“Maybe you should get something to drink first and then we’ll discuss,” Elizabeth said, noticing my unwieldy shifting of weight from one foot to the other.
Aaron shot back up and grabbed my hand, spinning me toward the counter so quickly I almost lost my balance.
“Whoa, cowboy,” I whispered, as we stood in front of the pastry case. “What happened to calm, cool, and collected?”
“It flew out the door with reason and empathy.”
We ordered two cappuccinos and croissants, and Aaron managed to calm down slightly before we returned to the table. I sat down this time, followed by Aaron.
“Anyhow,” I said, taking a sip of my cappuccino. “As you were saying?”
Now that I had a place to sit and a coffee, I felt far more in control. I centered my gaze on Elizabeth and tried to gauge her response to Aaron. There was no doubt she was in love with him, but I couldn’t tell if she was a woman scorned or what. Her expression was misleading.
Elizabeth looked at me. “I should never have put my nose where it didn’t belong. I’d be lying if I didn’t admit there was a part of me that wanted to cause a rift between the two of you. Not to mention having Tracy in my ear didn’t help. But I’m not making excuses. I’m a grown woman, responsible for my actions.”
She looked at Aaron. “I never should’ve passed on any information to Tracy. I knew she was fiercely loyal, but I misunderstood the lengths that she would go to. I didn’t know she would turn it around or ever use it against you. I treated her as a confidant and I shouldn’t have. When you stopped communicating with me, I began pressing Tracy since she was still in contact with you. I never imagined that she would have done what she did. I’m deeply sorry for that, and I can understand why you cut off contact with me. I didn’t find out what she did until yesterday when I told her I was meeting with you both.”
Elizabeth took a deep breath in and looked over at me. “You’ve been through enough, and I didn’t mean to make things worse on either of you, but I did. I hope you can forgive me.”
Completely shocked, I stared at her as I tried to find my voice. Either she had supremely elevated acting skills or she was the most sincere person I’d ever met. I could see why things might just roll off of Aaron’s tongue around her.
“Unfortunately, last night while Tracy and I were arguing I found out she’d gone to the press about your story, Aaron. I’m absolutely sick about it,” her voice trembled and strangely, I wanted to comfort her.
I reached my hand across the table and touched hers. Her eyes connected with mine, and I realized she wasn’t a woman scorned. She was a woman who fell in love with the wrong man, and she had no power over it. There was something about Aaron that drew people in.
Aaron glanced at me, and I saw a slight curl of his lip as he shook his head perplexed by the scenario unfolding in front of him.
“I accept your apology. Sometimes even with our best intentions, things can go seriously haywire. I’m sure Aaron can attest to that,” I said.
Aaron furrowed his brows as I released my hands from Elizabeth’s.
“You know talking about emotions and feelings is not a strong point of mine,” Aaron said, shifting in his seat. “But I’m beyond angry with what has transpired. It could have cost me a relationship that I cherish more than life itself.”
Elizabeth nodded and blinked back tears. “I realize that and I know that my words aren’t enough.”
I slid my hand to Aaron’s knee and pressed my fingers into his flesh so he’d take it a little easy on her. A twitch of his mouth signaled he’d received the message, and he let out an exasperated sigh instead of the bottled up words.
“You know, Elizabeth. You’re just lucky Brandy is here with me, and that she’s such an amazing woman because there are a lot of unkind things I wanted to say to you, but the woman sitting next to me is stopping me.”
I blushed at the compliment but also reveled in it.
“I know, Aaron. You’ve found your equal, and all I can hope is that I’ll find mine one day.” She smiled faintly. “I wanted to tell you in person that I’ve found a buyer for my company. You’ll be receiving your investment back, along with the percentage that we spoke about when you tried to convince me to sell it years ago.”
So Aaron was telling the truth.
“Are you sure that’s what you want to do?” The words rolled out of my mouth before I could even stop them.
