Turn Back Time (The Full Circle Series Book 1) Read online

  Back on the bus, Caroline described their next stop. “Honfleur is one of the most romantic port towns along this coast. Impressionists in the nineteenth century were drawn there because of the striking light conditions. And it wasn’t destroyed by bombs in World War II, making it an even more popular location for artists and tourists.

  “Once there, we’ll first stop at the Côte de Grâce lookout, where you will have a breathtaking view of Honfleur and the Seine estuary. Afterward, François will take us to the Vieux Bassin, the Old Port, where we’ll have an authentic Norman lunch before we explore the old streets.”

  “I hope they serve beer with lunch. All this walking makes me thirsty,” came the voice of the unpleasant man. “I could do with a nice, cold can of Bud.”

  Again, Caroline proved to be a professional and didn’t allow the man to bait her.

  When they reached the viewing point, Naomi said, “The scenery isn’t quite as breathtaking as Caroline described it. That huge bridge and the freight cranes in the harbor are spoiling the view. But,” she pointed behind them, “let’s go check out this chapel.”

  Together they walked to an ancient building made of brown stone. It looked kind of squashed, as if someone once sat down on it.

  “The poor thing. It succumbed to the weight of the world,” Stella said.

  As soon as they stepped inside, Naomi exclaimed, “Flapping sails!”

  Stella reached for a brochure. “The Chapel of Notre Dame de Grâce was built in the early 1600s and is dedicated to sailors and seamen. I guess it explains the boats and images of ships everywhere. Look,” she pointed to a glass window, “even there. I think I’ve seen enough in here.”

  As they strolled back to the bus, bells starting ringing. Stella stopped walking and turned around.

  “Naomi, look. All the bells are visible behind weathered beams. I wonder why it’s next to the church? Aren’t bell towers always the highest part of the building?”

  Caroline approached them, “The bells would be too heavy for the old church and required a more solid foundation. They are called the pilgrimage bells. Missionaries and other travelers who were leaving for the New World came here to pray for a safe crossing. Isn’t their sound one of the loveliest you’ve ever heard? I want to bring every couple who books one of our tours to this spot and let them find peace and tranquility.”

  Tranquility, Stella thought. Exactly what I’m looking for.

  After a simple but delicious meal of fresh seafood, sitting around a long table, Caroline said, “I think this is a good moment for everyone to introduce themselves.”

  One by one, each shared a little bit of their background. Besides François, Caroline, Stella, and Naomi, they also heard from Karen and Jenna, sisters whose family owned a travel agency with several offices in different cities.

  Andrew and Sarah were the couple who didn’t seem to be able to stop holding hands and gazing at each other. Stella wanted to get to know them better.

  Susan and Lynn were friends who owned a travel agency together. Both were married and had families, but enjoyed going on promotional trips together. Susan said, “Because it’s part of our business,” and Lynn added, “And it gives us some girl time!”

  Steve and Linda were a married couple in their sixties.

  John and Michael were a couple in their mid- to late thirties. They were so fit, tanned and outdoorsy-looking, Stella never would’ve guessed they were running a travel agency.

  And lastly, there was Harry and Julia. The unpleasant guy and the younger woman. When it was their turn to introduce themselves, he informed the group, “I’m Harry. My wife, Emily, owns our travel agency, and I’m a silent partner, but she couldn’t come on this trip. Our oldest son crossed paths with a truck not long ago and now he needs surgery.”

  Stella noticed Julia was shaking her head, and even opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again.

  Harry went on in his squeaky voice, “I told her to let him deal with it by himself. But poor Emily is too soft and thinks the kids still need her fretting over them, so she told me to go on this trip in her place. Lucky Julia, here,” he patted her hand, which she snatched back and moved as far away as she could without falling off the wooden bench, “is my wife’s friend and her accountant. When Em dropped out, we didn’t want Julia to miss out, too. And she had something else to do in France. What are you here for again?” He looked at her but rattled on without waiting, “It’s not important, eh?”

