Page 56 of Love in Bloom

“You’re more than enough.”

“Only if you let me in.”

Tristan sighed. “I’m not sure I even know how.”

They stared at the pond a long time. Tristan took her hand and led her through the Water Garden. Silently they walked, each lost in their complicated thoughts and emotions. Or at least that’s what Camille imagined was going on as she admired the maples, bamboo, Japanese peonies, and willow trees.

They crossed over the green footbridge to the Clos Normand garden, where elegant metal archways were adorned with climbing plants and flowers. They walked along the central path where countless varieties of flowers resided. She drank in the colors of irises, poppies, daffodils, tulips, and peonies. She commandeered Tristan’s phone to take pictures stored in her special album.

“In the spring the apricot and apple trees would’ve looked like snow.” Camille remarked, breaking the silence.

“Now they are heavy with growing fruit.”

“You’re not allergic to bees are you?” Camille asked as several zipped around them on their way to pollinate flowers. Their buzz filled the air.

“No. Are you?”

“No.”

“Are you hungry?” Tristan gave her a sidelong glance.

“No.” Her appetite had fled after Tristan confessed his disastrous marriage. She was still trying to process all he’d said and experienced and what it meant for them, for their future, if they had one. She found that her desire to keep Tristan in her life had grown exponentially in the past hour. She wanted to banish his bad memories by outshining them with good ones. “Are you?”

“No.”

They stopped to admire the works of a group of artists painting the garden, trying to emulate Monet’s style.”

“We should buy one,” Camille said.

“I don’t know if they’re allowed to sell them on the property. Besides, aren’t they part of a class or something?”

“No idea. This is when it would be useful to have a car. I bet there are shops nearby that sell originals created here at Giverny. I don’t want a print from the gift shop.”

“That is a difficulty.” He checked the time on his phone. “We’d better get back. It’s nearly time to go.”

They made their way to the rendezvous spot, stopping to take a picture of a French couple.

“We have a good chunk of time left in the day. Is there anywhere in Paris you’d like to go?” Tristan asked.

“The Eiffel Tower?”

Tristan clicked around on his phone. “Sold out. Quite a popular attraction.”

“Sacré-Coeur?”

A few more taps on Tristan’s phone. “No problems there.”

“We can hike to the top. The view is spectacular, similar to the Eiffel Tower, though not as high.”

“And we can time it to be there at sunset.” He grinned.

“Sounds perfect.”

He pulled her into a hug and pecked her on the cheek. “Thank you, Camille, for accepting me as I am, baggage and all.”

“You’re welcome. How could I do anything else when you do the same for me? That’s what people do when they care about one another.”

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