Chapter 42 42

Chapter 42 42
Aspen 

DAY TWENTY THREE

I did not step out the whole day. I felt very tired and very hungover and I spent my days indoors, trying to regain myself after drinking so much. 

Once it was close to evening. I freshened up and changed into comfortable clothes just as Killian had asked and I went ahead to wait for him. He arrived about 10 minutes after I was done. “Where are we going?” I asked curiously. 

“You will see when we get there. I’m coming.” that was all he said before disappearing into his room. I sighed heavily and then slumped on the couch that I was sitting on. Killian was out in about 20 minutes. He was dressed casually with a long coat over his coat. 

“Let’s go.” I stood up and curiously followed behind him. It was already 6 in the evening. We arrived at the grand floor and that was when Killian spoke again. “The Eiffel Tower is close by. Do you want us to walk or drive there?” My eyes widened and I looked at Killian in shock.

That was where we were going. “What?” I was still in shock and was thinking maybe I must have heard wrong or something. But Killian just said that we were heading to the Eiffel Tower. I immediately felt excited. 

Excitement bubbled in my chest, pushing away the usual sharpness of our arguments. “You’re serious? The Eiffel Tower?”

He lifted a brow. “Do I look like I’m joking?”

A laugh escaped me. “Oh my God. I can’t believe this. I thought you’d drag me to a….never mind—”

“You sound disappointed.” His mouth twitched as though he was fighting a smile.

“Disappointed?” I shook my head quickly. “No, no, no. I want to walk. Please, let’s walk. I want to see everything.”

Killian sighed like a man agreeing to climb a mountain, but there was no real annoyance in his voice. “Fine. But don’t say I didn’t warn you when your feet start aching.”

We walked side by side, the Paris evening wrapping around us. Streetlamps flickered on one by one, their warm glow spilling across cobblestones. Cafés buzzed with laughter and clinking glasses, and the scent of pastries and coffee drifted through the air. I slowed down constantly, staring at the elegant shop windows, pointing at artists sketching near the Seine, craning my neck at balconies overflowing with flowers.

Every few steps, I stopped to take photos.

Click. The golden glow of a café.

Click. A flower shop with roses spilling onto the sidewalk.

Click. The way the street curved into the distance, like something from a painting.

“Again?” Killian asked after my fourth stop. “You’re going to fill your phone before we even get there. Stop being an uncivilized woman.”

I grinned and raised my camera again. “You don’t understand. This is Paris. I have to capture everything.”

“You’re worse than a tourist.” Claire would have been so patient if she were with me. She’d not complain. 

“I am a tourist,” I shot back, laughing. “And you’re just lucky you married one who appreciates beauty.”

He muttered something under his breath, but I caught the faint curve of his lips as he shoved his hands deeper into his pockets. 

Then, without warning, it appeared.

The Eiffel Tower rose into the twilight, dazzling and breathtaking. My steps faltered, and I froze right there on the street.

“Oh my God…” My voice cracked with awe. My heart pounded as if I were seeing something out of a dream.

Killian slowed beside me, watching my reaction. “You like it?”

“Like it?” I turned to him, my eyes wide and shining. “I love it. Killian, it’s… It’s beautiful. Look at it!”

He gave a casual shrug. “It’s just steel and lights.”

I smacked his arm lightly. “Don’t ruin this for me. This is….this is magic.”

And before he could answer, I had my phone up again. Click. The tower glowed against the darkening sky. Click. A couple kissing beneath it. Click. My own face in the frame, my smile so wide I almost laughed at myself.

“Here,” I said suddenly, handing my phone to him. “Take one of me!”

Killian raised a brow. “Seriously?”

“Yes! Please. Just one. Or… maybe ten.”

He groaned like a man tortured, but he took the phone from me. I struck a pose with the Tower behind me, then another, and another. Killian sighed, but he followed my directions, snapping pictures without complaint.

When he finally lowered the phone, I hurried over to check the photos. My eyes widened in delight. “They’re perfect! You’re actually good at this.”

Killian snorted. “Don’t get used to it.”

We reached the base of the tower, and I craned my neck so far back I nearly tipped over. Killian’s hand slid instinctively to my waist to steady me, and my stomach fluttered at the unexpected gentleness.

“Want to go up?” he asked.

I could only nod, grinning like a child.

The elevator ride made my ears pop, but when the doors opened at the top, I gasped. Paris stretched out endlessly, glittering with lights like a sea of stars had fallen to earth. The city glowed golden, the Seine winding like a silver ribbon through it all.

“Oh…” I whispered, breathless. “This is the most magical thing I’ve ever seen.”

My hands fumbled for my phone, and I snapped photo after photo. The skyline, the twinkling lights, the glow reflecting in the river. Then I turned the camera on us. “Come on,” I whispered, tugging Killian closer. “One together.”

He frowned. “Do we have to?”

“Yes.” I leaned against him before he could pull away, lifting the phone. Our faces filled the screen, the Eiffel Tower lights framing us. I pressed the button. Click.

The photo captured something I hadn’t expected. I was grinning so hard my eyes crinkled, and Killian, looking at me instead of the camera, his expression softer than I’d ever seen it.

I gasped, clutching the phone. “Oh my God, Killian, look at this!” I laughed, spinning to show him. “We look… we actually look like we’re having fun. Finally, since you are allergic to that..”

I couldn’t stop smiling. My cheeks hurt, my chest felt light, and my heart thumped with the rush of the moment. Paris 

“Thank you for bringing me here. I mean it. This… this is everything I dreamed of.” I breathed out, feeling grateful to Killian for once. For once, I did not want to kill him. 

For once, he didn’t tease me, didn’t make a sarcastic remark. He just watched me, his gaze steady, almost intense.

The laughter lingered on my lips as I looked at him, still buzzing with excitement, still babbling about how the city looked like scattered diamonds. Then suddenly, he stepped closer.

“Kill?” I asked softly, tilting my head.

Before I could process, his hand brushed against my cheek, and then….his lips slammed on mine.