  “Poor Emily should have let Lucky Julia go by herself,” Naomi whispered to Stella. “He reminds me of someone, I just can’t place him yet.”

  “And is this what you thought their story would be?”

  “Not quite, but I would like to ask her why she agreed to come. She clearly doesn’t like him.”

  “Well, he said she had other business in France. And maybe she hoped being part of a group would keep him from acting like an asshole.”

  “Assholes don’t change.” Naomi said, and grimaced. “I know one thing for sure, though. I don’t like him.”

  CHAPTER 17

  Stella—July 2018

  “A

  ll right, are you tired yet?” Caroline asked once they were on the bus again.

  There were a few “yes’s” and a few more “no’s,” and Caroline said. “Having just seen the dreamy town of Honfleur, can you imagine your couples spending a day or two here? Having their photos taken with the harbor in the background? The red and orange sunshades, the shimmering water and the white boats in the port?”

  “Marriage is so overrated.” Harry piped up, but no one reacted.

  “I’m going to tell you a story.” Caroline ignored him, too, and looked at the rest of the group.

  “In the 1700s, an old watchmaker’s daughter married her sweetheart on the beach in Honfleur. The day after the wedding, friends gathered to help the bride and groom with the cleanup, and later they all took a boat out to a sandbank in the Seine.

  “It was low tide, and they danced and had a grand time, not even noticing the rapidly rising water around them. By the time they realized their boat had been swept away, it had gone too far for them to reach it.

  “The water continued to rise, and the currents were treacherous. Folks on land heard their desperate cries for help, and boats were sent to save the stranded partiers. The winds picked up, the waters got even rougher, and the rescuers had to watch in shock when an enormous wave crashed over the group on the sandbank and pulled them all under. Nobody survived, and the bride and groom were found on the beach the next day with their arms still around each other.”

  Stella liked Caroline’s voice when she recited old stories, and the way she brought them to life. Her native French combined with a British accent and her proper pronunciations were like special effects in an audiobook.

  “Do you know who wrote the story? It’s so heartbreaking,” Stella said.

  “Yes, Jacob Venedey, a German publicist and politician, published it in his travel diaries in 1838. The story, called The Death-Wedding of Honfleur, was told to him by an old sailor who was a young child when the tragic event happened.

  “Now, back to some practicalities. We have ninety minutes before we reach Arromanches-les-Bains, where we will stay tonight. Arromanches played an important role in the Normandy landings, when Port Winston, an artificial port named after Winston Churchill, was installed almost overnight. Within days the Allies disembarked over three hundred thousand troops and more than fifty thousand vehicles there.”

  “I thought we weren’t doing World War II stuff,” Harry interrupted.

  “As I said this morning,” Caroline glared at him, “we’re not focusing on it, but we can’t quite ignore it either. Remnants of the artificial harbor are still visible, and at low tide you can walk out to those huge cement blocks. We need to be aware of them, to avoid unpleasant exchanges with our customers in case they expect only sandy beaches and are bothered by it.”

/>   “I think Harry needs to get lost somewhere,” Naomi muttered to Stella.

  “Can’t you just ignore him?” Stella whispered.

  “No, he’s the kind of stupid I can’t tolerate. He’s going to severely test my patience.”

  “Since when do you have patience?”

  Harry looked over at them and winked.

  “Ugh,” Stella groaned. “I changed my mind. You’re right. He is going to be annoying.”

  Their hotel in Arromanches was covered with gray shingles which appeared to have withstood many storms. As they rounded the corner, Stella saw an inviting-looking terrace wrapped around two sides of the hotel, and she could imagine them sitting there later, sheltered from the wind by tall glass panes, sipping a glass of wine, watching the sunset.

  “I don’t know how François managed to drive the bus through those tiny streets without losing his rearview mirrors. And ours is only a minibus. Imagine one of the large coach buses we saw outside of town,” Naomi said. “I was starting to hold my breath, hoping it would help us squeeze through those alleys.”

