Champagne and Lemon Drops: A Blueberry Springs Chick Lit Contemporary Romance (18 page)

"Let's go for a walk you ill-mannered
yahoo," he said, giving her curls another playful tug.

She slipped her hand into his offered one, a
warmth spreading in her soul.

Happy that her out-of-control kiss hadn't
freaked him out, she let him lead her onto the elm-lined street.
She dropped his hand and linked her arm through his, leaning into
his shoulder. It was refreshing to be able to spend time with him
and not have the town anticipate marriage like they would if he
were a local man. She inhaled the August air, permeated with a hint
of the coming fall.

"I can smell autumn coming."

Nash inhaled deeply. "But it's still
summer."

"It comes sooner in the mountains." She
glanced at the trees, no signs yet, just the early warning scent of
the upcoming change of seasons. "It's my favorite time of year. The
earth is whispering to cozy up against someone warm." She tipped
her head against Nash's shoulder, testing him. He placed a light
kiss on top of her head.

Pass. This man was passing with flying
colors. It almost made her want to drag him back to his condo and
see what those smiling lips could do to the rest of her body.

"Speaking of the fall, I'm going to take ten
days off in October and leave town for a bit," he said.

Her steps faltered. The urge to follow him
scared her. She didn't want to be in Blueberry Springs if he
wasn't. At the moment, ten days without Nash felt like it would be
an eternity. She depended on him to smooth her brow when her
shit-on-a-stick life got too covered in poop sprinkles. She forced
her voice to be light. "Where to Dr. Leham?"

"I was thinking I'd go to Europe. Maybe
Paris."

"Holy crap. Serious?" He
had to be kidding. She stopped and stared at him. Nobody from
Blueberry Springs went to France—Mexico,
maybe
—but not even on school trips or
honeymoons. Not even temporarily transplanted city boys.

"Paris is lovely in the fall. Nice and cool,
not many tourists. It's perfect."

Beth blinked and shook her head. "Wait. How
do you know Paris is nice in the fall?"

"I've been there in October."

"You've been there in October? And you're
going back?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "I try to go every
couple of years."

"What!" She stared at him.
He couldn't be serious. He took overseas trips—
expensive
overseas trips—repeatedly?
To the same destination?

"What?" he asked. He took a step back,
appearing almost offended.

"You're serious."

"Of course I am serious." He began walking
again. She skipped to catch up. "If you don't believe me, come
along and I'll show you around." Although he said it nonchalantly,
she noticed he kept a studying eye on her.

"Serious?"

"Uh." Nash ran a hand through his hair, each
strand falling perfectly into place. "Do you get any time off as a
hospital minion?"

"Yes," Beth admitted slowly. "Probably." But
could she swing that many days off in a row? And was he really,
actually, honest and truly asking her along on his vacation?

"Come with me," he insisted.

Her knees weakened
momentarily. What had she done to him in that kiss?
He
was inviting
her
to
Paris
? Holy
crap.

She sucked in a deep breath. Taking time off
now would undoubtedly screw up her Christmas break, but it could be
well worth it. Besides, it wasn't like she needed more than a day
or two to hang out with Gran and Cynthia and wish her dad was
around.

She dared imagine Paris with Nash. An
amazing, different life. Completely out of the norm from what she'd
ever experienced or ever would: of that she was sure.

Glamorous. Exciting. New.

Only one problem... "Um. Despite sharing
rent with Katie for the last six months I'm pretty sure I don't
have enough cash to fly off to Paris and stay there for ten days."
She sighed as real life bitch-slapped her. Images of fancy dresses
and laughter died away. It wasn't like Paris would have been like
that anyway. "Thanks just the same."

Nash scooped up her arm and tucked it under
his so it was pinned against his ribs. "Pick up your flight and
I'll pay all expenses when we get there."

She paused for a second. "Seriously?"

"Quit saying that; you know I am." He
started down the street, pulling her along. "Think about it."

New beginning. Rebound of a lifetime.