“I wasn’t meant for that world. I detested it, but I also kept holding onto it, thinking that I could win a man’s heart that was never meant to belong to me. Brandy, I don’t know what Aaron has or hasn’t told you about us, but I can assure you there never was an us. That ideal only existed in my imagination, and unfortunately that version was what I told Tracy about. She’s not a bad person, just misguided.”
“You had me until there,” Aaron said, laughing. “You’ve really got to reevaluate your friendships.”
Elizabeth smiled, and I saw her beauty fill up the room. “You’re probably right about that. But at least something good came out of it.”
“What was that?” he asked.
“The world gets to see your work.”
I wanted to hate Elizabeth, but for the life of me I couldn’t. I sat quietly and debated what to say and decided nothing was probably best.
“I don’t want to beat the subject to death. All I can do is apologize and move on, but I wanted to warn you that she went to the press here in France too. She thought it would be good publicity for the show.”
I saw the vein throb in Aaron’s forehead, and I knew Elizabeth caught it too.
“Thank you for letting us know,” I said.
“Well, I think you just gave me the final reason to back out,” Aaron sighed.
“Final reason?” Elizabeth asked bewildered.
I nodded. “Since Tracy so aptly defined conditions of my relationship with Aaron, she threatened many things and Aaron wanted to pull out. I convinced him not to, but maybe I was wrong.”
Elizabeth looked stunned, but anger quickly replaced it. “I’m so sorry.”
Aaron shrugged. “I doubt anyone in Paris will give two shits about it. It’ll be fine.”
I glanced at Elizabeth and our eyes connected. She knew as well as I did that the press would eat this up, especially if Tracy put a spin on it to sensationalize it.
Elizabeth stood up, lifted her bag up and slung it over her shoulder.
“You’ll be at the opening?” I asked.
Elizabeth shook her head.
“Oh, no you don’t,” Aaron laughed. “You can’t drop a bomb and run away.”
“I thought that was the Aaron way,” she retorted.
“Ooh,” I whispered.
“Seriously, I would appreciate it if you would come. You might be able to handle Tracy so that we don’t have to,” Aaron eyed her and she nodded slowly and glanced at me.
“I guess it is the least I can do,” she sighed.
“It would be nice,” I admitted.
She nodded and looked like she was about to burst into tears, but instead she gave us a quick wave and left the café quicker than I could turn around.
“Well, I guess we’re back in the Twilight Zone,” I whispered.
“I didn’t know we ever left.”
Regardless of what Aaron felt about his future in the art world, he’d been pouring himself into his work and what he created was sensational. Having the time away in the country centered us both and solidified our future together. The peace of the chateau quieted our minds and allowed us to focus on what mattered to us. We knew when we got back to Seattle, our lives would be going in several different directions, but we understood no matter what was thrown at us, we had one another to lean on. Talking with Elizabeth only finalized that. We were united and there was no tearing us apart. After meeting with her, we wandered over to the catacombs and got in line only to have Aaron’s shoulder tapped and a couple of workers explained that the wait was too long in the
line, and we wouldn’t make it inside. They assured us if we came back about an hour earlier the next day, we’d be able to get in. Well, that didn’t happen either. We’d gotten there at ten o’clock in the morning, only to have the same guys tells us that the line was too long, and we wouldn’t make it in by closing time. I wasn’t sure if I believed them, so I made Aaron hang around to see if they told others who tried to get in line the same thing.
They did. So we wandered back to the apartment and that was where I left him so I could do some shopping.
Everyone was arriving tomorrow and in a couple days his exhibit would open. I wanted to treat him to a peaceful night in with a home-cooked meal before the group arrived. I’d been planning the meal for days and was excited to scout along the Parisian streets on my own. I’d gotten pretty familiar with the blocks around our apartment, but I wanted to snoop a little farther out and this gave me the perfect excuse. Not to mention I needed some fresh air. Another nightmare woke me up, and I’d been shaken ever since. With the verdict expected today, I suppose it was too much for my subconscious to handle. Waking up to the thought of Derek being a free man was beyond chilling.
