Page 98 of The Last Kiss

“For dinner. I asked Odile to pick something up, I hope you don’t mind. I could sense you were uncomfortable in borrowed clothes.”

Honestly the dress was the least of my problems, but I've already put my foot in it enough for one day. Still, I can’t help but say, “Are we dining with your mother tonight?” Why is it impossible to say these words without an inflection of dread?

A quirked smile greets my question. “Non, tonight I am taking you to town.”

My heart soars and sinks at the same time.

“Henri...” with a gentle finger he lifts my chin.

“I know, you have to take it easy.”

“Sorry.” I wince.

“No need.”

Turning, I pick up the dress. It’s the same deep blue of his eyes. There’s also a cream kaftan in the bag, I assume to go with my bikini. “She likes to shop, I guess?” I motion to the boutique bags.

“More than you like to get dressed. Now please, as gorgeous as you are in just a towel, the bikini is better for the beach.”

I salute and then gather up my new belongings ready to turn for the bathroom. Henri catches my arm. “No. Get dressed here.”

With resolute purpose he drops to the mattress of the bed and watches me with smoky eyes and a teasing smirk.

Yep, the chances of us getting to the beach at all are very, very, slim.

Very slim indeed.

It’s only an hour later when we are on a blanket hidden in sand dunes, the sound of the sea lulling me to sleep. The warmth of the sun on my skin is almost magic, all my limbs becoming soft, loose at the limbs. Tiny balls of sandy glass rub my skin with the lazy trail of his fingers.

Henri is hot as hell in swim shorts—I’d breathed a sigh of relief at the lack of budgie smugglers. As much as I know he’s packing down there, it’s still no excuse for wearing speedos.

In a bid to protect my pale beauty—his words not mine—he’s anointed me in factor fifty, but really, I think he just wanted to give me an orgasm in public as he pretended to apply sun cream to my back while his other hand slipped between my legs proving just how skimpy this bikini is.

One to add to the bucket list.

I must have fallen asleep because I wake to the low murmur of his voice speaking English. “I promise she is fine.”

There’s a pause as he listens to the other side of the phone.

“Just tired last night. More so than the travelling accounted for. Don’t worry, I’m looking after her.”

Liv. She must have called again.

He clears his throat and through my lashes I can see that serious expression on his face that looks like he’s been carved from the finest marble. “What am I missing here, Olivia?”

Please don’t tell him.

Please don’t tell him.

I don’t know how I’m going to say goodbye yet but somehow, I have to be the one to do it, I know that much.

“Okay, fine, I understand.”

There’s another pause.

“I promise you she’s in the best of hands. She means a lot to me, Olivia. Perhaps you can relax, no, knowing that someone else cares as much as you?”

My heart beats wildly in my chest. A lump the size of a mountain in my throat.