Title:Paris
Author:Tapestry
Email:Shaddow_Cat@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Teahouse/5879
Standard Disclaimer Apply
* denotes thought
2/2/01
"Woman was created from the ribs of man
Not from his head to top him
Nor from his feet to be walked upon
She was made from his side to be his equal
From beneath his arms to be protected
From very near his heart to be loved."
--Anonymous--
French:
bien - well/good avec - with fainéant - lazy
je t'aimé - I love you toute - all, everything enfer - hell
mon amour - my love coeur - heart hein - what le - the
merde - shit
Italian:
caro - dear (guy) amore - love
cara - dear (girl) pesaroso - sorry
ciao - hello signorina - miss, young lady
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ Chapter 4: Magical Rome ~
Serena couldn't believe her eyes. She just couldn't believe she was in
Rome. The capital of Italy. Serena almost expected herself to wake up and
find she was still in Marseille, living in a tiny little apartment and still
working at the greasy burger joint at the corner of a back alley that was
frequented with rough and unsavoury characters.
Serena closed her eyes and let the smell of Rome, all it's old scent
mixed with the smell of cars and hustle and bustle take her in, to wipe
away the scent of the back alleys and the scent and odour of alcohol and
cigarette smoke.
"Hey, you okay?" asked Darien staring at Serena slightly.
"Oui, I'm fine." laughed Serena a little breathlessly, her eyes snapping
open. "Where do we go first?"
"To the hotel." answered Darien with a grin. "You should probably
daydream more often when you're working, cherie." chuckled Darien turning
away.
"What??"
"Non, it's your expression, petite. It would be spectacular for the
camera." smiled Darien, not turning to look at her.
Serena merely laughed to herself thinking Darien was teasing her.
Reaching the hotel, Darien and the two guides handed keys to the models
telling them they had to bunk up, and were to rest a bit and meet down at
the lobby for dinner somewhere in town. Darien and Andrew laughed amongst
each other and bid their adieu's to the women.
The bunkings would be Serena and Mina, Amy and Raye, Lita and Beryl and
Elizabeth with Molly. The women walked towards the elevators after a
short stop at the ladies restroom.
"I wouldn't mind taking in the sights." sighed Mina.
"Especially with some handsome guides." echoed Lita.
Raye rolled her eyes. "Mon Dieu.."
"Don't try your airs with us, Raquel Deveraux!" chorused Mina and Lita.
"Mina, relax...Raye wasn't putting on airs." defended Serena.
"You only say that, ma cherie, is because you're not out for a man."
teased Beryl.
Serena sighed. "I-"
"Ladies, Monsieur Clavélle says we shall be eating out tonight and wants
you to freshen up. Shooting will start the day after tomorrow." said a man.
"We'll be eating at the Tullio."
"Merci, Jacques." answered Raye.
Jacques Rouen merely smiled and nodded. He turned to look Serena over and
nodded once more. "Monique is right, you'll do wonderfully for my line."
"You're the designer?" asked Serena.
"Oui, demoiselle." chuckled Jacques. "My name is Jacques Rouen. I'm the
designer of the clothes you're to model on this trip." he laughed sticking
his hand out to shake hers.
Serena shook his hand dazed. She HAD wondered who the elderly man was in
the back of the plane, but had asked nobody.
After the introduction was over, Jacques mere bowed and headed towards
the lounge area.
"I never realized he was the designer.." breathed Serena.
"Usually the designer comes along on these trips, Reenie." smiled Mina at
the cousin's breathless shock.
"Elevator's here. We have to get ready you know." called Lita in a sing
song voice.
"Wait!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We hope you have a hearty appetite, signores and signorinas. The cuisine
here is delicious." smiled Suzanne.
"Both of you suggested it, I'm sure it'll be fantastic." replied Darien.
"Where are those girls, we were supposed to meet here at 7.00pm." sighed
Andrew looking at his watch. "Mon Dieu.."
"It's only 7.15pm, Signor Laborteaux." laughed Michelle.
"Sorry, we're late...but Reynaud here had to take her time choosing
her shoes." sighed Raye.
Darien and the other men at the large table stood up. His eyes skimmed
past the women and stopped on Serena.
Serena's hair was swept back in a fashionable twist. Her face had a
minimum amount of make up and she stood there wearing a white silk dress
reaching just at mid thigh with diamond teardrop earrings to adorn her ears.
She smiled shyly at the group.
Darien merely chuckled to himself and pulled out a chair for her.
"Serena?"
"Merci," answered Serena softly as she brushed past him and sat down.
As she brushed past him, the smell of vanilla and strawberries assaulted
his nose. It was jolted him as it was not the usual lavender he was used
to that was worn by Madeline.
Settling Serena into her chair, Darien retook his seat with a frown on
his face. His conscience was berrating him. For a moment, he had felt
something. A tingle of electricity. He felt guilty.
The revelation settled on him with startling clarity and his frown turned
blacker. Why in hell's fire was he feeling guilty?? Mon Dieu! He had not
done anything to deserve guilt!!
"Darien?" are you alright?" asked Lita who was seated beside him. She'd
noticed Serena's worried face and turned to look at Darien who had the
devil's glare about him. He was frightening Serena.
I'm fine! Why wouldn't I be?" asked Darien turning to look at Lita.
"You've got a black scowl on your face that could rival Lucifer himself.
And you're frightening Serena."
Darien turned to his other side and met pools of sapphire full of emotion
and he recognized fear. His mind cursed.
"Did I do something to upset you, Darien?" asked Serena tentatively.
Darien forced a smiled to placate her fear of him that he found
irritating and unwanted. "I'm fine. I was just thinking of something. I'm
sorry I frightened you, petit."
Serena beamed at him.
A warm feeling slithered down his spine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the group left the restaurant, most of the crew members opted to sleep.
But as always, Mina had the brilliant idea and wanted to go clubbing.
"Hey! If work starts after tomorrow, I want to spend my time here in
Rome doing something fun." protested Mina.
Serena groaned. "I cannot believe I'm related."
Beryl laughed.
