The Paris Game (27 page)

“I just can’t imagine that I let him touch me, and then to see him knock that other man unconscious.” Sophie looked almost green. “I know he was protecting us, but that was awful.”

Sera reached out to pat her hand. “I think I know what you need, even though you’re supposed to be working.”

“I doubt I could concentrate,” Sophie confessed.

Sera pulled out her phone. “I know someone that will take your mind off everything.” She dialed, watching Sophie puzzle it out.

“Bonjour, Edouard.” Sera saw Sophie’s head lift. “Are you up to anything this afternoon?”

“Not at all, until work later,” Edouard replied cheerily. “What’s up?”

“I’m just sitting here with Sophie and she was telling me how much she has missed seeing you in the past few days.”

“Really?” Edouard sounded hopeful.

“Do you want to meet us at—” She looked at Sophie, who mouthed “Shakespeare and Company” at her. “—Shakespeare and Company? We’re feeling very bookish today.” She was glad to see Sophie smile at that.

“Of course. Can you give me an hour?”

“We’re at the Tuileries, so you have that hour,” she told Edouard. “We’ll see you there.” She clicked her phone shut and glanced at Sophie.

“How was that?” she asked.

“Perfect. Two of my favourite things.”

They rose and walked towards the Seine, leaving the quiet of the garden behind.

“I don’t want to be nosy,” Sera told Sophie as they turned onto the Voie Georges Pompidou, crossing to walk under the trees. “But Edouard really likes you, and he’s like my younger brother. Do you think it’d become more serious with him? And you’d give up Marc for good?”

“I like him a lot too, but until recently I didn’t know if I was going to stay in Paris. I didn’t want to disappoint him,” Sophie admitted. “And I don’t like Marc that way. He’s intimidating.”

“You’ll take the internship?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where will you work if you don’t? Even if you are wary of Marc, it’s still a great opportunity.” For an art student, the kind of entree into the auction world that
Perron and fils
offered was indispensable. Even though she wanted Marc to lose their wager, she wasn’t going to ruin all of Sophie’s dreams.

“I don’t have to decide today,” Sophie replied. “I’ll be here for another couple of weeks.” She blinked rapidly, and Sera tactfully looked away.

They crossed the Pont des Arts over the Seine to the Left Bank. Sera pulled up short as a familiar figure, a tall, blonde man, stepped out of a taxi nearby. His back was to them, but she was sure it was Jeremy. When the man turned, she glimpsed his face. It wasn’t him. She let out a breath.

“Are you okay?” Sophie was looking at her with some concern.

“Fine.”

“We can take it slow from here,” Sophie told her. “We’ll be at the bookshop way before Edouard.”

“He might have said an hour, but from the sound of it, he was very eager to meet us. I’m sure he’ll be early.”

“Maybe he just likes books,” Sophie teased. They crossed the boulevard St. Michel, making their way towards the bookshop. She envied Sophie her easy relationship with Edouard.

“I think he’d scale the Tour Eiffel if you asked him, Sophie.”

“I wouldn’t demand that.” Sophie giggled. “But he was so sweet to come with me to every museum I could think of.”

“He’s a keeper, Sophie.”

Sure enough, as they turned onto the rue de la Bûcherie, they could see Edouard coming along from the opposite direction.

“See, what did I tell you.” Sera gave Sophie a nudge. “I’ll just be on my way—I wouldn’t want to impose upon the two of you.”

“You have to stay.” Sophie tugged at her hand. “I know Edouard wouldn’t mind.”

“For a little while. You’ll want your privacy soon enough.” Sera felt the vibration of her phone in her purse a second before her ringtone chimed. “Go on ahead,” she told Sophie. “I’ll be right there.”

She hardly needed to glance at the display to know who was calling.

“Hello, Marc,” she said calmly as she watched Sophie greet Edouard with a long hug.

“Hello, Sera. You made it home safely I see.”

