French Lessons

by Ellen Sussman

  He stops talking as suddenly as he began. She wonders for a moment if she’s crazy or he’s crazy. This might be a joke of sorts, something he and Philippe have created to make a fool of her.

  Because she must be a fool-she’s watching him with a smile on her face that she can’t hide. She imagines the darkness of the train, the great speed, the closed space, the quiet hours. They would arrive at midnight, find a hotel, and hold each other through the night. In the morning there would be Provence-green, lush, ripe-and they could step out into this new world.

  “I don’t have clothes, toiletries,” Chantal tells him, a little breathlessly.

  “You don’t need a thing. We’ll spend the entire weekend naked in bed.”

  She smiles. “I’m the backup girl?”

  “No,” he says. He’s quiet-it’s as if he’s run out of words. “I want you,” he finally says, his voice as hushed as a promise.

  “I don’t know what I want.”

  “You want Provence. We’ll figure it out from there.”

  “Let’s go,” Chantal says, laughing.

  Why not? she thinks. Why not look for love on a train from Paris to Provence. And in the morning, they’ll wake in each other’s arms, to greet the astonishing sun.

  Acknowledgments

  The writing process may be solitary, but the process of turning a manuscript into a published book takes a lot of help from my friends.

  I’d like to thank my very smart readers: Neal Rothman, Lalita Tademy, Rosemary Graham, Elizabeth Stark, Amanda Eyre Ward, Allison Lynn, Meg Waite Clayton, Vicky Mlyniec, and Cornelia Read.

  I owe a great deal to my remarkable agent, Sally Wofford-Girand.

  I feel very lucky to have the talented Jennifer Smith as my editor. Gina Centrello, Libby McGuire, and Jane von Mehren, publishers extraordinaire, head up the Ballantine dream team. Sanyu Dillon was one of the first champions of French Lessons at Random House, and I greatly appreciate her unflagging support. A tip of the chapeau to Cindy Murray, my publicist, and to Kim Hovey and Leigh Marchant, who deserve a coupe de champagne and many, many thanks for their support and hard work. Bisous to all of you. The publishing process has never been so much fun.

  Ilsa Brink designed my website-Ilsa, you’re brilliant.

  I am part of a wonderful women writers’ community in the San Francisco Bay area: WOMBA (Word of Mouth-Bay Area). Thank you, Wombistas, for all your support along the way.

  My fabulous students always inspire me. I’ll share champagne with all of you.

  Thank you, Daniela De Luca, my very dear friend, for the use of your fabulous apartment in Paris.

  I have spent blissful writing weeks at Ledig House, Ragdale, Ucross, and Atlantic Center for the Arts-I am so grateful for what those residencies have given me.

  Thanks to my friend Gary Lee Kraut, travel consultant and founder of FranceRevisited.com, who checked the manuscript for any mistakes in French or in my portrayal of Paris.

  As always, my undying love and gratitude to Neal.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  ELLEN SUSSMAN is the author of the novel On a Night Like This, which was a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller and was translated into six languages. She is the editor of two anthologies, Bad Girls: 26 Writers Misbehave, a New York Times Editors’ Choice and a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller, and Dirty Words: A Literary Encyclopedia of Sex. She has published numerous essays and short stories. Ellen teaches creative writing both in private classes and through Stanford Continuing Studies. Ellen lived in Paris for five years and now lives with her husband in Northern California.

  www.EllenSussman.com.

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