Aaron was finalizing details for the show with Gregory Sennet. Gregory was a nice man, and Aaron and I decided not to hold his daughter against him. I was just praying the showing would go smoothly despite the pending onslaught of media.
I walked down the cobblestoned alley, sipping on a Starbucks, which gave me that little taste of home I craved and brought a sense of normalcy to my otherwise peculiar reality. It was hard to believe Aaron had been in France over six weeks, and I’d been here for three. I figured by the time I got used to being here, we’d be heading for the airport. But until then, I was seeing and experiencing as much as Paris had to offer.
The 6th arrondissement was absolutely enchanting with its galleries, quaint shops, patisseries, and cafés. There was such vitality to this district, and it stirred something inside of me every time I stepped outside. It had been the perfect distraction, but I longed for the villa we’d left behind. Aaron and I had shared so much while we stayed there, and it felt like something that no one could ever take away from us. I didn’t understand why that was important to me, but it was. I would treasure those memories for the rest of my life.
Exploring the rickety, green booths along the Seine had become a favorite hobby of mine, and today was no different. I had no idea how much time had gone by as I flipped through the pages of the used books and magazines. The yellowed pages and feel of the thick sheets carried me to another time. Most of the books I’d flipped through were in French, but it didn’t matter.
“Bonjour,” a man said.
I looked up from the bin to see a handsome man standing next to me. His blond hair was disheveled, and his expression beguiling. The man matched my idea of a Parisian Professor. He was clasping a copy of Les Fleurs du mal, The Flowers of Evil. Baudelaire was one of the few French poets I recognized, and I appreciated this stranger’s taste in poetry.
“Bonne journée à vous,” I replied, glancing at the book.
And then I went for it. I attempted an entire sentence.
“Je adore ce poète.”
The man grinned and nodded. “I do as well.”
I chuckled, relieved that he spoke English because I’d gotten about as far as I could in French.
“This is for you,” the man said, handing me the book.
“Oh, no. I can’t accept this,” I replied, shaking my hands at the man.
“It would be bad form not to accept my humble gift to you, mademoiselle. I see something in you. This book calls to be in your hands. Remember that no matter what people try to take from you, they can’t take your truth. Your memories are your own and so is your future.”
Before I had a chance to refuse, he shoved the book in my hands and turned around and walked away. It was one of the oddest interactions I’d ever encountered; yet I felt there was something more to it than chance. I held the book tightly and went on my way, as I searched for a place to sit and browse through the pages.
Finding an empty bench under a shade tree, I sat down and placed my bag next to me. I opened the book and a pressed rose marking a page fell to my lap.
I Have Not Forgotten Our White Cottage
I have not forgotten our white cottage,
Small but peaceful, near the city,
Its plaster Pomona, its old Venus,
Hiding their bare limbs in a stunted grove.
In the evening streamed down the radiant sun,
That great eye which stares from the inquisitive sky.
From behind the window that scattered its bright rays
It seemed to gaze upon our long, quiet dinners,
Spreading wide its candle-like reflections
On the frugal tablecloth and the serge curtains.
~Charles Baudelaire/Trans. William Aggeler
A shiver ran through me as I stared at the poem that was marked specifically for me. I didn’t know what to make of it, and maybe that was okay for now. I didn’t need to have all the answers in order to accept this mysterious message from a stranger. I reread the poem and closed my eyes, thinking about where my life had led me. I smiled internally as I realized it led me right to Aaron. My mind drifted back to our time at the chateau, and I couldn’t help but feel at peace no matter what was waiting for me later tonight.
The summer breeze swept through my hair, and I took a deep breath in as I thought about a new beginning using my old dreams. The dreams I’d let someone rip away from me as if they’d meant nothing. Regardless of what the verdict was today, I had things that Derek could never take away from me. I had the villa with Aaron and I had me.
