Midnight in Montmartre: A French Kiss Sweet Romance (11 page)

"
I
don't want
to go to work every day knowing that Luc is pining for Beth," Mia blurted out. "I think I'm going to quit."

Amanda and Kiko were at her apartment, already in elegant dresses for the Montaigne party.

Kiko, who had always been the more sensible one, shook her head. "Don't quit. I thought you liked your job."

"I do," Mia said. "I'm liking my coworkers more and more, and the work is fun. Different from journalism, but it's been a fantastic experience."

"Not to mention all the benefits and the free French classes," Kiko said. "You can't throw it all away."

Amanda took a sip of her wine. "I understand how you feel, Mia. I used to work in corporate before I decided that lifestyle wasn't for me. Then I trained to be a yoga teacher and ran away to Paris. Anyway, back then, I was in a serious relationship with a guy in my office named Michael. We went out for almost a year. He looked just like Clint Eastwood, back when he was young and hot. I was hopelessly, head-over-heels in love with the guy. Michael dumped me and started seeing one of my coworkers. Can you imagine? I tried to be strong at first, but I couldn't help feeling bitter and angry whenever I saw them together. In the end, I quit. I didn't like working in an office anyway, but even if I did, I think I would've tried to find another job. It wasn't worth it."

Mia sat down on the couch beside Amanda and put an arm around her. "I didn't know that. Heartbreaks suck." She shook her head. "It's silly because you went out with the guy for a year. Nothing even happened between Luc and me. I shouldn't be this devastated."

"You kissed," Kiko reminded her. "Remember?"

"It was a drunken kiss. It doesn't count. It's just been really awkward between us at the office lately ever since that happened. I don't even know how to act like myself around him anymore. It's like I turned into a robot."

"I have to say," Amanda said, "I still can't get over how you two met. He saves you from getting mugged in the middle of the night in Montmartre, and then you meet him again the next morning in his office? That's some cosmic stuff right there. It was as if the universe was conspiring to get you guys together."

Amanda sighed romantically. Mia wished she could believe it, too, dive headfirst into the highs of love, but she had to be a realist.

"Luc doesn't belong to me," she said. "He belongs to Beth."

"But Mia," Amanda protested. "Does Luc even know how you feel? Do you even know how he feels? He invited you to this party. That means something, doesn't it?"

"He invited me because I came up with the Montaigne campaign. Besides, you haven't met Beth. You will tonight. Then you'll see why she's perfect for Luc."

"Fine," Kiko said. "We'll see about that. I'm pretty good at sensing people's romantic chemistry. If I don't think Luc and Beth will make a good couple, you have to tell him how you feel."

"But—”

Amanda turned to Mia and looked her in the eye. "I get it, Mia, I do. Love is scary. But if you think about it, you have nothing to lose. You said it yourself. You're not going to be working in advertising forever anyway. What's a little humiliation? If there's even a chance that he'd feel the same, it's worth taking that chance."

Mia knew Amanda was right. Admitting her feelings to Luc would be the brave thing to do. Mia had always thought of herself as brave, but in this circumstance, she had turned into a coward.

She shook her head. "I can't."

"You're afraid of love, Mia. But I can't tell if you're afraid of being hurt or afraid of getting what you want."

"I want love," Mia said without much conviction. She sighed. "Maybe I'm not ready. Maybe I'm afraid to be disappointed. Look at the situation with my doppelgänger. I'm trying to be patient, but it's something I can't control. There's a chance I may never find her and that she may not even exist. I don't think I can take another major disappointment right now."

"Despite your fears, you're here in Paris," Amanda said. "You've packed up your life in Seattle and moved all the way here because you wanted to take a chance. You're braver than you think."

Kiko nodded. "She's right. You came to Paris by yourself, knowing no one at all. Everybody in the office hated you at first, but you maintained a positive attitude, won a major campaign, and now you have plenty of friends at work."

"You're functioning in a country where you barely speak the language," Amanda added.

"The French speak pretty good English," Mia said. "I was surprised."

"You've put yourself out there on the Internet to find your sister," Kiko continued. "What's one more thing? All you have to do is tell Luc the truth. A little rejection never killed anybody."

Mia laughed. "I'm not sure about that."

"You know what I mean. It's not a life-or-death situation. Even if he does reject you, it's his loss. You have so much to offer to a man."

"Also," Amanda chipped in, "you shouldn't be comparing yourself to this Beth woman. I don't care how gorgeous she is. Everyone has something different to offer."

"Thanks. You're right. I don't know why we women have to do that. It's not healthy. I see Beth, and I think she has it all, but really, I don't know anything about her."

