Christmas Reunion in Paris

by Liz Fielding

  Stephen swore.

  “My thoughts exactly,” William said. “Now, here’s what you’re going to do, and it’s going to take all your acting ability. You’re going to go up to that altar, incredibly concerned that your bride-to-be has fallen horribly ill. You’re going to ask to be excused, and you’re going to go back to the house. No one is going to see you, and once I’ve found her we’ll figure out a plan to contain the damage. It’ll be on social media within the hour, so we have to watch our steps.”

  “You’re going to find her.”

  “Oh, yes,” William promised darkly. “I don’t care if we have to call it food poisoning or the flu, but she is going to disappear for a while to ‘recuperate’ until this is under control. Then you can decide if you still want to go through with this farce.”

  “William—”

  “I know. Sorry. We’ll talk more later. Right now, you give the performance of your life and get back to the house. I’ll smooth things here and then find Gabi.”

  Stephen gave a brusque nod. If William had ever had any doubts about his brother’s feelings for Gabi, they were put to rest. He was angry, but he wasn’t heartbroken like a man should be when his bride pulls a runner. It was small comfort, but it was something.

  Stephen went to the altar and cleared his throat. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m so sorry to say that there won’t be a wedding today. Gabi has fallen horribly ill. I thank you all for coming, and I’m sure we’ll set a new date once she’s feeling better. Right now, I’d better go look after my...after Gabriella.” He put on an expression of appropriate concern and affection that even William nearly believed.

  Then Stephen brushed past him and stormed through the door, looking to the rest of the world like a worried fiancé. But William knew that look. And when Stephen wore that expression, his mind was set. No matter what Gabi said now, this “arrangement” was over. Maybe that was a blessing, even if it was a mess to be cleaned up.

  Their mother, Aurora Germain Pemberton, hastened forward, concern flattening her normally soft, ethereal expression. “William, what is happening?”

  He met her gaze and kept his voice low. “Gabi ran. Stephen’s going to the house as if she’s ill. I’m going to find her, and then I’m going to find us a way out of this mess. Can you handle things here? Say as little as possible?”

  She scoffed. “Of course.” Then she looked up at William. “I wish I could say I was sorry, but I’m not. She was not the woman for Stephen, and they do not love each other. But, mon Dieu, I wish she’d done it another way. What a mess.”

  “I know, Maman.” He risked a little of Stephen’s secret. “You know he wanted a happy occasion. Something to make you look to the future, instead of grieving so much.”

  Aurora looked into William’s eyes, and he saw the sadness lurking in the gray depths. “Grief is what it is, darling. I will always grieve for your father. No wedding can take that away.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. It is life.” She smiled a little and kissed his cheek. “Now, don’t worry about a thing here. This is not my first PR crisis.”

  She walked away, head high and so very poised. His mother was an incredibly strong woman.

  One of the bridesmaids was standing back, twisting her fingers in her bouquet and biting her lip. Gabi’s younger sister, Giulia, who had traveled from Italy to be in the wedding. William beckoned her forward.

  “Giulia, right?” he asked.

  She nodded, chewing on her lip even more. She was young, maybe twenty-two or so. And Gabi had abandoned her, too. William might have felt sorry for her except he didn’t have the luxury of sympathy at the moment. A young man hovered just behind her—well, maybe Giulia wasn’t totally alone. She’d brought a plus one with her, though Will couldn’t remember his name.

  “Is my sister all right?”

  “Did you speak to her this morning?”

  Giulia nodded quickly. “Yes, of course. She was nervous, but who isn’t on their wedding day?”

  William searched her face for any hint of lying and found nothing. He was generally good at reading people, and he wasn’t sure this sweet young woman had it in her to be manipulative or a liar.

  “Come with me,” he said, putting his hand on her arm. “Where we can speak more privately.”

  The young man stepped forward, but Giulia gave a quick shake of her head and he halted. Her heels clacked behind William’s black dress shoes as he led her out of the chapel and into the room where he’d found the note. He shut the door behind him and looked her square in the eye. “Your sister isn’t sick. She left a note and ran.”

  “Oh, Dio mio!”

  William lifted an eyebrow. “That’s a common sentiment at the moment.” So far he’d heard it in three languages.

  “Do you know where she is? Oh, no.” Giulia’s hand was now over her mouth, her bouquet dangling from her opposite hand. “I need to go to her...”

  While William believed Giulia’s upset was genuine, he wasn’t swayed by her distressed voice. “Actually, I was hoping you might know where I could find her. This is quite a mess. We don’t want news to get out, do we? Did she say anything to you? Anything at all?”

  “I don’t understand.” Giulia gave a sniff, and William patiently went to the desk and retrieved a tissue for her.

  She dabbed her nose and eyes, and then William started again. “Giulia, your sister and my brother were getting married for appearances only. We both know they are not in love. Marrying Stephen meant that your family’s struggling company would benefit from an alliance with Aurora. Surely you must see how that won’t happen now.”

