by Lost
Sophie was shocked at herself: was she thinking of taking Ryan back when in her heart, she had told herself things should be completely over? She hadn’t thought about taking him back before coming face to face with Raff. And Coco.
‘What do you want to know about the macaron business?’ Raff asked, clearly sensing that Sophie didn’t want to talk about herself, shifting to a more business-like tone. ‘Ask me anything you want to.’
Sophie relaxed slightly. Safer territory. ‘Just… what’s changed since I was last here, I suppose. How you and mum work together.’
Raff cradled his coffee. ‘We work really well together. She’s very traditional and I’m more of a… modern thinker, I guess.’
Sophie put her knife and fork down. Yes. She remembered that from her time in Paris all those years ago. Raff was very creative and forward-thinking. He had helped out in the business back then, while he was training.
‘So I’ve been trying to get your mother to think about new flavours,’ Raff was saying. ‘Nothing too wild, but just… some fresh ideas.’
‘And how has that gone down?’
Raff let out a short laugh. ‘Sometimes great, sometimes not so much.’
Sophie couldn’t help joining in the laughter. Mariele could be the most stubborn woman on the planet at times, but she also possessed a real bohemian streak and could be open to change and new ideas. When she wanted to be.
Sophie’s mouth twitched. She and her mum were very alike in many ways. Her mum had always told her that she was the second most stubborn person in the world after herself.
‘I’ve managed to get her away from just selling the really basic flavours,’ Raff said, jumping up and heading to the glass cabinet.
‘I noticed that the other day,’ Sophie commented. ‘A few new concoctions.’
Raff lifted a mini macaron out with the tongs. ‘Try this. Salted caramel.’
Sophie bit into it. ‘Amazing.’ It really was. It melted in her mouth, and the strong, sweet caramel flavour faded into a salty stickiness that somehow cleansed the palate of the sweetness.
Raff took out a box and put a few more macarons into it. ‘These are all the new ones.’ He brought them over.
‘Champagne with gold leaf. Lavender and coconut. Black vanilla. Blueberry and cream cheese. And that’s as much as I’ve managed to get away with so far.’ Raff grinned. ‘But I have plans for several more, which I’ll tell you about another time.’
‘All gorgeous,’ Sophie said, meaning it. She sampled the champagne with the speckles of gold leaf, which looked ridiculously pretty. ‘It’s so delicate. I would get so fat if I still lived here.’
‘No way. You’re… you look so…’ Raff stared at her then tore his eyes away. ‘Anyway. That message from your mum. I wonder why she was talking about the childhood stuff.’
‘Yes, me too.’
Raff narrowed his eyes. ‘I’m trying to think of anything she might have said that will give us a clue as to where she might be. I mean, I know we don’t need to panic as much now that we know she’s ok, but still.’
Sophie picked up the breakfast plates. ‘I know. Seriously, anything you can remember would be great, Raff. I still want to find her.’
Raff helped her. Sophie caught a whiff of Raff’s aftershave. It was the same one he had always worn back in the day and she had always loved it. Woody, masculine and very Raff. Sophie wore a different perfume these days, but she was sure Raff wouldn’t remember or even notice.
‘Hang on.’ Raff thought for a second. ‘A while ago, just before she disappeared, Mariele was talking about some art gallery. Some photographer she wanted to see.’
‘Ok…’ Sophie wasn’t sure if it was important, but it was a start and better than nothing. ‘Which gallery? Do you know remember the name?’
Raff screwed his face up. ‘No. God. No, I can’t! How annoying. But I would know it if I saw it because Mariele showed me a flyer thing for it. It’s near the Pompidou centre.’
Sophie hesitated. She wasn’t sure she wanted to hang out with Raff, but if it was the only way to find this gallery and her mother…
Maybe Raff could just show her where the gallery was and he would leave her to it. That could work.
‘We could go later, when the shop closes?’ Raff offered. ‘I… won’t stay once we’ve found it. Not if you don’t want me to.’
