Lucky Charm (24 page)

Breakfast was next on her agenda
,
since she did not dare enter
the kitchen
for fear
that she might run into Madam Roux. Once outside, Annabel looked around for a place where she could get something to eat. She headed in the direction of the Louvre, thinking that she was bound to run into a bakery shop on the way, and sure enough
,
she spotted a patisserie two blocks down. The selection of pastries was truly mouth
-
watering, and for a moment Annabel was overcome with indecision
. T
hen she opted for
a
chocolate croissant, thinking that she could not go wrong with this classic French staple, and a cup of tea. She took her breakfast to go, and once she reached the Louvre courtyard, she settled on one of the benches and took a bite of the croissant
. T
here were plenty of good bakeries in
Manhattan
, but she had to admit that she had never tasted a croissant this decadently delicious
. T
he sumptuous, flaky pastry seemed to melt in her mouth, combined with the rich, velvety dark chocolate.

As she took another bite of the croissant, Annabel briefly wondered what Meredith would have to say about the pastry.
Probably something to the effect that she could bake a much better one
, Annabel thought and immediately regretted her sarcasm
. S
he had not talked to her cousin since the row at her parents’ house, but her mother had kept in touch with Meredith
. I
t seemed that Meredith’s marriage was even shakier than before.
I should call her when I get back
, Annabel thought
. S
he knew only too well how much it meant to have a friendly shoulder to lean on in the times of crisis. She finished the last bite of the pastry and let her taste buds revel in the mouth-watering reverie for a few moments
. A
las, she had many things to see
,
and she did n
ot exactly have time to dilly-da
lly.

But where was she to start?
Annabel wondered as she headed toward the Louvre. The Louvre housed some of the most famous artworks of all times: the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Victory of Samothrace, and those were only the most talked about
,
only the tip of the vast collection that included tens of thousands of artworks. She decided to begin with the Denon wing since that was where the Mona Lisa was
,
and she could not wait to see the famous painting.

There are crowds and then there are crowds,
Annabel thought
. S
he had never seen the size of
the
crowds that flooded the entrance hall of the Louvre. The admission line was huge
,
and Annabel was glad that she had purchased the City Pass – a prepaid admission ticket to all the museums of Paris that Simon
had
advised her to buy to avoid the huge lines. The
City
Pass
was pricey, but at the moment
, Annabel had no qualms about its cost
,
as feeling slightly guilty, she was allowed to skip the line and
was
ushered right through the entrance by the security guard. In the lobby, there were people everywhere: tourist groups of senior citizens and students, couples, and even screaming toddlers being dragged by their parents. For a moment
,
Annabel stood paralyzed, frightened that she might be swept away by the crowd. Then, clutching the floor plan firmly in her hand, she started to make her way to where she estimated the Mona Lisa was supposed to be.

As she walked up the marble staircase, Annabel was stunned by the sight of the Winged Victory – the Victory of Samothrace
. S
he remembered the photographs of the legendary sculpture from her art history classes, but that did not prepare her for seeing the grand sculpture with her own eyes. Her only wish was that it were less crowded, so that she could appreciate the great beauty of the sculpture without people pushing past her and calling over her head.
Well, that’s what I get for sleeping late
, she thought
. N
ext time I’m coming in right at the opening time
.

Next, she entered a long gallery of paintings of world- renowned masters: Titian, Correggio, Veronese - each painting was a world of its own. The people hurried by her impatiently as she took her time to admire each work.

Shortly afterwards
,
Annabel understood the foolish ambitiousness of her plan
. T
his was only one gallery of the Louvre
,
and already it looked like it would take a lifetime to see all the treasures that it held. How was she ever going to see it all? Suddenly, she remembered Simon’s words:
“L
et Paris show itself to you.
”
But before she could give Simon’s advi
c
e another thought, the next crowd wave charged right at her. Swept by the current, Annabel had no choice but to follow along
,
and after several minutes of elbowing and pushing, she ended up in Room number six, which was the residence of the Mona Lisa.

The Mona Lisa was hung in the center of the room with rope railings all around the painting and guards standing by to make sure that the visitors did not approach too close. Annabel stood in the back of the crowd, straining to see the renowned artwork
. I
t was beautiful, no doubt, but despite her fear of being shot down by art critics, she had to admit that, in her opinion, the other paintings in the gallery deserved just as much interest. Yet, like a herd, the crowd rushed right past them because they only wanted to see what was talked of the most.

Suddenly, Simon’s advice made perfect sense
. S
tanding there in the crowded room was not at all what Annabel wanted her trip to
Paris
to be like. True, she wanted to see all the famous artworks, but she also wished for something more than that
. S
he longed to discover
Paris
and to find out what it was about the City of
Light
that made it the most romantic destination in the world. Gradually, Annabel began to make her way past the crowds toward the exit.

