Champagne and Lemon Drops: A Blueberry Springs Chick Lit Contemporary Romance (20 page)

"This is it," he said.

Beth gasped. "Serious? This
is
so
unreal." She
held onto Nash's arm, letting him lead her into the building while
she gaped at the lobby's fresco ceiling. A uniformed porter
followed them to the front desk, pulling their bags on a brass
luggage cart. "Totally and utterly unreal." She had never-ever even
dreamed of being in a building this amazing. She wanted to plunk
down in one of the cushy chairs with a bright, cold beer and soak
it all in.

Nash pulled Beth aside and wrapped his arms
around her. She slowly lowered her attention to Nash's clear,
intense eyes. He placed his warm, minty mouth on hers, kissing her
with an intensity and longing that made her insides jitter with
anticipation of what might follow. She held him tight and inhaled
his wonderfully clean scent, and kissed back, harder and
deeper.

Finally, she forced herself to draw away.
She took a moment to allow her eyes to refocus.

"Do you feel like," Nash blushed and hugged
Beth's body tight against his, before lowering his voice to a
whisper that tickled her ear, "a foreign affair?"

Oh. My. God.

Romantic. Spontaneous. Something that
happened in books, but never, ever, to a girl like her.

She wanted it. She wanted
it
bad
. This very
idea had kept her up at night for the past six weeks. A fling. In
Paris. With a handsome, caring doctor. Most girls would kill for
something like this. And half the purpose of this trip was to prove
to herself that she could be someone different. Spontaneous.
New.

But their friendship. She closed her eyes,
emotion and need racing through her. She didn't want to lose their
friendship. But at the same time she knew they'd be hot together.
That kiss had her body throbbing and screaming, "Pick me! Pick
me!"

She could do. She could turn a friend who
wanted a no-strings-attached fling with her—a girl on the
rebound—into a passionate lover.

Every cell in her body was reaching out to
Nash, pulling him in. Needing him. Wanting him.

And soon... taking him.

She opened her eyes and smiled. Damn the
torpedoes, this hunk of male would be all hers this week.

***

Their week in Paris had been even better
than she'd imagined. It had been a blur of wonderfully ancient,
historic sites, sculptures, paintings, fountains, postcard-like
settings, decadent food, and a most wonderful break from
reality.

And a taste of what life could be with a man
who had a little money and a passion for seeing and enjoying the
world.

"I never want to go home," Beth sighed and
laid her head on Nash's bare chest. Last night they'd shared a loaf
of fresh bread and a bottle of wine along the Seine, watching the
twinkling lights turn on all over the Eiffel Tower as the sun set.
It was amazing. Romantic. Way beyond ordinary. And she liked it.
She liked it a lot. Evenings like that could make a girl greedy for
more.

Nash smiled at her, his eyes crinkling. He
gently stroked her back with his fingertips and they snuggled
quietly, listening to a cello playing what Nash had identified as
Bach on the street below.

"Speaking of home," Nash said, breaking
their silence, "did you return your sister's call?"

Her little bubbles of happiness began to
dissolve, and determined not to lose them, she dismissed his
reminder. "She was just checking in."

"You can use my calling card if you
want."

She mumbled something noncommittal. The last
thing she wanted to do was think about home. She'd be back to
reality soon enough and this week had shown her how much of the
world she had been missing by staying in Blueberry Springs waiting
for Oz. She loved the freedom and spontaneity of traveling. She'd
even enjoyed taking a lover, despite how it signaled a definite
finality to her and Oz. She didn't miss home or anyone there and
she vowed not to waste her last day thinking about it.

Nash teased an erogenous zone at the back of
her neck, sending wake-up tremors of excitement coursing through
her nervous system. She closed her eyes and savored the sensation.
Tomorrow this would end. If she had the choice, she'd live like
this for the rest of her life.

"I must say," she murmured, "med school was
well-worth the tens of thousands of dollars. Was there a whole
class on erogenous zones?"

"Nerve endings 101. Any others in need of
attention?" Beth giggled and offered an ear. He bit it lightly and
whispered, "What do you want to do today?"

