Without giving him the chance to extend the conversation, she quietly picked up the empty jug and the glasses and walked back across the deck toward the kitchen.
* * *
SHE’D LIED.
She told him she had no family and strictly speaking that wasn’t true, was it?
There was someone.
Someone she had cut out of her life.
Someone she tried not to think about.
Feeling sick and shaky, Élise removed a tray of perfectly cooked blueberry muffins from the oven and put them to cool alongside the croissants and the pains au chocolate.
Why was he suddenly asking questions?
Their relationship was supposed to be fun and flirty. Casual. She hadn’t expected him to shift the conversation to personal. Sean was well-known for not taking his relationships to another level. It was one of the reasons she’d felt comfortable with him.
“Mmm, they look delicious.” Poppy appeared next to her, stocking cupboards with ingredients. “I love this kitchen so much. It’s so much more cozy than the one in the restaurant.”
The kitchen in the Boathouse was on a smaller scale than the main restaurant, but Élise had made sure it was sufficiently equipped to ensure they could run the café from there.
“I’m testing the ovens.” She broke open a croissant, examined the texture and then sniffed it and tasted it, thinking of Walter and Sean rather than herself.
They were trapped in a cycle that neither would break because neither would take that first step forward. And she understood that all too well because she’d done the same thing herself.
She’d assumed there would be time to fix things.
She’d been wrong.
Pain shot through her and for a moment she stood there, trying to shift the darkness of her past.
It depressed her that talking about Paris did that to her, even after all this time.
“Is something wrong?” Poppy was still unpacking boxes. “You look stressed out, but it’s all going smoothly, isn’t it? We’re on track?”
“Nothing’s wrong. I’m not stressed out.”
At least, she shouldn’t be.
She hadn’t been back to Paris in eight years. There were days when she didn’t even think about it. About him.
It was in her past and that was where it was staying. At one time it had dominated her life. Now, she didn’t allow it that much importance. Which was why she never discussed it with anyone.
But Sean had noticed.
Just a little slip on her part, but he’d picked up on it.
Poppy cast her a worried glance. “You’re probably stressed out by the last-minute rush to finish the deck. It’s brilliant that he’s helping out, of course, but if Dr. Scorching Hot is going to spend the whole week with his shirt off, I’m telling you now I’m going to have to take a swim in that lake.” She pushed tins and containers neatly into the cupboard and closed the door. “How about you, Chef? Does it affect your concentration having him out there?”
“No. As long as he finishes the work, I don’t care what he’s wearing.”
Poppy stared at her in amazement and Élise realized it would have been wiser to laugh, joke and admit that yes, Sean O’Neil was a sexy guy.
Pretending otherwise had simply drawn attention to herself when she’d been hoping to deflect it.
“I suppose I’m just too busy to notice.”