“I’m a little bit nervous about going up to the room,” she said. She touched the yellow rose to her nose and let its scent soothe her. She wished she could take it home and dry it.
“You have no reason to feel uncomfortable, baby.” He opened the door for her to enter the lobby.
“He’s one hundred percent right, Stella,” Julia said from behind them.
“Where’ve you been so early?” Stella asked.
Julia held up a bag. “Bakery! Hi, David. How are you on this beautiful morning?” She winked at him.
“Good morning, Julia. I’m fantastic, and you?” he replied while he squeezed Stella’s hand.
“Very well, thank you.”
Stella squared her shoulders. “I better go up and face the inquisition.”
“Don’t let Naomi make you feel bad,” Julia said. “I know she’s your closest friend, and she wants the best for you, but she also needs to let you live your life the way you want to.”
“I have everything I want.” Stella looked at David.
“And if you need some leverage, she didn’t return to the hotel until almost two in the morning.”
“Huh? How very interesting. She must’ve had a fun time with Kai.”
David squeezed her hand again. “I’ll grab a cup of tea and wait for you here. And please, take your time. We’re in no rush to go anywhere—as long as we’re together.”
“Julia, we’re going to the Louvre. Wanna come?” Stella asked.
“Sure, I’d love to. Would you mind if Alexander joins us? He took today off to spend some time together before I fly home tomorrow. He wants to talk,” she made air quotes.
“Oh boy, there’s lots of talking going on among all of us,” Stella said. Then she said to David. “I don’t think I’ll need long upstairs. Give me maybe half an hour?”
“I’m not going anywhere, love! Look for me right through those glass doors.”
“A-hah, there she is.”
Stella dropped her purse on her bed and went to the kitchenette to fill a glass with water. She put the rose in it and set it on her nightstand. “Good morning to you, too. Isn’t it a gorgeous day?”
“You must’ve forgiven Prince Charming since you spent the night with him. I assume he had a convincing explanation,” Naomi prodded.
“Well, yes, sort of, I guess.”
“What kind of answer is that?”
“The only one I can give you right now.”
“Why did you text Julia, not me?” Naomi looked sideways at Julia, who sat at the small table in the kitchen area. “No offense, Julia.”
“None taken.” Julia smiled at something on her cell phone.
“I knew you were with Kai and I wanted to let you enjoy your time. But you’re right, I should’ve texted you both.”
“Imagine my surprise when I came back to the hotel and your bed was empty. I was worried.”
“Be fair, Naomi. I put a note on your pillow saying Stella was staying with David,” Julia intervened.
“True, true,” Naomi admitted. “So, how was dinner?”
“Dinner was great. We shared a bottle of champagne in the courtyard, and then we had dinner in David’s suite, so we could talk without interruption.”
“So, did you just pick up where you left off a year ago?” Naomi snapped her fingers.
“Nam, I really don’t want to rehash everything right now. I haven’t had time to think about it, either, so there’s a lot I still need to process,” she said. “How was your evening?”
“The park was fun. There were concerts, and they had food stands, and later Kai took me for a ride around Paris on his motorcycle.”
“I’m glad you had a good time. And I think you should add the info about the park to the travel packages. Sounds like something the typical tourist wouldn’t hear about. Now I’ll change into something more casual. David’s waiting downstairs. Why don’t you both have breakfast with us?”
“He didn’t feed you this morning?” Naomi grumbled. “Too busy tasting the other fruits?”
“Don’t be crass. And yes, we had breakfast, but it was two hours ago, and we can call the breakfast here brunch or something. Maybe they’ll serve champagne with it.”
“Oh, man, it must’ve been quite the night. Bubbly in the morning!” Naomi rolled her eyes. “You’re in an awfully good mood.”
“Then be happy for me, since you seem to have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed,” Stella said and pulled the dress over her head.
“What are you wearing?” Naomi narrowed her eyes and pointed a finger at her.
“What?” Stella looked at her dress in her hand. “You were with me when I bought this dress.”
“Under it!” Naomi clarified and her eyes widened. “I…nooo, you wouldn’t…”
“There is a slight possibility I might have grabbed one of your panties instead of mine yesterday,” she drawled, then raced toward the bathroom and slammed the door, giggling.
Naomi’s laughter followed her. “Yeah, fat chance…your thieving little fingers just happened to find their way into my suitcase? Aren’t you glad we wear the same size, missy? And who was it who made fun at me when I went lingerie shopping? Huh?”
“Well, thanks to you, I didn’t have to go in my white cotton bikinis, so you’re right. I think I’ll keep this pair, so let me know how much I owe you.” She cracked open the bathroom door, blew an air kiss to her BFF, and closed it again.
Stella kissed David smack on his mouth when she joined him in the courtyard.
“The others will be down soon, and I promised them we’d have champagne. What do you think? Too much?”
He kissed her back and smiled, “Your wish is my command. Let me order it right away.”
“Really, Troubadour, which bottle did you escape from?” Naomi crossed the courtyard. “I hope you got some sleep last night. Missy here isn’t telling me much.”
“Then what makes you think I’d tell you more?” He stood up, kissed Naomi’s cheek, and held her chair for her.
“Very gallant. Thank you. I can see why she’s is under your spell again.”
“Naomi, you’re such a sweet little lady. In fact, I really missed you, too. And what did