  “He must’ve done it a few times, but I agree,” Stella said.

  Caroline called for the group’s attention. “After checking in, you’re free to spend the rest of the afternoon on your own. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this picturesque little town, so explore it at your own pace.

  “We’ll meet at the hotel restaurant at 7:30 for dinner. If anybody is interested in a short side trip to Bayeux, let me know. It’s not on our itinerary, but François doesn’t mind taking you there. The city was fortunate and avoided destruction following D-Day, and the eleventh-century, world-renowned Bayeux Tapestry alone is worth a visit.”

  Without hesitating, Andrew and Sarah, as well as Steve and Linda, said they wanted to go and agreed to leave with François within a few minutes.

  “I’m going to check out the beach life and work on my tan,” Harry announced while he rubbed his round belly.

  “Thanks for the warning,” Naomi snarked. “Now I know where I won’t go.”

  “JuJu, wanna join me? Did you bring your bikini?” he gave Julia one of his creepy winks.

  “Harry, it’s tempting, but I think I’ll catch up with Emily and see how things are going at home,” Julia said from the check-in desk, barely bothering to conceal her disgust. Stella wondered how long it would be before she exploded.

  “Ah, your loss, ha ha. Tell Em I said hi. I’m sure she’s missing me,” Harry said and went to the elevator.

  Stella said to Naomi, “The wife’s probably ecstatic to be rid of him. Too bad her friend has him nipping at her heels. I hope Julia’s still willing to be friends with her when she gets back home.”

  Their room was small, but comfortable and clean, and the bathroom was well stocked with guest amenities. Stella picked up one of the complimentary soaps and held it to her nose. A potent but not overpowering lavender scent greeted her. She decided there were more than enough soaps and called, “I’m going to snag one of the soaps. There are plenty.”

  “Did you see the sachets on our pillows? A note says they’re a welcome gift.”

  “I love it.” Stella remembered how David’s mother put lavender sachets in the bath cabinet where she kept guest towels. Maybe Stella would do it at home, too.

  “Okay, I’m in,” Naomi announced from her bed.

  “In where?” Stella had wandered to the balcony, where she took in the view over the bay. It was low tide, and people were walking around the cement blocks Caroline mentioned earlier. They didn’t bother her, but she could see where they’d be in the way when couples posed for romantic wedding photos.

  “The hotel’s Wi-Fi,” Naomi jumped off the bed. “And now I’m ready for some ice cream. I never got my two scoops yesterday, so I’ll have three today.”

  “Since it was my fault we got distracted, I’ll pay for your treat today.”

  “It was The Troub’s fault.” Naomi reached for her purse. “Let’s walk around first and work up an appetite.”

  Strolling through the old, winding streets, they took pictures of cozy houses and the colorful hollyhocks growing in abundance in every garden. They stopped to enjoy the heavy scent of dark red roses climbing up wooden trellises and watch dozens of butterflies flutter from flower to flower. They peeked into a small church squeezed in between two houses and climbed up a hill to an overlook with a magnificent view of the vast English Channel and the picturesque town.

  After buying their ice cream, they rested on a large rock on the beach.

  Stella dug her feet into the sand and wiggled her toes. “You know what?” she said while she watched gentle waves rolling in from the open water. “I’ve decided to make a deal with you.”

  “Oh, I like this opening.” Naomi swiped a speck of chocolate ice cream off her nose. She tried to keep her three scoops on the sugar cone, but the ice cream kept running down the sides of the cone.

  “From now till the end of this trip, I won’t talk about David. Seeing the beauty all around us and listening to Caroline’s story of the death-wedding, I’ve decided you’re right, and I need to focus on the future.”

  Naomi caught some of her ice cream with her tongue before it reached her fingers.

  “I still love David, and know in my heart I always will, and it won’t be easy to ignore those feelings. But it kills me to wait for the impossible to happen. Then, when we’re back in Paris, if he’s still there, I’ll hear what he has to say. I need closure.”

