Chapter 20
LAILA
‘What did you do today?’ Gabriel asked, taking me away from my panicky thoughts.
When I explained where I went, his face lit up with enthusiasm and he seemed genuinely interested, so I showed him photos. Then he asked me questions about the places I’d visited and what I thought about the food.
‘How about you? What did you get up to today?’
‘I just relaxed,’ Gabriel said. The coach came to a standstill. There was a lot of traffic in front of us so it looked like we’d be here a while.
As I stared out of the window, taking in the sights, I was overcome by a wave of happiness because I was here, but also a sense of regret that I’d missed out on seeing so much of the world.
‘Have you travelled much?’
‘Oui. I spent a lot of time in Europe and also the US.’
‘Yeah, your mum mentioned you were in the States.’
As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them. I didn’t want to think about Juliette. I’d promised that I’d call her yesterday, then told myself I’d do it today. I’d send her a quick text later. I was sure she’d understand.
‘That is correct. I was mainly in San Francisco, but I also visited New York, Los Angeles and Atlanta.’
‘What a dream! Was that for work?’
‘Oui. Do you still work in insurance?’
‘Sadly, yes,’ I sighed.
‘And what do you like to do for fun? Do you still enjoy watching Columbo?’
‘Wow, you really are an elephant, aren’t you?’ My eyes popped.
‘Are you insulting me?’ Gabriel’s face turned to stone.
‘No! I was just, it’s an English saying for people with a good memory, I wasn’t…’
‘I am joking.’ His face broke into a smile.
‘We say the same in France. I watched a documentary that said that in fact dolphins are more intelligent. Some believe they are even smarter than chimpanzees who are considered by many scientists to be the second most intelligent species on earth after humans.’
‘Sounds like you still enjoy watching documentaries, then?’
‘Now it is you that is the elephant!’ He laughed.
‘Thanks, but I think I’d rather be a dolphin. They’re cute and friendly,’ I grinned.
‘They are. So you already have that in common.’ He flashed his gorgeous smile and right on cue, my stomach flipped like a dolphin.
‘Charmer,’ I scoffed, trying not to let his compliments affect me more than they already had. ‘But to answer your original question, yes, I do still watch Columbo. As sad as it sounds, you can’t beat curling up on the sofa on a Sunday afternoon and watching an episode or three.’
I expected Gabriel to roll his eyes at how pathetic it was that I was still watching reruns of a show that was created in the seventies, before I was even born, which was exactly what I did years ago when he used to visit Juliette.
It was sad that my life hadn’t moved on.
Whilst Gabriel had travelled the world and done a million different things, I was still stuck in a rut.
‘It is not sad. I still watch Columbo too.’
‘Wait, what?’ I frowned. ‘You watch Columbo?’
‘Why do you sound so surprised? I sometimes watched it at your house, non?’
‘Yeah, but that was just when you were waiting for Ricky so that you could do boys stuff with him.’
‘I never came to your house to see Ricky. I was more interested in seeing you…’
I swallowed hard. He couldn’t mean that.
‘What… why… how come you still watch it?’ I stuttered.
‘At first I watched it because of you, but then I grew to like it because it is clever. I love that from the beginning you know who committed the crime and you can watch how Columbo solves it. His attention to detail is fantastique. And people always underestimate him, but he proves them wrong. It is one of my favourite TV series and I have you to thank for introducing me to it.’
‘Wow.’ My mouth fell open. I couldn’t have put it better myself.
‘I agree. It’s so smart. A lot of the villains are rich and powerful and they look down on Columbo because he drives a run-down car and wears the same old clothes all the time.
They think they’re better than him, but in the end it’s Columbo who gets the last laugh. ’
‘It is like David and Goliath, non?’
‘Exactly!’ I nodded. My heart tripled in size as I realised he loved the show just as much as I did, which was crazy considering his age.
I’d imagine there weren’t many twenty-somethings who’d heard of Columbo, let alone watched it.
‘So how about you? You didn’t say whether or not you still enjoy documentaries. ’
I remembered that as well as reading a lot of non-fiction books, documentaries were something that Gabriel was also into.
