by Lily Graham
‘Are you actually joking? You can’t throw someone out of the shop just because they don’t like A Tale of Two Cities.’
‘Yes, I can.’
‘No, you can’t.’
Freddy’s voice cut through: ‘I found it sentimental. I’m sorry, M’sieur.’
She could tell he was enjoying this. Privately she was a little worried that the two of them would actually end up killing each other… now that Freddy had moved in.
In the end, after two weeks of morose, taciturn silence following the news that she was pregnant and that she and Freddy were to be married, Madame Joubert had had enough. It was she who suggested to Dupont that he offer to have Valerie and Freddy come to live here, with him.
Valerie had looked up at Madame Joubert, and stuttered, ‘Madame… I think M’sieur Dupont wouldn’t want to have us all here intruding on him…’
Her grandfather was staring at her with a strange expression on his face.
‘Don’t you want to live with him?’ asked Madame Joubert. ‘Don’t you enjoy working here, living in Paris?’ She took a drag of her cigarette, her kohl-rimmed eyes wide, probing.
‘Of course I do, I love it here. But still, it’s a lot to ask and I don’t want to be a burden.’
‘Pah!’ exploded Dupont. They each turned to look at him. ‘What burden? I have room, I like working with you. Besides, I can’t bear the idea of you in that fleapit garret in Montmartre with my great-grandchild…’ He shuddered, then slowly started to smile.
‘Really?’ said Valerie, her eyes widening, hope filling her chest at the possibility. Everything she’d said was true. She really did love it here, and she wasn’t ready to move back to England – not yet, anyway.
He looked at her, and then at Madame Joubert. His expression contained something she didn’t recognise at first, and then she knew. It was gratitude. It was why he’d been so morose these past few weeks, she realised, and it touched her more than she could bear. He’d thought she was going to leave.
She stood up and gave him a hug, and whispered, ‘Perhaps it’s time we both started believing in second chances and happy endings.’
There were tears in his eyes as he nodded. Then he kissed the top of her head, and it was a long time before he let her go.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Present day
The night had turned from pink and gold to deepest blue and smoky black. Through the window, they could see the stars come out as the loudspeaker announced that the next stop would be Paris.
Annie would have been surprised to note that there were tracks of mascara from her tears all down her face.
The old woman next to her had long since gone from being a stranger to a friend, as Valerie Lea-Sparrow shared her story.
Annie had got up to fetch Valerie’s cobalt blue suitcase, which she’d helped stow only a few hours before, and watched as Valerie opened it to reveal the things that she’d spoken about. The old novel, The Secret Garden, with the faded G stamped on the endpaper, now more than seventy years old. A picture of Freddy, handsome and boyish, with his tousled hair, cheeky grin, and a typewriter on his lap, a cigarette dangling between his teeth. There was even a photograph of Dupont at a messy desk, a boy with wild unruly hair sitting on his lap.
‘What happened next?’ asked Annie, wanting, needing to know how it had turned out.
Valerie looked at the last photograph tenderly, and said, ‘Together we ran the Gribouiller until his death in eighty-four. Freddy and I lived in the apartment, and we raised our two children – a boy, whom we called Vincent, and a girl we called Mireille, after my mother. We moved back to England when he got a job as a producer for the BBC, but we kept the apartment – I have it still.
‘Freddy died four years ago. He got an infection in his lungs, and was gone in such a short time, I could hardly prepare myself.’ There were tears in Valerie’s eyes, and Annie’s too. ‘But it was quick. He didn’t suffer, which I suppose in the end was a blessing.’
As the train pulled into the station, the old woman stood up, wrapped a cashmere shawl around herself, and, with Annie’s help, made her way out of the station. She looked at her reflection in the window, and for just a moment she saw a young girl with long blonde hair and a battered suitcase at her feet. She lifted her chin, and she remembered now, as she did then, what she had told herself: courage. That’s all she needed now.
Two weeks later…
It was wedged between a bistro and a flower shop, a sliver of a shop on the Rue des Oiseaux, the street of the birds. She saw the faded gold lettering, and twisted the old brass knob. The shop bell tinkled and Annie walked inside. Her eyes marvelled at the overflowing shelves, the stacks of paperback towers on the floor, the big messy desk in the corner, complete with a black-and-white bookshop cat. She felt a mixture of excitement and nerves. She couldn’t believe she was actually here. She wondered if her mother would be proud of her for finally doing something she had always said she’d like to do one day.
