“The hotel’s Wi-Fi,” Naomi jumped off the bed. “And now I’m ready for some ice cream. I never got my two scoops yesterday, so I’ll have three today.”
“Since it was my fault we got distracted, I’ll pay for your treat today.”
“It was The Troub’s fault.” Naomi reached for her purse. “Let’s walk around first and work up an appetite.”
Strolling through the old, winding streets, they took pictures of cozy houses and the colorful hollyhocks growing in abundance in every garden. They stopped to enjoy the heavy scent of dark red roses climbing up wooden trellises and watch dozens of butterflies flutter from flower to flower. They peeked into a small church squeezed in between two houses and climbed up a hill to an overlook with a magnificent view of the vast English Channel and the picturesque town.
After buying their ice cream, they rested on a large rock on the beach.
Stella dug her feet into the sand and wiggled her toes. “You know what?” she said while she watched gentle waves rolling in from the open water. “I’ve decided to make a deal with you.”
“Oh, I like this opening.” Naomi swiped a speck of chocolate ice cream off her nose. She tried to keep her three scoops on the sugar cone, but the ice cream kept running down the sides of the cone.
“From now till the end of this trip, I won’t talk about David. Seeing the beauty all around us and listening to Caroline’s story of the death-wedding, I’ve decided you’re right, and I need to focus on the future.”
Naomi caught some of her ice cream with her tongue before it reached her fingers.
“I still love David, and know in my heart I always will, and it won’t be easy to ignore those feelings. But it kills me to wait for the impossible to happen. Then, when we’re back in Paris, if he’s still there, I’ll hear what he has to say. I need closure.”
Naomi frowned at her. “I hope you decide to say a few things to him, too. Like, ‘Fuck you.’” She licked more of her ice cream. “So, what’s our deal if you break your promise?”
“If I don’t keep my end of the deal, I’ll let you set me up with a blind date at home.”
“YESSS!” Naomi pumped a fist in the air—and her ice cream went flying over her head and landed with a splat in front of a few happy seagulls. “Oops…” She giggled.
“You know what, Stella? I know it won’t be easy to push your feelings for David aside. But a relationship can’t be one-sided. Give yourself a chance to move on. And, in case you’re wondering, I believe it’s possible to be in love with more than one person.”
“I can’t make myself fall in love with someone else. But I’ll try not to compare every man with David. I can’t promise you more.”
“It’s a start. And it’s the last time we mention his name, right?” Naomi said with a stern look.
Stella nodded, “Okay.”
After dinner Stella and Naomi sipped a local red wine and watched the sunset from the terrace.
The fiery sphere dipped behind the edge of the water, and soon the first stars appeared in the darkening sky.
The sound of waves lapping against the tall stone walls below them, and the laughter of couples and families walking along the promenade, were the perfect background noise to help Stella relax. After a moment, she imagined herself walking along this beach with a little boy holding her hand. And a little girl jumping up and down next to David, singing a song for him or chattering up a storm.
No! Stop it!
There wouldn’t be any children holding David’s hand. At least not hers! David wasn’t part of her future. This was really getting ridiculous. She had promised Naomi—and herself—to let the past go.
She sat up straight and took a fortifying sip of her wine. Two tables away the sisters, Karen and Jenna, sat with Susan, Lynn, and Julia. They were showing each other some of the souvenirs they must’ve bought earlier—T-shirts, shot glasses, postcards.
“Should we buy something for everybody at home?” she asked.
“We can look in Saint-Malo tomorrow. And maybe we find something with a pirate theme for Rev,” Naomi suggested. “Like an eye patch or a bandanna. Arrr.”
“What would he do with them?”
“What he does with everything else. Try it on, make fun of it, then leave it on the next chair and forget about it.”
“I wonder if he found his coffee mugs you moved around when you were over last week. Don’t think I didn’t notice, my friend.”
“Ha, I forgot about them… I know he hates it when anyone touches his mugs.” Naomi rolled her eyes. “Come on, they are just coffee mugs. But he treats them like they’re sacred.”
“You know they’re special because Dinah gave them to him.”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s so cute how much he adores his little sister.”
“Did you just call Revan cute?” Stella snickered. “Don’t let him hear you. It doesn’t go with the image he strives for. The tough guy and fearless adventurer…”
“Ladies, can I interest you in a nightcap?” a familiar voice drifted over to them.
Harry approached the table where the five women sat. He swayed and had to hold on to the backs of chairs. Then transferred his two-handed grip to Julia’s shoulders.
Naomi sucked in a breath and her eyes opened wide.
Julia stood up, forcing his hands to drop off her shoulders, and hissed through gritted teeth, “Do. Not. Touch. Me!”
“He did not just…!” Stella gasped.
“Yes ma’am, he did. And he better not come near me with his wandering hands, or he can kiss his family jewels goodbye,” Naomi growled.
A half hour later, when they left the restaurant and walked past the inside bar area, the wall-mounted TV showed a reporter standing in front of a police barricade.
“What does the chyron say?”
“Someone took three people hostage in the Paris catacombs. The authorities aren’t releasing details yet.” Naomi translated while
