Epilogue
LAILA
Nine months later
‘Another macaron?’ I held out the tray of desserts to Cassie and Nico as I squeezed up to Gabriel around our dining table whilst admiring the Parisian skyline.
It had been almost three months since we’d returned from travelling and I still couldn’t quite believe that I got to look at these views every single day and call it home.
Living in Paris was even better than my wildest dreams.
A lot had happened since Juliette saw us at Gare du Nord station.
I was tempted to throw caution to the wind and just jump straight back in the taxi and go to Gabriel’s apartment, but after discussing it again, we both agreed that I should return to London, get everything organised and then discuss next steps.
The plan was to do the whole long-distance thing for a few months, but we lasted a grand total of three days.
Yep.
When I got back to my house, I knew I didn’t want to be there any more. And after dragging myself back to work on the Monday morning, my fate was already sealed. I couldn’t do my old life any more.
I realised that what Gabriel said was true: I had options.
So after speaking to him during my lunch break, I walked into my boss’s office and handed in my notice. I said that if they really needed me to work the full four weeks, I’d do my best, but I couldn’t promise that I’d be very motivated, because I was too loved up to focus.
I expected my boss to laugh in my face, but lucky for me, apparently they had a waiting list of people itching to work there, so he said I could work until the end of the week, then leave. He didn’t need to ask me twice.
Although I wouldn’t get a full month’s wage, it’d be enough to bring me up to date with the bills and so I realised I’d be fine, especially if I sold my car and some furniture.
And once I’d figured out what I wanted to do with my life and got another job, I’d reasoned that I could then start thinking about paying Juliette back.
Gabriel was excited to hear the news and he came over from Paris the next day to help me pack.
Juliette had come round to see me a few days after I’d got back and we had a long and very emotional talk. She’d said she could see how happy we both were and she knew how hard that kind of joy was to find and didn’t want to lose our friendship or Gabriel, so she would give us her blessing.
She did, however, make it clear that she would do so under one condition: ‘I know I said before that I wanted to hear all of the juicy details about your match,’ Juliette said, ‘but now that I know who he is, I would be happier to know absolutely nothing!’ She’d winced.
After that, she’d encouraged me to live my life to the fullest and poured us both a glass of champagne and toasted my happiness with Gabriel.
Juliette had a heart-to-heart with Gabriel, where they had talked for hours, clearing the air. Juliette had apologised again for her mistakes, saying that whilst she couldn’t change the past, she’d do better in the future.
And when Gabriel told her about the success of his app, Juliette cried.
Gabriel was confused and told Juliette that he had gained millions, not lost them, so she didn’t need to be upset.
At which point Juliette had said, ‘I heard what you said, but I am just so ashamed that I did not believe in you. I am so proud of what you have achieved, son. Congratulations on your well-deserved success.’
Despite saying he’d never give his mother money, Gabriel changed his mind and offered to send her something, but to his surprise, she’d declined.
‘That money is yours,’ she’d said. ‘Enjoy it. Use it to build a future with Laila. Knowing you are happy will be worth more to me than all the money in the world.’
When Gabriel told me the story, we were both in tears, then we’d joked that we should consider contacting Kleenex about any available sponsorship opportunities, given the amount of tears we’d shed since leaving Paris.
But it was all for a good reason and just like I’d hoped, everything worked out brilliantly in the end.
A week later, Gabriel and I were sipping cocktails and eating my favourite rum cake in Jamaica.
We travelled around the Caribbean and California for six weeks, before heading back to Europe to Italy where we spent a month exploring Venice, Rome, Florence, Puglia and the Amalfi Coast before spending two months in Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
Then we returned to France to spend Christmas and the New Year in the Alps. Ricky even came to stay with us for a couple of nights and he got on with Gabriel like a house on fire, just like they used to, which filled my heart with joy.
Ricky was still planning to continue travelling for several more months and wasn’t sure yet if he’d return to the house in London, but his dad (who was also surprisingly supportive when he heard I’d met someone) said it was his for as long as he wanted it.
In the meantime, Juliette promised to check on it and said that if ever Ricky decided to return, although he was all grown up, she’d still look out for him so I wouldn’t have to worry, which was great.