‘Oui, I still enjoy them.’
‘Life stories and nature?’ I asked. He was into the intellectual ones, which were a lot more high-brow than the documentaries that I rarely watched if at all.
‘Oui,’ he confirmed. ‘Do you watch any?’
‘Um,’ I laughed. ‘Sort of. Probably not what you’d consider a proper documentary though.’
‘Tell me,’ he said.
‘I’m more of a Beckham or Tinder Swindler documentary watcher…’ I grinned, waiting for him to sigh in the way that Juliette did when I let slip that I occasionally liked watching reality TV shows.
‘Beckham was a very enjoyable. And I was very concerned to see how the man took advantage of innocent women in The Tinder Swindler.’
‘You watched those?’ My eyebrows shot up to my hairline.
‘Again, I do not understand why you are surprised.’ He cocked his head.
‘Because I always thought you only watched serious, intellectual stuff.’
‘But I told you I watch Columbo.’ A small smile touched his lips.
‘Exactly – intellectual stuff!’ I chuckled.
‘I watch anything that is stimulating. Documentaries, comedies, many things.’
‘Good to know,’ I replied, thinking that he was full of surprises. I’d definitely be listing the fact that he liked Columbo and the Beckham documentary as the thing I learnt about him today.
The coach stopped and Claude announced that we’d reached our destination.
As the Love Alchemists led us onto the grand boat, I gasped. A waiter greeted us with a glass of champagne and then we were guided to our tables which were covered with thick white tablecloths and napkins and expensive-looking crockery and cutlery.
‘So apart from Columbo and watching documentaries, what else do you like to do for fun?’
‘Pff. Nothing.’
‘There must be something,’ he pressed.
‘Not really. I’m mostly working and it takes an hour and a half to drive to the office in the morning and not much less afterwards so by the time I’ve got home, showered and made dinner, it’s almost nine and all I want to do is relax on the sofa.
Then it’s time to go to bed and do the same thing all over again. ’
‘What about at the weekends?’
‘On Saturdays I volunteer at a young mums’ support group so I spend most of the day there. And on Sunday there’s housework and shopping to do, so watching TV is my fun.’
‘How long have you been volunteering?’
‘About five years. I started when Ricky left secondary school and I had more time on my hands.’
‘Tell me more about what you do there.’ He leaned in closer.
I paused and frowned. Gabriel genuinely seemed interested.
This was a first.
The few guys I’d dated since I’d started at the centre had glazed over with boredom the minute I mentioned the volunteering that I did.
They acted like they’d rather watch paint dry.
But as I told Gabriel that I’d decided to help after seeing an advert for volunteers on the supermarket noticeboard and wanted to get involved because I got so little help when I was a single mum, that I didn’t want others to suffer the way that I did, he nodded along and asked questions, so I continued.
I told him about the different mums I chatted to there (leaving out their names or personal details), the activities we organised for them and their kids and all of the different support services the group offered.
‘This group sounds excellent,’ he added. ‘How is it funded?’
‘They get some money from the council, but mostly it’s from fundraising activities or donations.
It’s tough. Especially these days when everyone is struggling to make ends meet.
When I get back, we need to brainstorm how to raise more money, because we’ve got a feeling that the funding we get from the council is going to be cut. ’
‘That is not good.’
‘Nope. Hopefully we can find some businesses that’ll help. Some of them donate gifts for the kids and Christmas and stuff which is amazing, but we also need money to keep the lights on and pay the rent.’
‘Of course.’ Gabriel nodded like he was processing. No doubt he could relate. He probably had similar struggles when he was setting up his business.
‘Was it difficult for you when you were starting out?’ I asked.
‘Oui. Every business has its challenges.’
‘And things are better now?’
‘They are,’ he replied. Just as I hoped that he might tell me more about his business, he continued talking. ‘I may know some people who would like to help your group,’ he said quickly.
‘Really?’ I sat up straighter. ‘That’d be amazing!’
It was only then that I realised that the boat had set sail.
‘This is incredible.’ I shook my head, still not quite believing that I was here. ‘Paris is so beautiful.’
‘It is one of my favourite cities.’
