“I do not want to overstep,” Julien was saying in French. “But I think you need to tell Liv the truth. It would change her life for the better.”

“What do you know?” Grandma Edith’s tone was much softer than her words were as she added, “What are you, twelve?”

“I’m forty-four, actually,” Julien said with a small smile, not missing a beat. “And maybe having a better understanding of who she is will help Liv right now.”

“I know you’re right. But I must do this in my own time,” Grandma Edith said at last, turning abruptly and heading back into the hotel room. She stopped short when she saw Liv in the parlor. “How long have you been standing there, Olivia?”

“Um, I just came out of my room,” Liv lied. “Why?”

Grandma Edith narrowed her eyes. “No reason. Would you please see Julien out?” She disappeared into her own room without another word, slamming the door behind her. Liv turned back to the balcony and locked eyes with Julien, who was studying her intently. She hesitated before heading out through the doors to join him.

“Hi,” she said.

“Bonjour, Liv,” Julien said with a smile.

“Are you okay? It looked like my grandmother was laying into you.”

He shrugged. “It’s exactly how my grandfather talks to me. The trick, I’ve discovered, is to just not take their bait.”

“Well, you must be better at that than I am.” Liv smiled at him and then averted her eyes. “Listen, about the other day, I’m really sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”

“What do you mean?”

“The conversation we had—I unloaded on you like you were my therapist or something. I’m sorry. You’re just—well, you’re easy to talk to.”

“You are easy to talk with, as well,” Julien said. He took a step closer. “And there is no reason to apologize. I enjoyed getting to know you a bit better.”

The silence that hung between them felt laden with something it shouldn’t have, so Liv hurried to fill it. “Um, my grandmother asked me to walk you out.”

He checked his watch. “Liv, perhaps this is a bit too forward of me, but I don’t have to pick Mathilde up from my mother’s house for another hour and a half, and your grandmother happened to mention you still haven’t seen much of Reims. Would you fancy a quick walk around the city center before I have to leave?”

“I—” Liv didn’t know what to say. “I don’t want you to feel obligated.”

He looked surprised. “Obligated? But this is something I’d like to do. Unless you do not.”

The problem was that all Liv wanted to do in that moment was to walk out the door with Julien and never come back. But Grandma Edith probably wouldn’t appreciate that, nor would Julien’s wife. Still, there was nothing wrong with accepting a quick tour from him, was there?

“Well?” Julien asked.

Liv smiled. “Sure, I’m in.”

? ? ?

Ten minutes later, Liv was strolling east with Julien, toward the cathedral Grandma Edith had pointed out earlier in the week. As they walked, Julien gestured to buildings here and there, explaining that the town had been almost completely rebuilt after the First World War. He led them past the Subé Fountain in the Place d’Erlon, the town’s central square, and explained that the woman on the top, representing victory, was taken by the Germans in 1941 for her bronze wings. She wasn’t replaced, he said, until 1989. Closer to the cathedral, they walked by the Carnegie Library, a beautiful art deco building built after World War I with money donated by American steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. It replaced the town’s city hall, which had previously housed the library and had been destroyed in 1917.

“So what were you talking about with my grandmother?” Liv asked after he had pointed out a few more notable buildings and they had lapsed into a companionable silence. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you say my name when you were out on the balcony.”

Julien blinked a few times. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough.” It was vague enough to be the truth.

“Well, then, you know it is a conversation you must have with her. For what it’s worth, I think your grandmother is trying to do what’s right. I’m afraid I might have offended her, though, by giving her my opinion. I have a habit of me mettre le doigt dans l’oeil—um, putting my foot in my mouth sometimes.”

“I doubt that,” Liv said as they turned onto the rue Cardinal de Lorraine and the cathedral soared into view just ahead. “I think you’re probably pretty good at saying exactly what you intend.”

“Why does it feel as if you know me so well, Liv?” His fingers brushed against hers.

“It feels like you know me, too.” The air between them felt electrified, so Liv quickly changed the subject, taking a giant step away from Julien and almost falling off a curb as they finally stopped in front of the enormous church. “The cathedral looks just like Notre-Dame did before the fire,” she said. A shiver ran through her as she regained her balance.

“Notre-Dame de Paris?” Julien smiled sadly. “Yes, what a tragedy that was. But you know this is Notre-Dame, too, yes?”

Liv looked at him blankly.