"Oh, what the heck?? Let's go anyway, Serena." coaxed Raye.
"Oui, oui. We might meet some cute guys." sighed Lita.
"Sacré Dieu...you and your men." snorted Amy.
"You do not say anything because you have your Zachary." teased Molly.
"And you do not have your Melvin? What would he say if he knew you were
in favour of going to a club to meet handsome Italian men?" asked Amy.
"Touché."
"Are you men coming?" asked Mina turning to Darien, Andrew and one of the
crew men that hadn't left yet.
"I do not mind, someone has to keep an eye on you women." grinned Andrew
at his sister.
"Keep an eye! WE are the ones who would have to keep an eye on you!"
exclaimed Elizabeth heatedly.
"Are you coming, Darien? Julian?" asked Beryl.
Julian, the remaining crew men shook his head and yawned. "Not tonight,
bébé. I'm just too tired. Good night." he mumbled waving.
Lita eyed Beryl. "Bébé? Since when did Julian call you, 'baby'?" asked
Lita, her emerald eyes gleaming at the thought of gossip.
Beryl laughed. "Not what you are thinking, Camalita."
Mina and Lita converged on Beryl and started prodding her for information.
Serena and Raye sighed, and turned to Darien.
"Darien?"
"Maybe later. I want to return to my room right now." he answered.
"Adieu then." said Raye.
Darien watched the group leave and chuckled to himself as he heard Serena
loudly protesting of going clubbing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Opening the door to his dark hotel room, Darien stepped in and locked the
door. With a sigh, he discarded his coat on the floor and flopped down on
the bed.
Crossing his arms behind his head, he stared up at the ceiling of the
dark room. He was feeling a little melancholy. The loneliness from being
away from Madeline?
He closed his eyes and saw her beautiful wet jade eyes so full of love
directed at him. Her heart shaped face and smooth skin tinged with rose.
Her chesnut hair surrounding her face.
He smiled at the thought. She loved him so much...it was so amazing.
Amazing at how she could love him so much. How she could love one who had
been a cynic all his life and did not even return her affections in full.
Darien sat up. It was true...he loved her. But not with the intensity
she did him. He had never even said he loved her. But she had accepted his
proposal. Accepted all he had given her without asking for more. It was
so unfair to her...
Getting off the bed, he took a glance at his room clock. It read 10.45pm.
It was still early in Paris. Picking the phone of the hook, Darien dialed
a number.
He waited patiently as operators connected him to Paris.
After a few rings, a sweet voice answered the phone.
"Alô?"
"Maddie," said Darien into the phone.
"Darien! You're in Rome?" asked Madeline.
"Oui, aimé. How are you?" asked Darien.
"Bien. You sound tired, baby...are you alright?" questioned Madeline
anxiously, worried.
"Just worn out from the flight." smiled Darien into the phone. He didn't
deserve this woman who loved him so...
"Then you should rest, Darien. You did not need to call, aimé. You could
have called tomorrow."
Darien chuckled. "I just wanted to hear your voice, bien aimé."
"Sleep, Darien. Je t'aimé."
"Good night."
Darien sighed and put down the phone. He still had not said the words...
In a small apartment near the Seine, Madeline LeBeau sat alone in the
dark and sighed as she heard the phone's dial tone. She had a feeling,
Darien would not be hers for long...
Standing up and walking to the window, she watched the bright Eiffel Tower
and heard the sounds of the Paris nightlife with an air of melancholy.
She missed Darien. She loved him and she wished, he could have returned the
words she had spoken to him.
She stared up at the bright moon and covered the diamond engagement ring
with her free hand, bringing them to her chest.
*Darien...Mon amour, je t'aimé avec toute ma coeur.*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien was staring at the moon. So peaceful. So serene...
Sapphire eyes like crystal orbs danced before his eyes. A smile tugged
at his mouth. The expression of the eyes were ones full of concern and
caring.
Running a hand through his thick hair, Darien turned away from the window
and grabbed his jacket. The silence was beginning to deafen him...
As he exited the hotel, he jolted. He didn't know which club those girls
had decided to visit for clubbing.
"Lost?" came a laughing voice.
"Serena! Raye!" exclaimed Darien jumping slightly. "Mon Dieu, don't sneak
up on a person like that." he chastised. Behind the two women, Michelle
was smiling demurely at him. "We realized if you ever came down, you
wouldn't know which club we were at." explained Michelle.
"So, Raye, Michelle and I decided to wait and see if you came down.
Andrew said if you didn't come down by 11.00pm, we wouldn't be seeing you."
grinned Serena. Lifting her wrist impishly, Serena pointed at the watch on
her wrist. "Dieu, he was right! 5 minutes to 11.00pm."
Darien sniffed in annoyance. "I'm not THAT predictable." he scoffed
beginning to walk away. Turning his head to look at Raye, a uncertainty
creeped across his face. "Am I?"
Raye laughed. "Of course not, ma cher. You're unpredictable as a sleeping
sloth."
Darien glared at his assistant. "You've got a mouth, Raquel. I knew I
should have asked Monique for another assistant." he snorted, turning his
head to walk away.
"Incidently, Darien? Where are you going, ma obstiné?" called Raye.
"To the club to meet Andrew." snapped Darien turning to look at Raye with
his dark blue eyes.
"But, Monsieur Clavélle...the club they're at is opposite this way."
pointed Michelle with a laugh.
Darien stopped in his tracks, turned and followed the laughing women
muttering every french curse he knew.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Upon entering the club, loud music blasted into Darien's ears and made
him wonder, why in hell had he left the safety of his hotel room, to come
down to this pack of mad, wild fools...
A woman dressed in a black leather jacket and leather mini-skirt bumped
into him. Darien started and stared at the brunette with huge brown eyes,
lined with lots of make-up. The woman had quite a pretty face. If she didn't
have all that gunk on it.
"Ciao caro...my name is Rosa, want to dance, amore?" she purred. It was
clear the voluptous brunette was drunk as she pouted her moist lips.
"Pesaroso, signorina. This one is taken." laughed Serena guiding Darien
away at his confused look.
