“Uh, well, I know you can sing, but before we leave, I want to see if you can dance.”
“Is that so?”
“Oui.”
I was actually a pretty good dancer—far better than I was a singer, in any case. “Well,” I said, putting my barely touched drink on the nearest table. “Let’s dance then.”
Not waiting to see if he followed me, I made a beeline for the dance floor and when I found a spot, started dancing. I felt him come up from behind and press against me, wrapping one arm around my waist as we moved in time with Justin Timberlake.
Stand aside, Justin. We’re bringing sexy back all by ourselves.
At first, I was aware of being watched, but soon it felt like we were alone on the dance floor. My God, he was sexy—definitely the hottest man I’d ever laid hands on. I was so completely in lust, I thought of asking Lou to “borrow” her room.
“Low” by Flo Rida started and Jean-Luc surprised the hell out of me by singing along. I couldn’t hear him above the music, but he knew all the words. “Them apple bottom jeans …” he mouthed. I danced apart from him, watching as he got “… low, low, low, low …” I grinned and he waggled his eyebrows at me. At the end of the song, I clapped and he pulled me into a hug. “You are not the only one who sings,” he said in my ear. I leant back so I could kiss him.
“Can we please leave now? I want you all to myself.” “Get Lucky” by Daft Punk started and I jumped up and down.
“After this one?” he asked. I nodded as I started to move to my favourite 70s throw-back song. Lou came over. “Bus stop!” she called out over the music.
“Oh yes! But I don’t know if I remember it.”
“Follow me!” She started the moves and after the first round, I was fluent again. Jean-Luc had joined in and soon we were a group of about fifteen. We wouldn’t have won any dance competitions, but I was giggling with glee by the time the song ended. There was a round of hugs and high-fives from the impromptu dance troupe, and when I flapped a hand in front of my sweaty face, Lou led the way off the dance floor. “I need a drink,” she said. “Want one?”
“We’ve got drinks over here.” I pointed to the table where our vodka tonics sat, the ice well and truly melted. She nodded and went to the bar. At our table, I took a sip of my vodka. I should probably have been drinking water after all that dancing but watered-down vodka would have to do.
I searched the dance floor for Jean-Luc. He’d accumulated quite the fan club since I’d left him. Six women danced around him, all laughing or smiling. He was too. I didn’t mind. I knew he was coming home with me.
Lou came back with her drink. “You guys are really cute together.”
My eyes flew to her face, but she was watching the dancing. “What do you mean?” She looked at me and I knew from her expression I’d spoken too harshly. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay. You’re not …?” She let the question trail off as she shook her head, questioningly.
“I don’t know, Lou. I mean, look at him. He’s so hot, it’s ridiculous. And I wasn’t kidding about the sex. It’s definitely the best I’ve ever had.”
“And he adores you. That’s obvious.”
“But, I—”
“Cat, come on. He came all this way for you, and you guys get along so well.”
“He’s … he’s amazing. But I’m really scared I’m going to break his heart again.”
“Why?” She was clearly baffled.
“Because I don’t want anything beyond this.” I caught myself. My voice had shot up about three octaves. I was getting defensive and Lou didn’t deserve that. I was the one I was annoyed with. I took a breath. “I’ve loved—sorry, really enjoyed—my time with him, but for me it’s just sex and catching up with an old friend.”
She was frowning at me. She searched my eyes as if she was looking for clues, and I felt like I’d disappointed her. Finally, she said, “Really? The man drives halfway across the continent. That man there, who is charming to your friends, and gives you forehead kisses, and looks at you like you’re the most precious thing on this planet. That guy, that super-hot guy, and you’re ‘just friends’?”
She punctuated her point with, “I don’t buy it.” Her eyes locked onto mine. She wasn’t backing down.
“Well,” I said, with as much conviction as I could muster. “It’s the truth. I’m not interested. I don’t do relationships,” I added matter-of-factly.
“Well, what I’ve found is, sometimes things happen that you don’t plan for.”
I knew she was talking as much about her and Jackson as she was about me and Jean-Luc. I also knew that everything she was saying was coming from a place of love. A rush of affection for Lou—my dear, sweet, recently appointed bestie—engulfed me. I reached up and gave her a hug.
“I love you, Lou,” I said.
She returned the hug, but when I stepped back, she was frowning again. “I love you, too. So, don’t screw this up.”
“Hah!” I laughed. She tried to keep a straight face, but caved, giving me a reluctant smile. The man himself arrived right afterwards.
“Hello, ladies,” he said, grabbing me in a big sweaty hug. I didn’t even mind. “Louise, I am going to steal her away now.”
She handed me the key to her room, so we could retrieve the rest of our clothes. “Here. Just leave it at the front desk when you’re done.”
I gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Coach leaves at eight?” I confirmed.
“Yup.”
Jean-Luc gave her two kisses, one on each cheek, and I saw her tight mouth soften. “Au revoir, Louise. Please say goodbye to the others for me. And thank you.” He said the last part a little quieter and I wondered exactly what he was thanking her for. She smiled and gave one of his hands a squeeze.
It was a little chilly on the walk back to our apartment, and I was happy for Jean-Luc’s arm around me, like that night in Rome. At the apartment, we opted for a quick shower to wash the dance floor off us. That was when we discovered that standing sex is a little tricky when your height difference is nearly a foot.
It was a good thing Jean-Luc was strong enough to lift me up, which he did before having me against the shower wall, my legs around his waist and my arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
Dry and naked we retired to the California king and took our time, savouring each other, giving each other pleasure. Making love.
I double-checked that the alarm on my phone was set for 6:30am, then we fell into a welcome sleep around midnight. But as easy as it was to fall asleep, I was wide-awake at 4:00am, my stomach in knots and I knew it had nothing to do with the wurst.
I don’t want to say goodbye.
I finally fell back into a restless sleep around 5pm The alarm—aptly named—startled me awake. Jean-Luc moaned sleepily, and I leapt out of bed to get in the shower. I knew if I hit “snooze”, I would miss the coach’s departure.
***
“You are very quiet,” he said.
We were seated next to each other at the kitchen counter and I was sipping my Parisian breakfast of a milky coffee. I’d kill for a cup of tea.