Falling For His Unlikely Cinderella (Escape To Provence Book 2)

by Rebecca Winters

  In a few minutes they walked back to the car and got settled. He turned to Cami. “Let’s take him home and start a fire.”

  “I won’t be able to stay. Maman and I have an early cleaning job.” She was trying to act unaffected, but he saw the little nerve throbbing in her throat.

  “How about my coming by for you tomorrow at five thirty? I won’t press you about getting married, but I’d like an explanation of why you can’t even talk about it. If you’re no longer interested in me, I have to know the truth, whatever it is.”

  “I have a better idea. I’ll come to the villa so you don’t have to leave Alain. We can talk, but I won’t be able to stay long.”

  “Thank you for that.”

  When they reached his house, she got out first. Maybe it was a trick of light, but he thought she’d lost some coloring. “Au revoir, petit,” she called out to Alain before shutting the door.

  CHAPTER NINE

  THIS AFTERNOON CAMI’S world had been completely transformed. She’d been with Raoul and Alain. It had felt like they were a family. He made her want things that were impossible, increasing her pain. She was in turmoil by the time she entered the apartment Sunday evening.

  “There you are. I wondered when you’d get home.”

  “I went to the cemetery with Raoul and Alain. He wanted to put flowers on his great uncle’s grave. I had the time of my life, and no, I still haven’t told him about my heart condition. Please don’t remind me it was a mistake.”

  “I wasn’t going to say anything.”

  “I keep making them. Tomorrow I’m going to make one more and see him after work.” He worried that she wasn’t attracted to him anymore. If he only knew the truth.

  All she could do was tell him she wasn’t ready to talk about marriage. She had to be sure before she could make a commitment like that, and hoped he could deal with it. “But it will definitely be for the last time.” At least until the operation was over and she knew anything concrete.

  “Since you’re getting so attached to the boy, it’s probably better for him that you won’t be there after tomorrow.”

  For him and for me.

  Her mom knew she’d fallen fathoms deep in love with Raoul and his son, but she’d chosen the right words to bring her back to earth in a hurry.

  “That’s what I’ve been telling myself.” Cami poured herself a drink of water. “How was your day?”

  “We cleaned a house that had been damaged by a flood.”

  “We’ve done ones like that before. I hope it didn’t hurt your shoulders too much.”

  “I’m fine. It’s you I’m worried about. I’m not going to let you go to work on Tuesday. You need a day’s rest before you go into the hospital.”

  Her love for Raoul wouldn’t let her rest, but the surgery wouldn’t be long now. Then what. Oblivion?

  * * *

  When Raoul saw Cami’s car out in back, he got up from the table to open the back door for her. She’d come in jeans and a tan sweater, this time with her hair put back in a chignon. She was gorgeous no matter how she did it.

  Alain called out to her from his high chair when she walked in the kitchen. Cami hurried over to the table and sat down by him.

  “There’s my boy,” she said, giving him a kiss. “It looks like you’ve eaten all your dinner.”

  Just then an older woman came in the kitchen. She looked at Cami. “You must be la fameuse Cam.”

  “Delphine LaVaux?” Raoul spoke up. “Let me introduce you to Cami Delon.”

  Cami chuckled, enjoying the woman’s sense of humor. “It’s very nice to meet you, Delphine. You have charge of a very precious little boy.”

  “You’re right,” the Parisian woman smiled. “We’re slowly getting acquainted.”

  She liked the other woman on the spot.

  “I’ve come in time to put you down for the night and read you a brand-new story I know you’re going to like.”

  Raoul nodded. “He’s all fed and ready.”

  Cami got up to undo the tray and pick him up. But when she went to hand Alain to the nanny, he let out a loud “Non—Non—Cam—” and hugged her around the neck.

  Raoul came closer to intervene. He pulled his son out of Cami’s arms and handed him to Delphine. “It’s time for bed, mon fils.”

  “Come on, Alain,” the older woman coaxed him. But he didn’t like it and protested. Cami could hear him crying all the way through the house and up the stairs.

  She glanced at Raoul. “Oh, dear.”

  “He’ll get over it,” Raoul reminded her. “These are early days.”

  “He’s adorable.”

  “I’m biased and agree.” He sat down. His penetrating black eyes studied her for a long moment. “You said you’d tell me the truth. I want to hear it.”

  Unbelievably his cell phone rang, interrupting them. This time he let out what sounded like a curse before he checked the caller ID. In an instant his brows furrowed and he clicked on, then jumped to his feet. After a short conversation, he hung up.

  “That was Dominic. He says there’s trouble at the winery and wants to pick me up. He swears it won’t take long. I pray not because I need to talk to you before the night is out. Will you wait for me? Please?”

  The urgency in his voice kept her planted there. “Of course. I hope it’s not serious.”

  “You never know, but I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He raced through the villa and left out the front door.

  A few minutes later the doorbell rang. Was it Raoul? Had he forgotten his key?

  Cami hurried to the foyer. When she opened the door, she came face-to-face with a dark-haired attractive woman who had to be Raoul’s mother. She was shorter than Cami would have supposed, but she and her son shared certain facial features around the nose and mouth you couldn’t mistake.

  Had she come because of the trouble and wanted Raoul’s help? She’d come with a package she held in her arm.

  “May I help you? I’m Cami Delon.”

  “How do you do. I’m Madame Fontesquieu and I’ve come to see my son.”

  A second visitor. “I’m sorry, madame, but he isn’t here. You just missed him. I don’t believe he’ll be long. Would you like to come in and wait for him?”

  “I would. Thank you.”

  She’d dressed in a three-piece light green wool suit, the epitome of high fashion, and wore her hair in a becoming short style that revealed streaks of silver near the temples.

