymoon we’ve had. And you.” She leaned against him. “I’m not looking forward to the flight out of here to Costa Rica tomorrow morning.”
“Neither am I,” he said, then leaned over and took the basket from her. “I do have a few small surprises for you this evening, though, and I hope you won’t be angry with me for them. But there was unfinished business I thought we needed to take care of before we left here.”
She gave him a curious look.Surprises?
Normally, she’d welcome them.
But Aiden hadn’t presented them like a good thing.
“What sort of surprises?”
Aiden nodded, gesturing with his chin for her to look ahead.
Then she saw them—standing on the grassy area where she and Aiden had been heading for a picnic—Callum . . . andDavy.
Isla drew a sharp breath.
Callum . . . she was happy to see.
But Davy?
She paused mid-step. “Aiden?—”
“Before you say anything, Callum brought Davy. I didn’t know she was coming. But this time, I agree with his ambush, Isla. I think you need to talk to her. You’ve been friends for half your life. Even if you choose not to continue that friendship, it might help you to hear her out.”
Isla let herself breathe slowly, listening to the distant chatter of a couple on a bench. Her gaze fell to a man reading a book, and she focused her mind, thinking.
Is he right?
She knew he was.
And maybe this was yet another thing she appreciated about Aiden. He gently but firmly challenged her to be a better version of herself.
She nodded, then let go of his hand, heading toward her brother and Davy. She greeted Callum with a hug. “This is a surprise,” she said, her voice tight before she turned to Davy. “Hi.”
Davy’s eyes were pained. “I tried to call and text you?—”
“I know,” Isla said softly. She’d ignored Davy’s attempts to reach out over the last week. She cocked her head to the side as Aiden greeted Callum. “Why don’t we take a stroll?” She’d deal with Callum later, but she didnotwant to have this conversation with Davy in front of Aiden or him.
Davy nodded, and they moved away from the men. Neither woman spoke for a few moments, their gazes focused on the Seine. At this time of the evening, before sunset, Parisians often came here to read and spend quiet time in the square.
“I know I shouldn’t have tagged along with Callum. I just didn’t know how else to get you to talk to me,” Davy blurted out at last.
“Maybe . . .” Isla started cautiously, “you should have given me some time to decide I was ready to talk to you, Davy.”
Davy gave a sorrowful nod. “I know.”