  Her eyes widened and he felt like the world’s biggest heel. He hadn’t said anything that was a lie, but he was being cold and calculating right now. It wasn’t his usual way of doing things. This was what came of having had to do far too much crisis management since his father died.

  “But... Mama and Papa...this isn’t their fault.”

  He gentled his voice. “No, of course not. But until I find Gabi and we sort this out...” He let the thought hang, and watched as Giulia sorted through the ramifications on her own.

  “William...” She said his name hesitantly, as if unsure if she was being too familiar. “Please, I... I do want to help. She is my sister.”

  “There are two ways you can help,” he said firmly. “The first is to not breathe a word about this to anyone. If it gets out that she left Stephen at the altar, I promise you there will not be a deal with your family. Ever.”

  She nodded quickly.

  “The second is to help me find her. Do you know where she might have gone? Is there anyone she would go to or a place that comes to mind?”

  She shook her head rapidly, then paused. “London. She’d try to hide in London. She always said that a person could get lost there. We laughed about it. Our city is much smaller.”

  “That’s not a lot to go on.”

  Giulia met his gaze. “I don’t know. She joked all the time about staying at the Ritz like Julia Roberts in that movie, you know? Where she always used a cartoon character as a fake name?”

  William fought the urge to roll his eyes. Yes, Notting Hill. His sister Arabella had watched it often enough.

  The Ritz wasn’t a lot to go on, but it was a place to start.

  He ripped a corner off the note and grabbed a pen from the vicar’s desk. “If you hear from her or think of anything, please let me know.” He jotted down his mobile number. “I can’t help her if I can’t find her.”

  And he did want to help her. Only because that was the singular way to help his family.

  And he’d do anything for them.

  * * *

  Gabriella’s hands trembled as she lifted the demitasse to her lips. If they were at Chatsworth Hall, Stephen would have called for restorative tea. But tea wasn’t for Gabi,
not at this moment. What she required was several jolts of espresso so she could make a better plan.

  She’d left him. Fled Surrey in her wedding dress and in Stephen’s car. She’d left the car at the train station, taken her bag and changed into regular clothes before hopping on the train for London. She had never done anything this impulsive in her life—and that included agreeing to marry Stephen in the first place.

  Her couture dress was stuffed into a garment bag and was hanging in the closet where she couldn’t see it. So far the only thing she’d been capable of was getting to the room and ordering coffee. Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking and her stomach quaked as she thought about what she’d done and the consequences.

  What would happen to Baresi Textiles? Her parents? Her baby sister, whom she’d left behind at the estate? Though at least Giulia had Marco. She wasn’t alone.

  Gabi put the small cup down on the table and rested her forehead on her hands. She’d ruined everything. But how could she have gone through with it? Marriage to a man she didn’t love? An agreement to bear a child...to divorce...all for financial gain?

  It had been a dumb idea. She should have had the courage to say no from the beginning. She’d been so very worried about her father and hiding her own broken heart, but that was no excuse for making stupid decisions. At least she could try to make things right now.

  When she thought of Stephen, her gut twisted again. He wasn’t a bad man. He was nice, and incredibly handsome, and he’d always treated her with respect and kindness. He’d been easy to like. But not love. The chemistry wasn’t there. And maybe that had been the clincher. He had been very open about wanting a child to inherit the title that he’d inherited himself only a year ago. In the end, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to sleep with someone she didn’t at least desire.

  Was it selfish? Maybe. It didn’t really matter now. It was done. She’d ruined the wedding and Stephen’s plan and his guarantees for her family’s business.

  And worst of all, she really didn’t like herself at this moment. It had been a coward’s move, and a panicked one. For a woman who considered herself strong and reasonable, jilting a groom at the altar was incredibly out of character.

  Maybe, just maybe, that was indicative of her level of desperation, and not a horrible character flaw?

  She’d just lifted the cup to her lips again when there was a knock at the door. Gabi frowned; she hadn’t ordered anything else from room service and she hadn’t told anyone where she was going. Not even Giulia.

  A peek through the peephole showed William Pemberton, and her stomach turned to ice.

  “Gabriella, I know you’re inside. Open the door.”

  She swallowed against the lump in her throat.

  “This is a hell of a mess you made. I’m here to help you.”

  “I doubt that.” She finally opened her mouth and the words came out stronger than she’d anticipated. Good.

  “Minimizing the damage from this helps you and Stephen. Now let me in.”

  “Is he with you?”

  “No. Now open the door.”

  She did, because the last thing they needed was to be having a conversation with a door between them, where anyone passing in the hallway could hear.

  He stepped inside and she shut the door behind him.

  “Nice room.”

  She met his gaze. Oh, he was angry. So very angry, and he had a right to be. But she would stand her ground, too. Maybe it was messy but she’d done the right thing.