"I don't think any woman really has it all together," Kiko said. "But we sure pretend. Someone else could be looking at you and thinking that
you
have everything."

"True," Amanda said. "You never know how you may seem to others. Appearances are just illusions.”

Mia stood up and looked appreciatively at her two strong and inspiring new friends. Amanda was in a bright-orange floor-length gown, with lipstick to match. She looked fun, fresh, and sophisticated at the same time. Kiko was in a classy plum strapless satin dress and wore a diamond necklace.

"If appearances are illusions, should I be telling you that you both look gorgeous?" Mia said. "Or did I tell you that already?"

"Numerous times." Amanda smiled.

"I'm going to go change. I think we're already late."

"Don't worry about it," Amanda said. "Being fashionably late is so common around here."

Mia went into the bathroom, where her own dress was hung behind the door. She’d better hurry, because she didn't want to be disrespectful and be too late. The party had already started. It was a work-related event, after all.

When Luc had first invited her to the party, she had been hesitant. She didn't want to see for herself whether Luc and Beth were an item. If she were to see them dancing and canoodling, she didn't know how she would bear it.

But the more she thought about it, going to the party would be a good idea. If she wanted to be fearless, she had to face the truth. If Luc and Beth were in love, it would be good to know before she declared her feelings to Luc.

Mia fixed her wild hair back with a faux diamond headband. Amanda helped her with the eye shadow, since she was a lot better at applying makeup than Mia was. After that, she slipped into her new dress.

She'd found the dress in the gorgeous Galeries Lafayette department store when she went shopping with Amélie and Sarah after work earlier that week. The dress cost almost as much as her rent, but her friends had convinced her to try it on. The emerald-green color brought out the green in her eyes and complemented her skin tone, and the silk fabric hung so well over her body that it felt like a second skin.

When she had looked at price tag, she'd gulped.

"It's not that expensive," Amélie had argued. "This is a party of a lifetime. Celebrities and the Parisian elite will be there."

“When you look good, you feel good," Sarah had added.

Mia didn't like the fact that how she felt about herself was dependent on how she looked, but she remembered feeling out of place in Beth's office wearing her discount clothing. She was a woman, after all, and she did want to feel pretty. This dress was everything she wanted. Emerald green was her color, the cut was modest and flattering, and she felt comfortable in it. She had to have it.

"C'est belle.”
Kiko's jaw dropped when Mia came out.

Amanda stood up. "Wow. I thought the dress looked just okay on the hanger, but on you—”

Mia smiled. In truth, she didn't think she looked half bad. It was a simple dress, but the best things in life were simple.

"I never knew you had such great curves," Amanda added. "I'm so jealous. Even if Luc is into this Beth chick, all the guys at the party will be lining up to talk to you. But I kind of doubt Luc will want to take his eyes off you."

"You don't even need any jewelry," Kiko said. "You're a natural beauty. The headband gives you enough sparkle."

"Luc will be lost in a sea of emerald," Amanda said coyly.

Mia looked at herself in the mirror. She did think she looked beautiful. And even though she tried not to feel that way, she couldn't help getting excited knowing that Luc would see her soon.

M
oney
. Luc could see it, taste it, and almost smell it as soon as he entered the Montaigne party. It reminded him of his time at university with Beth, when he was constantly surrounded by peers with inheritances, stocks, bonds, and vacation houses galore.

A gigantic silver chandelier hung over him like an all-seeing eye, reflecting gold and silver specks. Gentlemen in tuxedos held flutes of champagne as they chatted up ladies wearing four-figure gowns. Five figures wouldn't surprise him, either. And some of the jewels must've been in the six-figure range.

Luc had come in with Didier and Charlotte, Didier's wife. Nondescript men in white tuxedos took their coats. Fancy, tiny hors d'oeuvres on silver trays floated in and out of their periphery, as did the champagne. The champagne tasted good, and so did the grilled scallops wrapped in prosciutto, but Luc had gone to too many of these parties to be impressed anymore.

"The ads look great," Didier commented.

Gigi Tom's photograph in which she was in a black lace lingerie set, wearing a pink holster and a matching gun, was the framed centerpiece of the room. Other ads from the campaign featuring various models portraying film noir femme fatales lined the walls.

"You've outdone yourselves this time, boys," Charlotte said. "It's quite cheeky."

"The commercial is coming along too," Luc said. "They're putting the final editing touches on it, and it should be on TV and on the Internet next week."

Didier and Charlotte were accosted by some friends, and they quickly engaged in conversation. Luc spent some time chatting with them then politely excused himself.

