Maddy sat and listened for the next half hour as Lauren expanded on her story, sharing details about Ben and their torrid summer fling, but stopping just shy of sharing too much. Maddy’s tender heart broke half a dozen times for her niece, at seeing just how vulnerable Lauren really was, and tried not to think about how closely parts of Lauren’s story paralleled her own.

Maddy shook her head at the end of Lauren’s tale. “Darling, I’m so sorry, so terribly sorry for you. But two things in particular trouble me about all of this. First, why in the world didn’t you share any of this with us before now? I understand perhaps why you didn’t tell me or your mother about it, but your own sister? Surely you didn’t think Julia wouldn’t have understood or supported you?”

Lauren sighed, refilling her wine glass. “Of course not. I know Jules would have moved heaven and earth for me, just like I would for her, no matter what the circumstances. I never told her when it all happened because she was so busy with work and school and her own life, and, well, you know how it’s always been with me. I hate being thought of as weak or needy or girly, and I couldn’t stand the thought of crying on anyone’s shoulder. And, well, I was ashamed, too. I’d been made a fool of, after all, and that sure as hell wasn’t something I was anxious to admit.”

“You weren’t a fool,” assured Maddy gently, stroking her niece’s cheek. “You were just in love, darling. Young and happy and so much in love. No one would have faulted you for that or thought less of you. Which brings me to my second question. Why haven’t you allowed Ben to explain things to you after all this time? From what you’ve told me, and from what I could gather that day we met him at Norma’s, he seems like a decent man. Kind, even.”

“He is.” Lauren gave a little shrug of resignation. “And I guess the reason I haven’t wanted to hear him out is because I’m afraid to know the truth. Afraid that he is just being kind, and that leaving that morning without a word was his way of letting me down easy. And, well, as you know, I’m also stubborn as hell. Stubborn and proud and unforgiving. I was still so mad at him, so hurt that he could leave me after everything we’d shared, that I thought to hell with him. That if he didn’t appreciate what he had with me, if he was too stupid to know a good thing when he had it, then I didn’t want anything more to do with him.”

Maddy shook her head. “You owed it to yourself to learn the truth, Lauren, even if it was a hard truth. You still owe it to yourself. It’s never too late, you know, to ask. To go to him and say you’re finally ready to listen, even if you aren’t going to like what he has to say.”

“I can’t, Aunt Maddy.” Tears welled up in her eyes again and she brushed them away angrily. “It’s way, way too late now. Ben and I barely speak to each other these days, and well, if Elle can be believed, he’s about to ask her to marry him. Going to him now – it would only look like sour grapes, or like I’m trying to cause trouble. Or, worse, that I’m desperate.”

“First of all,” declared Maddy, “you have no reason to believe that little witch. As jealous of you as she seems, I’d be willing to bet she just made that bit up about getting engaged. Or maybe she believes it’s going to happen but is really just deluding herself. But even if it is true, you still deserve to hear Ben’s side of things. Just like he deserves the chance to tell you.”

“I don’t know.” Lauren chewed on her bottom lip uncertainly. “Maybe. I’ll think about it while I’m in Canada.”

“Do that, darling. For both your sakes.”

Maddy picked up the bottle of wine and was a bit alarmed to realize they had drunk the entire bottle. She heaved a sigh as she got to her feet again.

“My turn now, I suppose. Though I just realized I’m going to need something a whole lot stronger than wine before I can bare my soul.”

Chapter Twenty

Lauren blinked in surprise as her normally sophisticated, refined aunt walked into her kitchen and returned a few moments later carrying two shot glasses and a chilled bottle of Skyy vodka. Without a word, Maddy poured them each a glass, belted hers down neatly, and then refilled it.

“There,” declared Maddy, shuddering just a bit as the alcohol hit her stomach. “I think that will do it. At least for now.”

Lauren grinned. “And I always wondered why you kept that bottle in the fridge. You know vodka isn’t my favorite, and I’ve never actually seen you take a shot of anything before. Great technique, by the way. The kind that only comes with a lot of practice.”

Maddy gave her a wink. “I’ve been known to let my hair down on occasion, though not so much in recent years. When I was in college, though – well, that’s a tale for another day. The one I’m going to tell you tonight actually began when I was a little younger than you are now – twenty-five, to be precise. It was springtime in Paris – such a cliché, I know – when I met a man by the name of James Butterfield. And it was definitely, absolutely, love at first sight – for both of us.”

Lauren was instantly intrigued, both by the way her aunt’s blue gray eyes lit up at the mention of this man’s name, and at the wistful note of longing in her voice.

“What were you doing in Paris? Vacationing?” inquired Lauren.

Maddy shook her head. “Working. I was an apprentice at Lanvin, putting in gruesomely long hours for practically no money. The apartment I lived in was so tiny it made your sister’s old place here in town look like a two bedroom flat. But I didn’t mind, because I was doing the work I loved in the city I loved. I was surrounded by beautiful art and clothes and incredible food and wine, and there was romance everywhere I looked. It was fitting, I suppose, that the only time I ever fell in love was in the City of Lovers.”

“Did this James work in the fashion industry, too?”

“Goodness, no.” Maddy gave a little laugh. “He was in finance, darling, came from a very long and distinguished banking family in England. We actually met at an art gallery, during a show for a new artist. And it was like something out of a romantic movie – our eyes met across a crowded room and the rest is history. At least for a time.”

“Now, this is starting to get good,” said Lauren, rubbing her hands together in glee. “What did he look like? I mean, just the fact that he was British – and rich – was probably enough to sweep a twenty-five year old woman off her feet. There’s just something about a man with an accent, isn’t there?”

Maddy laughed. “How true, darling. And, yes, he certainly did sweep me off my feet. He was older – twelve years to be exact – handsome, well dressed, sophisticated, and very, very charming. He was also,” she added soberly, “married, with three children.”

Lauren gaped in surprise. “Aunt Maddy – what - ”

Maddy held up a hand at Lauren’s protest. “It’s not what you think, Lauren. At least, not exactly. When I first met James he’d been legally separated for almost a year, and his children were all in their teens. His wife – well, from what he told me his life with her was extremely unhappy. She was a very high strung, nervous woman, easily upset, and James was constantly having to deal with one little emotional upheaval after another. By the time his youngest turned thirteen, he’d had enough and moved out of the house.”

Lauren nodded. “Okay, I get that. Sounds like the wife made his life a living hell, and he deserved a shot at some happiness.”

“Yes.” Maddy seemed pleased that she understood. “We fell madly in love right from the start. James was based in London, of course, had a flat there, and saw his children on a regular basis. He and I only got to see each other when he could come to Paris for the odd weekend, or if he could steal away for an extra day or two. But I didn’t mind, was willing to put up with anything so long as I could have him with me. We were crazy about each other, so in love that it makes me tingle all over just thinking about it.”