  “I took a basic room, and not a suite, William.”

  “Still put it on my brother’s card, though, didn’t you?”

  “Is that how you found me?” She didn’t deny the card. Stephen had given it to her several weeks ago, to pay for things for the wedding. She’d planned to use it to get back to Italy and then pay him back every penny. She’d kept all the receipts.

  “No,” he answered. “I spoke to your sister.”

  Her gaze snapped to his and held. “I didn’t tell her where I was going.”

  “She’s your sister. She remembers things. Apparently there’s a movie you like quite a bit, Cinderella.”

  The way he said it wasn’t a compliment. And she supposed she deserved it. She’d run from her wedding like Cinderella had run from the ball. Only the prince wasn’t the one roaming the countryside to find her. It was the younger brother of an earl.

  “I couldn’t do it, William. I couldn’t marry him. Not when I don’t...when we don’t...” Her voice caught and she turned away, suddenly exhausted despite the injection of espresso.

  He let out a sigh behind her. “Dammit, Gabi, I’m angry as hell. I like you, you know. I think you’re a good person. I thought you two were making a mistake, but really? The day of the wedding, after everyone got to the chapel? Why wait so long?”

  Tears pricked at her eyes. “I thought I could do it. Mama and Papa...they needed me to go through with the wedding. Having Aurora step in meant security for the business while my father is fighting...” She couldn’t finish the sentence. Even saying the word cancer sent a sick feeling through her body. “Now I’ve ruined it all.”

  Afraid of losing her grip on her emotions, she went to the window and looked out over the city.

  Daylight was softening, and she took a moment to breathe deeply and regain control. Then she turned around. “What happened at the chapel?”

  “Stephen told everyone you’d fallen ill. It’s to buy us some time before we need to make an announcement about rescheduling.”

  Alarm skittered down her spine. “Rescheduling? No, William, no... I can’t do that. No, the wedding is off. I promise I’ll pay back what I spent and...and...” And she thought about her ailing father going through cancer treatments, and how they’d stayed in Italy because he was too sick to make the trip for the wedding, and she finally broke down in the way she hadn’t let herself in the weeks leading to this day. What if they lost the company? What if...he died?

  Large hands settled on her shoulders and guided her to the table where the coffee service was set up. She sat in the chair and tried to regain her composure. Will sat opposite her and poured himself a cup of the espresso. “Take your time,” he suggested. “I’m guessing you need to get that out.”

  She looked up at him through eyes blurred with tears. “Oh, so now you’re nice?”

  His dark gaze was steady. “Make no mistake, Gabi. I’m furious. But if you were upset enough to run from the wedding, I’m guessing there are some hefty emotions that need to get out. I’d prefer you do it now so we can make a plan without that messiness getting in the way.”

  So not so nice. Instead he was a cold, arrogant jerk. Hah. And she’d always thought him the fun one, and Stephen the serious one. No such luck.

  He took out his phone and tapped in a message while she wiped her eyes on a thick white napkin. “What are you doing?”

  “Telling Stephen to keep up the story that you’re ill. And then I’m messaging your sister to tell her you’re safe. You left her behind, too, you know. In a strange country where she doesn’t know anyone.”

  She wasn’t sure it was possible for a human to feel guiltier than she felt at this moment. “She has Marco with her, and a return ticket for Monday,” she reminded him.

  “Yes, and they are now staying at our house. How do you think she feels?”

  Gabi got up from the table and spun away, irritation flaring. “Fine, William, I’m a horrible, horrible human. Is that what you want to hear?”

  But neither tears nor temper fazed him. “All I’m saying is that there are a lot of moving parts to consider. As far as the world knows, you got food poisoning and were too sick to attend the wedding. We’ll feed snippets to the press. And no one here will talk. I took care of that.”

  She resented him even more now. The Pembertons had the money and status to pull all that of
f, didn’t they?

  “Well, I guess you have it all under control.” Even if she’d wanted to, she couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of her voice.

  “Not quite. Making this work means keeping you off the radar and away from the paparazzi. And that means you packing your bag again. You can’t stay here.”

  She laced her fingers together, trying to control the unease trickling through her at his tone. “And where do you suggest I go?”

  “Not you. We. I’m not letting you out of my sight. So why don’t you order us some dinner while I sort out the arrangements?”

  He turned away, effectively dismissing her. If she’d felt that her life was out of her control, she felt it even more intensely now. She was at the mercy of William Pemberton and his family. But she wouldn’t be forever. She’d make sure of it.

  Copyright © 2020 by Donna Alward

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  ISBN-13: 9781488065293

  Christmas Reunion in Paris

  Copyright © 2020 by Harlequin Books S.A.

  Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Liz Fielding for her contribution to the Christmas in the Harrington Park Hotel miniseries.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.