Later that evening, after everyone had gone to bed, Regina snuck up to the rooftop garden ahead of Owen to explore. She was baffled as to why the place felt so familiar.During their initial visit to Paris, Owen showed her the rooftop garden to show off his idea of keeping the place free from noise despite being in the middle of the city.And as Regina wandered around, she could hear the cicadas singing to attract their mate.“Regina, are you here?” Owen asked aloud. The whole place felt magical, with the solar lights illuminating the paths and globe lighting scattered among the bushes, bright enough to light up some sections, but dim enough to set the mood and offer privacy.“I’m here,” she replied, pushing her body off the wall that gave her a view of France at night.Owen did not see her, as she was hidden by the shadows cast by some of the plants surrounding her.“I love how you decorated this place.” She said while walking toward Owen. “It feels very enchanting up here. Even thou
Regina ran to her room and hid there for the rest of the night, locking the bathroom door that adjoined their suites, afraid that Owen would use it to gain access to her room. She played back the scenes in her head. The images were vivid, the feelings so real that being with Owen was not just a dream anymore. She initiated the kiss to see into her memories, and it gave her more than she asked for. As she slowly kissed Owen and closed her eyes, the past showed her a memory on another outdoor patio, much like where they were. She had woken up in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to bed. So she walked out to the warm summer night in her black silky lingerie edged with lace that felt like a whisper on her skin, cooling her instantly. Regina loved this time of the night when the world grew quiet, allowing her to think clearly. To chase the memory, she kept kissing Owen. Regina smacked her head when she remembered transferring to his lap to get closer. She did it because t
Regina listened to the sound of the shower in her bedroom as an indication that Owen was not in the living room. Now that she figured out they were lovers, and saw him naked every time she closed her eyes, there was no way she could face him. She just wanted to avoid uncomfortable interactions between them until she could school her thoughts and tone down the images popping into her head. “Breakfast?” Owen asked from the stove as she went straight for the coffeemaker, oblivious of the people around her, thinking it was just Raffy on the stove. “Ahh!” she squealed upon hearing his voice. “I thought you were in the shower. How are you here?” “Did you watch me while I took a bath?” “No, you perv. I heard the water running, so I assumed you were in there.” “Oh, so you’ve been avoiding me again?” “I kept the water running in the bathtub so you can have a soak later to relax your muscles if you wanted.” “Thanks…” Regina returned to the coffeemaker, planning her escape when she fel
“Are you up to taking a quick trip? I have something I want to show you.”Regina looked at her watch and saw that it was still early. “Sure, let me tell Raf we’ll be late getting back, so they don’t worry.”Regina’s heart stuck in her throat as her eyes locked with Owen’s. He was standing near the car, and suddenly, she could see a clear image of him wearing a suit for their first date.Then, when she looked down, the flowery blue top and dark jeans she wore had been replaced with a black, lacy, almost see-through dress with black high heels.Disoriented, she almost tripped, but Owen was right there to catch her. “Are you okay?”“I saw a memory of you and me going on a date.”“Are your memories coming back?”“No. It’s just that moment. And we were right here.” Regina looked up, and Owen had an almost pained expression on his face.“Come, let me show you my surprise, then we can talk about us.”Regina hesitated. What he said made the situation sound so final, as if a tremendous secret
“I had a wonderful time tonight, Owen. Thank you for being kind to my family and bringing them here when I needed them the most.” “My pleasure, mademoiselle,” he reached out to kiss the hand he held. “How did you know? To come?” “You sent me a letter with instructions to find you and make you remember. There are parts of that letter you need to know. You can read it whenever you are ready.” “I trust you, Owen. You’ll know to tell me when I’m ready.” Regina kisses him tenderly. “I have missed you so, mon amour. I am glad that you remembered me.” Owen caresses her cheeks, and his eyes roam over her face as if memorizing every mark on her face. “I will always remember you, Owen.” Regina sandwiches his face between hands and closes her eyes before touching their lips closer. “Always,” she says, as Owen wraps his arms around her in a sweet embrace. “Owen, I don’t want tonight to end.” “Neither do I.” “But I don’t know if I’m ready to have sex yet.” “Then we don’t need to.” “I kn
“What did Raffy say? He doesn’t know I am here, right?” “No, he just told me not to sleep with you until I get my memories back.” “Do you believe him? Should I go?” Owen had been pacing since she left the room. He was behind her several steps when he heard the door to Raffy’s room open, so he held back and let the siblings talk. “You don’t need to sleep here.” Regina places the water glasses on her nightstand, just in case they need them. “I just wanted to keep talking. Maybe show me pictures of our first date and tell me about it.” “We came to Paris for our first date…” Owen recounted and told her how he planned everything as a surprise. He did not have a lot of pictures, but he painted a very wonderful image that made Regina feel they were there on their first date again. She was lying on the bed with her eyes closed as he told her about Francois and the dinner at his restaurant. “I remember the taste of his food. Tell me more.” She sighed when Owen gave her the highlights a
“Owen?” Regina looked under her bed, in the closet, and in the bathroom, but since he was nowhere in her room, she assumed he had returned to his.Regina was glad nobody seemed to know their bathrooms were connected, so Owen escaped freely without Raffy noticing.“You pushed me off the bed, you brat!” Owen grabbed her by the waist and dragged her to his bedroom. He had been waiting on the other side of the bathroom door to surprise her.Regina laughed as he carried her on his shoulder and dumped her onto his bed. The blackout curtains were drawn closed in his bedroom to block out the sun, so it took time for her eyes to adjust.“I’m sorry, you were dead to the world, and desperate times required desperate measures.” It made her laugh because she had to use her feet to push Owen’s heavy, immovable body off the bed just to wake him. “I didn’t want a lecture from Raf so early in the morning.” She said when she felt Owen lie beside her.“What are you? Five? Still afraid of your brother?”
“So you got away scot-free?” Owen asked, as he slurped on the noodles from the Chinese restaurant. They were having takeout because Regina wanted time alone with him.He had never been in her apartment before. It was a small place, but she never complained about it, and he was glad that she had decorated it the way she wanted, unlike her apartment in the States, which had none of her personality.“Yeah, Raf was acting weird.”“What did he say?”“Nothing. I think something is bothering my brother. I just told him I was going out, and he agreed. Didn’t even ask where I was going.”“And Maggie?”“She was tired from the shopping trip this afternoon.”“And you’re not?”“No, not really. I was excited to see you.” Regina smiled shyly while taking a bite of her orange chicken.“I couldn’t pay attention to work either, in case you wanted to know.”“Owen, I have a question.”“Go ahead.”“Were we friends? Is that why we dated?”“No, I avoided you like the plague because of stupid reasons. Or rat