Who was she kidding? She'd
rob a bank to go along. Well, maybe not
rob a bank
, but she'd do whatever she
had to in order to go as well as to find out what Nash was really
like away from this place. She'd pick up a part-time job or beg and
borrow from everyone she knew. She was going. Decision made. She
was going to eat one of those tiny packets of peanuts or pretzels
or whatever they served on planes and see what people ate for
breakfast on the other side of the world.

"I'll come."

"Done," he said.

"Done deal," she verified and turned to
shake his hand.

She fell into step beside him, worrying
about the rumors they would start by visiting the world's most
romantic city—or at least a close second to Las Vegas.

"Separate rooms, right?"

"Sure."

She relaxed and took a deep breath, ready to
take the plunge and suffer any consequences.

***

"Let me in, Cynthia." Beth banged on
Cynthia's apartment door. Her sister had to be home. She never
missed the after-supper celebrity gossip show. Ever.

Her hands were shaking and her heart
throbbed madly. She couldn't think. She had to move fast: act now
for this limited time offer.

Cynthia opened the door, a tube of lip gloss
in hand. "For what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

"I need help. Is your computer on?" Beth
slipped out of her sandals and headed down the hall to Cynthia's
bedroom.

"No. Why? Are there naked pictures of you on
the Internet? Because if there are, they can be tricky to get off
unless you know what to do." She followed Beth, applying lip gloss
as she went.

"No." She stopped to face her sister. "Hang
on, how do you know?"

She shrugged. "I watch a lot of TV."

"Right," Beth said without conviction.
"Sorry for interrupting your show."

"Meh. It's about Tom Cruise. I can miss it."
She pushed past Beth. "So? What do you need?"

"I need to book a flight."

"A flight?" Cynthia asked, perking up. "To
where?"

"Paris."

"Can I come?"

"Oh God, Cynthia. I have a
feeling I'm going to need help keeping my knickers on." Beth
blushed, unsure whether taking a rebound romance as far as
knickers off
was
something she was ready for.

"All right!" Cynthia high-fived her from the
doorway of her cozy bedroom. She hit the power button on her
computer and impatiently wiggled the mouse. "Who on earth would
convince you to leave your little nest in Blueberry Springs? Surely
not...?"

"Nash." Beth watched Cynthia's face for a
reaction. Her eyebrows shot up and back down again so quickly Beth
almost missed it.

"And you think your knickers may come off,
do you?" She gave Beth a coy grin and began clicking and typing
away on her computer. "Hmm. Very interesting."

"Well, no. Not really." She fidgeted with
the cuffs of her light jacket. "According to the people of
Blueberry Springs, they'll be off before I even reach the
airport."

"Long before. You'll be eloping because
you've already taken them off and City Boy needs to make an honest
woman of his unborn offspring's mother."

Beth plunked herself on
Cynthia's bed and flopped onto her back. "Ohmigod. You're freaking
me out. Stop talking and book the flight." She dug Nash's folded
note containing his flight info from her pocket. The neat,
masculine scrawl almost made her head spin. She was going to Paris.
With a
man
!

Cynthia took the note and, frowning, typed
and clicked until she got to the site she needed.

Beth's mind raced. This was a blend of
exciting and completely terrifying. She pulled one of Cynthia's
pillows over her face.

Stop thinking, stop thinking, stop
thinking.

"What if something crazy
happens like Oz asking you back before... October
15
^th
?"
Cynthia asked, reading the flight details.

"He won't," Beth said with a finality that
surprised her. She tossed the pillow aside and glanced at her
sister who had raised an eyebrow. "Look. You were right. It's time
to move on. And Nash has offered me an opportunity to break away.
I'm going to take it." Her sister didn't turn back to the computer.
"If I go far, far away I'll get enough perspective that I'll know
what to do about my life. What I want and need."

"Sticking with the British knickers slang,
I'd say a jolly good rogering? 'Cause that's what's gonna
happen."

"Cynthia!"

