Turn Back Time (The Full Circle Series Book 1) Annette Anders (shoe dog free ebook TXT) 📖

small breakfast table in the room’s kitchenette and messaged Luca,

At our hotel now. It’s lovely. Too sad our visit here’s overshadowed by the mess. Julia’s contact at the Embassy is meeting with us at 5 pm. I’ll let you know later what her friend said. Talk soon. Stella.

Next she sent a note to David. Just thinking about him made her heart beat faster.

At our hotel. Naomi, Julia and I will go for a walk, then meet with a friend of hers at five at the US Embassy. I’ll keep you posted. Stella.

Right away, she saw three small dots dancing at the bottom of the screen, then his reply came,

Thanks for letting me know you’re here. What can I do for you?

Nothing right now, thanks.

Half an hour later, Julia held up her phone and said, “We have three options for how to get to the Embassy. We can call a cab, which can take us there in about fifteen minutes, traffic permitting. Or we can take the metro, which takes about twenty-five minutes. And the third possibility is walking. It should take about forty minutes. We’re meeting Alexander in a little over an hour. What do you want to do?”

“I’d say walk,” Stella said. “Naomi and I haven’t seen much on this side of the Seine yet.”

“I agree,” Naomi said and licked her lips. “And maybe we’ll pass an ice cream shop.”

“Well, then, girls, put on your walking shoes,” Julia said. “The ice cream is on me.”

They walked along the Luxembourg Gardens, crossed the Seine on Pont du Carrousel, and strolled through the Tuileries Garden toward the Place de la Concorde. Along the way, they stopped to take photos and admire the sights.

“I know where we are,” Stella called. “We were here last Sunday. First on the bus, and then when we walked to the Arc de Triomphe. Look, Naomi, there’s the obelisk.”

“Hard to believe it’s only been a few days. I’d like to see some of those buildings when they’re illuminated at night.”

“Me too. And depending on what we can do to help Rev, maybe we have time to go into the Louvre before we fly home?” Stella looked over her shoulder to the imposing museum at the other end of the park.

“I’d love to join you when you go,” Julia said.

“Where one goes, we all go!” Naomi declared and raised her hand for a high five. “We’re in this together now.”

They dodged taxis and tour buses, crossed the Place de la Concorde, then sprinted through more cars, bicycles, and pedestrians until they reached a copse of tall chestnut trees.

“There’s Alexander. Oh, great, he has someone from the Citizen Services office with him.” Julia waved to two men standing in front of the black wrought-iron fence surrounding the Embassy of the United States of America.

Stella saw the man next to Julia’s friend.

“No, he doesn’t,” she whispered.

CHAPTER 25

Stella—July 2018

“W

hat’s he doing here?” Naomi snapped and stopped walking.

“How would I know?” Stella replied. She rubbed her arms but couldn’t get rid of the goose bumps.

“Did you ask him to come?” Naomi narrowed her eyes at Stella.

“No, I told him I’d keep him posted.” She didn’t care for Naomi’s aggression.

“And you just happened to mention where we’re meeting?”

“What’s up with all the questions?” She tried to hold Naomi back when she started to march toward the two men.

“I don’t know what’s going on,” Julia said. “Do you know the man with Alexander?”

“He’s my ex-boyfriend. It’s a long and somewhat bizarre story. I’ll fill you in later,” Stella answered.

She couldn’t take her eyes off David. He was here, and she’d be face-to-face with him in a moment. She couldn’t believe it.

“That’s one way to describe it,” Naomi said over her shoulder. “Shitshow would be more accurate.”

“You don’t need to tell me anything.” Julia rubbed Stella’s arm. “He looks familiar, though.”

Naomi reached the men first. She nodded to Julia’s friend and said a quick, “Hi.” Then she put her fists on her hips and looked at David. “And what brought you here on this sunny afternoon?”

His eyes briefly met with Stella’s before he looked at Naomi. “Naomi, before you say anything else, calm down.”

“Calm down? You just happened to walk by this building and just happened to start a conversation with a random stranger, and it just happened at exactly five o’clock?” She accentuated each ‘happened’ with a jab of her finger against David’s chest.

“First of all,” he replied, “this is a free country, and I can walk wherever I want and talk to whomever I want whenever I want.” He ticked off each of his rights on his fingers, then held up his hand to stop her from interrupting. “But the reason I’m here is because I want to help. And I can’t if I’m hiding in my hotel room.”

“Well, you’ve been doing it for a year. You should’ve managed a few more days, if you ask me,” Naomi fumed, her index finger poised for another jab.

“Naomi, put your finger away before you chip a nail. You’re acting childish, and people are looking,” Stella reached the two brawlers and pulled Naomi away from David. “The last thing we need is for security to show up and take us away in handcuffs.”

“Hi, David,” she said, and attempted a smile.

How do you greet your ex-boyfriend after a year of silence? Is a hug appropriate?

He solved the problem when he leaned down and breathed a kiss on her cheek, sending a pleasant shiver through her. She longed to let muscle memory take over and move a little closer to him.

“Hi, Stella. I couldn’t wait for your next text message, I had to see you’re okay and decided to meet you here. When I arrived a few minutes ago, Alexander was already waiting, and I asked him if he was meeting you three ladies,” David explained, without breaking eye contact. “I hope you don’t mind.”

She felt dizzy. How on earth was she supposed to react to him? The touch of a hand