“I'm sorry, I thought Paris would be a getaway for you, I didn't think far enough ahead to realize you would have to go through more of this excruciating facade,” his turquoise eyes were pools of sympathy and his face a mask of deep concern. The blue tones of the room reflected in his shirt and eyes and I decided, objectively, that he had never looked more relaxed, more confident.... more gorgeous.
“It's all right, I'll survive!” I smiled confidently. “I guess, I should have expected it.”
“Glad to hear it,” he laughed and I felt encouraged by his light-heartedness. “I won't be staying for dinner tonight; I have business in the city. But, tomorrow I was hoping to take you sight-seeing. Would you be up for that?” He asked casually, giving me the chance to decline. I truly appreciated it, it was my first chance to say “no” in a long, long time.
“I would love to go sight-seeing!” I exclaimed, and that was the truth. Finally, I would get to see Paris, walk its crowded streets with leisure and experience every little detail that tugged at my heart and enticed my hope.
“Sebastian told me you might,” Kiran smiled down at me. “All right, I'll be here early tomorrow morning and I'll take you to my favorite breakfast shop. If you aren't already, I am going to make you fall in love with chocolate croissants.
I laughed at his enthusiasm and stood on my tiptoes so that I could kiss his cheek. I gently, but quickly, pressed my lips against his tensed jaw and felt him incline his face to mine wanting more than that; but I was finished.
Somewhere in the last five minutes I became aware of what Kiran was waiting for and found it ridiculous that he was so patiently waiting for me to offer him a kiss when the whole thing had just been a scam to avoid giving him a kiss in front of an audience.
“There, you earned it,” I mumbled sarcastically, taking a step back from him.
“I suppose I did,” Kiran looked up at me from under thick eyelashes and I had to stop myself from smiling at the seductive tones in his voice. “I will see you tomorrow morning.”
Chapter Seventeen
A knock at the door pulled me away from the window. I tried to stop the smile from spreading across my face, but it was no use. I couldn't wait to step outside and wander the streets of Paris. My heart beat faster with excited anticipation for the day ahead.
I glanced in the floor length mirror just inside the spacious bathroom just to make sure I looked as chic as I hoped I did. My floor length, white racerback maxi dress with a scooped neck and narrow shoulder straps made me feel older, more mature, but I still wasn't convinced I could pull it off. I sighed, and added a few more bangles to my wrists to hide the handcuffs and then threw on the black onyx necklace, a contrast from the pure white of the dress and also the tracking device. My hair was down and disorderly, so I pulled on a ponytail holder with the bangles, prepared for the inevitable moment when I would get tired of my hair and pull it up.
I took one more big breath, preparing myself for a day spent alone with Kiran and then walked over to the door. He stood on the other side leaning casually against the doorframe. He wore light gray trousers and a white crisp-collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up on his forearms. His hair was loose and a little wild and his lips were curled into a gentle, but slightly alluring smile. I took a step back and swallowed instinctively afraid of how absolutely good he looked. I needed to pull it together.
“You look nice,” I blurted awkwardly, the opposite of pulling it together.
“I'm supposed to say that to you,” Kiran scolded.
“Whatever,” I laughed, tossing my head back and avoiding his serious eyes. “I meant to say, you look nice for sight-seeing.”
“Just because we are playing tourists today, doesn't mean we have to look like them,” he said firmly, in his crisp British accent and I decided he was right.
“Do I look like a tourist?” I asked self-consciously.
“No,” he answered seriously enough that I believed him.
“Well, are you ready? I'm starving,” I confessed.
“Yes I am, but first....” Kiran reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny key that I instantly recognized.
“Really?” I gushed, excited to be free from the awkward bracelets. I held out my wrists to him one at a time. He took my first hand, holding it gently in his and unlocked the handcuff, sliding it off my arm and then went to work on the other. I ignored his closeness, his warm skin against mine and especially his eyes that seemed to be constantly searching out mine.
“I don't think these do anything anyway,” Kiran mumbled.
“Oh they do, they totally make me super tired,” I lied, sounding obvious. I faked a yawn and when he removed the second one, I declared, “Wow. That is so much better!”
“That's what I thought,” Kiran looked up at me clearly amused. “I have to speak with my aunt quickly before we leave, is that all right with you?”
“Yes, that's fine,” I answered, appreciating the option to say no again.
We walked downstairs and to a dining room on the main floor where the entire Cartier family sat eating breakfast together. I felt uncomfortable with our intrusion, but Kiran seemed perfectly at ease stepping inside the open doorway and pulling me to his side, with a strong arm wrapped around my waist.
“Oh, don't you two look lovely?” Bianca gasped. She surprised me this morning with her blonde hair piled casually on top of her head and minimal makeup on. The entire table looked up at us then and Amelia sighed at the sight of us together. Sebastian who could barely contain his mirth seemed only amused at my anxiety.