“Perfectly fine. But I didn’t care to wake Colette just to give her your regards.” She let a bit of sarcasm slip into her voice. “Did you sleep well?”

“I’ve had better,” he replied tersely. “Have you seen Sophie today?”

“I thought she was with you.” Sera smiled to herself. She wanted to hear him admit to losing track of his goal.

“She left before I woke.”

“When you were all alone on the cold sofa?” She heard him let out a breath.

“You have seen her.”

“I’m seeing her right now,” Sera told him. She watched Sophie and Edouard talking very animatedly to each other. “But I’m afraid she’s rather busy at the moment.” She grinned in delight. He’d have a hard time making up for last night.

“If you could pass her the phone, I’d appreciate it, Sera.”

“If you insist. She’s quite well, so you really don’t need to check up on her.” Sera reached the pair and tapped Sophie on the arm, handing her the phone. “He wants to speak to you.”

Sophie looked confused. “Who?”

“Marc.”

Sophie took the phone gingerly and stepped aside. Edouard shot Sera a questioning look.

“Why would he want to talk to her?” he asked.

“He offered her an internship at the firm,” Sera replied.

“Oh.”

They paused in their conversation as Sophie spoke.

“I don’t know, Marc. Things have changed.” She paused to listen. “No, I’m busy right now. And later.” She shifted on her feet. “I’ll have to think about it.” Another pause. “Goodbye.” She handed the phone back to Sera, who put it to her ear.

“So?” she asked Marc. “What do you think?” She watched Sophie and Edouard head into the bookshop as she settled on the bench in front of the store.

“She’ll come around,” he answered confidently.

“I doubt it. She’s scared of you.”

“What?” Marc sounded as if he couldn’t believe it.

“She didn’t like your dark side, mon coeur. You’ve lost.”

“It’s not over yet.”

“Isn’t it? What she didn’t tell you is that she’s spending the day with Edouard. Unlike you, he’s safe, and exactly what a quiet young woman needs.”

“Our wager isn’t over yet. Three weeks, remember?”

“How many days now? You’re running out of time.”

“There’s still plenty of time, ma chère. And you’ll lose.”

“From where I’m standing, it’s not looking likely.” He wouldn’t give up. She knew she needed to have a talk with Edouard about moving things forward with Sophie. They both trusted her and it was in their best interests.

“You’d be surprised, ma chère. À bientôt.” He rang off. She tucked her phone back in her purse. Sophie and Edouard needed time alone, and she should make her farewells. She’d see Edouard at work later and they’d have a little chat.

Work. Her hand tightened on her purse strap. What if Jeremy were there? She tried to ignore the queasiness, taking a deep breath as she hurried into the shop. She’d need Edouard to lie to Jean; he couldn’t let slip that he’d seen her just several hours earlier.

She discovered Sophie and Edouard in the midst of a conversation about Rodin. Edouard was holding a large illustrated coffee-table book and it had been opened to a photo of the Gates of Hell bronze, a dramatic and gigantic sculpture that Sera had seen several times.

“I still think that Paolo and Francesca are the most important,” Sophie told Edouard. “Don’t you agree, Sera?” she asked as Sera joined them.

“I’m afraid I don’t know enough to make a judgment.” She couldn’t stay still; the cosy little room they were in began to feel close and Sera stepped back.

“You’re leaving?” Sophie looked disappointed.

“I’m not feeling well.” She glanced at Edouard. “I might not be in tonight.” Edouard’s hand came down on her shoulder.

“You have to be there.”

“I’m not allowed a sick day?”

“Jean said Royale was going to dock your wages if you were sick again. He wasn’t happy when you didn’t show up on Sunday.”

Sera swallowed against the bile rising in her throat. She couldn’t afford the loss, not with another payment to Royale due in two days. Her money from Jeremy had been spent and there was no way he’d give her the rest now.

“Are you okay? You’re looking pale.” Sophie touched her arm, her hand resting over the finger-marks that would have been visible if Sera hadn’t been wearing her jacket.