Darien stared at her confused. "You speak Italian, cher?" he asked.
"A little. Andrew is by the bar, talking to a woman, no doubt. Mina and
the others are over there. That's where Raye and I'll be." pointed Serena.
Darien nodded and pushed his way through the screaming and laughing crowd
as men and women danced and undulated to the beat of the music. Sweat and
smoke could be smelled, it was thick in the air.
As usual, Andrew was chatting up a girl.
"Andrew." called Darien.
"Mon ami! I see you decided to join us, little people." grinned Andrew
holding a glass of alcohol.
"Shut up."
The woman next to Andrew was eyeing Darien with interest.
"My name is Vania. You are Andrew's friend, si?" asked the woman, her
dark eyes shining with appraisal of Darien's good looks.
Darien nodded and turned to the bartender. "Martini. On the rocks."
"How long are the two of you going to be here, signores?" asked Vania.
Andrew sighed. He knew the woman had lost interest in him.
Darien's eyes shot to the woman's face. "Not so long that I'll miss my
fiancée" replied Darien coldly.
Andrew winced. *Ouch...that's cold, mon ami...*
The woman flushed and slinked away.
Andrew gave a lusty sigh. "You always ruin my fun, Darien. It's that face
and body of yours. You work out too much. Nobody looks at poor me when
you're around."
Darien rolled his eyes. "If Rita were here,..."
"Ah, but the crux of the matter is she isn't. Eh, mon ami?"
"I hate you calling me, 'friend' all the time."
"Darien, your bedroom eyes should be kept there. In the bedroom. You have
Madeline already. Let your bestfriend have some action." grinned Andrew.
"What's Rita? Chopped liver? Mon Dieu! The day that poor woman wakes up
and realizes there are better men than you, I'll be happy for her. And I
hope you squirm." snorted Darien draining his glass as soon as it was placed
before him.
Andrew frowned. "You've got a mean mouth."
"I'm the ONLY one to GIVE you a mean mouth. If I didn't, your ego would
probably be too big to fit through the door." chuckled Darien.
"Never. I have the girls putting me down."
"You deserve it, casanova."
"Heh, cheers to living, Darien."
"Cheers."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien woke up, his brain pounding at him. *Hangover..ugh.*
Looking around, he wondered how in the world he had gotten into his room.
He had over-indulged himself last night. After all, he wasn't a person who
couldn't hold his drinks well. His shirt was rumpled and half unbuttoned.
He was still in his black dress pants, his hair was pleasantly rumpled
and stuck up in places over his head.
He yawned, throwing the curtains open and wincing slightly as the morning
light stabbed into his eyes. Turning away, he stumbled towards the bathroom.
An hour later, Darien came out, his hair wet from the shower and his
clothing imaculate, he tossed a glance to the other bed in the room. Andrew
was still sleeping in it, the blankets nearly kicked off the bed, hanging
only by Andrew's ankles. The sheets were rumpled and messed.
Darien chuckled at the sight of his friend. Andrew slept in the messiest
manner he had ever seen. Andrew hugged his pillow to his head staying asleep
on his belly, his backside high in the air.
There was a beep from the telephone.
Darien sat down on his bed and answered.
"Alô?"
"Bonjour, chere! Sleep well?" came a cheerful voice.
"Ugh."
"Hehehe...guessed not." laughed the voice.
"What are you so happy about, Camalita?"
"It's a wonderful day, darling. Just because you're grouchy, you don't
have to spoil it for everyone. Anyway, I called to ask if you and Andrew
would like to go out for breakfast."
"Andrew is still asleep. I'll wake him and we'll meet you in the lobby,-"
glancing at the clock, "9.00am?"
"Alright, chere. After nine and we'll be coming up after you." laughed
Lita hanging up.
Darien sighed..and hung up.
*Merde, how am I to wake Andrew up now? The damn man could sleep through
a nuclear explosion.*
"Laborteaux, wake up." shouted Darien, shaking his friend who merely
frowned in his sleep and hid his head under the pillow.
Darien glared at his friend and colleague. "You are the most obstiné,
fainéant man I have EVER met! Ever since college." he growled angrily at
the sleeping man whose head was tucked beneath his pillow.
Darien managed to pry the pillow out of Andrew's resisting fingers.
Andrew protested his loss but soon merely curled back up to sleep.
"Damnez enfer. Fainéant merde." cursed Darien as he marched to the toilet
with a single minded purpose.
Returning to the room, Darien noted Andrew was still asleep, curled on
his bed like a big baby.
Ruthlessly, Darien poured the glass of water in his hand over Andrew's
head, waking the sleeping casanova who protested his wakening vocally.
"Merde! Hein le enfer!? Mon ami, what in Holy Mother's name are you
doing!?" sputtered Andrew, angry and blinking, wiping water from his face.
"Waking you up. Late night?" asked Darien brandishing the cup before
Andrew's face like a weapon.
"You don't remember?" asked Andrew who squinted at him. A hand came up to
massage his temples. Darien recognized it. A hangover.
"No."
"Ugh. I haven't had a hangover since I was an adolescent." sniffed Andrew.
"I'm sure. Get yourself cleaned up. We're suppose to meet the women in
the lobby for breakfast at nine. And take some of those really strong
asprin I have. It won't clear the headache, but you'll feel better."
ordered Darien.
"I'm so happy it's morning too." sniped Andrew sarcastically. "What's the
time now?"
Darien glanced at the clock. "8.40am."
"Argh. That doesn't give me a lot of time. I need a bath. I smell of
alcohol." sniffed Andrew as he brought an arm to his nose.
Darien smirked. "You noticed, mon ami."
"You're such a bundle of joy in the morning, Darien. I love you too."
"Get in there and hurry before Lita decides to pay us a visit." snapped
Darien, glaring at his friend.
"I'm going. Grouch." growled Andrew as he trodded off to the toilet of the
en suite.
In the lobby, one very impatient model was pacing around.
"I can't stand it! I have to go up there now! They're not down yet! This
is our last day before work and we have to spend it waiting for those men.
