Harry Styles is spending the summer in a quiet villa on the French Riviera, hoping to find inspiration for his third album. It's not happening. When he sees a beautiful windsurfer racing across the waves, he believes lessons might be a good distract...
They decided to throw caution, and Louise's protests, to the wind the next morning and go to the café before the guys went back into the trailer one last time. Everybody went, all fourteen of them. Lia called Mariam and asked her to move four tables onto the section of the terrace that projected over the beach and leave a buffer of open space between them and the rest of the customers.
It was high season, and all of the tables except theirs were full. When the cavalcade of four tinted SUVs pulled up, all heads turned toward the street. No one was trying to hide this morning. Harry's plain white sleeveless shirt was open, and a glimpse of the tiger on his thigh showed beneath the cuff of his patchwork shorts. Any person who knew the slightest thing about Harry Styles recognized him immediately.
Lia wore her patchwork shorts as well, with a butter yellow t-shirt. Mary and Niall looked a bit plain next to the other couple, but that seemed to be their way. Lia heard a wave of whispered conjectures as the group crossed the terrace. The men hadn't been seen together in years, much less outside a formal event. this was a BIG deal.
The two couples took the table farthest out the terrace, which afforded them the most privacy. Mariam came to the table and Lia made introductions before giving their orders. Suddenly Jean-Jaques appeared by his mother's side wearing an apron and carting a tiny notepad.
"Jean-Jaques! When did you start working here? I really have missed a lot."
"I started this week. I'm getting the hang of it. I like the bustle. Shall I start with the big table, Maman?"
"Please do." He walked away. "I thought a large party would be a good experience for him. I hope your friends will be a bit forgiving."
They gave their orders, enjoyed the view, and laughed as Lia told stories of disastrous lessons. When she mentioned the boy who had been too, ahem, excited to even begin his lesson, Harry and Niall exchanged a wicked look.
"What?" Mary and Lia asked in unison.
Niall was having a hard time keeping a straight face as Harry explained. "Of course she'd been Niall's saving grace and he sort of already knew her, but when the rest of us first met Katy, Katy Perry, I think we all had to go sit down for a minute, or stand behind a potted plant. Niall, remember that bodysuit she wore on the show?"
Niall closed his eyes and nodded his head, sighing. "How could I ever forget it? It was... remarkable. All the sparkles, and skin tight. I thought Zayn was going to follow her right into her dressing room!" Both men were lost for a moment in the memory.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Lia noticed Mary's face when Zayn's name was mentioned. It looked like Niall never talked about him either.
The coffee came, Jean-Jaques carrying a loaded tray as though he'd been doing it for years, and conversation turned to more current subjects.
There were some autographs, photographs, and probing questions that went unanswered as they left, but it had been, all in all, a relaxing morning. Back at the house, the guys, the band, and Pascale disappeared into the trailer to finish the song. Louise, as usual, had things to do. She was a stick in the mud, but Lia had to admit she worked hard and was dedicated to making Harry's life run as smoothly as possible.