Sophie gave a vague shrug. She turned towards the door of the shop. ‘I think there are customers…’
‘Oh, ok…’ Raff nodded. ‘No problem. I’ll go and let them in. I’ll see you later, ok?’ He headed towards the door.
Sophie stared after him. It was so strange being around Raff again. It felt familiar yet strange and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it. Her phone rang and she answered it.
‘Eloise… Yes, I know! I’ll talk you through the message…’
Chapter Nine
Back at his house later, Raff had a shower and got changed into a fresh shirt and jeans. Throwing on a smart suit jacket, he decided he wasn’t sure whether he had done the right thing by telling Sophie about the art gallery, let alone offering to take her there. She genuinely seemed to find his presence difficult and Raff didn’t want to make things harder for her. But it was done now and he couldn’t back out of it. Besides which, he hadn’t done anything wrong! But Sophie clearly still didn’t know that. Raff wondered if he should feel angrier with Sophie, but for some reason he couldn’t. He still felt disappointed and sad and confused about how it had all gone wrong five years ago, but he was also worried about Mariele. And he owed it to her to focus on her disappearance and help Sophie.
Raff headed downstairs. He could hear Coco roaming around upstairs and he wondered if she was going out somewhere. Drifting to the floor-to-ceiling window in the lounge which overlooked the garden, Raff sucked his breath in. The house was only twenty minutes or so from the macaron shop via some twisty cobbled streets, but it was a little haven away from the hustle and bustle of Paris. It was actually a ground-floor flat and a first-floor flat combined, but it had a country feel to it and a good-sized garden; Raff had always loved living here. It was actually his father’s house. Henri still lived there but in a spacious annexe to the side of the property.
Raff bit his lip. He was almost as worried about his father as he was about Mariele, but for very different reasons. Henri hadn’t disappeared as such; he just wasn’t the man he used to be. After Sophie had left, Raff had moved out with Coco and into an apartment nearer the Seine; however, after everything that had happened with his parents, he had moved back in again, bringing Coco with him as there were plenty of spare rooms.
Raff checked his watch. Sophie would be here at any second. Staring out into the garden, Raff caught sight of the pond at the end. The location of their first kiss all those years ago. It was a week after they had first met…
Six Years Ago
‘This garden is so pretty,’ Sophie said, rubbing her shoulders.
‘Here, have my jacket.’ Raff pulled his leather jacket off and wrapped it round her. It was chilly and dark, but there was light shining from all the stars in the inky sky above them and from inside the house.
‘What a gent,’ she said, pulling his jacket around herself even more. ‘Thank you. I’d like to photograph this place.’
‘Really?’ Raff raised his eyebrows. He liked the fact that they switched between French and English. Her English was obviously far better than his being her first language, but Raff liked to think he could hold his own. ‘Surely there are better things to photograph.’
‘Like you, perhaps?’ She looked mischievous.
‘Ha. I didn’t mean me. I meant that there are so many beautiful parks we could go to.
She eyed him with her head to one side and broke into a full-on smile. ‘We could but do you have the time to spare with your busy pastry-making career?’
Raff turned to face her. ‘I would always make time to see you.’ He loved how he felt when he was with her. He had nev
er felt like this before. Excited, hopeful, happy, all at once.
Sophie remained quiet, but he thought she looked pleased. A light breeze lifted her dark hair from her shoulders and Raff took the opportunity to study her profile. She had a chiselled nose and her eyes were set wide apart. Her mouth… Raff lingered. It was beautiful. Kissable.
There was a pause and she spoke again. ‘I would like to photograph you actually. You have good cheekbones.’
Raff pulled a face and laughed. ‘I’m a guy. I don’t even know what that means. But anyway. I love that you’re into photography. Baking and crafting: that’s art. Photography: that’s art too. Is it a hobby or a potential career?’
‘Definitely career.’ She was clear on this topic. ‘People, places… capturing a moment in time is such a special thing.’
Raff considered her, loving the way her eyes lit up when she was passionate about something. ‘And at least you create something that is timeless. I create something and then it gets destroyed.’
She gave him a sideways glance. ‘Yes, I suppose it does! Does that bother you?’