A beam of light fell from the open door, and onto the old woman sitting behind the desk. There was a cigar in her mouth, unlit, and as the bell tinkled, she looked up with a smile. The kind of smile that turned strangers into friends. She frowned, and then said,
‘Annie?’
‘Hello,’ said Annie, a nervous smile about her lips as she stepped forward, held out a piece of paper. It had felt like a sign when she’d read it in Le Monde that morning. When she’d decided that perhaps, like a certain woman she’d come to know, courage and a new start in Paris was exactly what she needed. She bit her lip and said, ‘I came about the position I saw advertised… for a bookseller.’
Valerie stared at her for some time, and then she stood up and let out a low, throaty laugh.
‘I had this feeling, call me mad or old,’ she said, shaking her head. Her eyes twinkled as she showed Annie up the stairs. ‘The position doesn’t pay very well, but there is a room, with a kettle.’
If you were enchanted by Vincent and Valerie's story, get ready to get lost on a beautiful island where sun-kissed summer days hide a tragic tale in Lily Graham's hit novel The Island Villa.
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The Island Villa
An uplifting romantic summer read
A story of two sisters, living in a time of fear and betrayal, and rumours of a stranger on the island. If you loved The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah or The Island by Victoria Hislop, you’ll devour this dramatic tale set in a beautiful Spanish villa where the walls whisper with secrets.
When Charlotte’s husband James tragically dies, he leaves her an unexpected gift – her grandmother’s beautiful villa, Marisal, on the Spanish island of Formentera.
As she begins to explore her new home, and heal her broken heart in the warm golden sunshine, Charlotte discovers that her grandmother Alba has been keeping secrets about her life on the island. Intrigued by her family’s hidden history, Charlotte uncovers a devastating love affair that put many lives at risk and two sisters torn apart by loss.
Can the heartbreaking truth of the island’s dark history finally be laid to rest? Or will the secrets of the past shake the new life and love that Charlotte is close to finding?
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Also by Lily Graham
The Island Villa
Summer at Seafall Cottage
The Summer Escape
Christmas at Hope Cottage
A Cornish Christmas
A Letter from Lily
Thank you so much for reading The Paris Secret. I really hope you enjoyed it. Paris has always held a special place in my heart, and I have long been fascinated by its history, its light, darkness and beauty, and particularly its ability to withstand so much. If you enjoyed this story, I’d so appreciate it if
you could leave a review; it really helps to spread the word! If you’re wondering what’s next, I’m busy working on my next novel, set in Devon, featuring a group of female friends during the Second World War, which should be out in 2019.
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Lily
www.lilygraham.net
Summer at Seafall Cottage
The perfect summer romance full of sunshine and secrets
Get swept away along the beautiful Cornish coast, where a love story in a long forgotten diary has the power to change one woman’s life forever.
Victoria Langley’s world crumbles when her husband leaves, but she knows exactly where to go to mend her broken heart. The rugged shores of Cornwall will be her perfect sanctuary.
In the quaint, little village of Tregollan, nestled in the sea cliffs, Victoria is drawn to Seafall Cottage, covered in vines and gracefully falling apart. Inside she finds a diary full of secrets, from 1905.
Victoria is determined to unravel the diary’s mystery, but the residents of Tregollan are tight-lipped about Tilly Asprey, the cottage’s last owner. Just as she reaches a dead end, Victoria meets Adam Waters, the lawyer handling the cottage’s sale. He’s handsome, charming, and has a missing piece of the puzzle.
Tilly’s diary tells a devastating love story that mirrors Victoria’s own. Can Victoria learn from Tilly’s mistakes, and give herself a second chance at love? Or is history doomed to repeat itself?
An unputdownable and gorgeously romantic read about lost love and new beginnings set in the green hills and rocky cliffs of the breath-taking Cornish coast. Perfect for fans of Phillipa Ashley, Emma Burstall and Liz Fenwick.
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The Summer Escape
An uplifting romantic summer read
Amongst the beautiful olive groves and sea-front tavernas, summer has arrived on the sun-drenched island of Crete.
After losing the love of her life, Ria’s life has been on hold. So when her boss becomes completely unbearable she makes the snap decision to run away to the Greek island of Crete, armed only with her passport.
When Ria finds herself working for eccentric novelist Caroline, she meets handsome vineyard owner Tom. He’s charming, mysterious and Ria starts to wonder if it’s not just the beautiful Greek island that she’s falling for.
But as Ria gets to know Tom better, she uncovers a tangled web of secrets. What is he hiding? Ria has some secrets of her own. Can she open up to Tom and learn to live again?
