Brooke's stomach tightened as Lucas, with a serious look, prepared to explain her behavior earlier.
LUCAS : I officially became a priest three years ago now. And as you already know... I also have experience taking care of people sentenced to work sentences...
Until then, he was not telling her anything she didn't already know... Brooke waited for the rest, controlling her possible facial expressions.
LUCAS : When we first met in Mrs. Lee's office, I expressed my reservations... The one concerning your somewhat special case, let's say unusual compared to what I usually do...
More and more curious but also impatient and irritated, Brooke did not understand where he was going with this.
LUCAS : I, I really thought I could carry out this mission with you too. But I have to admit that I was wrong. Don't take it personally... It's just that it's... Beyond my strength. There you go.
Lucas seemed to have finished his justification... Skeptical, Brooke raised her eyebrows to express her incomprehension. And as usual, she felt personally attacked, targeted by what she experienced as abandonment, rejection.
BROOKE : Why?
The tone of his voice changed drastically and Lucas noticed it. He blushed as he swallowed. And as if that wasn't enough, Brooke glared at him. She didn't realize it but he was like paralyzed...
LUCAS : Because... Because I... You... You're too...
MRS. CHANG : And noodles without cilantro over here!
Without warning, little Mrs. Chang burst in full of enthusiasm to serve them. Cut off in his tracks, Lucas remained silent and impenetrable while she put the drinks and dishes in front of them. Lucas simply nodded to thank her before she walked away without noticing anything. In a dead silence, Lucas first stared at his noodles then began to eat. Brooke watched him, stunned. Increasingly annoyed, she poured herself a glass of wine and drank it in large, bold sips... Hoping to provoke a reaction from him, she took care to tap the foot of her glass which she placed energetically on the varnished wooden table. Lucas' reaction was not long in coming.
LUCAS : You shouldn't drink so fast...
Brooke put on her most casual air and looked him straight in the eye while pouring herself another glass provocatively.
BROOKE : That's very kind of you, but I'm an adult and vaccinated... Calling you my father doesn't give you the right to treat me like your little girl...
Brooke proudly brought her lips to her glass and drank it almost as quickly as the first one.
LUCAS : You're right, I don't have the right to anything and your anger is legitimate. But I am interested in your fate, with a lot of interest contrary to what you might think...
While finishing the wine in her glass, Brooke rolled her eyes and mockingly simulated a false approval.
BROOKE : You really have a funny way of showing it then!
LUCAS : Funny no, strange maybe, yes. But believe me, I'm doing my best, though...
His gaze suddenly seemed helpless and sincerely saddened to Brooke... Lucas seemed helpless. A little confused but also a little soothed by the alcohol flowing through his veins, Brooke relaxed and softened.
As she evaluated the option of getting the conversation off to a gentler start...
MR. CHANG : Lucas! Lucy told me you were here... Even if I had guessed with the double portion of coriander!
The arrival of the old man abruptly interrupted Brooke's initiative. She observed the scene. The cook spread his worn and withered arms wide to invite Lucas to a brotherly hug.
LUCAS : Good evening Tao! How are you?
MR. CHANG : Good, good! And you, my friend?
Without waiting for the priest's answer, Tao turned a quarter turn to look at Brooke more closely. He approached her.
MR. CHANG : Good evening, charming lady! May I know to whom I had the honor of serving my traditional cuisine tonight?
BROOKE : Good evening, sir, I am Brooke... And your cooking was delicious!
MR. CHANG : Ah, I am delighted! And what brings you to our little town, Brooke?
Brooke dreaded this question every time she met someone. But this time, she didn't even need Lucas' help...
MR. CHANG : Oh! But I'm stupid, you're Lucas' cousin, right!?
Brooke look Lucas with a surprised and somewhat worried look. His bewildered expression expressed the same perplexity as hers.
BROOKE : No, I'm here...
MR. CHANG : For the family visit the day after tomorrow, of course! I'm not completely senile yet, you know!
BROOKE : Oh no, I didn't say that...
Lucas narrowed his eyes and nodded to Brooke as if to make her understand not to insist.
MR. CHANG : By all the Saints! You came from Nice just for this day, it's even more charitable of you! And I'm boring you with my greetings like an old man in need of distraction! I'll let you enjoy your reunion then, young people!
And without adding anything, he left as he had arrived... Leaving Brooke and Lucas at first speechless, then amused.
BROOKE : What was that!?
LUCAS : No idea, cousin!
Brooke laughed heartily at his response and dared the same kind of amusing allusion.
BROOKE : Luckily there is no jet lag because this long trip has completely exhausted me!
LUCAS : Sorry to disappoint you but if you are a member of my family, we come from North Corsica... We come from Bastia!
