CHAPTER 1: MEETING A HANDSOME GERMAN

"Hey, Cecilia, you're back! How was the food?" Veronica asked, eyeing her sister in amusement as Cecilia walked into the hotel room. "Not nice," Cecilia shook her head, heaving herself onto the couch with a deep sigh. "Oh, well, you were the one who wanted to taste German dishes," Veronica teased, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah," Cecilia replied. "Remind me to stick to American food from now on." She rolled her eyes, touching her tummy unconsciously. "How about we go out on the streets?" Veronica smiled. "You know, find a nice bar and just settle down. That would be nice." "You know what would be nice, Vero?" Cecilia asked, yawning. "If I just lay on the bed, closed my eyes, and slept." She chuckled. "Goodness, I'm really tired." "Come on, Cee," Veronica prodded. "Don't be a boring sister." She nudged Cecilia playfully. "It will be really nice. Who knows, I might find a nice man there." "A nice man... yeah, right," Cecilia chuckled sarcastically. "I'm serious, Cee. You have Terry. Who knows? I might just leave this beautiful country with a handsome man." Veronica shrugged. "All right," Cecilia nodded, smiling. "But we'll be back early, though." Veronica quickly dressed up in a lovely gown and combed her hair. Cecilia was still lying on the couch lazily, already dressed. When Veronica was done, they both went out and boarded a taxi. "Where to?" the taxi driver asked in a thick accent. "Any bar in town," Cecilia answered. "A nice one, though," Veronica said, chuckling slightly. "We have lots of nice bars. I'll take you to my favorite," the taxi driver assured them, kicking the engine and driving off. In no time, they arrived at a bar and settled down. "So, Terry called me and was saying that he misses me," Cecilia said as a waiter poured them some drinks. "Gosh, I miss him more," she added, a bright smile on her face. "You can have him down here," Veronica teased. "I'm just kidding," she laughed when Cecilia eyed her. "You know, I can't help but think what being married to him will be like," Cecilia said dreamily. "You guys thinking about having kids?" Veronica asked, raising her brows. "Of course we are," Cecilia replied, nodding enthusiastically. "What is love without having kids?" Veronica didn't reply. She was distracted by someone coming in their direction. "I think my German man is on his way." "Hello, ladies." The man waved when he got close to them. "Hi." Veronica waved back, smiling. Cecilia stared at him. "Your beautiful friend didn't say hi," the man said. He was talking to Veronica but looking at Cecilia. "She's my sister," Cecilia answered, her voice icy. "And as you can see," she waved her hands around the table, "we're having a kind of sisterly conversation." "Cecilia!" Paul chuckled, pulling out a seat and sitting down beside them. "Nice name," he smiled. "And nice to meet you. I'm Paul." He paused as though trying to let the name sink in. "Paul Klopp," he added, extending his hand to Veronica. "Who cares?" Cecilia muttered, glaring at his hand. "I'm Veronica," Veronica smiled, disengaging from the handshake. "Can I get you guys something to drink?" Paul asked. He turned around and saw a passing waitress. He said something in German, and the waitress nodded and walked away. "Oh, you're German," Veronica said, her eyes widening in surprise. "Of course I am," Paul replied, smiling. "I told her that we'll need three bottles of their best wine." "Oh! Your English is on point, that's why I'm surprised. And the accent—nothing like the Germans I've met," Veronica said, grinning from ear to ear. "My mother is American, and I schooled there," Paul explained. He looked at Cecilia, who rolled her eyes. "Oh, seeing that you're here, you seem to prefer Germany," Veronica observed, her eyes glinting with curiosity. "Hmm, probably." Paul shrugged. "But I'm not here because of a preference. I'm here because I decided to join the German army," he said, pride evident in his voice. "Oh, a soldier." Cecilia's eyes widened. "That's just great." She clasped her hands sarcastically. "Can you leave us alone now?" Cecilia asked, her tone dismissive. "Can I get your number?" Paul asked, looking at Cecilia, his lips curling into a smile. "And then I'll leave you guys alone." "Jesus Christ, no, you can't," Cecilia's tone raised slightly, sounding incredulous. "I'll give you mine," Veronica chirped hurriedly, turning to look at Cecilia nervously. "I don't care if you give him yours," Cecilia waved dismissively. "Ah, is she usually like this?" Paul asked, turning to Veronica. "To people I don't like? Yes," Cecilia replied, her tone laced with ice. "Okay, so what can I do to get you to like me, then?" Paul smiled, shrugging. "Gold or silver. I have none, by the way," he teased. "Leave. That's what you can do," Cecilia said firmly. "And by the way, I'm married." She lied. "Okay, I'll just leave you, ladies," Paul said, frowning as he stood up. "When can we see you again?" Veronica asked a bright smile on her face. "I can't tell," Paul shook his head. "I'm being deployed tomorrow to Poland for some military exercise." He brought out his phone and handed it to Veronica. "You can punch in your number," he said. He then took hers and wrote his number. "I can't get yours, I suppose?" Paul asked sarcastically, a small smile playing on his lips. "Not in this world," Cecilia replied, rolling her eyes. When he left, Veronica turned to Cecilia. "Cee, you were too harsh on him," Veronica said, chuckling lightly and raising an eyebrow. "I was?" Cecilia asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. "That'll be because I don't like him," Cecilia added. "He was so rude. Come on, look at the way he sat down without being invited or how he ordered wine without asking for our preference." Before Veronica could reply, the waiter from earlier came to their table with a tray containing three bottles of wine. Cecilia and Veronica exchanged looks and laughed. "You're paying for these, Cee. You chased the man away with your attitude," Veronica laughed.