I mean, we have all the food to try! The clothes! The sights!" exclaimed
Lita in aggravation. Mina nodded in understanding.
"Lita, it's only 8.40am. They still have 20 minutes." pointed out Serena.
"You don't understand, Reenie." mumbled Mina.
Raye shook her head and placed a hand on Serena's shoulder.
"Leave those two. They get easily agitated and besides, it's a thing,
NORMAL people like us will never unmderstand." laughed Raye.
"WHAT was THAT, Raquel Deveraux?" came a menacing voice.
"Just the truth, darling."
"Truth??? There are shops and boutiques to visit! Cafes and restaurants
to try! Sights to see and men to meet! We could meet our true loves here!"
exclaimed Mina.
"You're dramatizing, Mina."
"The FOOD, Raye! The FOOD!"
"You're a model, remember?? You'll get fat."
"Besides, if I know my brother, Darien will have a difficult time waking
Andrew up. Mon dieu, you won't believe what that don juan can sleep
through!!" exclaimed Elizabeth.
"What time is it, Amy?"
"5 minutes from the last time Serena told you, Lita."
"Damnez."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien frowned at his watch. *Dammit, dammit, dammit. I don't want a
bunch of models coming into my room and chastising me.* The hands on his
watch read 8.55am. *5 more minutes*
"Darn it, Laborteaux!! Hurry up in there!" shouted Darien frustrated.
"Keep your shirt on! I'm almost done." growled Andrew over the sound of
the shower.
8.56am
Darien paced around in the hotel room. Sure he was a cool and devastating
photograper. He could handle anything that headed his way. But he sure as
hell wasn't handling his crew of models who got cranky without their
breakfast and particularly two models that got cranky without shopping.
Lita and Mina were going to murder him...
8.57am
Three minutes. There were only three minutes more! Darien frowned at
himself. Mon Dieu! He was only waiting for Andrew! Not panicking at an
important meeting or gameshow or something. If this was how he felt waiting
for Andrew, how would he survive the wait on his wedding day?
8.58am
The lift opened and a group of beautiful women stepped out of the lifts.
The tall woman with amazon features held an evil glint in her eye while the
blonde with the sky blue eyes standing nect to her had a sort of wry
amusement in them. The rest of the women merely sighed and shook their heads
in exasperation.
8.59am
The shower was turned off. Darien held his breath. This was too strange.
He really couldn't take this. It was too stressful on his blood pressure.
Any day now, he was sure to burst a few capillaries. *Alright Clavélle...
breathe, breathe. Maddie would have said that. Mon Dieu and mon sacré bleu.*
9.00am
The numbers were clearly there. The door to the toilet opened just as the
knock on the door came. If you could call it a knock. More like a bang.
"Alright, Darien! Come right out of there, chérie! We said nine and it's
nine now, but we didn't see youuuu..." came a taunting voice.
"Lita!!!" came a sweet voice. Serena most probably.
"Hush Reenie, let us take care of this." came Mina's voice.
"But Mina, mmph-"
"Quiet."
"Umwilmph- Raye! Talk to them!" exclaimed Serena.
"Darien you open this door right now!" shouted Mina.
Darien groaned and Andrew stared at the door in horror. Glancing to his
friend, he saw Darien's dark scowl. "Look what you did." muttered Darien
getting up from his sitting position on the bed and walking towards the
room door.
"Darien! What are you doing! I'm not-"
The door opened and the women came in.
"-decent."
"Hey big brother." laughed Elizabeth seeing her brother only in a towel.
Andrew glared at Darien then shot a scowl at the women. "This is NOT, I
repeat, NOT a free peep show." he snarled turning on his heel back into the
toilet. "I'll be done in 10 minutes."
Laughter echoed in the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The day had progressed quickly with Mina and Lita going shopping at the
boutiques exclusive to Rome itself. Rome had it's own fashion and Mina
thrived on learning them all. During lunch, Molly and the others had made
it a point to sample all the delicacies offered by Rome's cuisine. Serena
had sighed and beared with it.
As day turned to night and Rome became alive once more with it's
nightlife of bright lights and discoes. Mina had been adamant they go
clubbing as this was their last day of freedom from work. Until they
reached the next destination that is...
Darien and Serena sat back at the group's booth as the rest danced to the
beat of some songs.
Serena laughed at Mina's elegance at her smooth introduction of the man
she had met earlier this night.
"Reenie, this is Antonio. Antonio, this is my cousin,."
"Pleased to meet you."
"Let's dance, chérie." Mina smiling the smile that had nabbed her the
spot as covergirl as well as millions of adolescent young hearts in Paris.
Serena turned to Darien who was watching the dancing in thoughtful
amusement.
"Would you like to get some fresh air?" asked Serena.
"Mais oui." smiled Darien as the pair got up and walked outside.
Stepping out into the night air, Serena noticed the bright stars that
twinkled like diamonds on a black velvet setting. A breezed ruffled the
golden curls piled atop her head.
Darien stood watching her, mesmerized. This was insanity. He was aa grown
man with a fiancée who loved him. He had been born in Paris and had, had
his share of lovers and girlfriends. The little imp had woven some spell
around him....
"Darien!"
"Hein?"
"I said, Rome weaves it's own magic just like Paris, non?"
*Right, it's Rome's magic and mood. Nothing to do with you. You are not
attracted to this woman-child.* chastised his mind.
"Oui, ma petit. Rome has it's own magic." smiled Darien, satisfied with
himself. Until he made the mistake of looking towards her. She had turned
her face the same time. Sapphire met sapphire and locked.
Something seemed to sizzle between them until Serena gave a little cough
and turned away. Darien sighed and thanked every saint he knew she had
turned away. Otherwise, he might not have been able to control the impulse
to kiss the breath out of the petit chérie. Mon Dieu, he must really miss
his Maddie.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To be continued...
Up next! ~ Chapter 5: The Floating City ~
Email!! Reviews! I wan to know what you think. Pleeeease? I'm getting ny
stories out as fast as possible, but I'm facing the BIG exam this year.
