24
Jess and I walk through the bridal suite. My mouth parts as I stare at the Eiffel Tower in the distance. My brother is going to have the most gorgeous wedding. Our moms laugh on the terrace as they each hold a glass of champagne. I know my mom is on cloud nine. My mom and Jess think my dad and Logan are sight-seeing. Truth is, Logan wanted to find the ‘something old’ here in Paris. She has something new and something old already. So he and my dad went to antique stores around the city.
“I can’t believe I’m going to be getting married here tomorrow.” Jess sits on the cream couch. The room has at least twenty-foot ceilings with gold trim. It’s very French and chic.
“Your wedding is going to be straight out of a fairytale.” I laugh and she does too.
“Want to sight-see?” Jess suggests.
“Yes, please!” I practically hop up from my seat.
An hour later the two of us walk along the streets of Paris with our arms interlocked. It’s more beautiful than I imagined it would be. More stunning than the pictures I’ve seen online. The streets are filled with beautiful people. The windows of each store are decorated with bright flowers. I look up at a cafe and smile.
“Smells good! Let’s get an espresso.” Jess pulls me inside the cafe that has beautiful purple wisteria traveling up the front of the building. As we step inside I look around at all of the baked goods that fill the shelves by the register. Three people are rushing in the back near the kitchen. An older lady is loading pastries on a pan and the other is making a drink for the old man that sits in the corner. A beautiful woman walks past us with a drink. “One sec.” She says as she stares down at the drink making sure she doesn’t spill it. Her hair is long, dark, and straight. She smiles and laughs as the older man she’s just brought a drink to says something in French. As she says something back to the man, she tucks a piece of her hair behind her left ear. That's when I noticed the lotus tattoo.
“Merci, Nora.” The old man says as she makes her way back to the register. Nora . It all happens so fast, but the moment her eyes meet mine her mouth unintentionally parts. “Lina?” she says softly as her brows furrow. Her face looks like she’s seen a ghost as she holds my gaze.
“I’m sorry, do you two know each other?” Jess looks between us confused.
“Lina Harrington?” Her voice trembles as her big brown eyes stay on mine.
“Nora—” I pause as I stare at her. I swear I am having an out-of-body experience. I stand there in pure shock. Numb. She does too. Neither of us say anything to each other. And I think Jess finally puts two-and-two together as we awkwardly stand there.
“Nora as in—” Jess starts to say.
“Xavier’s sister,” I say, still in shock.
“Lina I get off in an hour.” She turns back to the older lady still loading pastries. “Would you please come back here so we can talk?” She says looking behind me at the people that have just walked through the door. I nod. Then quickly make my way out of the cafe. Jess follows close behind. I try hard to hold back my tears.
What the hell just happened?
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“Slow down, Lina,” Jess says out of breath. I can’t though. So many heavy and raw emotions rush through my body. My still frail and fragile body. My tears fall onto the streets of Paris. I rush through the crowds of people not knowing where I’m going, but I don’t care, I walk faster and faster until I feel a hand on my shoulder.
“Stop. Please.” Jess says, staring down at my face.
“She’s alive Jess. He found her. He—” I pause as anxiety begins to take me over.
“Is he alive? Is that what she wanted to talk to me about in an hour? Was he killed? Is that why he hasn’t come looking for me?” My mind goes on overdrive. Panic sets in. He can’t be dead. He can’t be. No.
“Lina, let’s go sit down somewhere okay?” Jess takes my hand and leads me through the crowd.
The rest of our walk is a blur. I don’t remember how we made our way into a park, but we did. I hear children playing and laughing in another language. I stare at Jess. We’re in Paris. Thousands of miles from home and I ran into Xavier’s sister whom we both thought was dead.
“Okay, let’s talk this through.” Jess takes my hand.
“Are you going to go back there in an hour?” She adds, holding my gaze.
“I don’t know. I mean—” I stare off.
“What are the odds, Jess?” I ask and she smiles.
“A million to one?” She laughs and I don’t know how I laugh, but I do.
“Do you want me to go with you?” She asks and I nod.
“I can wait across the street, just to make sure—” She pauses and I nod again.
“What am I going to say? What if he’s alive and has a girlfriend or is married and has kids by now?” I panic.
“Lina—there’s no way he could have a baby; it’s been six months. Stop.” She laughs. I exhale heavily as I look at the crowds of people rushing by us. I flashback to Xavier and I in Mexico sitting in the sand talking under the moon. He was my light during one of the darkest times of my life. Either way, I need to know what happened and if he’s even still alive.
Almost an hour later, Jess and I make our way back towards the cafe. My heart pounds hard against my ribcage. I hear it beating slowly in my ears with each step I take. The last time I was this nervous was when I was about to drink that vile.
The cafe comes into view and I want to turn back instantly. I stop. I flashback to the last thing I remember Xavier saying to me. “ And, just like a lotus flower, I’ve watched you rise from the mud. Just don’t forget to bloom.”
Tears fill my eyes as I hug Jess. And even though my legs feel like boulders as I walk towards the cafe, I continue on because that’s what a lotus flower does. It continues to rise through the water, not knowing what’s on the other side. I grip my necklace as I make my way into the building. I see Nora sitting at a table in the corner. She stands and makes her way towards me. Within seconds I feel her petite body wrapped around mine. We don’t say anything. To be honest we don’t need to. I take a seat across from her. She’s all smiles as she looks me over.
“You're alive.” I smile.
“Only because of you.” She reaches her hand across the table.
“My brother told me everything—” She pauses.
“Thank you for helping him through that. He’s—” She pauses again.