"Well, why else does a man invite a girl to
Paris?" She raised her eyebrows. "Plus, you even said it yourself,
knickers girl." Cynthia gave Beth's leg a shove. "Go have a
Parisian fling. Get it out of your system. Your big sister is
telling you to go live a little."

Paris. Alone. With Nash. She would never
admit it, but over the past few days she'd had more than the odd
fantasy about what that blue-eyed doctor might be capable of
between the sheets, in her office, on the couch, in her car, and
now on a plane... but it didn't mean she was going to make
something like that happen. They were friends. Friends who were
going on vacation together.

And maybe repeat a kiss or two. And engage
in a some fun rebound-type behaviors.

She snorted. Why was she
even thinking about a fling? She wasn't the kind of girl who could
pull off something like that without getting serious. And Nash was
nothing but a charming distraction. A few kisses, etc. Nothing
more. And if things
did
progress to serious for some reason, she still
wouldn't be losing. Nash was a good man.

On the flipside, it wasn't like she had to
worry about Oz asking her back. He'd kissed Mandy—in public—for a
reason.

End game.

She needed to move on and Nash was waiting
for her, hand extended.

"Earth to Beth..." Cynthia nudged Beth's
leg.

Beth snapped back to the present. "A fling,"
Beth snorted, "yeah right. That would spell nothing but
trouble."

"Dreamy look complete with blushing. You're
sorely tempted aren't you? Although the peeved look... that was
weird. Tell the guy it's an exit only."

Beth rolled her eyes. "You're such a
pervert." She stared at the watermarked ceiling and let her
thoughts wash over her. "What if the life I want is a bit different
than I've always envisioned? What if there is more to me than this
small town? I mean, a man asking me to go to Paris with him? To
travel? That's so not who I thought I was." She propped herself up
on an elbow. "But I like the idea so maybe I am? I mean, what if
I'm that girl, but I was always too scared to find out? What if I
like things like champagne and orange juice for breakfast and big
diamond necklaces? I like cashmere."

"So do I. I think the point
here is that everyone likes cashmere," Cynthia replied, her
attention on the computer screen. "And nobody actually
likes
champagne. They
just pretend because it's glitzy."

Beth fell onto her back and fanned her face
as heart palpitations set in. She didn't have a passport. She
didn't even know if she had enough time to get one. Or how to book
a plane ticket. Or if she got airsick. Or if she had a bag big
enough for whatever she'd need to pack.

What was the weather in Paris? What did they
eat? French fries, French toast, and French bread? She couldn't
even pronounce merçi correctly, how on earth was she going to deal
with the language thing? She slapped her hands over her eyes and
tried to calm her thoughts.

"It took a lot of convincing to even get you
to apply for college in the city. And even then, you took Katie
with you. I don't think you're truly a jet-setting girl in
disguise."

"College was a good thing though," Beth
reminded.

"I know. It's just... well, it doesn't seem
like your style to...," her sister stopped uncertainly.

"To what? Be adventurous?
To try something new? To see if I like wine—which I do.
Cashmere—which I do.
Paris
?" Beth sat up, hands on her
hips. She forced away the anger welling up inside her. "I
can
do
this,
Cynthia. I'm not going to be one of those old ladies wishing she'd
gone and done something daring when she was young and free. That
she had stepped outside of who she thought she was and what she
thought she'd always wanted and explored new dreams." Her back
snapped straight as she realized what she said.

She sounded just like Oz.

What did that mean? That he was right all
along?

No, it couldn't be. She still had her dream
of having a family. She was simply testing her boundaries and
living a little in the meantime.

Cynthia threw up her hands. "Whatever. I'm
not arguing. It's just unlike you, that's all."

"Shove over." Beth squeezed next to her
sister on the computer chair. "Let's book this stupid thing." Step
one: book a friggin' ticket out of here. Step two: figure out the
details. Step three: panic.

"I've got the airline and flight up. Now
what?"

"I was hoping you'd know."