The one that DECIDES your FUTURE!! *Oooooo, scary. (rolls eyes)*
14/5/02
Author:Tapestry
Email:Shaddow_Cat@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Teahouse/5879
Standard Disclaimer Apply
* denotes thought
2/2/01
"Woman was created from the ribs of man
Not from his head to top him
Nor from his feet to be walked upon
She was made from his side to be his equal
From beneath his arms to be protected
From very near his heart to be loved."
--Anonymous--
French:
bien - well/good avec - with fainéant - lazy
je t'aimé - I love you toute - all, everything enfer - hell
mon amour - my love coeur - heart hein - what le - the
merde - shit
Italian:
caro - dear (guy) amore - love
cara - dear (girl) pesaroso - sorry
ciao - hello signorina - miss, young lady
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ Chapter 4: Magical Rome ~
Serena couldn't believe her eyes. She just couldn't believe she was in
Rome. The capital of Italy. Serena almost expected herself to wake up and
find she was still in Marseille, living in a tiny little apartment and still
working at the greasy burger joint at the corner of a back alley that was
frequented with rough and unsavoury characters.
Serena closed her eyes and let the smell of Rome, all it's old scent
mixed with the smell of cars and hustle and bustle take her in, to wipe
away the scent of the back alleys and the scent and odour of alcohol and
cigarette smoke.
"Hey, you okay?" asked Darien staring at Serena slightly.
"Oui, I'm fine." laughed Serena a little breathlessly, her eyes snapping
open. "Where do we go first?"
"To the hotel." answered Darien with a grin. "You should probably
daydream more often when you're working, cherie." chuckled Darien turning
away.
"What??"
"Non, it's your expression, petite. It would be spectacular for the
camera." smiled Darien, not turning to look at her.
Serena merely laughed to herself thinking Darien was teasing her.
Reaching the hotel, Darien and the two guides handed keys to the models
telling them they had to bunk up, and were to rest a bit and meet down at
the lobby for dinner somewhere in town. Darien and Andrew laughed amongst
each other and bid their adieu's to the women.
The bunkings would be Serena and Mina, Amy and Raye, Lita and Beryl and
Elizabeth with Molly. The women walked towards the elevators after a
short stop at the ladies restroom.
"I wouldn't mind taking in the sights." sighed Mina.
"Especially with some handsome guides." echoed Lita.
Raye rolled her eyes. "Mon Dieu.."
"Don't try your airs with us, Raquel Deveraux!" chorused Mina and Lita.
"Mina, relax...Raye wasn't putting on airs." defended Serena.
"You only say that, ma cherie, is because you're not out for a man."
teased Beryl.
Serena sighed. "I-"
"Ladies, Monsieur Clavélle says we shall be eating out tonight and wants
you to freshen up. Shooting will start the day after tomorrow." said a man.
"We'll be eating at the Tullio."
"Merci, Jacques." answered Raye.
Jacques Rouen merely smiled and nodded. He turned to look Serena over and
nodded once more. "Monique is right, you'll do wonderfully for my line."
"You're the designer?" asked Serena.
"Oui, demoiselle." chuckled Jacques. "My name is Jacques Rouen. I'm the
designer of the clothes you're to model on this trip." he laughed sticking
his hand out to shake hers.
Serena shook his hand dazed. She HAD wondered who the elderly man was in
the back of the plane, but had asked nobody.
After the introduction was over, Jacques mere bowed and headed towards
the lounge area.
"I never realized he was the designer.." breathed Serena.
"Usually the designer comes along on these trips, Reenie." smiled Mina at
the cousin's breathless shock.
"Elevator's here. We have to get ready you know." called Lita in a sing
song voice.
"Wait!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We hope you have a hearty appetite, signores and signorinas. The cuisine
here is delicious." smiled Suzanne.
"Both of you suggested it, I'm sure it'll be fantastic." replied Darien.
"Where are those girls, we were supposed to meet here at 7.00pm." sighed
Andrew looking at his watch. "Mon Dieu.."
"It's only 7.15pm, Signor Laborteaux." laughed Michelle.
"Sorry, we're late...but Reynaud here had to take her time choosing
her shoes." sighed Raye.
Darien and the other men at the large table stood up. His eyes skimmed
past the women and stopped on Serena.
Serena's hair was swept back in a fashionable twist. Her face had a
minimum amount of make up and she stood there wearing a white silk dress
reaching just at mid thigh with diamond teardrop earrings to adorn her ears.
She smiled shyly at the group.
Darien merely chuckled to himself and pulled out a chair for her.
"Serena?"
"Merci," answered Serena softly as she brushed past him and sat down.
As she brushed past him, the smell of vanilla and strawberries assaulted
his nose. It was jolted him as it was not the usual lavender he was used
to that was worn by Madeline.
Settling Serena into her chair, Darien retook his seat with a frown on
his face. His conscience was berrating him. For a moment, he had felt
something. A tingle of electricity. He felt guilty.
The revelation settled on him with startling clarity and his frown turned
blacker. Why in hell's fire was he feeling guilty?? Mon Dieu! He had not
done anything to deserve guilt!!
"Darien?" are you alright?" asked Lita who was seated beside him. She'd
noticed Serena's worried face and turned to look at Darien who had the
devil's glare about him. He was frightening Serena.
I'm fine! Why wouldn't I be?" asked Darien turning to look at Lita.
"You've got a black scowl on your face that could rival Lucifer himself.
And you're frightening Serena."
Darien turned to his other side and met pools of sapphire full of emotion
and he recognized fear. His mind cursed.
"Did I do something to upset you, Darien?" asked Serena tentatively.
Darien forced a smiled to placate her fear of him that he found
irritating and unwanted. "I'm fine. I was just thinking of something. I'm
sorry I frightened you, petit."
Serena beamed at him.
A warm feeling slithered down his spine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the group left the restaurant, most of the crew members opted to sleep.
But as always, Mina had the brilliant idea and wanted to go clubbing.
"Hey! If work starts after tomorrow, I want to spend my time here in
Rome doing something fun." protested Mina.
Serena groaned. "I cannot believe I'm related."
Beryl laughed.
"Oh, what the heck?? Let's go anyway, Serena." coaxed Raye.