Travelling was just as amazing as I’d imagined. And now that I’d been to so many countries, I was glad that I didn’t get to explore more when I was in my early twenties. Because doing it with Gabriel by my side was so much better. That was my destiny.
And not just because we stayed in some lovely hotels. It was being with him that mattered the most.
Now it was April and we weren’t just settled in our home together in Paris, we were also settled into our new professional roles.
I wasn’t exactly sure how Gabriel and his lawyers had done it, but I was now able to live and work in Paris, which was a dream come true.
‘So how are you enjoying working at the foundation?’ Cassie said.
‘I love it! It’s so great to wake up and go to work every day and know that we’re making a difference.’
Both Gabriel and I were now working at Cassie and Nico’s foundation.
When we returned to Paris, I’d arranged to meet Cassie just like she’d suggested when we were at the Love Hotel Riviera and we talked for hours.
She offered me a job on the spot and told me all about the different charitable projects she’d like me to get involved with.
Right now, I was helping to get young homeless women off the streets in the UK via the British arm of their foundation, which involved some travel to the London office.
And I was also working to raise awareness of the single mothers’ support group that I volunteered at.
Whilst we were travelling, Gabriel had generously offered to make a huge donation which would secure the centre’s future for decades to come.
When Cassie and Nico heard about it, they also offered to get involved.
So now we were working out how to expand the group across the UK and Paris too, which was so exciting.
Gabriel was also thriving thanks to his role at the foundation. He was using his IT skills to set up a division to train people of all ages on technology.
He ran a drop-in centre which helped pensioners to understand how to use banking apps and to educate them on scams so that they didn’t become victims of the fraudsters who preyed on vulnerable older people.
And for teenagers and anyone else who wanted to learn, he gave advice on furthering their knowledge and careers.
Our roles were low pressure and highly rewarding, plus we still had time to travel.
‘Oui,’ Gabriel added. ‘I love it. It feels good to have a new purpose.’
‘And to finally have a real home and the love of a good woman too, am I right?’ Cassie added.
‘Exactement,’ Gabriel confirmed. ‘Before, I thought that I felt empty because I needed to create another business and achieve bigger success. I thought that if I made even more money, I would be more fulfilled, but what I was missing was Laila. Just like you and Nico had said, love was the answer.’
My heart fluttered as Gabriel took my hand and squeezed it before leaning over and kissing me softly on the lips.
‘I am happy to see you so happy,’ Nico said as a satisfied smile spread across his face.
‘Merci. You never really needed market research done for the hotel, did you?’ Gabriel raised an eyebrow and Nico’s smile widened.
‘Market research is always good to have,’ Nico chuckled, deliberately avoiding answering the question.
‘I know now that you said you needed my help because you knew it was the only way to get me to the hotel. You saw that I was going down the wrong track, and that I thought more success would make me happy and now I see that wasn’t what I needed.
I think it was the great Bob Marley that said: “Some people are so poor, all they have is money,” and he was right.
Although your method was a little devious, your intentions were good and I am grateful.
I owe you and Cassie so much. If you did not trick me into going to the Love Hotel, I would not have found the true meaning of happiness and been reunited with the love of my life. ’
‘Awww,’ I said, my heart expanding. ‘He’s right. Merci.’
‘You are welcome,’ Nico replied. ‘Will you be joining us at the Love Hotel in Santorini?’
‘Our tickets are already booked!’ Gabriel smiled.
‘I can’t wait!’ I said. ‘It’ll be so exciting to catch up with Sammie and Jasmine, attend Stella and Max’s wedding and the party to celebrate all of the couples the hotel has matched so far. I’m sure we’ll also get to watch some new couples fall in love, just like we did.’
‘If they are half as happy as us, they will be very lucky.’ Gabriel slipped his arm around me and I rested my head on his shoulder.
‘Oui,’ I agreed. ‘We were so lucky to find each other again.’
‘We were. But it was not just luck. It was fate. We were meant to be together.’
‘Whether it was fate, luck, destiny or all three, I’m just grateful to have you and I can’t wait to see where life takes us next.’