“I’ll go home and rest,” she decided. “Don’t worry, Sophie, I’ll be fine.”

“Do you want me to come by and pick you up so you don’t oversleep?” Edouard offered.

“You don’t have to.”

“It’s on my way from Sophie’s to the club,” he replied. “It’s hardly an imposition.”

“Thank you, Edouard.” Sera leaned forward and gave Sophie a kiss. “Good luck with your writing.”

“Maybe tomorrow; I can’t concentrate today. Feel better, Sera.”

“I’ll be by around five,” Edouard remarked.

“À bientôt.”

“Sophie was quieter than usual after you left,” Edouard remarked as he set up the bar for the evening. “She wouldn’t say what was wrong. Did I do something that I didn’t mean to, Sera?”

Sera came around the bar so she wouldn’t be overheard. “I know she loves you,” she told him and immediately he looked relieved. When she didn’t continue, relief was replaced by apprehension.

“But what?”

Sera considered how much to tell him. “Do you remember that man I was with earlier this week?”

“Of course.” He stopped taking glasses from the dishwasher and leaned on the counter next to her. “What happened?”

She gave him the details, but skipped over her suspicions that Marc and Jeremy were already well-acquainted.

“Was Sophie hurt?”

“No, not directly. But Jeremy was waiting for me when we left.” She shuddered. She didn’t want to relive those moments. “Jeremy made a grab for me, but Marc stopped him. It got out of hand.”

“This sounds worse than just a fistfight,” Edouard observed.

“Jeremy had a knife.”

Edouard’s eyes widened. “Did he use it?”

“He did, but Marc got away with a very small wound. We were lucky.”

“Sophie saw everything? No wonder she wasn’t herself.”

“I wish she hadn’t been there.” Sera laid a hand on his arm. She couldn’t tell him everything…it wouldn’t be fair, to him, or even to Marc. Their wagers were their secret. “Could you take a couple of days off to spend with Sophie? Marc’s been pursuing her, but a man like him is no good for her. She should be with you.”

“I don’t know if I can, but I’ll spend all my time with her if she’ll let me. But I’d thought she and Marc were friends, not lovers.”

“Marc doesn’t want friendship, but Sophie doesn’t want it going further. You know him—he’ll just use her and drop her like he does all the women he sees.”

“I’ll call her on my break,” Edouard pledged. Sera could easily picture him as a knight in shining armour.

“Good.” Sera straightened and checked her watch. “I should go get changed.” She started towards the dressing room.

“Oh, Sera, there was something I needed to tell you,” Edouard said abruptly. She turned back.

“About what?”

“About Jeremy.” He paused as Jean walked in, fiddling with his tie. “After work. I’ll walk you home.”

Jean gave Sera a nod. “Bonsoir, Sera. Ready for another evening?”

“Always.” She gave Jean a cursory smile and headed to the dressing room.

Sera peered out the door of her dressing room, scanning the club uneasily. So far this evening there had been no sign of Jeremy, but he’d always come in late. She hoped he was at the hospital, or had left Paris altogether. She turned back to grab her bag, draping her shawl loosely over her shoulders. Another glance reassured her of his absence, and she went up to the bar.

“I won’t be ready for awhile yet,” Edouard said. “There’s a lot to do.” He disappeared into the back.

“Don’t worry, I’m in no rush.” She took the bottle of Coca-cola that he offered her, snagging a straw from the supply kept behind the bar.

“You weren’t your usual stunning self, ma chère.” Marc pulled out the chair next to her and sat down, placing his glass of scotch on the bar.

“Everyone can have an off night.”

“I haven’t seen him either, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he remarked casually, as if they were discussing the weather. “But Edouard said something interesting to me when I came in. Do you want to know what it was?”

“If you think it’s important.”

“He told me that he had my back, should I have any trouble in the future, and that he regretted not being there last night. Now, why should he even know what happened?”

She should have told Edouard to keep it to himself. “He deserved to know. He was worried about Sophie.”