"Oui, oui. We might meet some cute guys." sighed Lita.
"Sacré Dieu...you and your men." snorted Amy.
"You do not say anything because you have your Zachary." teased Molly.
"And you do not have your Melvin? What would he say if he knew you were
in favour of going to a club to meet handsome Italian men?" asked Amy.
"Touché."
"Are you men coming?" asked Mina turning to Darien, Andrew and one of the
crew men that hadn't left yet.
"I do not mind, someone has to keep an eye on you women." grinned Andrew
at his sister.
"Keep an eye! WE are the ones who would have to keep an eye on you!"
exclaimed Elizabeth heatedly.
"Are you coming, Darien? Julian?" asked Beryl.
Julian, the remaining crew men shook his head and yawned. "Not tonight,
bébé. I'm just too tired. Good night." he mumbled waving.
Lita eyed Beryl. "Bébé? Since when did Julian call you, 'baby'?" asked
Lita, her emerald eyes gleaming at the thought of gossip.
Beryl laughed. "Not what you are thinking, Camalita."
Mina and Lita converged on Beryl and started prodding her for information.
Serena and Raye sighed, and turned to Darien.
"Darien?"
"Maybe later. I want to return to my room right now." he answered.
"Adieu then." said Raye.
Darien watched the group leave and chuckled to himself as he heard Serena
loudly protesting of going clubbing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Opening the door to his dark hotel room, Darien stepped in and locked the
door. With a sigh, he discarded his coat on the floor and flopped down on
the bed.
Crossing his arms behind his head, he stared up at the ceiling of the
dark room. He was feeling a little melancholy. The loneliness from being
away from Madeline?
He closed his eyes and saw her beautiful wet jade eyes so full of love
directed at him. Her heart shaped face and smooth skin tinged with rose.
Her chesnut hair surrounding her face.
He smiled at the thought. She loved him so much...it was so amazing.
Amazing at how she could love him so much. How she could love one who had
been a cynic all his life and did not even return her affections in full.
Darien sat up. It was true...he loved her. But not with the intensity
she did him. He had never even said he loved her. But she had accepted his
proposal. Accepted all he had given her without asking for more. It was
so unfair to her...
Getting off the bed, he took a glance at his room clock. It read 10.45pm.
It was still early in Paris. Picking the phone of the hook, Darien dialed
a number.
He waited patiently as operators connected him to Paris.
After a few rings, a sweet voice answered the phone.
"Alô?"
"Maddie," said Darien into the phone.
"Darien! You're in Rome?" asked Madeline.
"Oui, aimé. How are you?" asked Darien.
"Bien. You sound tired, baby...are you alright?" questioned Madeline
anxiously, worried.
"Just worn out from the flight." smiled Darien into the phone. He didn't
deserve this woman who loved him so...
"Then you should rest, Darien. You did not need to call, aimé. You could
have called tomorrow."
Darien chuckled. "I just wanted to hear your voice, bien aimé."
"Sleep, Darien. Je t'aimé."
"Good night."
Darien sighed and put down the phone. He still had not said the words...
In a small apartment near the Seine, Madeline LeBeau sat alone in the
dark and sighed as she heard the phone's dial tone. She had a feeling,
Darien would not be hers for long...
Standing up and walking to the window, she watched the bright Eiffel Tower
and heard the sounds of the Paris nightlife with an air of melancholy.
She missed Darien. She loved him and she wished, he could have returned the
words she had spoken to him.
She stared up at the bright moon and covered the diamond engagement ring
with her free hand, bringing them to her chest.
*Darien...Mon amour, je t'aimé avec toute ma coeur.*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien was staring at the moon. So peaceful. So serene...
Sapphire eyes like crystal orbs danced before his eyes. A smile tugged
at his mouth. The expression of the eyes were ones full of concern and
caring.
Running a hand through his thick hair, Darien turned away from the window
and grabbed his jacket. The silence was beginning to deafen him...
As he exited the hotel, he jolted. He didn't know which club those girls
had decided to visit for clubbing.
"Lost?" came a laughing voice.
"Serena! Raye!" exclaimed Darien jumping slightly. "Mon Dieu, don't sneak
up on a person like that." he chastised. Behind the two women, Michelle
was smiling demurely at him. "We realized if you ever came down, you
wouldn't know which club we were at." explained Michelle.
"So, Raye, Michelle and I decided to wait and see if you came down.
Andrew said if you didn't come down by 11.00pm, we wouldn't be seeing you."
grinned Serena. Lifting her wrist impishly, Serena pointed at the watch on
her wrist. "Dieu, he was right! 5 minutes to 11.00pm."
Darien sniffed in annoyance. "I'm not THAT predictable." he scoffed
beginning to walk away. Turning his head to look at Raye, a uncertainty
creeped across his face. "Am I?"
Raye laughed. "Of course not, ma cher. You're unpredictable as a sleeping
sloth."
Darien glared at his assistant. "You've got a mouth, Raquel. I knew I
should have asked Monique for another assistant." he snorted, turning his
head to walk away.
"Incidently, Darien? Where are you going, ma obstiné?" called Raye.
"To the club to meet Andrew." snapped Darien turning to look at Raye with
his dark blue eyes.
"But, Monsieur Clavélle...the club they're at is opposite this way."
pointed Michelle with a laugh.
Darien stopped in his tracks, turned and followed the laughing women
muttering every french curse he knew.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Upon entering the club, loud music blasted into Darien's ears and made
him wonder, why in hell had he left the safety of his hotel room, to come
down to this pack of mad, wild fools...
A woman dressed in a black leather jacket and leather mini-skirt bumped
into him. Darien started and stared at the brunette with huge brown eyes,
lined with lots of make-up. The woman had quite a pretty face. If she didn't
have all that gunk on it.
"Ciao caro...my name is Rosa, want to dance, amore?" she purred. It was
clear the voluptous brunette was drunk as she pouted her moist lips.
"Pesaroso, signorina. This one is taken." laughed Serena guiding Darien
away at his confused look.
