Cognac & Couture (The Passport Series Book 2) by Celia Kennedy Page B

stole another
glance at the Vogue entourage and was startled to see him watching me. He nodded when I failed to look away quickly enough. Crap! Some region of my brain absorbed the fact that the models were parading the
entire collection as a finale. Stella took her bow in front of the massive
black fireplace and then quickly disappeared.
    Photographers and columnists rushed to the reception room.
The rest of the masses took their time, for which I was grateful. What would I
say to Sébastien, if our paths crossed? While we shuffled along, I attempted to
participate in conversation, wanting to appear fully engaged, even as the
antennae on the back of my head sought him out.
    I had just given up when I saw him kiss Tiziana’s cheek; she
then introduced him to Ted. What the hell? I had plenty of time to
ponder this thought as the sea of humanity converged, forcing our paths to
collide. Tiziana smiled as I approached. “What did you think, bella? I loved
all the color.”
    Maria Sharapova, who had stood beside Tiziana, answered,
“The pieces were so wearable…” She continued talking, but I was too curious
about Sébastien and how he knew Tiziana to listen.
    I was just about to ask how they knew each other when he greeted
me. “Mademoiselle Ehlers, I am delighted to see you. How did you enjoy the
show?” He leaned in to kiss me on both cheeks. “Did you see anything you must
have?” My being here wasn’t a surprise to him. Why not?
    I saw four sets of eyebrows lift upwards. There was more
than one way to get information. I took the direct route, beginning with, “I
enjoyed the show very much. I see you know the Blackwells.”
    “Tiziana and I have been friends for years. I worked with
her at Olivetti. How do you know each other?” He appeared equally curious.
    “We were at Oxford, studying business law together.” I felt
curious eyes bounce back and forth between us.
    “I wonder how we haven’t met before.” He looked at Tiziana.
“There was a time Tiziana was determined to introduce me to every available
woman within fifty kilometers.” The suspicious grin he wore displayed his
slightly crooked but amazingly white teeth.
    “Not true. I had a friend from Bologna come down for a
weekend once.”
    He ignored her. “I’m just surprised! When I returned to
Paris, you should have introduced me to Mademoiselle Ehlers.” His smile kept
the mood light.
    “She is a very close friend, and you were a young Frenchman. Besides, you seem to know her now!” Her answer was delivered with a sultry
laugh and a verbal slap on his wrist.
    Just then, Sting and Trudi Styler, Jessica Biel, and
Jennifer Lawrence walked past us. While the girls were gawking them, I bravely asked
Sébastien why he wasn’t surprised to see me. “I Googled you.”
    What? You could Google me?
    Ted interrupted our conversation to introduce Sébastien to
Liam.
    Tiziana corralled us. “How do we get them out of here? We
need to get to Cité de L'Architecture et du
Patrimoine l to see Sharon Wauchob.” I chuckled at Tiziana’s
pronunciation; her Italian accent contorted some words almost beyond
recognition.
    Marian shrugged, her upper lip tugged downwards. “He’s your
fecking husband. Tell him to move his arse!”
    It was then that I saw them . “Is Des here?” Des was
Ted’s best friend and international movie star extraordinaire.
    Tiziana shook her head. “No. He’s been in Canada, filming a
movie. Why, bella?”
    I pointed to the two men hovering near Ted who looked
remarkably like Des’s bodyguards. “Aren’t they Mr. NoNeck One and Mr. NoNeck
Two?” We’d invented the nicknames for Des’s bodyguards when we’d first met him.
    Marian chuckled as she squinted at them, running her eyes up
and down them. “Jaysus, the size of their…”
    “Shoulders,” Hillary inserted.
    Charlotte picked up the thread. “And their arms… and legs.
Actually, I’ve always wondered how a penis on guys built like that looks.”
    I watched their