Once outside, Annabel thankfully inhaled the fresh air. The artworks had been wonderful to look at, but there was much to be said about
Paris
in July. She made her way down the Louvre courtyard, admiring the beautiful marble statues that lined its alleys. She crossed into the
Tuileries
Garden
and sat down on one of the benches by the fountain. As she took her time to admire the colorful flowerbeds and the artful landscaping, she felt as though she could sit out on that bench forever, just taking in the breathtaking view before her.

When she looked
at her watch, Annabel was stunned to see that it was already almost four o’clock. She checked her cell phone to see if she had a message from Lilly
,
and sure enough there was a text message:
D
inner tonight at eight, no ifs
, ands or buts. Dress sexy. P
ick you up at 7:30. Cheers, Lilly.
Annabel smiled, thinking that it was a typical communication for her friend
. W
hen Lilly set her mind to something, she never took no for an answer. Well, after a day of sightseeing on her own, Annabel had to admit that she would not mind a little company
. S
he only wished she would not have to be the third wheel.

She patted the
heart-shaped pendant of hand-blown glass that hung about her neck, hoping that perhaps here, in
Paris
, Madam Aurora’s love charm might finally start to work its magic.

When she got back to the townhouse on
Quai Voltaire
, Annabel quickly made her way up the worn marble stairs, doing her best to be as quiet as possible. Despite Lilly’s contention that Madam Roux was a sweetheart, Lilly found that hard to believe
. S
he sincerely hoped to avoid the grouchy housekeeper for the rest of her stay.

Back in her room
,
Lilly surveyed her clothes for
“
something sexy
,
”
as Lilly had aptly put it in her text message. One night in
Paris
was enough for Annabel to notice that Parisian women took their clothes seriously
,
and she was determined to be on par. Of course
,
she knew that she could never fulfill Lilly’s definition of
“
sexy
,”
which, like the majority of Lilly’s designs, involved dresses made of see-through, barely-there material, but she would do her best. After considerable
deliberation,
Annabel settled on her favorite black cocktail dress with red patent heels and a red patent clutch. The two latter items were a recent addition to her wardrobe in response to Lilly’s constant insistence to
“
spice up
”
her look.

As she slipped into her favorite dress, Annabel felt a tingle of anticipation
. I
t had been a long time since she
had
felt this excited about going out. In fact, it was probably the first time since her break
up with Jeremy, which now felt like a lifetime ago. She had to admit that the expression
“
Whatever does not kill you makes you stronger
”
was true after all
. O
nly a few months ago
,
life without Jeremy seemed unthinkable to her.

Annabel was applying the last coat of mascara when she heard footsteps in the hallway.

“Ann? Are you there?” Lilly’s voice rang behind the door.

“Come on in, it’s open.”

“Hi.” Panting, Lilly sank into the roomy armchair. “That staircase will take some getting used to...” She fanned her face with the palm of her hand. “I’m sorry I’ve been MIA for the entire day
.
I swear I’ll make it up to you tomorrow.”

“No problem. I told you I’d be fine on my own
. W
e can hang out anytime, but you can only see Simon while you’re here. Did you have a good time?”

“It was wonderful – the most romantic day of my life. I’ve been to
Paris
before, but now I understand what a trip to
Paris
is really supposed to be like
. W
hen you’re in love, everything seems different…” Lilly halted. “I’m sorry
.
I didn’t mean to rub it in like that.”

“That’s
okay
.” Annabel smiled brightly
. S
he was not about to rain on Lilly’s parade.

“It may not be long before you meet a handsome stranger yourself
. T
his is, after all
,
Paris! So, are you ready for tonight?”

Annabel twirled in front of Lilly. “Do I have your approval?”

Lilly nodded, thoughtfully giving her a once over. “You look great. By the way, Simon invited a friend of his to dinner,” Lilly paused. “He thought the two of you might like each other.”

“Lilly!” Annabel wanted to fall straight through the floor
. T
he last thing she needed was a
pity
blind date
. I
t was even worse than being the third wheel. “Why didn’t you tell me this before? If I had known, I would have said no.”

“That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you.” Lilly’s voice was full of smug self-satisfaction.

“Well, I can still cancel, you know. I could just stay in and curl up with a book instead.”

“Oh, come on, Ann! Enough with that nonsense
.
I thought we were over this. There’s no obligation
. T
he four of us will go out and have a good time, that’s all. If you don’t like him, you won’t have to see Etienne ever again.”

“His name is Etienne?” Annabel repeated dubiously
. T
his was getting better by the minute
. S
he was being set up with a mysterious Frenchman with an exotic name.

“Yes, and he is stunning
.
I saw a picture of him at Simon’s. I think you’ll like him a lot…” Lilly paused again. “And he
,
too
,
is getting over a break up, so the two of you might have a lot in common. His ex was American, so that tells us that he likes American
girls,
” Lilly concluded.