It seemed a very long three minutes, and she could feel her heart pounding in her chest when the light appeared in the tunnel and the train finally pulled into the station. She crossed her fingers and closed her eyes, and when she opened them, the train was leaving and Bill was making his way through the crowded platform to her. “Maybe we should have done that lock thing,” he said as she threw her arms around his neck.

Lucy was beginning to think that Elizabeth was right and Paris wasn’t the fairy-tale city she’d imagined. It seemed a hostile place, teeming with people who were not the least bit friendly, who’d knock you over for a spot on the subway. There was so much she didn’t understand—her high school French wasn’t much help—and even the food was weird!

When they arrived back at the apartment, Lucy was exhausted and wanted a bit of peace and quiet. That was impossible, however, because Ted had invited his friend from the International New York Times, Richard Mason, to join them for dinner. Richard was a good-looking man in early middle age. His temples were graying, but he took care of himself and was fit and trim in dark pants and a leather jacket, with a scarf looped around his neck in the French manner.

Sue and Sid had gone shopping at the nearby Monoprix supermarket and had whipped up a mushroom risotto, so they all gathered at the sleek white Parsons table to eat.

“To Paris and good friends,” said Ted.

“And old friends,” added Richard.

“Old friends are the best friends,” said Pam.

They all joined in the toast and then settled down to fill their plates. The risotto was delicious, the salad crisp and fresh, and the bread was light on the inside and crusty on the outside. There was also plenty of wine, drawn from the stockpile in the apartment.

“We have dessert,” announced Sue as Sid began collecting the dinner plates. “I stopped at the school and snagged a couple of tartes.”

“How’d you manage that?” asked Pam.

“You know Sue. She usually manages to get her way,” said Sid with a nod.

Sue was quick to defend herself. “I happened to bump into Chef Larry on the street outside his patisserie and asked. There was no arm-twisting involved. He also said not to worry about drinking all the wine or eating up the gourmet groceries, because he can get us more at very good prices.”

“So he supplied all the stuff that’s here?” asked Ted.

“Yeah. He said he always makes sure Norah’s cupboard is well stocked,” replied Sue, lifting a slice of tarte tatin onto a plate and passing it to Richard.

“It must be nice, living the good life at cut-rate prices,” said Richard, accepting the plate.

The tarte tatin was a revelation. They all agreed they’d never tasted anything so delicious.