Chapter 3

Julian dragged me into the car and took me back to the hotel.

"Jenna, I told you I'd marry you once the trip was over. Are you trying to rush me now?"

"I just want to go on and do my PhD."

"Your family and friends are all back home. Why would you move abroad? Stop throwing a little tantrum."

"Is it that you don't like it here? Then we'll go somewhere else."

"We were supposed to be on a plane today. We only stayed because Molly wanted to see the music festival."

The sound of Molly breaking a glass shattered the tense silence.

Julian hurried to pull her away, and my brother crouched down to pick up the broken glass.

Tears spilled down Molly's face at once. She was so upset her hands wouldn't stop shaking.

"Jenna, didn't we agree we'd live our lives together? How could you leave me behind?"

"Did I make you mad? I'll change, okay?"

My brother stepped in front of Molly right away and comforted her in a low voice.

"Jenna, you know Molly's health isn't good. How could you do this?"

"We'll talk about this later. Molly's a little shaken, so we're taking her out to clear her head first."

"We'll deal with the passport when we get back."

The words I'd been about to say caught in my throat as I watched them walk away.

The wound from when I'd been knocked down, which Julian had then gripped hard in his anger, began to throb, the pain spreading through my whole body.

I quickly asked the hotel for a first aid kit, patched myself up, and went out to keep my appointment.

"Is your hand all right? It's still bleeding. Let me take you to get it looked at."

I froze. Someone I wasn't even that close to had been the first to show concern for me.

They had never asked at all.

I shook my head and said something else instead.

"I'll report to the program in three days."

"Don't you need to go home and say goodbye to your family? There's no rush."

I nodded, thinking I could use the time to go to Provence.

"Jenna, what are you doing here? Did you come for this bakery's cake too?"

Molly's voice came from behind me.

I stared at the three of them standing in front of the cakes. Beside me, Molly was agonizing over which flavor to pick, because she wanted to try them all.

I spoke quietly. "Is there one for me?"

My brother looked up at me, the emotion in his eyes hard to read.

He had promised to spend every birthday with me.

This year he'd even planned for us to celebrate at the lavender festival in Provence, my favorite place in the world.

But on my birthday, the three of them stood beneath lavender that stretched as far as the eye could see and agreed to come back next time.

I was by the side of a road nearly two thousand miles away, searching for a passport I was never going to find.

"Get two. Then you can give Jenna the one you don't like as much."

With that, Julian turned to look at me.

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Jenna?"

After I'd introduced everyone, Julian looked a little unhappy.

Professor Oliver pointed at my injury, his tone stern.

"Aren't you going to take your girlfriend to get that treated?"

Julian's gaze finally shifted from the professor to me.

"I will."

"Miss Sinclair will be in my..."

Molly suddenly sneezed.

My brother immediately told Julian to run to the pharmacy for cold medicine while he took Molly back first.

So they never heard the professor promise to look after me and not let me be mistreated so far from home.

When I got back to the hotel, a staff member came to find me.

"Miss Sinclair, they've already checked out. Please collect your things as soon as possible."

Molly's message arrived late.

"Jenna, our flight's this afternoon, so we won't wait for you. See you back home!"

With money the professor had lent me, I bought a ticket on the next available flight.

I'd go home, then, and say goodbye to Mom and Dad.