As the Eurostar pulled into Gare du Nord, it felt like coming home. Stepping down from the train - phone in one hand and suitcase handle in the other - Paul spent no time looking around. He’d spoken to no-one on the train and there would certainly be no welcoming smile as he came through the gates to the expectant throng.
The thrill of Paris always hit him when he reached the pavement outside the station. He had a number of places to visit this time and the short walk to his hotel was both familiar and pleasant. Nodding to several of the bar owners as he passed, he realised that they probably thought he lived locally: six or seven visits every year for the last ten years nearly qualified him as a regular through their doors.
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