‘Not at all. I love what I do. As long as it looks amazing, because we all eat with our eyes first, you know?’
She nodded then lifted her head to stare up at the Parisian night sky, surely the most beautiful in the world? ‘Look at those stars. I wish I knew more about all the formations. No. Not formations. Constellations?’
‘I have no idea, I’m afraid,’ Raff confessed. He couldn’t stop staring at her, but she was rather beautiful. Not classically so, but she definitely had something. ‘Oh dear. Romantic moment failure. Ask me about pastry. Or macarons.’
Sophie shook her head. ‘I probably know almost as much as you do about macarons! You should come to the shop. My mum will probably love you.’
‘Will she?’ Raff raised an eyebrow. ‘I’m more interested in how you feel about me, if I’m honest.’
‘I’m not sure yet,’ she replied, her eyes flirting with his.
‘Well, I know how I feel about you.’
‘Is that so?’
Raff nodded. ‘Yes. I’ve seen you almost every day since we met in the shop the other night. And all I want to do is see more of you. I think something huge has happened here. I saw you and just… fell.’
He heard her gasp. ‘Me too,’ she said.
He pulled her closer. ‘Kiss me,’ he said.
‘Since you asked so nicely,’ she whispered.
Their lips met and they kissed. Sophie wound her arms around Raff’s neck. He put one arm around her waist and the other arm came up so he could sink his hand into her hair. They kissed and kissed and kissed. Until they could barely breathe. And from that point, they were intrinsically linked…
The doorbell rang and Raff was yanked out of his memory. He walked to the door and opened it. Sophie stood there, wearing a sleeveless cream dress with a black pashmina wrapped around her shoulders.
‘Hey.’ She remained on the doorstep as if she wasn’t sure what to do.
‘Come in,’ he said, standing aside. Wow. It was harder than he had thought it would be, seeing her here. How many hours had they spent here? Hanging out, talking, kissing… everything else…
Sophie felt jolted to be back at Raff’s house. Well, his parents’ house. She had spent so much time here when she lived in Paris. She knew every inch of it; it was like her second home.
‘Where are your parents?’ she asked, stepping into the house. God, the memories. It looked similar; the bookcases were still loaded with books as Raff’s father was such an avid reader, but the old-fashioned record player his mum had loved so much was absent. She took a quick look around. Not only were some of the things she remembered missing, but there seemed to be little in the way of feminine touches. No cushions or flowers or anything… pretty.
Sophie couldn’t help feeling oddly pleased that perhaps Raff wasn’t living with someone. But she had no right to think that.
Raff stared at her. ‘My mum died. A year ago. But I guess you wouldn’t know that.’
‘Oh no! Raff!’ Sophie was shocked. Raff’s mum had been absolutely wonderful. So kind and caring. A lovely, motherly figure. Not as glamorous as her mum probably, but calming and reliable.
Why hadn’t Mariele told her that Raff’s mum had passed away, Sophie wondered? Maybe she simply thought Sophie wouldn’t be interested. She had cut Raff out of her life unequivocally when she left Paris.
‘I’m so sorry to hear that, Raff.’ Sophie meant it. ‘I loved your mum. She was amazing.’
‘Yes.’ Raff wasn’t sure what else to say, but he felt irrationally angry. Why didn’t Sophie know this? It had been the worst time for all of them. Worse than when Sophie had left Paris, but only just.
‘Is Henri ok?’ Sophie asked after Raff’s dad.
‘Not really,’ Raff replied shortly. Half of him wanted to confide in Sophie and tell her everything, because he always used to tell her everything. But the other half wanted to shut her out because they hadn’t spoken in years.
‘Oh hello, Sophie,’ Coco said, appeared on the stairs. She was wearing a short black skirt, with black tights and heavy-looking ankle boots.
‘Where are you off to?’ Raff demanded with a frown. What on earth was she wearing? She was far too young to be dressed like that!
‘Just out to see a friend,’ Coco replied airily.
‘A friend?’ Raff didn’t believe her. She looked as though she was dressed to go and see a boy.
