Sophie watched the road signs gradually change, now more French than English and she knew the journey would soon be over. She folded the newspaper she had been reading and closed her eyes. No matter how hard she tried she could never fall asleep like the other passengers around her. She envied this gift some people had; they could drop off to sleep within seconds of a journey commencing, whereas she spent her whole journey just trying to stay awake.
She sighed to herself as she opened her eyes and without trying to seem rude she looked around at the people around her. The Euro star train was not as packed as was usually the case and towards the end of the train she noticed a man, probably in his late thirties engrossed in a book he was reading. He had thick dark hair with rebellious curls and she could tell he had a well toned body under the open leather jacket. She felt a wave of curiosity about the book he was reading and what would take this man to stop reading and look up and notice her. This random thought brought a smile to her face as she chided herself silently for being silly. She never had much luck with men anyway and why would today be any different?
Before long the train stopped and Amelia busied herself getting all her belongings together before getting off at the Gard du Nord station. She pushed her hands through her long hair and pulled it into a knot to keep it from flying into her face and got ready to take a taxi to the nearest hotel.
Sophie was spending a weekend in Paris. She wanted to get away from London for a few days to take time off from her busy work schedule. Well this was the plan but she knew this wasn’t going to be easy as the office did not seem to function without her. She had already received twenty new emails filtering in on her blackberry. Ignoring them for the moment she tried to concentrate on the conversation the taxi driver insisted on having with her in French. He was excited as tomorrow was Valentine’s Day and he was planning to spend the day with his girlfriend. Amelia could tell how much in love he was and she tried her best to reply back to him in faltering French. Even though she felt happy for him a feeling of sadness overcame her, it was Valentine’s day and she would be alone.
It was nearly 7 in the evening when she finally reached her hotel. Once booked in, she showered and debated whether to order room service or have her meal in the dining area of the hotel. Choosing the latter, she picked out the black dress her roommate, Emma, had pushed into her travel bag. “You never know who you might meet out there Sophie and Paris should see you looking at your most belle” Sophie had laughed at this comment as there was no time for love in her life. Her mind wandered back to the urgent emails she had to send back to the office but for the moment she decided to focus on herself. Normally, she kept her long hair tied up in a pony tail or in a twist but today she decided to let it fell down to her waist. She took time to do her makeup, something she never bothered with too much as her life was always so hectic.
Just before entering the hotel dining area she looked across the street at the open air café opposite the hotel. It looked quite charming and she decided to walk across and have a meal there instead. Paris at this time of the evening was stirring and as she looked around at the couples around she felt quite self conscious of being on her own. The night air seemed inviting, as if waiting for something to happen and she wished tonight she could meet that special person who was meant to be her love. "If you are out there listening Cupid, I am waiting for you to work your magic" she whispered to herself as she sat down at one of the tables in the cafe. Lost in her thoughts she studied the menu, translating the French into English and not quite sure what to order.
"Do you mind if I join you?" she heard a man's voice ask over her shoulder. Quite startled at this sudden interruption, she turned around, still not sure if the question was intended for her. Her pale face flushed for a second. It was the same man she had seen on the Euro star train and as he waited for her reply she noticed how white his linen shirt looked against his tanned skin. He had not managed to tame all his curls. There were one or two loose ones around his forehead and she stopped herself reaching out and pushing them back. His quizzing eyes continued to wait for an answer as she heard herself answer "yes of course you can". He pulled up a chair and there he was across her table, looking at her.
Sophie could not believe this was really happening. Had she actually allowed this total stranger share her meal with her? What was it she had always heard Emma say about making a wish, well, she could not remember it now but whatever it was, it seemed to have come true.
She heard him introduce himself as Ryan; he too was from London and was in Paris for a marketing assignment. She let him order the meal for them both and then he turned his full attention to her. He asked her about her life and her interests and what she was doing in Paris. He was quite surprised that they had been on the train together, when Sophie mentioned it in a very casual manner. Sophie felt heady as the evening passed; she had never felt such strong feelings for anyone, especially when she felt his hand touch her hand across the table.
After the meal, they both walked across the Champs de Lysee and Sophie wrapped her shawl around her shoulders as she felt the crisp night air caress her shoulders. She felt him reach out and hold her hand and she knew Valentine’s Day in Paris would be quite exciting for her. This was one rendezvous she was never going to forget quickly and as she breathed in the fresh Parisian air she whispered, 'thanks Cupid, you never lose your touch, Merci Beaucoup'