This summer, escape to the sun with this charming and emotional story about starting over and grabbing happiness with both hands.
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Christmas at Hope Cottage
A magical feel-good romance novel
In the little village of Whistling, with its butterscotch cottages and rolling green hills, snow is beginning to fall. Christmas is coming, and Emma Halloway is on her way home.
When thirty-year-old food writer Emma Halloway gets dumped then knocked off her bike, she’s broken in more ways than one, and returns to her family’s cosy cottage in the Yorkshire Dales. Emma hasn’t been back in some time, running from her crazy relatives and her childhood sweetheart, Jack Allen.
Emma’s grandmother is determined to bake her back to health and happiness, as the Halloways have done for generations. Surrounded by old friends and warm cinnamon buns, Emma starts to believe in her family’s special talents for healing again. But then in walks Jack with his sparkling hazel eyes, stirring up the family feud between them.
As the twinkly lights are strung between the streetlamps, Emma remembers just why she fell for Jack in the first place... and why a Halloway should never date an Allen.
The infuriating new lodger, Sandro, doesn’t believe anyone should have to choose between love and family. With a little bit of Christmas magic, can Emma and Jack find a way to be together, or will Emma find herself heartbroken once more?
An utterly gorgeous Christmas romance about the importance of family, freshly baked biscuits, and learning to trust your heart. Perfect for fans of Phillipa Ashley, Debbie Johnson and Debbie Macomber.
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A Cornish Christmas
A cosy Christmas romance to curl up with by the fire
Nestled in the Cornish village of Cloudsea, sits Sea Cottage – the perfect place for some Christmas magic …
At last Ivy is looking forward to Christmas. She and her husband Stuart have moved to their perfect little cottage by the sea - a haven alongside the rugged cliffs that look out to the Atlantic Ocean. She’s pregnant with their much-longed for first baby and for the first time, since the death of her beloved mother, Ivy feels like things are going to be alright.
But there is trouble ahead. It soon emerges that Stuart has been keeping secrets from Ivy, and suddenly she misses her mum more than ever.
When Ivy stumbles across a letter from her mother hidden in an old writing desk, secrets from the past come hurtling into the present. But could her mother’s words help Ivy in her time of need? Ivy is about to discover that the future is full of unexpected surprises and Christmas at Sea Cottage promises to be one to remember.
This Christmas warm your heart and escape to the Cornish coast for an uplifting story of love, secrets and new beginnings that you will remember for many Christmases to come.
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Author’s Note
This story was inspired by an article I read in the Independent, called ‘France finally acknowledges its war children’.
In France, 200,000 children grew up as the offspring of German soldiers from the Occupation during the Second World War. When the war ended, the women from these relationships were treated as ‘collaborators’ and they were jailed, some executed, and humiliated by having their heads shaved and being paraded through the streets of Paris in front of crowds of angry mobs. The stigma of being born to one of these women and a German father ensured that, through no fault of their own, some of these children were stigmatised, ostracised and ridiculed. So much so that many of them, when they could, reached out to German relatives – and this is where some were welcomed.
The Occupation, however, was a story of a survival. The city of Paris was, in effect, abandoned by the government, and in many ways its women were left alone to defend themselves – some were raped and tortured, and many resisted. Some, yes, fell in love. Some slept with soldiers to improve the situation for themselves and their children. Through it all they tried to deal with a very unfair situation, and to survive.
I didn’t set out to write a romance between a German officer and a Frenchwoman. Mattaus appeared, and I began to imagine what it would have looked like if an officer like him began to question the practices of his government, and what that might mean.
The main story, however, was born out of this question: what would a parent or grandparent do, if they knew that they might spare the child the pain of being ridiculed and ostracised for something over which they had no control?
I must note, however, that the Germans were not alone in fathering children in enemy territory. In fact, it is estimated that a quarter of a million children were fathered by allied soldiers to German mothers during the Second World War, and many of these children had no idea who their fathers were, and were stigmatised by their own community – even speaking about it, on both sides, remains a difficult subject. It is a fact that, as Valerie says at the beginning of the story, ‘What so many men have failed to realise after waging all these wars is that there are no real victors – there are only casualties, and they keep coming long after the battle has passed.’ For the children of these wars and the psychological scars they have endured
, this remains true.
For the purposes of this story some of the events and the timescale were shifted slightly – such as the forced wearing of the Star of David, which didn’t occur as quickly as it was portrayed in the novel. Also, the rank of a senior doctor, while technically a ‘captain’ in the Wehrmacht, would not have commanded a position of authority in the army outside the medical corps.
