(I'm really glad you guys are back with me. So here is chapter 2 for you)

Chapter 2

Entering through the apartment door, brought him into a lifestyle he seldom experienced on Lisa. Jack knew that their lives were different and that she was a member of the classy society but he rarely really joined her into this world. They spent their times at Heartland mostly or going out to locations that he liked and felt comfortable with. The goat-among-the-sheep-situations quickly subsided after the Polo event he got himself roped into and Lisa learned to deal with his habits. The lifestyle he was living was far away from posh locations and five-course-dinners, champagne and meals that only took up one third of your plate and were decorated with a leaf of lettuce. He didn't like the attention-seeking people with their empty talks and over-sized egos. People that acted as if they carried around a bank of money in the pockets of their pants.
The sudden picture of Dan Hartfield popped up before his eyes and he was glad that the man hadn't been at the business-meeting earlier. That Lisa's ex was in Paris, too and that one point of her business-travels was Dan Hartfield himself, bothered the cowboy. He wasn't too fond of the fact that the two were still maintaining such a close contact but maybe Lisa needed a man on her side that understood the side of her life, Jack could not put up with easily. Maybe she needed those kind of talks and support from someone who could give it to her. Of course, she had a business to run. It just was something he didn't quite get – the reason she stuck around with him although they were so different. Not only in their lifestyle but also in person.

Right now she stood in the middle of the apartment's huge living room that took up as much space as Heartland's kitchen and living room together. A three-piece beige leather suite was located in the centre of the room and faced towards the panorama window that stretched over the entire wall and thus gave an incredible view across the city. Like Lego-bricks the buildings popped out from the ground and spread till the far off horizon. The late-afternoon sun was reflected in a head-high and wide wall mirror that let the room appear even bigger. Several white shelves and a black grand piano stood carefully arranged against the walls. Everything was held in a white and nude colour that would make you feel guilty to leave any dust or dirt behind.

"This is one fancy apartment.", Jack let slip as he was still busy to look around and spot the many objects that decorated the inside. The indoor furnishing was a mixture of vintage and modern style which Jack had never seen anywhere before. He was used to the Canadian rustic-style homes, with a lot of natural colours and material. Something that represented his way of living but right now he felt like a western decoration that was mistakenly put into the wrong room.
Lisa however, fit in here perfectly and he could picture her sitting on that couch, sunken into the cushions, with a glass of wine in her hand and enjoying the mesmerizing skyline.
"Oh it's nothing really. It's Jane's and she lets me stay here while she is travelling herself.", Lisa explained and indicated him to follow her through the apartment.
Jack had no idea who Jane was but nodded anyway: "That's kind of her."

A narrow hallway which walls were decorated with many impersonal framed pictures of flowers that were either photographed or painted led to a half-rounded area where a couple more doors stood ajar and gave only a glimpse of what lay behind.
"Yeah, but, I'm sure you gonna like my house in Toulon. It's outside the city on a little hill, overlooking the sea.", she pushed a door open while speaking and pointed into the bedroom that was much more modern furnished than the living room area yet had another wide window across the entire wall. Instead of the white, blue coloured walls kept the room pretty dark.
"You can put your bag in here. Bathroom is over there.", she pointed back towards the opposite side. Jack nodded again, squeezed past her and with a side glance at the huge bed that, he had to admit in his jet-lagged and tired state, looked quiet comfy, dropped his luggage before turning back at her.

Blue eyes shone up at him and with that forget-me-not coloured dress against the dark-blue wall she looked like a flower herself. She was the most valuable thing the apartment held and for Jack it was clear that there was nothing, no fancy grand piano or a view across Paris, that could compete with her. He couldn't keep up with her.

Coming to France felt more and more like a big mistake he had gotten himself into. The culture, the people, Lisa's fancy side of life – things that made him feel so out of place, so below value that he almost felt bad for getting Lisa into a situation like the one at the open venue of the racing court. He didn't miss the side-glances, the sceptical looks and the dubious remarks he and Lisa got when the business meeting went on. It was obvious that Lisa's friends held a different picture of who Jack Bartlett was. Their cowboy imagination probably didn't include a 70 year old man that already had two granddaughters himself and a long life story of ups and downs to tell.

"Do you want something to drink?", she ripped him from his thoughts, a hand on his arm and an encouraging smile trying to bring him back into the present.
"A glass of water would be just fine.", he heard himself saying with a dry throat.
"'kay."

They made their way back through the narrow hallway to the front area of the apartment where adjacent to the living-room was an open sun-lit kitchen. An enormous kitchen-counter stood right in the middle of the room whereas the rest of the furniture was placed around it.
Lisa went straight to one of the cabinets to draw two glasses from it.
"So how long are you planning to stay?", she took up the conversation again and he came to a halt on the other side of the large counter not daring to place his hands on the clean surface.

On the cap-drive to her apartment they had talked briefly about his reason to snatch the next plane and come straight to Europe. She believed that there was more to it than just his need to see her. In the last five years he had always been waiting patiently for her to come back home. So something must have been going on at Heartland, she assumed. Yet, although Jack summed up the things that were going on currently, he assured that he had missed her. With all those relationship-related decisions from Lou and Peter, Tim and Miranda and Ty's intention of proposing to Amy, Jack felt his own relationship being taken away by the distance and an Ex-husband.

"I thought maybe a week? The woman at the airport didn't mention a return flight.", Jack spun the glass of water that Lisa had placed in front of him between his fingers.
"You bought your ticket at the airport?"
"Yes. Why?"
Lisa chuckled and turned away, obviously trying to not make him feel uncomfortable but he wanted to know what was so funny.
"What?"
She looked up again, amusement sparkling in her eyes.
"Well...it's just...Jack, you can book your flight online. It's cheaper and it gives you a variety of return flights right away.", she laughed under her breath.
Yeah, so Lou said but Jack knew that the unboundedness of the internet would have been even more overwhelming than talking to a flight attendant.
His face must have shown some deep lines as Lisa made a dapper wave of her hand.
"You know what, it's fine. It doesn't matter. That way you can still decide if you want to stay a bit longer."
"Well, I don't know. I don't want to leave the girls alone too long."
"Of course." She stepped around the counter now and walked up to him to wrap her arms around his waist. "I'm really glad that you are here though and I can't wait to spend the next days with you."
Her excitement was obvious and he couldn't bring himself to ask her yet another time if she would follow him back into his comfort zone. It was his turn now to cut back his habits even though it was almost tearing him apart to stand here in this life he didn't fit into. He would stay, trying to make the best of it. Lisa deserved it. She had been putting up with him for too long already.
"Me too. But I really could use a bit of sleep right now.", Jack committed, really feeling the exhaustion of the journey in his bones.
"Sure. How about you take a nap and I will prepare us some dinner?"
"That would be wonderful", he let go of her. "Can I use your phone? I should try and call Lou so she can stop worrying if I made it to France in one piece."
Lisa laughed and handed him the phone that was laying on the kitchen counter.
"Tell them hello from me and that I'm really glad they let you go."
"I will.", he winked and made his way back to the hallway, where she stopped him with a soft voice.
"Jack."
He turned. "Yes?"
A sigh. A smile. Happiness playing around her beautiful face.
"I love you."
- Something he will never understand.