She ran a hand down the front of his boxers.
"Something stimulating."

"An art gallery?"

"I do enjoy a good nude."
She gave him a deep kiss, stroking him. "You've been
such
an attentive guide.
I think you deserve a very
large
gratuity."

He sucked in a shaky breath as her strokes
became firmer. "Gratuities accepted." He rolled on top of her and
kissed her neck, his erection rubbing against her inner thigh's
sweet spot. "How about I rent a car and we go see a vineyard?"

"Ooo... yes, please," she moaned, arching
her back.

An hour later, her cheeks still flushed,
Beth leaned back in the cherry red convertible's leather seat and
let her head loll to the side so she could watch Nash maneuver the
car through the tight streets.

"This is the life," she said. If only every
day was like this. Or even every weekend seeing as Nash was a
self-confessed workaholic. But being together back home wasn't part
of the agreement. This was a fling. Nothing more. When their feet
hit the tarmac it was over. Back to being friends. Their time
together would be tucked away like it had never happened.

But she still had one day to be sexy and
free and she was going to draw it out as much as she could. She
slid her sunglasses over her eyes and raised her hands to let the
wind whip around her arms. France was heavenly. Nobody was planning
her life. Nobody was gossiping about the way she had to stop and
kiss Nash every five minutes. Chocolates magically appeared on her
pillow as if by fairies. Everything from food to fresh laundry was
delivered to her room and beautiful sights were waiting every time
she looked away from Nash. She was free. Happy.

She should have been born rich, nestled deep
in Nash's arms.

She swiveled in her seat. "Oooooo! Look at
that!" She pointed at a meticulous vineyard with rows of vines
marching over the rolling hills. Each row was as perfect as the
next. Someone must have been very good with a measuring tape.

Beth laughed as they sped by the vineyard's
driveway. "That wasn't it?"

"We're going a bit further. Wait and see."
Nash geared down for a sharp turn. "You'll love it."

"I'll love anything you show me, Nash.
Anything." Beth lifted her arms in the air and laughed as the air
forced her arms back down.

Chapter 12

Everything about vineyards made her want to
pack up and move to one. The bitter taste of grapes straight off
the vine, rich soil running through her fingers, the subtle variety
in the different wines, and most of all, the way Nash let his
fingertips rest lightly on her lower back as they'd roamed the
vineyard. It didn't help that he had pulled her from the tour group
to press her up against a hidden trellis and make hasty, scorching
love to her.

She'd never think of vineyards in the same
way.

However, in an hour, their plane would land
and her fairytale world and romance would crash and break about
her, dissipating into the crisp fall air. Reality was already
seeping in around the edges, staining her mood. No more
convertibles. No more chocolates on her pillow. No fresh laundry
magically appearing in her room. No delivered breakfast. No slow
lovemaking to the sounds of Parisian traffic. No more gilded
everything. No more fresh croissants with champagne and orange
juice for breakfast.

And most of all, no more Nash. No more
sharing her days, thoughts, worries, dreams, and life with him.

No more. No more. No more.

Beth screwed her eyes shut, determined to
cement every detail from their trip into her memory. Every day had
felt fresh and full of potential.

She'd been alive. Truly alive.

In Paris she was strong and confident.
Adventurous.

Flying home, she knew the Beth she'd been in
Paris would fade and her old life would slowly take over again.

She gave herself a shake. What was she
thinking? This was her life. She could live it as she wanted.
Hadn't she just proved that? She'd flown to France with a man.
She'd taken a lover. Had a week-long affair. She was desirable.
Independent. Adventurous. She had made her life happen by having
the confidence and desire to do so. She'd find a great place to
live. Her outreach would bloom. She wouldn't look back. And she
most certainly wouldn't think about Oz.

Beth pulled the airline magazine from the
seat pocket and flipped through it, pausing on a page of the Eiffel
Tower lit up at night. Paris. She sighed. Money was going to be an
issue, especially if she was moving out on her own. France had been
much more expensive than she'd anticipated and she'd had to dip
into her savings in an effort to prove to Nash that she was
independent and could afford to buy her own meals and
souvenirs.

