“So I say we take a chance on Paris.” Just like she had taken a chance on Jeff when he proposed to her, not coincidentally in a Paris restaurant on the banks of the Seine. It was, after all, where it had all begun for them, and it just felt right to go back there now, and build a new life for them.
“Your parents won’t like it,” Jeff said. “They want you here, close to them.”
“I know,” she said. She had always known this was going to be the difficulty when she married a Frenchman: if they lived in the States, his parents would be unhappy, and if they lived in France, her parents would. At the end of the day, they had to figure out what would make them happy. Where their future lay.
“It’s not forever, though, is it?” he said. “Maybe we live in Paris for a few years, and then we move here again. Let’s see where life takes us, mh?”
She dug her fingers through his curly dark hair.“You’re so wise.”
“Ha!” he said with a grin. “My hair isn’t white enough to be wise.”
“It might be white one day, like your dad’s hair. But for now I’ll settle for a wise man with gorgeous dark hair.”
“My dad’s hair has been white for a long time. It started turning grey when he was only thirty-five. So let’s hope he won’t go bald soon, because that would mean I’ll be a bald wise man.”
“I don’t mind,” she said. Though she had to admit she loved that he had a full head of hair she could slide her fingers through.
They arrived at the winery just in time for lunch, and as they drove along the long drive, past the wine fields her parents took such pride in and which had proved such a blessing both in terms of the financial reward but also the prestige and standing in the local community that success invariably brings.
They parked in the circular drive in front of the main house, and were warmly welcomed by Steph’s parents Ian and Raimunda, and her brother Kevin. And as Raimunda fussed over Zoe, every inch the proud and doting grandmother, Steph wondered when she’d break the news to them of their imminent departure to Europe. She hoped they wouldn’t be too heartbroken. Not so much over the absence oftheir daughter—they’d had to live with her absence since she left for college seven years ago—but their granddaughter, who they absolutely adored.
But when the time came to tell them about their plans, their reaction was more measured than she would have expected.
“If you think Paris is the best for you, then Paris it is,” said her dad.
They were out on the patio, enjoying a meal as a family, just like they had done almost every weekend since Steph and Jeff had settled in New York.
“We can Skype,” said her mom as she took a sip from her glass of wine—home brew, of course. “I mean, in this day and age distance doesn’t matter anymore, does it? You can be on the other side of the world and still feel as if you’re in the same room. Like we did when you were in Paris last time, remember? When you were in your kitchen trying to roast a duck and asked me how to go about it?”
Steph smiled at the memory. Mom was right. Distance had become relative. You could talk to the person, and sit down for dinner together while you were talking. And it was true: it was almost as if you were in the same room—though not really. And she could tell that even though Mom was putting on a brave face, she was going to miss her daughter something fierce, and her granddaughter even more.
CHAPTER 10
[Êàðòèíêà: img_2]
After lunch, Steph decided to go for a stroll. She had a lot on her mind, and needed time to process what had happened. In the space of just a few days her world had been turned upside down several times, and she felt as if she’d been through the wars. First they were going to move to LA, then that all fell apart, then she discovered someone had launched a slander campaign against her. Then the Paris job had popped up, then the offer had been rescinded again. And of course that whole business with Jeff’s godmother had been the clincher. She still couldn’t believe that the sweet old lady was gone. But more importantly that she had died believing that her treasured godson had married a woman who had proved an unfit mother and a drug and alcohol addict to boot. Such a tragedy. If only Evelyne had talked to Jeff.He could have told her it was all a web of lies.
She hoped the police would identify the person who was behind this attempt to destroy her future prospects. It must be someone with an intimate knowledge of her, though of course they could have found out a lot through her social media. Perhaps she should take Jeff’s advice, and stop posting so much on Facebook. They’d both taken the decision when Zoe was born never to post her pictures anywhere or on any platform. You never knew who might see them—the world was full of weirdos, as the events of these last couple of days had amply shown.