Chapter 78: Are You Looking For Someone?
Gabriel must be getting ready to return to France, Anna thought with a quiet sigh, her lips tightening into a thin, tense line.
Ever since their strange, emotionally charged conversation in the garden, he had been keeping his distance again—like clockwork, retreating behind his wall of silence the moment things became uncomfortable.
Come to think of it, she mused bitterly, that was the second time we had a tense, unresolved conversation in that same garden. And just like the first, he couldn’t handle his emotions—he fled again, unable to face whatever truths lingered between them. He’s so immature... and yet, ironically, there are times when he seems to have more emotional clarity than I do.
"Chloe?" Marienne’s voice sliced through her thoughts like a needle popping a bubble, pulling her abruptly back to the present. "What are you thinking about so deeply?"
Anna blinked, disoriented for a moment. Only then did she realize they were standing in a completely different boutique from where they’d been just minutes ago.
She’d been so lost in her mind that she hadn’t noticed the shift in their surroundings, the change in music, or even the scent in the air.
"Oh... I was just thinking about something work-related," she replied quickly, her voice light as she masked the truth with a practiced, effortless smile.
"Is it about your art consulting work?" Marienne beamed. "That job of yours sounds so glamorous! You’ve got to tell me all about it someday."
Sure, Anna thought with an inward smirk, though her pleasant expression didn’t falter for even a second. Hopefully, that day never comes.