She tapped the magazine thoughtfully and,
glancing around the plane's cabin, her eyes landed on a young
family. She watched as the mother leaned over and wiped her
daughter's face before handing her a coloring book and crayons.
Their trailer. There was enough equity in their old home that she
could get set up somewhere else if she had her half. She just
needed the courage to ask for it.

She ordered a beer from a passing flight
attendant and scratched all thoughts of home from her mind. She
still had two more hours of fantasyland. Sipping her beer she
turned to the same article Nash was reading: Romantic Getaways
Around the World. She smiled at the idea that he might be thinking
of another trip. She gave his hand a squeeze as her heart swelled.
She already missed him and what they'd shared in Paris.

"We'll always have Paris," she
whispered.

He squeezed back. "Yes, we'll always have
Paris."

***

Beth held the heavy present in her arms and
yawned. Jet lag was a bitch with one hell of a backswing. Cynthia
opened the door to Dan's parents' place and pulled Beth inside with
a massive grin. "Is that for us? Engagement parties are the best!"
She squealed and grabbed the package from Beth and gave it an
experimental heft. "Oh my god, it's heavy. It's that Mix
Master!"

"Shut up," Beth grumbled. Her sister always
guessed her gifts within seconds. Even the year she'd added rocks
to the gift box to try and throw her sister off, she'd piped up
with, "It's that bracelet I wanted and a few rocks to throw me
off." The girl was lucky Beth even bothered to wrap her gifts
anymore.

Her sister tore off down the hall calling,
"Dan! Beth got us the Mix Master!"

"Whoopee," came his reply. "Another thing I
will never, ever use."

Beth entered the kitchen where a few gifts
were already stacked on the kitchen island.

"Oh, be happy for me, honey," Cynthia said,
wrapping her arms around Dan's neck and giving him a big
smooch.

"For our wedding," Dan said, breaking free,
"get us something we could both use, okay?"

"Like what?" Beth asked, head tilted to the
side.

Dan shrugged. He grabbed a strawberry off a
platter and dipped it in chocolate fondue. "One of these? They're
wicked-awesome."

Dan's mother, Wini, entered
the room and laughed. "That
would
be a lovely gift. And if you don't get one
tonight—"

"Dibs!" called Beth.

Wini smiled and continued, "Beth will buy
you one as a wedding gift."

Beth giggled at her sister's unimpressed
expression.

Dan pointed his strawberry at Beth. "And
lots of chocolate. The proper fondue stuff that you can't get in
town. And it has to be a chocolate fondue fountain, not one of
those silly pot things."

Cynthia rolled her eyes.

"Deal," Beth said and shook his hand.

Dan wrapped an arm around her shoulders and
said, "You're going to be the best sister-in-law ever. Too bad you
don't come with an equally awesome brother-in-law."

"Not yet," she sang.

The air in the room shifted and Beth turned
to see Oz standing in the doorway. "Hey," he said, addressing
everyone. He glanced at Beth and said stiffly, "Have a nice trip,
Beth?" He placed his lopsidedly wrapped gift with the others.

"I did, thanks." She bit her lip from
sharing how wonderful it had been. She'd only been back two days
and was still bursting with the thrill of having been away.

Dan handed Oz a bottle of beer and he
chugged half of it back while everyone stood uncomfortably. Yeah,
they were once engaged and now they were broken up. Elephant in the
room. She got it. But it didn't mean everyone couldn't act like
normal humans.

"Neither of you brought dates?" asked Wini,
rearranging the food platters to create room for serviettes.

Oz and Beth shook their heads, giving each
other side glances.

Wini raised an eyebrow but said nothing as
she snagged her purse off the counter. "I'm off to play bridge with
the girls, you kids have fun."

"Thanks, Wini," Cynthia said, following her
future mother-in-law to the front door, Dan in tow.

"Where's Mandy?" Beth asked Oz.

He shrugged.

"You didn't ask her to come?" Beth
asked.

"Where's Nash?" Oz asked, staring straight
ahead while taking a swallow of beer.