‘So how’s it all going with your app?’ I said. I’d tried to ask him a few times about it but never really got anywhere, so I was hoping that this time he’d elaborate. ‘I expect it’s a lot of work trying to get that off the ground.’
‘It certainly was not easy.’
‘Now, it was a long time ago, but if my memory is any good, it was an app to help you find your favourite things when you’re away from home, right?’
Gabriel’s eyes widened.
‘You remembered?’
‘Looks like I did!’ I said, relieved that I had.
‘You used to talk so passionately about it. You said you got the idea when you were with a friend at uni in France who was desperate to find somewhere that stocked their favourite fizzy drink, right? I think they were American and they wanted some root beer? Or was it cream soda?’
‘You are right – it was root beer.’
‘And a British friend had just got back from a trip where they couldn’t find any orange squash or Ribena in any Spanish supermarkets.’
‘I am impressed,’ Gabriel smiled.
‘Phew! See, you’re not the only one who remembers things from our conversations! So how is it going? Is it doing well? I wouldn’t have much need for that app seeing as I never venture out of London, but I’m sure there must be a load of people who would love something like that.’
‘Oui.’ He nodded gently, still without elaborating.
Maybe he didn’t like to talk about his work whilst he was on holiday.
I think I’d read somewhere that French people frowned on talking about business in social situations, but it was probably just a stereotype.
Everyone was different, but if Gabriel had wanted to chat more about it, I guessed he would’ve.
I was just about to ask for the name of his app so that I could look it up when the waiter brought out the first course – a French onion soup which was so delicious, I was tempted to lick the bowl.
As we devoured our starters then the main course, which was a fancy slow-cooked duck dish that I think was called Confit de Canard and of course was absolutely divine, I took in the beautiful sights of Paris.
We passed the Louvre, Place de la Concorde as well as sailing under multiple stunning bridges.
Then, just after we’d finished dessert (I’d chosen the Crème Br?lée – I was in France after all, so it had to be done), Gabriel pointed to the window.
‘I think that you are going to like what you are about to see.’ A warm smile spread across his face.
As I followed his gaze, my jaw dropped.
There in all its glory was the Eiffel Tower.
It was bathed in golden light highlighted by what must be thousands of glittering spotlights which made it sparkle like it’d been decorated with diamonds.
There was also a beacon at the top of the tower that emitted a rotating blue beam which shone across the city, reflecting on the river and the surroundings.
‘Oh my God! This is what I’ve been waiting to see. It’s stunning!’
‘Come.’ Gabriel dropped his napkin on the table. ‘Let us go outside to get a better look.’
He didn’t need to ask me twice. I literally flew out of my seat and followed him out onto the deck.
‘This is the light show,’ Gabriel said. ‘It happens every hour after sunset and lasts for five minutes each time.’
‘It’s magical!’ I said, still not quite believing that this iconic structure was there, right in front of me.
‘We have to take photos,’ Gabriel said, pulling out his phone and holding it up for a selfie.
I smiled as Gabriel took some serious photos and some funny ones of us together with the tower as our backdrop.
To free up my hands for some different poses including ones that made me gesture towards the tower like I was a hostess on a shopping channel, I put my handbag on the deck.
‘Fantastique!’ Gabriel enthused. ‘We should move to the other side to take some more photos.’
‘Great idea,’ I said.
But when I went to move, I tripped over my bag. Just as I thought I was about to fall backwards on the deck with a thud, I felt strong arms grip my waist and pull me up.
‘Tu vas bien?’ Gabriel asked.
As I looked up and saw him staring down at me, his arms still holding my waist, I blinked rapidly.
‘Yeah, I… er, my… I forgot my bag was on the… I…’
Gabriel’s eyes locked with mine and I couldn’t look away.
He pulled me up closer towards him, our faces were now just inches apart.
My gaze dipped slightly to his lips. They were so close.
They looked so soft.
So inviting.
If either one of us moved a little, they would be touching.
I knew I shouldn’t even be considering this, but we’d had such a lovely evening. It was great to talk to him, to be around him. His energy and enthusiasm were just infectious.
I wanted more of him.
I wanted to kiss him.