As soon as we got back to the Citadel, I needed to have a conversation with Amelia and explain our situation. Although, the girl was a hopeless romantic and even when I told her I was going to kill Kiran last spring she didn't believe me, so I didn't know if it would do any good, but I was determined to sit her down anyway.
“Aunt B, I know I promised to stay for supper, but I've decided to take Eden somewhere special for the night, I hope you understand,” Kiran flashed a charming smile and ignored me when I turned to him in alarm. “We'll be back tomorrow in plenty of time to visit before we escort Amelia back to Romania.”
“I understand, Dear,” Bianca smiled in return, “Have a splendid time; we'll see you tomorrow, then.”
“Goodbye, Eden,” Sebastian called, “enjoy that someplace special.”
I shot Sebastian a hateful glance and then recovered quickly to smile and wave at the rest of his family. Kiran slipped his hand into mine and pulled me from the room and out the door where I was suddenly very reluctant to go.
On the sidewalk, I couldn't hold my anxiety back anymore, “Kiran, um, what do you mean you're taking me somewhere special tonight?” The fear, evident in my voice, also appeared in the trembling of my hand, still intertwined with his.
“Eden, don't be ridiculous,” Kiran chided and I felt something like irritation shudder in his magic, “I told you we have to pretend in Paris, but please tell me you know me better than that.”
“You're right, I do. No, you're right, I'm sorry,” I apologized, embarrassed by my gross assumption. Still, we weren't going back to Sebastian's house tonight, so we were going somewhere mysterious. I suppressed the majority of my fears, but the one that I couldn't ignore was the fear of being fine with going somewhere alone with him.
Kiran offered to hail a cab for us, but I asked to walk for as long as we could. The sun was excessively warm today, but it was also bright and shining down on the city of Paris, inviting me to explore. I wanted to walk every inch of this city, get to know every monument, museum and cathedral intimately. I wanted to sit in every cafe and try as many cups of espresso as I could stomach. I wanted Paris to become a part of me.
I sighed happily and leaned into Kiran without even realizing how happy Paris made me until I caught Kiran's watchful eyes staring down at me. I smiled up at him, unwilling to explain my fascination with the city or my relief from being away from the Citadel. I didn't want to spoil anything today, I just wanted to walk around in blissful freedom and pretend for the day that I was human and without any problems.
We walked to the Eiffel Tower and found Kiran's favorite patisserie not far from it. We munched on delicious chocolate croissants and sipped heavenly, rich cappuccino on the patio. We people-watched, laughing together about the obvious Americans whom I regarded with fondness, but Kiran could only laugh at.
We spent the next several hours climbing the steps of the illustrious monument, and taking the elevator to the top, overlooking the city from an incredibly high vantage point. I got lost looking out over the city at the ivory buildings and gray roofs that flowed together in a sea of architecture and stone.
Kiran ordered a cab to take us to the Champs Elysees where we wandered underneath the Arc de Triumph and strolled up and down the famous street, meandering in designer stores where I felt very out of place, but Kiran fit in perfectly.
We lunched at a sidewalk cafe, where Kiran ordered for me in perfect French. We had thin crust pizza with fresh mozzarella and ripe tomatoes and shared a bottle of expensive wine. We watched more people and talked about memories from Kingsley, the good ones. He was the perfect gentleman and I laughed at his jokes until I cried.
After lunch, on my insistence, we walked to the Louvre where we spent the rest of the afternoon admiring every kind of art and architecture the world seemed to offer, from antique royal bedrooms to Picasso, Rembrandt and Da Vinci. We fought the crowds that moved quickly and without much interest, and examined each room, each piece of sacred art.
Kiran seemed to share my awe of the creative, the beauty in which humanity creates something so moving that the soul is forced to respond to it and the history of the world when wealthy kings still ruled over surfs and peasants in opulent palaces and fancy costumes.
“Did we play no part in their history?” I whispered to Kiran as we examined a lifelike portrait by Titian.
“What makes you think he wasn't Immortal?” Kiran nudged me with his elbow and lowered his voice.
“Because he respects humanity,” I answered simply, resisting the urge to reach out and touch the painting, to run my fingers over the brush strokes and memorize the way the face was formed with infinite care and precision.
“Hmmm....” Kiran mused, turning to me. “Are you ready for supper?”
“And then off to our mysterious destination?” I probed. Suddenly a ball of nervous energy, I clasped my hands together, ignoring the trembling. He promised our night away would hold nothing out of the ordinary, but the secrecy of the whole affair kept me in agonizing suspense.
“Yes, then off to our mysterious destination,” he murmured, pulling me close to him and burying his lips in my hair. “But after our day today, I am seriously reconsidering what I have planned.”
I looked up at him trying to understand his meaning, but his face was a mask of gentle amusement and I couldn't read anything. He stared down at me, and there was something in his eyes, that look that used to be constantly across his face, the one that I couldn't define. And then it was gone, and he took my hand, leading me out of the museum, away from the glass triangle and to a cab that took us to his favorite Parisian restaurant.