BROOKE : Disappoint me!? Never... But there is one thing I do not understand! You had the sea, the sun... Why did you come to bury yourself here!? Is it because you had to leave everything to become a priest?
LUCAS : If we want yes... Well it was not really an obligation, but rather a choice.
BROOKE : You could not become a priest there!?
LUCAS : Yes, I suppose I could have... But things happened like that and it is very good.
The atmosphere was relaxed again. They smiled at each other... They looked away at the same time when the moment became a little awkward. Brooke took advantage of this moment to glance at the clock on the wall of the restaurant.
LUCAS : Only thirty minutes left... And the abbey is only a ten-minute walk away...
BROOKE : Thank you! I see you're eager to get rid of me...
Surprised and stung in her pride, Brooke didn't realize that her remark hid something much deeper. Lucas was counting down the minutes he had left to spend with her. Minutes that he dreaded as much as he savored them... But his reaction to her sarcasm surprised Brooke even more...
LUCAS : I'm just asking you to stop believing that... I know you don't trust me but now you know the value I place on honesty.
Brooke listened to him, half-amused, half-feverish... She hid her confusion by finishing her white wine.
LUCAS : I'll tell you one last time. Engrave it once and for all in your stubborn little head... I absolutely do not want to run away from you.
Brooke was speechless when he insisted on the word "want" but truly understood what he meant. While she was still trying to understand, Lucas suddenly stood up and put his chair back under the table.
LUCAS : Come on.
Intrigued but also charmed by this unusual authoritative tone, Brooke silently stood up to follow him. A few minutes and a few blocks later, they were in line in front of an ice cream shop.
LUCAS : I hate to end a meal without a little sweet treat...
BROOKE : Oh really... I didn't imagine you to be the type of gourmand and appreciate little treats... edible!
Lucas blushed instantly at his reflection. And even though Brooke's goal was to make him feel a little uncomfortable, she couldn't help but think that she had gone a little too far... The alcohol probably helped even more than usual. She decided to quickly distract herself from her discomfort by refocusing on the perfume table.
BROOKE : So, so! What am I going to choose...? There are way too many choices! I would like two Piedmont pistachio and almond balls.
LUCAS : Hey... That surprises me a little, I admit...
BROOKE : Oh yeah!? And why?
LUCAS : They are not... Let's say classic tastes...
BROOKE : In case you haven't noticed yet, I don't have much classic...
LUCAS : Indeed...
After this little exchange, Lucas placed an order with the merchant. They seemed to know each other well. Brooke stood aside and noticed that they were chatting a little... When Lucas came back to her, she questioned him.
BROOKE : Thanks! And you, what flavor is that funny color?
LUCAS : I present to you Penelope's delicious Castagna Corsa...
In his most beautiful Southern accent, Lucas pronounced these two words that almost sounded like a melody in Brooke's ears. A slightly sing-song melody, but also terribly and definitively sexy... So sexy that she began to realize for a moment that she had, in fact, understood nothing!
BROOKE : It sounds incredibly delicious and tempting said like that but... I'd like the translation.
LUCAS : It's the perfume "Châtaigne de Corse"... In fact, Penelope created it for me when I arrived...
BROOKE : Just that!
LUCAS : She's Italian by origin. When I arrived here, it was mainly her way of welcoming me. But I guess I wasn't the only one who appreciated it... Since she's kept it on her menu all this time!
BROOKE : That could be an explanation... Or maybe it's to see you more often!
LUCAS : Stop your nonsense! He misses his homeland too, it's empathy, nothing more.
Brooke wondered if he was deliberately denying the obvious... But Lucas tried to change the subject as quickly as possible.
LUCAS : Hey, do you want to taste it?
BROOKE : Can I?
Lucas didn't show it but like Brooke, he realized that he had spoken faster than he had thought.
LUCAS' THOUGHT : Imbecile! Could you have found a better idea than to make him lick your ice cream under your nose!?
LUCAS : If I offer it to you... And then, it seems to make you so happy...
Naturally, Brooke brushed away a lock of hair before approaching the cone Lucas was holding in his hand. Still completely innocent, she paused and looked at him with a smile.
BROOKE : I hope it's better than it looks...
Brooke then turned her attention back to the ice cream by placing her mouth right in front of the ice cream scoop. She didn't notice that Lucas was already captivated by her mouth... Brooke paused again.
BROOKE : No, but I was telling you that earlier because I hope you know that you're really hot for a priest!?
Lucas smiled at her but in a more subtle way. He rolled his eyes then made a movement with his ice cream.
LUCAS : Well, do you want to taste this ice cream!?
