“Well that seemed successful,” Jake said as he popped a leftover olive into his mouth. The last of the party guests had just left and we were both a little bit famished, having spent most of our time socializing and not munching on the delectable snacks Madame Lepage had put out.
“Sorry about the Michael thing,” I said, “Didn’t expect that wrench in the whole thing!”
“Well you managed to talk us out of that one,” Jake shrugged.
“Yeah with another lie.”
“Whatever.”
“Jake I told you, I’m tired of the lies, and now they’re just tumbling off my tongue!” I exclaimed, “This is becoming kind of a problem don’t you think?”
“Yeah but this lie… No one is going to see Michael again. It’s just a detail we had to adjust,” Jake said, as if it was the least problematic thing in the world.
“The things I do…” I sighed, kicking my heels off and stretching my feet, “Anyways I have to head over to Monte Carlo soon.”
“What? Why?” Jake asked, an almost unnoticeable look of shock on his face.
“Told Michael I’d meet him for dinner,” I shrugged, “No big deal.”
“But…”
“But what?” I asked, taking in his unreadable features.
“Thought we were just going to eat our way through the leftovers for dinner tonight,” he said.
“You can,” I told him, “I’ve got to go meet my fiancé.”
“Fiancé, right.”
“What’s that mean?” I asked.
“Just forgot,” Jake said innocently.
“Are you jealous?!” I demanded, rounding the counter in the kitchen so I could face him, a smirk playing on my lips.
“I’m not jealous Lauren.”
“So what was that?”
“Maybe the lies have gone to my brain,” Jake said nonchalantly, “I can’t remember what’s what anymore.”
I rolled my eyes at him dramatically, brushing past him and wandering up the stairs to get ready for dinner. Michael had texted the name of the place and I knew that it was going to be a fancier affair. Deftly I swapped out of the sundress I was wearing into the nicer dress Jake had bought me to wear when we’d eaten out with Dominique and her husband.
“Do you want a ride?” Jake asked when I came back downstairs with my purse.
“I’ll just take the bus.”
“In that dress?” he smirked. I looked down, realizing how out of place I’d look.
“Whatever,” I muttered; digging through my bag to make sure I had everything I thought I’d need.
“Just come on, I’ll drive you,” Jake said, grabbing his keys off the counter.
“But…”
“Let’s go!”
I frowned but followed him out to the car all the same, sitting in the passenger seat in silence as he drove east away from the villa towards Monaco. Living in Eze certainly had its benefits; the tiny country of Monaco was just a short drive away in the opposite direction of Nice.
“Where are you meeting Michael?” Jake asked.
“Umm… Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo,” I replied.