  Naomi frowned at her. “I hope you decide to say a few things to him, too. Like, ‘Fuck you.’” She licked more of her ice cream. “So, what’s our deal if you break your promise?”

  “If I don’t keep my end of the deal, I’ll let you set me up with a blind date at home.”

  “YESSS!” Naomi pumped a fist in the air—and her ice cream went flying over her head and landed with a splat in front of a few happy seagulls. “Oops…” She giggled.

  “You know what, Stella? I know it won’t be easy to push your feelings for David aside. But a relationship can’t be one-sided. Give yourself a chance to move on. And, in case you’re wondering, I believe it’s possible to be in love with more than one person.”

  “I can’t make myself fall in love with someone else. But I’ll try not to compare every man with David. I can’t promise you more.”

  “It’s a start. And it’s the last time we mention his name, right?” Naomi said with a stern look.

  Stella nodded, “Okay.”

  After dinner Stella and Naomi sipped a local red wine and watched the sunset from the terrace.

  The fiery sphere dipped behind the edge of the water, and soon the first stars appeared in the darkening sky.

  The sound of waves lapping against the tall stone walls below them, and the laughter of couples and families walking along the promenade, were the perfect background noise to help Stella relax. After a moment, she imagined herself walking along this beach with a little boy holding her hand. And a little girl jumping up and down next to David, singing a song for him or chattering up a storm.

  No! Stop it!

  There wouldn’t be any children holding David’s hand. At least not hers! David wasn’t part of her future. This was really getting ridiculous. She had promised Naomi—and herself—to let the past go.

  She sat up straight and took a fortifying sip of her wine. Two tables away the sisters, Karen and Jenna, sat with Susan, Lynn, and Julia. They were showing each other some of the souvenirs they must’ve bought earlier—T-shirts, shot glasses, postcards.

  “Should we buy something for everybody at home?” she asked.

  “We can look in Saint-Malo tomorrow. And maybe we find something with a pirate theme for Rev,” Naomi suggested. “Like an eye patch or a bandanna. Arrr.”

  “What would he do with them?”

  “What he does with everything else. Try it on, make fun of it, then leave it on the next chair and forget about it.”
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  “I wonder if he found his coffee mugs you moved around when you were over last week. Don’t think I didn’t notice, my friend.”

  “Ha, I forgot about them… I know he hates it when anyone touches his mugs.” Naomi rolled her eyes. “Come on, they are just coffee mugs. But he treats them like they’re sacred.”

  “You know they’re special because Dinah gave them to him.”

  “Yeah, yeah. It’s so cute how much he adores his little sister.”

  “Did you just call Revan cute?” Stella snickered. “Don’t let him hear you. It doesn’t go with the image he strives for. The tough guy and fearless adventurer…”

  “Ladies, can I interest you in a nightcap?” a familiar voice drifted over to them.

  Harry approached the table where the five women sat. He swayed and had to hold on to the backs of chairs. Then transferred his two-handed grip to Julia’s shoulders.

  Naomi sucked in a breath and her eyes opened wide.

  Julia stood up, forcing his hands to drop off her shoulders, and hissed through gritted teeth, “Do. Not. Touch. Me!”

  “He did not just…!” Stella gasped.

  “Yes ma’am, he did. And he better not come near me with his wandering hands, or he can kiss his family jewels goodbye,” Naomi growled.

  A half hour later, when they left the restaurant and walked past the inside bar area, the wall-mounted TV showed a reporter standing in front of a police barricade.

  “What does the chyron say?”

  “Someone took three people hostage in the Paris catacombs. The authorities aren’t releasing details yet.” Naomi translated while she continued to read.

  “Didn’t Kai go there? What’s up with those catacombs?”

  “Yeah, but he went yesterday. It sounds as if this happened sometime this morning.”

  Stella shrugged it off. “Okay. I’m sure it’ll be all over the internet tomorrow, and Caroline can fill us in. It’s not really our problem.”