Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress

Chapter 184: Pardon My French

Damien, Katherine, and Alianna arrived in Champs-lyses, the world-famous avenue. They were standing on the sidewalk, a white sedan waiting for Damien on the curb while he discussed where to meet the ladies later and reminded Ali over and over to be with Katherine at all times. 

Damien could get around France by himself as he was able to speak their language while Ali knew the basics at least due to the lexical similarity between French and Italian. 

"Don't worry, Damien. I'm not going anywhere without Ali" Katherine reassured him, squeezing his hand in hers. Besides, he brought a few bodyguards to go with them so what was there to worry about?

He breathed deeply and nodded. He wasn't supposed to be working today but he just found out that the business partner that he was working with currently was also in France albeit in the next city. They needed to meet or it would not be after a few weeks later until both of them would have a free schedule. 

"Oh, Ali Can I talk to you for a minute?" Damien tilted his head to the side, urging Alianna to walk with him to speak privately. He glanced at Katherine who gave them a nod from where she stood in front of a boutique, busying herself with the expensive-looking apparels behind the glass.

The cousins talked about tomorrow's itinerary and Damien specifically instructed Alianna to buy clothes for Katherine that's appropriate for the weather. They had left in a hurry yesterday and Damien insisted that Katherine pack lightly. After all his long list of reminders and Alianna's repeated reassurance for the nth time, the cousins went back to where Katherine was.

A middle-aged woman walked up to Katherine and spoke, "Excusez-moi, avez-vous vu des distributeurs automatiques de billets aux alentours? Je marche depuis un moment et je n'en ai pas trouv."

Damien hastened his strides when he heard the local ask Katherine about ATMs but he stopped in his tracks when he heard Katherine's reply.

"Dsole, je ne comprends pas. Je ne parle pas franais..." Katherine's voice trailed off, realizing that she had just replied to the stranger in fluent French saying that she doesn't understand and doesn't speak French.

The woman's brows knitted, bewildered by Katherine's answer. She thought that Katherine must have only practiced those sentences just in case but she sounded like a native with the way she spoke. 

Having realized what happened, Katherine's mouth opened and closed, unsure of what to make out with what just happened. 'Holy crap, I know how to speak French,' she said in her thoughts. She stood frozen, her mouth agape as she stared back at the woman in front of her.

Seeing her expression, Damien came to her side in a flash and spoke to the local, telling her that he saw an ATM just a few meters away. 

Alianna arrived at their side. "I didn't know you could speak French, Kath Looks like Damien doesn't need to worry"

"You speak French?" Damien probed, his hand brushing her arm, catching her attention as she looked like she was in a trance.

"I I also didn't know I could" Katherine's voice was small as her gaze landed on Damien's curious expression. She didn't know why but she suddenly felt nervous. She grabbed hold of Damien's coat, clutching it with her hand subconsciously.

Noticing her state, Damien placed his hand at the back of her head and pulled her toward him, wrapping his arms around her. "This is a good thing Don't think too much about it," he told her in a voice so gentle. Just like the local, he was also surprised to hear her accent was flawless. It was as though she had been studying it for years.

Katherine nodded and breathed out, believing Damien's words that it is indeed a good thing. She didn't know why it shocked her so much but just the thought of being able to speak the language she had no idea that she was even capable of doing was a little bizarre yet natural at the same time. 

Damien's phone rang and when he glanced at the screen, he was reluctant to pull away from her. Looking into her eyes, a charming smile formed on his face as he told her, "I wish I could see the city with you today but I hope you will enjoy it even if I'm away." He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her thrice before breaking it. "Call me if you need anything. I'll see you tonight."

The white sedan sped off as soon as Damien got settled inside, leaving the two women on their own in the French capital's famous avenue.

Katherine and Alianna started walking along the rows of mixed affordable and high-end shops, their arms hooking with each other as they did. Alianna nudged her friend as she said, "I've been in Europe for about a decade and I don't speak French as fluently as you do. Good thing Italian is slightly similar. Do you remember coming to France before?"

"No I'm as surprised as you are"

Alianna didn't want to dampen the mood by reminding Katherine of her unknown past so she diverted their conversation. "Mhmm Well, let's just enjoy the day for now. We're in Paris, babe, with a black metal card that has unlimited credit too. I say we should make the best out of this short vacay and shop the heck out!"

Champs-lyses was a shopping paradise. Alianna's eyes lit up seeing the range and variety of stores along the stretch of the avenue even Katherine who wasn't much of a shopper found it quite fun to stroll along the foreign city. It was the height of the tourist season in Paris and it was also summer not the best time to go around in France because of the temperature but it didn't stop the two ladies to enjoy their day out.

They were supposed to head out to Lyon that day but they couldn't because of the sudden changes in Damien's plan. However, it also gave Katherine the chance to see Paris longer.

"Oh my god" Alianna gasped as she stopped in front of a bridal shop. "We have got to go in there!"

"What?" Katherine's eyes widened at the same time that her cheeks flushed.

"You haven't picked out your dress yet, right? I think it will be good to try out a few while I'm here. I need to see you in one!" Alianna grabbed her friend's hand and dragged her inside the shop, the chimes on the door rang as soon as she pushed it open.

Katherine's eyes sparkled upon seeing the endless rows of fluffy and sleek dresses waiting for her to try them on. Her heart began to race when an image formed in her mind of her walking down the aisle wearing one of the dresses, and seeing Damien at the altar looking spruce and waiting for her. 

"It's really happening, isn't it?" she mumbled as she strode towards the racks of beautiful white dresses.

1. Excuse me, have you seen any ATMs around? I have been walking for a while and I haven't found one.
2. Sorry, I don't understand. I don't speak French.