He looked around for the only person he was looking forward to seeing that night. Would she even come? He looked at his watch. It was almost nine thirty.

"Luc!" a cheerful voice called out to him.

He spun around and found himself inches away from Beth Montaigne.

"
Bonsoir,
Beth." He greeted her the usual way, with kisses on both cheeks.

Her last kiss lingered, and he could smell her perfume. She was in a shimmery gold dress, which gave her the illusion of being dipped in liquid gold. He thought she looked like a statue or a trophy.

As usual, a group of men was swarming around her, some discreetly and others not so discreetly.

"Have you met Marcus, Benjamin, and Renard?"

"No." Beth introduced him to what he assumed were her potential suitors, although it soon became clear that Marcus was gay.

"Marcus designed my dress," Beth said.

"It's beautiful," Luc said. "You look great, as usual."

"It's custom made just for her," said Marcus. "Her body's every designer's dream. It's perfect."

"Oh, stop." Beth laughed. "Nobody's perfect."

Luc smiled politely.

She glanced back at Luc and grabbed his arm. "Come on, let's dance."

Benjamin and Renard, as well as a few other men lingering around, looked disappointed as Beth dragged Luc off to the dance floor.

A jazz band was playing a slow number, and Beth wrapped her arms around his neck.

"It's a great party," Luc said.

It was strange to have Beth pressed so close to him. It was obvious that many men would want to be in his position right now, but he still found himself wanting to be in the arms of someone else.

"I've gotten great feedback on the campaign so far," Beth said. "Our website and social media numbers are off the charts. I shouldn't have doubted you and your team for a moment."

Luc smiled. "Actually, it's okay to. Nothing's ever a sure thing. Not in advertising, not in life."
And not in love
, he silently added. "But you have to take a chance once in a while."

"I find that we French are so afraid to fail," Beth said. "Not like the Americans. That's why their country is chaotic, but I have to admit, that's probably why they're so innovative as well. I'll never tell that to an American, though."

Beth's laugh tinkled in his ear.

Money.
The word came to Luc again. That was how Nick Carraway described Daisy's laugh in
The Great Gatsby
.

Beth had been his Daisy all along. He'd spent years trying to be the man he thought she wanted him to be.

Now that Luc had the money and the respect, Beth had decided to give him a chance.

But Luc wasn't going to make the same mistake that Gatsby had. As they danced, her perfume engulfing him, he realized that Beth had been a dream, and Luc had woken up a long time ago and realized that reality was better.

Reality came in the form of a woman who looked just like America. Now just where was she already?

"Oh look," Beth said. "Gigi Tom came. And she brought her latest rock-star boyfriend." She wrinkled her nose. "I wish she hadn’t. He's supposed to have this severe cocaine problem. I hope he doesn't cause a scene tonight."

Luc turned and saw the cool supermodel walking in. He'd been working with her all week. The rock-star boyfriend in question, Sam Smitheron, from the Deadly Vines, a band his brother's band had toured with, was cracking jokes with the waiters. The cocaine problem was probably true, but Luc had met the dark-haired Englishman a couple of times. Sam was nice if Beth would only get to know him. He could see why models like Gigi liked him. He was funny, sensitive, and poetic and one of the best songwriters of his generation. One of Mathieu’s bandmates had had a cocaine problem before he got help, and Luc had learned not to judge people so harshly based on their weaknesses. If Sam really did have a cocaine problem, he hoped he would get help soon.

As he watched the famous couple, his gaze fell behind them to the most beautiful woman in the room.

She wore a simple emerald dress, and her wild hair was untamed even by a headband. Everything about her shone as if she were lit up from within. Her smile brightened up the party, which had been stuffy so far.

Mia was looking around in awe, smiling and talking to her friends excitedly. Luc smiled. He knew she would enjoy the party. He had found these kinds of events fun too when he first started coming to them, when he'd been more impressed by grandeur.

Mia was now chatting with Gigi Tom. He wouldn't be surprised if the two of them became BFFs by the end of the week. Mia could make friends with anyone. Even Lina, one of his most difficult employees at LUX, who rarely liked anyone, was starting to thaw around Mia.

"Luc." It was Beth, looking at him with concern. "Did you see someone you recognize?"

"Yes," he said. "A peer." The song was over. He extracted himself from her embrace. "I'm going to say hi, if you'll excuse me."

"Of course." Beth's voice was flat. She pulled away.

Luc turned back in Mia's direction. It was as if she was a magnet pulling him to her.

He'd just seen her at the office yesterday, but tonight was different. Tonight he was going to tell her that he loved her.