Darien stared at her confused. "You speak Italian, cher?" he asked.
"A little. Andrew is by the bar, talking to a woman, no doubt. Mina and
the others are over there. That's where Raye and I'll be." pointed Serena.
Darien nodded and pushed his way through the screaming and laughing crowd
as men and women danced and undulated to the beat of the music. Sweat and
smoke could be smelled, it was thick in the air.
As usual, Andrew was chatting up a girl.
"Andrew." called Darien.
"Mon ami! I see you decided to join us, little people." grinned Andrew
holding a glass of alcohol.
"Shut up."
The woman next to Andrew was eyeing Darien with interest.
"My name is Vania. You are Andrew's friend, si?" asked the woman, her
dark eyes shining with appraisal of Darien's good looks.
Darien nodded and turned to the bartender. "Martini. On the rocks."
"How long are the two of you going to be here, signores?" asked Vania.
Andrew sighed. He knew the woman had lost interest in him.
Darien's eyes shot to the woman's face. "Not so long that I'll miss my
fiancée" replied Darien coldly.
Andrew winced. *Ouch...that's cold, mon ami...*
The woman flushed and slinked away.
Andrew gave a lusty sigh. "You always ruin my fun, Darien. It's that face
and body of yours. You work out too much. Nobody looks at poor me when
you're around."
Darien rolled his eyes. "If Rita were here,..."
"Ah, but the crux of the matter is she isn't. Eh, mon ami?"
"I hate you calling me, 'friend' all the time."
"Darien, your bedroom eyes should be kept there. In the bedroom. You have
Madeline already. Let your bestfriend have some action." grinned Andrew.
"What's Rita? Chopped liver? Mon Dieu! The day that poor woman wakes up
and realizes there are better men than you, I'll be happy for her. And I
hope you squirm." snorted Darien draining his glass as soon as it was placed
before him.
Andrew frowned. "You've got a mean mouth."
"I'm the ONLY one to GIVE you a mean mouth. If I didn't, your ego would
probably be too big to fit through the door." chuckled Darien.
"Never. I have the girls putting me down."
"You deserve it, casanova."
"Heh, cheers to living, Darien."
"Cheers."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien woke up, his brain pounding at him. *Hangover..ugh.*
Looking around, he wondered how in the world he had gotten into his room.
He had over-indulged himself last night. After all, he wasn't a person who
couldn't hold his drinks well. His shirt was rumpled and half unbuttoned.
He was still in his black dress pants, his hair was pleasantly rumpled
and stuck up in places over his head.
He yawned, throwing the curtains open and wincing slightly as the morning
light stabbed into his eyes. Turning away, he stumbled towards the bathroom.
An hour later, Darien came out, his hair wet from the shower and his
clothing imaculate, he tossed a glance to the other bed in the room. Andrew
was still sleeping in it, the blankets nearly kicked off the bed, hanging
only by Andrew's ankles. The sheets were rumpled and messed.
Darien chuckled at the sight of his friend. Andrew slept in the messiest
manner he had ever seen. Andrew hugged his pillow to his head staying asleep
on his belly, his backside high in the air.
There was a beep from the telephone.
Darien sat down on his bed and answered.
"Alô?"
"Bonjour, chere! Sleep well?" came a cheerful voice.
"Ugh."
"Hehehe...guessed not." laughed the voice.
"What are you so happy about, Camalita?"
"It's a wonderful day, darling. Just because you're grouchy, you don't
have to spoil it for everyone. Anyway, I called to ask if you and Andrew
would like to go out for breakfast."
"Andrew is still asleep. I'll wake him and we'll meet you in the lobby,-"
glancing at the clock, "9.00am?"
"Alright, chere. After nine and we'll be coming up after you." laughed
Lita hanging up.
Darien sighed..and hung up.
*Merde, how am I to wake Andrew up now? The damn man could sleep through
a nuclear explosion.*
"Laborteaux, wake up." shouted Darien, shaking his friend who merely
frowned in his sleep and hid his head under the pillow.
Darien glared at his friend and colleague. "You are the most obstiné,
fainéant man I have EVER met! Ever since college." he growled angrily at
the sleeping man whose head was tucked beneath his pillow.
Darien managed to pry the pillow out of Andrew's resisting fingers.
Andrew protested his loss but soon merely curled back up to sleep.
"Damnez enfer. Fainéant merde." cursed Darien as he marched to the toilet
with a single minded purpose.
Returning to the room, Darien noted Andrew was still asleep, curled on
his bed like a big baby.
Ruthlessly, Darien poured the glass of water in his hand over Andrew's
head, waking the sleeping casanova who protested his wakening vocally.
"Merde! Hein le enfer!? Mon ami, what in Holy Mother's name are you
doing!?" sputtered Andrew, angry and blinking, wiping water from his face.
"Waking you up. Late night?" asked Darien brandishing the cup before
Andrew's face like a weapon.
"You don't remember?" asked Andrew who squinted at him. A hand came up to
massage his temples. Darien recognized it. A hangover.
"No."
"Ugh. I haven't had a hangover since I was an adolescent." sniffed Andrew.
"I'm sure. Get yourself cleaned up. We're suppose to meet the women in
the lobby for breakfast at nine. And take some of those really strong
asprin I have. It won't clear the headache, but you'll feel better."
ordered Darien.
"I'm so happy it's morning too." sniped Andrew sarcastically. "What's the
time now?"
Darien glanced at the clock. "8.40am."
"Argh. That doesn't give me a lot of time. I need a bath. I smell of
alcohol." sniffed Andrew as he brought an arm to his nose.
Darien smirked. "You noticed, mon ami."
"You're such a bundle of joy in the morning, Darien. I love you too."
"Get in there and hurry before Lita decides to pay us a visit." snapped
Darien, glaring at his friend.
"I'm going. Grouch." growled Andrew as he trodded off to the toilet of the
en suite.
In the lobby, one very impatient model was pacing around.
"I can't stand it! I have to go up there now! They're not down yet! This
is our last day before work and we have to spend it waiting for those men.
I mean, we have all the food to try! The clothes! The sights!" exclaimed
Lita in aggravation. Mina nodded in understanding.