“Is he okay?” I blurt out and she nods quickly. Relief fills me.
“Oh yes, he’s doing great. I mean better than he was a while ago.” She says. I smile.
“Good.” I exhale.
“He bought back my father’s IT business and it’s just around the corner actually.” She says and my heart drops. He what?
“I think he would want to see you, Lina.” She says and I hold her gaze.
“I don’t think that would be a very good idea,” I say. Silence falls between us again.
“The day I found out about you, Farrah actually let your name slip-up.” She chuckles.
“Of course, I creeped you on social media. Xavier’s face when he saw your photo, it—” She swallows hard.
“I don’t know if my brother told you about how he was before my parents died. The partier he used to be. But, I can truly say I’ve never seen him look at a woman like that before. Even if it was just a photo of you.” She smiles.
“I’m not sure what exactly happened between you two, but what I do know is it’s not a coincidence that you walked into my cafe halfway around the world. I think you and I both know that.” She says. She’s right, I know she is. That’s exactly what Jess told me in the park earlier. Hell, that’s exactly what she told me months ago when I first told her about Xavier. That somehow we might find our way back to each other.
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My shoes clank against the white marble floors. Nora and I talked for almost two hours. I introduced her to Jess and then told Jess I would meet her back at the hotel. Hopefully, everyone is busy getting everything ready for the wedding tomorrow to even realize I’m gone.
I follow Nora as she walks through an old but chic building. An industrial-looking Almasi IT sign hangs over the elevators.
“Hello, Miss. Nora.” An older lady says, greeting Nora with a nod.
“Good Afternoon, Juliette. Is my brother in?” Nora asks as she walks past her.
“Yes, would you like me to—” Juliette stands and Nora stops and looks back at her.
“Is he in a meeting?”
“No, he’s not but he’s been very busy today. Shall I let him know you're here with—a guest?” She says, as Nora continues walking.
“No thank you. And she’s not a guest.” Nora says halfway down the hall. She’s spunky. I smile as I watch her walk towards the double-doors. When I see his name on the golden plaque outside his office, my heart skips a beat.
I feel a panic-attack starting in my gut. Oh, please not now. “We rise and we bloom, we rise and we bloom,” I whisper to myself. Nora stops in front of the doors. “Xavier says that all the time when he’s stressed out.” She smiles back at me. Tears instantly flood my eyes as my heart swells.
I watch her walk through the doors with such confidence. But, I can’t for the life of me pick up my feet to follow her, until I hear a voice on the other side of the walls.
“Nora, is everything okay?”
His voice. That familiar voice. It’s like a rip-current, sucking me right back in. My hands begin to tremble slightly as I make my way inside. As soon as I walk through the doorway I see him standing behind his white-marble desk. He’s got a navy-suit on with a white button-up. His sleeves are rolled up mid-way. His hair is longer than I remember. It has more of a curl to it now. His face is a little scruffier than it was all those months ago. But overall, he’s still just as gorgeous, if not more.
His mouth unintentionally parts as his eyes meet mine. He stands there shocked. My heart rattles against my ribcage. Pounding harder and harder with each silent second that passes. I have so much running through my mind right now. So much I’ve wanted to say, but nothing comes out of my mouth.
“Look who came into the cafe this afternoon.” Nora smiles back at me. I force a smile back to her and then turn my attention to Xavier. I can’t tell what he’s thinking. Is he mad? Or disappointed?
“Hi,” I say softly.
“Hi.”He says walking around the desk slowly.
“I’ll be right outside if you need—” Nora pauses.
“Okay.” Xavier and I both say in unison, still holding each other’s gaze.
As soon as the door shuts behind Nora, Xavier’s inches from me. I stare up at him as my heart continuously beats out of control. His light-brown eyes stare straight into mine. Those eyes.
However, his gaze breaks as he notices my necklace. His index finger runs over it slowly, just barely grazing my skin. His touch is like lightning to my icy soul. It strikes me quick and the moment it does our eyes meet again.
“What are you doing here?” He asks.
“My brother’s getting married tomorrow. My sister-in-law and I were sightseeing and we stumbled into a cafe. Nora’s Cafe. I didn’t know she worked there, I didn’t even know you—” I pause.
“You just so happened to run into my sister’s cafe halfway around the world?” He asks, scrunching his face and I nod.
“As strange as that sounds—yes,” I repeat.
I feel his finger glide slowly across my cheek. My eyes shut. His touch brings so much comfort. Comfort I thought I didn’t need until now. “Do you know how much I’ve missed you? How many nights I’ve laid awake contemplating the mistake I made…” He says, cupping my face gently.
“What mistake?” I whisper.
“Letting you go.” He says.
As soon as those words leave his lips, they are pressed against mine. I melt into him as we both wrap our arms around each other. Kissing softly and slowly in his office. The very world I knew disappeared. Everything is a blur as we hold each other tightly, while our tongues explore each other’s mouths. I feel his hand entwined in my hair, pulling me closer. This .
As soon as we pull back our eyes meet once more. He stares down at me breathing heavily. My heart races uncontrollably as I stare back up at him. I don’t know what to do or what to say. I don’t know what I was expecting from this.
“I know you said your brother was getting married tomorrow, but how long are you here?”
“Three more days,” I say.
“I don’t think that’s long enough.” I feel him swipe the strand of hair from my face as I smile up at him.
“I—” He pauses as I now cup his face. Seconds later his eyes close when he places his hand over mine.
“I don’t think I can lose you again, Lina.” He says and I grin from ear-to-ear because I’m so thankful I’m not the only one who feels that way.