I read the poem one last time and placed the rose back inside before closing up the book and tucking it in my bag. I hopped off the bench and was ready to begin my mission. One of the stores I wanted to hit wasn’t actually in this arrondissement. Theoretically, I could hop on a train and be where I wanted in fifteen minutes. I wasn’t sure I believed that any longer because fifteen minutes seemed to be the standard answer whenever we asked how long it would take to get somewhere, and most of the time, it took far longer. Feeling completely determined, I spotted the Metro sign that stood tall across the street, and I decided to brave the trains on my own. It couldn’t be that hard to figure out where I wanted to go.
I jogged down the stairs leading into the tunnel and got my ticket. When Aaron and I came back from the catacombs this morning, rather than walk, we took the train and all went according to plan until I fed the ticket through the machine and didn’t move quick enough through the bar. The gate locked and Aaron was on one side, and I was on the other. I panicked as I tried to push my way through, but it wouldn’t budge. Aaron was laughing, which didn’t help and I just got exasperated. Between that and not getting to see the catacombs two days in a row, I was extremely annoyed. Thankfully, one of the volunteers led me over to a window where they exchanged my ticket for a new one that would let me through. I had no idea what would happen if this happened in a terminal that wasn’t manned. I guess a person would just be out of luck.
I prided myself on getting through the system and hopping on the appropriate train in time. I sat with my bag pinned to my side so no one would steal what little I had and mentally calculated which stop I needed. Every time the train slowed my nerves ignited, worried that I’d miss my stop. Finally the correct stop flashed on the screen and even though the automated voice didn’t sound quite like I imagined the stop to be spoken, I hopped off the train and made my way through the busy terminal and back up the stairs to daylight. This store better be as good as the reviews said.
Wandering down the street, I stared at the dangling signs as I tried to find the correct one. Seeing the sign, Une épicerie fine pour vous made me victorious against the city that had tried to claim me time and again. I swung open the door and complete jubilation spiked through my veins.
I’d made it. I was on my way to conq
uering this city yet!
I picked up a bag and wandered down the nearest aisle, picking up olives and toasted Grenoble walnuts, along with a little wine. A line wound along the case as people peered into the glass staring at the different meats and cheeses spread along the silver trays. My mouth watered looking at the different types of Brie.
When it was my turn to place my order, I fumbled my way through French and the shop owner seemed really happy that I at least tried. I paid for everything at once and walked out of the store triumphantly.
I decided to find a bakery nearby so I didn’t have to bother with shopping when I got back to our arrondissement. I could just hop on the train, hop off, and head right for our apartment. I had no idea how long I’d been gone and didn’t want Aaron to worry.
As I moseyed along the Parisian streets, I stopped every so often to look into the boutique windows and ogle at the shoes, bags, and clothes that beckoned me. I was grateful I was hauling around a bag of meat and cheese so I wasn’t tempted to go inside.
With what seemed like far too long, I stopped and tried to figure out where in the world I was. I think I made enough turns that I was actually headed back in the direction of our district, the 6th arrondissement, but I wasn’t certain. Spotting a bakery down the street, I made a left and beelined there.
I walked into the bakery and could smell the fresh baked bread. It made me want to stop where I was and eat every type of roll and loaf they had to offer. After scanning the case, I picked out four different rolls, names of which I butchered and happily paid. I strolled down the street making my way over several blocks, feeling more confident about where I needed to be with each step. At least, I would work up an appetite. Ambling along the sidewalks felt so French, and it helped that I was certain I was headed in the right direction. I stopped at a city map and glanced at where I thought I was headed. A big, red circle with the words vous êtes ici fooled me into believing I had this down.
After around four hours of aimlessly wandering around Paris, I realized that I was lost. I didn’t want to admit it. At first, I was content with lying to myself. I assured myself that I truly wanted to see some of the tourist attractions I happened to drift by. It wasn’t until the last ten minutes when I had actual arguments with myself that terror struck and so did hunger—not to mention thirst.
Beyond Chance Page 18