"Lita, it's only 8.40am. They still have 20 minutes." pointed out Serena.
"You don't understand, Reenie." mumbled Mina.
Raye shook her head and placed a hand on Serena's shoulder.
"Leave those two. They get easily agitated and besides, it's a thing,
NORMAL people like us will never unmderstand." laughed Raye.
"WHAT was THAT, Raquel Deveraux?" came a menacing voice.
"Just the truth, darling."
"Truth??? There are shops and boutiques to visit! Cafes and restaurants
to try! Sights to see and men to meet! We could meet our true loves here!"
exclaimed Mina.
"You're dramatizing, Mina."
"The FOOD, Raye! The FOOD!"
"You're a model, remember?? You'll get fat."
"Besides, if I know my brother, Darien will have a difficult time waking
Andrew up. Mon dieu, you won't believe what that don juan can sleep
through!!" exclaimed Elizabeth.
"What time is it, Amy?"
"5 minutes from the last time Serena told you, Lita."
"Damnez."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darien frowned at his watch. *Dammit, dammit, dammit. I don't want a
bunch of models coming into my room and chastising me.* The hands on his
watch read 8.55am. *5 more minutes*
"Darn it, Laborteaux!! Hurry up in there!" shouted Darien frustrated.
"Keep your shirt on! I'm almost done." growled Andrew over the sound of
the shower.
8.56am
Darien paced around in the hotel room. Sure he was a cool and devastating
photograper. He could handle anything that headed his way. But he sure as
hell wasn't handling his crew of models who got cranky without their
breakfast and particularly two models that got cranky without shopping.
Lita and Mina were going to murder him...
8.57am
Three minutes. There were only three minutes more! Darien frowned at
himself. Mon Dieu! He was only waiting for Andrew! Not panicking at an
important meeting or gameshow or something. If this was how he felt waiting
for Andrew, how would he survive the wait on his wedding day?
8.58am
The lift opened and a group of beautiful women stepped out of the lifts.
The tall woman with amazon features held an evil glint in her eye while the
blonde with the sky blue eyes standing nect to her had a sort of wry
amusement in them. The rest of the women merely sighed and shook their heads
in exasperation.
8.59am
The shower was turned off. Darien held his breath. This was too strange.
He really couldn't take this. It was too stressful on his blood pressure.
Any day now, he was sure to burst a few capillaries. *Alright Clavélle...
breathe, breathe. Maddie would have said that. Mon Dieu and mon sacré bleu.*
9.00am
The numbers were clearly there. The door to the toilet opened just as the
knock on the door came. If you could call it a knock. More like a bang.
"Alright, Darien! Come right out of there, chérie! We said nine and it's
nine now, but we didn't see youuuu..." came a taunting voice.
"Lita!!!" came a sweet voice. Serena most probably.
"Hush Reenie, let us take care of this." came Mina's voice.
"But Mina, mmph-"
"Quiet."
"Umwilmph- Raye! Talk to them!" exclaimed Serena.
"Darien you open this door right now!" shouted Mina.
Darien groaned and Andrew stared at the door in horror. Glancing to his
friend, he saw Darien's dark scowl. "Look what you did." muttered Darien
getting up from his sitting position on the bed and walking towards the
room door.
"Darien! What are you doing! I'm not-"
The door opened and the women came in.
"-decent."
"Hey big brother." laughed Elizabeth seeing her brother only in a towel.
Andrew glared at Darien then shot a scowl at the women. "This is NOT, I
repeat, NOT a free peep show." he snarled turning on his heel back into the
toilet. "I'll be done in 10 minutes."
Laughter echoed in the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The day had progressed quickly with Mina and Lita going shopping at the
boutiques exclusive to Rome itself. Rome had it's own fashion and Mina
thrived on learning them all. During lunch, Molly and the others had made
it a point to sample all the delicacies offered by Rome's cuisine. Serena
had sighed and beared with it.
As day turned to night and Rome became alive once more with it's
nightlife of bright lights and discoes. Mina had been adamant they go
clubbing as this was their last day of freedom from work. Until they
reached the next destination that is...
Darien and Serena sat back at the group's booth as the rest danced to the
beat of some songs.
Serena laughed at Mina's elegance at her smooth introduction of the man
she had met earlier this night.
"Reenie, this is Antonio. Antonio, this is my cousin,."
"Pleased to meet you."
"Let's dance, chérie." Mina smiling the smile that had nabbed her the
spot as covergirl as well as millions of adolescent young hearts in Paris.
Serena turned to Darien who was watching the dancing in thoughtful
amusement.
"Would you like to get some fresh air?" asked Serena.
"Mais oui." smiled Darien as the pair got up and walked outside.
Stepping out into the night air, Serena noticed the bright stars that
twinkled like diamonds on a black velvet setting. A breezed ruffled the
golden curls piled atop her head.
Darien stood watching her, mesmerized. This was insanity. He was aa grown
man with a fiancée who loved him. He had been born in Paris and had, had
his share of lovers and girlfriends. The little imp had woven some spell
around him....
"Darien!"
"Hein?"
"I said, Rome weaves it's own magic just like Paris, non?"
*Right, it's Rome's magic and mood. Nothing to do with you. You are not
attracted to this woman-child.* chastised his mind.
"Oui, ma petit. Rome has it's own magic." smiled Darien, satisfied with
himself. Until he made the mistake of looking towards her. She had turned
her face the same time. Sapphire met sapphire and locked.
Something seemed to sizzle between them until Serena gave a little cough
and turned away. Darien sighed and thanked every saint he knew she had
turned away. Otherwise, he might not have been able to control the impulse
to kiss the breath out of the petit chérie. Mon Dieu, he must really miss
his Maddie.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To be continued...
Up next! ~ Chapter 5: The Floating City ~
Email!! Reviews! I wan to know what you think. Pleeeease? I'm getting ny
stories out as fast as possible, but I'm facing the BIG exam this year.
The one that DECIDES your FUTURE!! *Oooooo, scary. (rolls eyes)*
14/5/02