Under My Skin: A Contemporary Romance Set in Paris (Bistro La Bohème Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

this look of yours,” he said as she sat in the car.
    She was wearing low-rise skinny jeans, a mustard-colored cashmere
pullover, and a tailored leather jacket that reached the waistline of her
jeans.
    “You usually come and go from work dressed in the uniform,” he added.
    “I live next door,” she said. “So it makes sense to change at home.”
    They drove in silence for a little while.
    “Have you been in Baleville before?” he asked after they got onto the
A13.
    “No, never.”
    “It’s a nice town. Only twenty minutes from the sea, but much more
affordable than seaside places like Deauville.”
    “Sounds nice,” she said. “Do you know how big it is?”
    Hopefully big enough to minimize the risk of running into Mat.
    “Ten thousand or thereabouts,” he said.
    A hundred thousand would’ve been better, but then again, ten is better
than five.
    “And it’s only an hour and a half from Paris,” he added.
    Way too close, if you want my opinion.
    Didier tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, looking pleased with himself.
“If Monsieur Conchard doesn’t invite us to lunch, I’ll take you to Le Cheval
Bleu. It’s a nice local restaurant I discovered a few years ago, when I toured
the Cider Route with some friends.”
    “I’ve wanted to do the Cider Route for years now, but instead I always
end up going south,” Jeanne said.
    “You’re from the south, aren’t you?”
    “Nîmes. My family are still there and some good
friends . . . Where are you from, by the way?” She realized
she’d never bothered to ask Didier that basic question.
    “I’m from Lille.” He smiled. “ The Great
French North.”
    She smiled back. What a strange guy.
    He enjoyed being mean to customers, but he was usually courteous with his
colleagues. Now that she thought of it, he’d always been particularly nice to
her.
    They arrived in Baleville a little before eleven o’clock, parked in front
of Monsieur Conchard’s shop, and ran inside to avoid getting soaked in the
heavy rain. The supplier greeted them, an enthusiastic smile on his face. At
twelve thirty they were done. As it turned out, Monsieur Conchard had no
intention of a price hike, but only wanted La Bohème to order his new
cheeses. Immensely relieved, Jeanne and Didier promised to call him within a
week with a definitive answer.
    “How about lunch? I’m starving,” Didier said as they stepped out onto the
wet street. Fortunately, the rain had exhausted itself into a drizzle while
they’d been inside with Monsieur Conchard.
    “How can you still be hungry after tasting twenty different cheeses?” she
teased.
    “How can you not be hungry?” he retorted.
    “If we leave now, we’ll avoid traffic, because everyone’s having lunch,”
she offered.
    “I’m not leaving without having eaten properly.”
    Seeing his determination, Jeanne stopped arguing and followed him to his
favorite restaurant. As they walked, she tried to form an opinion about the
town. It wasn’t as pretty as the more touristy places in Normandy, but its
half-timbered houses certainly had a lot of charm. And it was provincial
through and through even compared to her hometown of Nîmes.
    “Jeanne?”
    She slowly turned away from the church they were passing, already knowing
who it was. She’d recognized his voice. She would have recognized it in a crowd
of people shouting her name.
    “What are you doing here?” Mat stared at Jeanne as if she were an apparition.
    “Meeting with a supplier,” Jeanne said before introducing the two men to
each other.
    “We’ve met before,” Mat said to Didier. “I used to frequent La Bohème a few years back, when Rob worked there . ”
    Didier put his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “Can’t recall.” He
turned to Jeanne, “We need to hurry if we want to get a table.”
    “Where are you guys headed?” Mat asked.
    “Le Cheval Bleu—why?” Didier shot Mat a hostile look.
    “What a coincidence! That’s where I’m going for