Chapter 17
I tried to fall asleep, but it was impossible.
I didn't understand my sister's attitude. I needed to ask Gerard if he had investigated something.
Her attitude and words hurt me, and if my fake fiancé could give me some peace of mind, I would be eternally grateful.
The next day, I picked up my phone and dialed his number.
"Julie, I'm glad you called. We had an incredible evening yesterday; Grandfather was very happy," even hearing his voice made me happy.
"I'm glad you say that. By the way, I wanted to invite you for a coffee. Do you have time?"
"For you, I always have time, Julie. I'll come to pick you up."
"Okay, see you this afternoon."
I approached my mother to share my plans with her.
"Mom, I'm going out with Gerard. He's already waiting for me outside the house."
"Okay, my daughter, I'll see you tonight."
The doorbell rang, and when I opened it, I smiled shyly seeing the handsome man on the threshold.
"Hello."
"Just a simple hello?" he slowly approached me and gave me a kiss, which became more and more intense.
I pushed him away, feeling that he was going to overwhelm me with desire again, like the first night we were together.
"I need to talk to you, Gerard, it's important," my cheeks were burning.
"Okay, my dear. I'll take you to a place you'll love."
We arrived at a café called Candy Café, very popular for its American desserts and ice creams, as well as its colorful decoration.
"Wow, this place is really nice; I've never been here before."
"It's very popular on social media; I thought you'd like it."
"Usually, you have to wait for hours to get in, and we got in very quickly," I raised an eyebrow.
"I think you're forgetting who I am; I simply spoke to an acquaintance, and voilà, we got a table reserved in the garden area."
"This place is beautiful; it's full of roses," I said excitedly.
"Come sit down, tell me what you wanted to tell me."
"Gerard, I already know this topic is a waste of time, but I'm still a little worried. It's about Sophie; do you think she and I are really sisters?”
Gérard' s POV
I couldn't yet tell Julie what Luc had investigated; I needed further evidence.
"You can be sure you're not adopted, my dear. According to Luc, they are your real parents, and besides, you look identical to them. You shouldn't worry about your sister's insignificant words."
"I already know I look a lot like my parents, and that's why I don't doubt I'm their daughter. But then Sophie really makes me doubt. You know, yesterday she wasn't even present at my engagement dinner."
Julie looked sad, and I didn't like seeing her like that, so I tried to comfort her.
"Maybe she's jealous that you're taking her boyfriend," I joked.
It worked; Juliette burst out laughing, amused by the joke.
"I couldn't possibly do something like that; I couldn't be that selfish," she bit her lip. "Sophie is my sister, and even if I were still in love with Bastian, it would never cross my mind to interfere with him, knowing they are a couple," she said.
"So you're not in love with him anymore," I asked with extreme interest.
She blushed intensely, and my heart skipped a beat.
"No, not anymore."
We remained silent for a moment until she said:
"I have a photo where I am with Sophie; you can see the big difference between us," she added sadly. "We were best friends."
"Would you let me see it?"
"Of course not, in all the pictures, I look horrible; my father wasn't a good photographer."
"Next time, I'll ask your mom; she won't hesitate to show me your baby pictures," we both laughed.
"My mom will be thrilled with your request.”
"Let's get back to the subject of your sister. Why not just talk to her? Ask her what happened, why she suddenly changed so much with you?"
"I've of course tried several times, but she always refused to talk to me."
"Julie, let me ask you something. Is Sophie the only one in your family with dark hair and blue eyes? I've told you once before, she's very different from you."
"According to my dad, she resembles our grandfather Jacques. My dad told me that grandfather passed away when he was very young, that's why my dad only has one sister."
"So you didn't know your paternal grandfather?"
"That's right, I only know him through photos, they're very old."
"Are those photos in black and white?"
"Yes, as I told you, grandfather passed away very young, my dad was just a child," he looked at me curiously. "Why this question, Gérard?"
"Just curiosity, as I said, don't let your sister's words get to you, little one."
"Okay."
The afternoon passed quickly; I invited Chloé, and it was time to confess to her that I'm getting married and I want her to be my maid of honor. I don't have many friends anyway.
"My dear, we finally have a girls' night out. It's been a long time since we went shopping and ate together."
"You leave me speechless, Chloé, you have a lot of energy. Let's go eat, I'm hungry."
"You know shopping excites me."
We arrived at one of Italy's most famous pizzerias; we ordered our dishes, and I decided to reveal the news to Chloé.
"My dear, I want to talk to you, it's very important."
"You're marrying the handsome Gérard," she said, laughing.
"Chloé, you surprised me, how did you guess," I looked at her perplexed, receiving an equally intrigued look.
"What? It was just a joke, Juliette."
"Well, now I'm telling you it's not a joke, and I want you by my side on that day."
"Juliette, you've been dating him for such a short time, are you really that in love?"
"Chloé, if I tell you a secret, will you promise not to tell anyone?"
"My dear Julie, you know you can trust me."
I couldn't hide the truth from Chloé anymore; I knew I could trust her.
I told her everything, how I met Gérard, and how I came to accept marrying him.