Brooke made a bored but mischievous pout and returned to place her mouth... She stuck out the tip of her tongue, cautiously. Appreciating this first discovery, she opened then closed her lips on the top of the ice cream scoop. With a skillful tongue, she licked the excess cream left on her lips. Lucas watched her, burning... Despite his adoration for this ice cream that reminded him of so many things. Brooke was not aware that the pleasure he felt watching her savor her ice cream was even better for him than the ice cream itself.
BROOKE : Mmh! It's true that it's good!
Just as she thought she had eaten properly, Brooke saw Lucas bring his hand closer to her face. He delicately placed his thumb at the corner of her lips and ran it over her lower lip. The contact of his warm, smooth skin on her thin, cold skin had an intense effect on Brooke. Quickly activating her libido, she lost her naivety quite quickly and a more lascivious spirit took over her entire being. Her gaze met his and she now clearly noticed that his eyes were enjoying the sight before them. Caught up in the emotion and on the impulse of the moment, she gave him a fiery look. While Lucas' thumb lingered a little too long... She lowered her chin slightly and looked up at him. Brooke's pupils dilated and her irises took charge of sending the signals of demonstration of an obvious erotic desire... With a look filled with not very Catholic ideas, Brooke stared at him with an intensity out of the ordinary.
LUCAS' THOUGHT : I thought I was already bewitched but now... She really has to stop looking at me like that, right now!
Disarmed and as if bewitched, Lucas was completely subjected to Brooke's charms. He even had trouble breathing. Unable to reason with himself since his body and physical urges had taken possession of his entire being.
LUCAS' THOUGHT : Quickly my God, come help me quickly to deliver me from this devouring temptation...
While Lucas' technique consisted of invoking the Holy Spirit, Brooke, she, saw things in a completely different way.
BROOKE'S THOUGHT : Things finally seem to be getting interesting... He looks at me longingly. If I keep ... I'll surely have found something to do after curfew with him!
While they both still didn't know how this delicious moment could evolve, one thing was for sure... Brooke wanted more. She wanted sex. She wanted him. Her neurons activated to find a trick that would allow her to continue this beginning of foreplay... While their mutual gaze was like locked, Brooke abruptly came out of her exaltation when a ringtone rang.
BROOKE'S THOUGHT : My cell phone... It's my cell phone!
Suddenly, she handed her ice cream cone to Lucas who, surprised, immediately took it in his still free hand. Panicked, Brooke took her cell phone from her pocket to take the call she had been waiting for so long... Her heart burned even more when the screen displayed a call from a private number.
BROOKE : Excuse me, I have to take this call!
LUCAS : No problem!
Too eager to pick up her phone, Brooke didn't notice Lucas, who, relieved, glanced up at the dark sky.
LUCAS'S THOUGHT : Thank God!
Brooke moved a few more meters and impatiently answered her mysterious interlocutor.
BROOKE : Hello?
OWEN : Hey babe... I can't stay long. Just tell me if you're alone...
BROOKE : Oh my God, is that you?!
OWEN : Yes Brooke it's me, it's Owen. Are you alone?
BROOKE : Um... No!
OWEN : So make sure you're alone in less than a minute, otherwise I'll have to hang up...
BROOKE : Okay, okay give me thirty seconds...
Brooke instinctively put her cell phone on her chest and approached Lucas. His agitated look seemed to worry her a little.
LUCAS : Are you okay Brooke?
BROOKE : No, well yes, very well indeed! But I have to leave you... The abbey is that way, right?
LUCAS : Uh yes it's still straight, second on the right... But I thought I'd walk the path with you.
BROOKE : Actually, that won't be necessary Lucas... But thanks anyway! I hope we see each other again soon!
Annoyed, Brooke reluctantly moved away from Lucas but ended up speeding up her steps, forbidding herself to look back.
BROOKE : There you go... Owen, are you still there?
OWEN : Yeah, it's okay can you talk?
BROOKE : Yes, I'm alone now... How are you!?
OWEN : I heard you were free... But I can't find you in Paris, where are you?
BROOKE : You followed my trial?
OWEN : Of course, who do you take me for? Besides, I'm proud of you... You were impeccable!
BROOKE : Impeccable?
OWEN : Yes, you didn't give up anything or anything too compromising in any case. So, we were able to continue with Chase...
BROOKE : Continue? But, they're looking for you Owen... You have to make yourself forgotten for a while!
OWEN : Don't tell me what to do baby. You know I hate that! But I can't wait to see you...
BROOKE : Well if you had followed my trial until the end and therefore until my conviction, you would know where I am...I'm in Le Bec, in an abbey. And I'm fine just in case...
OWEN : Ok princess, noted. See you in a few days! I'm going to hang up now.
BROOKE : Wait, Owen...
OWEN : What?
BROOKE : I love you! I miss you, it's hard without you...
OWEN : I love you too baby, and I miss you, I'll be hard, very hard when we see each other again!
He had hung up without saying anything else.