Encounter in London
After spending a week with my beautiful Juliette, it was difficult not to think about her constantly. But I knew that I had to be realistic, and so I recovered the way that I always did in these situations - I threw myself into my work.
While I had been sightseeing in Paris with Juliette and Madeline, I had had an idea for a story that could develop into my next novel. It involved three people looking for an ancient treasure that was reputed to be hidden somewhere in the city. I had developed characters based on Juliette and Madeline, suitably disguised of course! In the back of my mind I knew that I would have to return to Paris to do some more research for the story. I wondered if it would be possible to arrange another liaison with Juliette when I did this.
About three weeks after returning to London I received a letter from Madeline. Actually, it was a letter from Juliette that Madeline had forwarded to me. She said how much she had enjoyed our time together, but that it would be impossible for her to visit Paris again for some time. No doubt she knew what I was thinking. She asked me not to write back to her as there was always a possibility that someone would find my letter. So I wrote to Madeline and asked her to subtly thank Juliette for her letter next time that she wrote to her.
I continued to work on my novel. Then a few weeks later another letter arrived from Madeline. Only this time, the letter had been written by Madeline herself. She told me that she had been invited to a debutante ball to be held in London for one of her old friends. Some of her other friends would be there, people who had seen us together in Paris, and she asked if I would escort her to the ball. That way, she said, we could continue l'deception.
I thought briefly about her proposal and decided, why not? I hadn't dated any other women since returning from France. It would be good to get out and do something social for a change. And it might be useful to keep up l'deception. Besides, Madeline was fun to be with. It wasn't as though I would be cheating on Juliette by going to a party with Madeline, especially since in all probability I would never see Juliette again.
I was waiting on Platform 8 at Victoria Station when the 'Golden Arrow' arrived. As soon as Madeline saw me, she ran and threw her arms around my neck and kissed me. Looks like we are starting the charade a little early, I thought. But I enjoyed the kiss.