Sophie and Luc stowed the floral archway into the van, along with everything elseMarry Me in Provence had provided.
‘Where’s Tilly?’ Luc asked.
‘On the terrace. She’s taking down those butterfly decorations.’
Luc was smiling at her. ‘Are we going to go for a swim?’
Sophie groaned. ‘I didn’t eventhinkof bringing my swimsuit. Did you?’
‘No,’ Luc admitted.
‘We could get our feet wet, at least,’ Sophie suggested.
* * *
That was where Tilly found them, a little while later. Sophie was holding the skirts of her dress up far enough to let the soft caress of almost non-existent waves reach above her ankles but her grip on the fabric loosened as Tilly got closer.
‘What’s happened?’ she asked. ‘Is something wrong?’
Tilly nodded. She opened her mouth to say something but then closed it again.
Sophie could feel the hem of her dress dragging in the water as she moved swiftly towards Tilly.
‘Tell me,’ she urged.
Tilly put down the box that was full of butterflies. She was reaching into her pocket to take out her phone as Luc arrived by Sophie’s side.
‘I got an alert,’ Tilly said. ‘It’s a story that’s trending…’
‘About us?’ Sophie’s heart sank. ‘It’s not about what happened at the Château d’Orval kicking off again, is it?’
‘Not exactly…’ Tilly looked as if she was about to burst into tears.
Luc took two strides to where he’d left his camera and phone on the beach. He was scrolling by the time Tilly had opened the browser on her phone to show Sophie what she was talking about.
She recognised the thumbnail image of the author of this online article.
Raven Vale.
She hadn’t known the journalist did a personal online blog that was called ‘Raven’s Revelations’.
The headline still didn’t seem to have any relevance.
Could this be the ultimate betrayal???
She needed to read the words below the clickbait to try and find out why Tilly was looking so upset, but as she shifted her gaze the words and pictures blurred in front of her as Luc kept scrolling. And then he froze and an image came into focus.
A picture of a cobalt blue car.
So crumpled it was only the colour that made it instantly recognisable.
The caption came into focus with blinding clarity.
Ten years ago today… Is it any wonder the celebrity driver has been trying to hide his identity for so long?
A puff of sea breeze pushed the wet fabric of Sophie’s dress against her legs but she was barely aware of the clammy sensation. It was nothing compared to the paralysing chill that was running down her spine, seeking out every cell in her body, as she looked up to find Luc looking straight back at her.
It was only then that she realised she hadn’t even been thinking about the dreadful anniversary that this day represented. Had that heartbreakingly emotional night in Draguignan given them both the opportunity to begin making peace with the past?