‘Yes.’ Coco sailed past him and kissed his cheek. ‘I have my phone; I’ll be in touch, I promise.’ And with that, she was gone.
Raff shook his head. ‘I worry about her so much. I want to trust her, but I suspect she has a boyfriend. She’s too young. Do I sound old saying that?’
‘No. It must be… tricky.’ Sophie wasn’t sure what to say. She didn’t hold anything against Coco; it wasn’t her fault. She seemed sweet. But seeing Coco made her feel angry towards Raff again because of everything that had happened just before Sophie had left Paris.
‘Let’s go,’ Raff said, grabbing his car keys. He ran upstairs to the annexe and checked on his father; he was asleep and looked peaceful. Raff was glad. Coming back downstairs, he decided he would do this art gallery thing with Sophie and then he would come straight back to check on his dad and to make sure Coco got home at a reasonable time.
Chapter Ten
Sophie had always liked Raff’s car. It was a cream, rather battered, but very stylish convertible Citroen. The roof was up tonight as it was chilly, but Sophie remembered how fabulous it had felt with the roof down, driving out of Paris to find restaurants in the country and pretty places to have picnics. Sophie was half surprised to see it, but she supposed Raff didn’t drive that much. She knew he loved this car with a passion. And generally, when Raff loved something, he looked after it and didn’t let it go.
The same couldn’t be said about how he’d behaved with her all those years ago unfortunately, Sophie thought to herself as she glanced out of the window. Raff had looked after her and then he hadn’t and then he had let her go. Sophie caught her breath. How could this still affect her so much after all this time?
Sophie shrugged the thought off. She needed to focus on her mum. In the distance, she could see the Seine and the back of Notre-Dame. Heading away towards the Georges Pompidou centre, they didn’t speak, but Sophie could tell that Raff was on edge. She wasn’t sure if it was because of Coco or because of her, but she said nothing. She just wanted to see if they could find a clue as to where her mum had got to.
Raff found a parking space and expertly reversed his car into it.
‘Ok. It’s along here somewhere,’ Raff said as they walked down Rue Saint-Martin.
Sophie loved Rue Saint-Martin and she paused for a moment to take it in. It was old Paris at its best: beautiful, historic architecture, a grand old church and a sweeping arch at the north end. There were loads of places to eat and it felt arty. Not in the way Montmartre did i
n all its bohemian glory, but with its high-ceilinged galleries and cool shops, it had a lovely, chilled vibe.
Raff was frowning. He couldn’t for the life of him remember what the gallery was called. He caught sight of Sophie and he could tell she was drinking the atmosphere in. She always had a particular look on her face when she appreciated something; her nose crinkled up and a slight smile would play on her lips.
God, she was gorgeous from this angle, Raff thought to himself. From all angles actually.
‘I love this area,’ Sophie said suddenly, turning to look at him. ‘Don’t you?’
‘Yes.’ Raff looked around, taking his surroundings in more, properly looking rather than just… being there. ‘It’s cool. Not beautiful, but cool.’
‘Yes. It is cool.’ Sophie smiled at him. Then turned away.
Raff cleared his throat. ‘Ok. The gallery is called… it’s…’ he stopped outside a small well-lit gallery, nestled among larger ones. ‘It’s this one,’ he said decisively.
There was clearly an exhibit going on inside. The gallery was full of people pointing at the walls and holding glasses of champagne and loud chatter could be heard even with the door closed. Sophie wasn’t sure if they should go in, but Raff just pushed the door and held it open for her to follow.
A stylish woman dressed in a hot-pink suit approached them immediately. ‘Well, hello. I’m Ines, the owner of the gallery. Are you here to see the work of our brand-new artist Jerome Bouvier?’
‘Absolutely,’ Raff said smoothly. ‘We’re both really excited. Nice to meet you, Ines,’ he added, holding his hand out.
Sophie couldn’t help feeling amused at how easily Raff had slipped into his role. ‘Hello, Ines,’ she said. ‘I’m Sophie.’
‘Sophie…’ Ines stared at her. ‘You look so familiar to me.’ Her eyes lit up. ‘Are you Mariele’s Sophie?’
