You do like hurting Xavier, don't you? And you do it so well - Two struck me, piercing my composure so swiftly I didn’t realize I was wounded until I moved on to the next picture. That is such a wonderful turn of phrase.
I love this too - Etienne gazed at her in what could only be described as awe and reverence. I remember a good friend telling me that the first time he saw his daughter, he had never felt such intense love and such intense fear as at that moment. You capture that feeling.
But I want to hit Gavin. If I was Sylvie I'd be thinking my father was dead, the way he broke the news. But the way you preceded the news with the light hearted banter was very effective.
What a testament this is - If Lucie fell apart on us, all hope was as good as lost. Poor Lucie.
So having turned the world upside down, I have to wait a week to see it begin to turn back? *sits back to wait, practises patience*