  Cami showed her into the sitting room off the foyer. “May I bring you coffee while you wait?”

  “That would be fine.”

  “I’ll be right back.” She hurried to the kitchen and poured her a cup, which she brought back to the sitting room. His mother was wandering around examining everything.

  “Here you are.”

  The older woman turned around and sat down on the love seat to drink it. “Who are you exactly?”

  “I’m a friend of Raoul’s. We met while I was helping clean the villa. I work for Nettoyage Internationale here in Vence with my mother. We’ve been cleaning houses for seven years.” His mother deserved to know the truth.

  Her brown eyes narrowed on Cami. “Do you live here?”

  That said it all. Raoul had warned her about the talk surrounding him. Sabine must have added her own assumption after coming to the villa. “Non, madame. I live with my mother.”

  “Who takes care of his son?”

  So his mother did know about Alain. “His nanny, Delphine LaVaux.”

  “Is she here?”

  “Yes.”

  “I would like to meet her.”

  “Excuse me. I’ll go upstairs and tell her.”

  Cami hurried up to the next floor and found Delphine playing blocks with Alain in his bedroom. He called out her name when she walked in.

&
nbsp; “Bonsoir, Alain.” She gave him a peck on the cheek and looked at Delphine. “Excuse me, but Raoul’s mother is here and wants to talk to you. She’s in the sitting room, waiting.”

  The two women eyed each other before Delphine got up from the rocking chair and lifted Alain in her arms. “Come on, mon petit. Let’s go see your gran’mere. It will be a first for both of us.”

  By that remark Cami deduced that Raoul had explained his family dynamics enough to Delphine that she understood certain facts. Cami could only admire her calm and maturity. She decided Raoul had hired an exceptional woman.

  Delphine carried Alain downstairs. Cami followed. They found Raoul’s mother on the phone. The minute they entered the sitting room, she put her cell phone in her purse and stood up.

  Cami heard her sharp intake of breath as her brown eyes filled with tears the second they fastened on Alain. The likeness of him to her son had to have shocked the daylights out of her.

  “Madame Fontesquieu, this is Delphine LaVaux.”

  “How do you do,” Delphine spoke right up. “It’s lovely to meet you, madame. You have a wonderful grandson. Come on, Alain.” She tried to turn him so he’d look at Raoul’s mother, but he fought her and kept his arms around her neck. “Say bonsoir to your gran’mere.”

  Alain started crying and wasn’t having any of it.

  “Let me take him in the kitchen for a snack,” Delphine offered. “It will calm him down. We’ll be right back.”

  Again Cami marveled over Delphine’s handling of a very difficult situation. Her composure was worth its weight in gold and Raoul needed to know.

  His mother reached for the package she’d put on an end table with the coffee cup and handed it to Cami. “Since you don’t know how long he’ll be gone, I’ve decided to leave. Please will you see that Raoul gets this?”

  “Très bien, madame.”

  Cami followed her to the door and opened it for her. “He’ll be sorry he missed you.”

  Her expression appeared haunted before she walked out on the porch and disappeared down the steps.

  After closing it, she carried the package to the kitchen. Delphine had put Alain in the high chair and was feeding him some strawberries.

  “She’s gone, Delphine.”

  “Raoul warned me his mother might come by one day. Can you imagine seeing your own grandchild for the first time? I think it went well enough. Who couldn’t love this little angel?”

  “Especially his gran’mere. He’s absolutely angelic. Since it’s getting late, I’m not sure when Raoul will be back. He had to leave on an emergency. I’ll stay awhile longer, but then I must go. Please see that Raoul gets this package she brought him.”

  “Bien sûr.”

  “I’ll go get the coffee cup left in the sitting room.” Cami started through the house and walked right into Raoul’s arms. He’d just come in and gripped her arms so she wouldn’t fall.

  “I’m so sorry,” she blurted. “I didn’t see you and now you’ve saved me from another fall.”

  “Where do you think you’re going so fast?”

  She eased away from his hard body. “I need to get the coffee cup in the sitting room. Your mother came while you were gone. She brought you a gift. It’s on the table in the kitchen.”

  Raoul hurried through the villa where he found Alain finishing off another strawberry. He kissed the top of his son’s head. “Thank you for everything, Delphine. If you’ll take him up to bed now, I need to talk to Cami.”

  “Of course.”

  “Bonne nuit, mon petit.” He gave Alain another kiss before they left the kitchen.

  Cami sank down on a chair while he opened the package.

  “This is incredible,” he murmured. “My mother has retrieved these without my having to resort to a court order to get them. I’m pleased beyond words.”

  “What are those?”

  “The journals Jerome willed to me.”

  “Oh. That’s wonderful!”

  “Nothing could make me happier. I need them for the new business I’ve started. My mother knew how important they are to me and must have prevailed on Sabine to let me have them and the paintings.”

  “It sounds like your mother loves you very much.”

  “Mother hasn’t known what to make of me for years.”

  “Why is that?”

  “My father has never approved of my way of thinking about life and we’ve never seen eye to eye. Unfortunately he has intimidated her for years. I’ve rarely heard her express her true thoughts. She’s afraid to say or do anything that will upset him. It took a great deal of daring for her to bring me those journals.”

  “But they belong to you!”

  “True, but my father didn’t want to lose Sabine. She fought the divorce, and held those journals and paintings back to use for leverage. My father loves the prestige of the Murat money and influence. He tried to make me hold on to Sabine at all costs. He even had my gran’pere declare me the CEO so I wouldn’t divorce her. He held out against hope. That’s the reason he refused to tell the truth to the media.”

  Finally Cami had the answer to that question. “According to the newscast, she brought millions to your marriage.”

  He nodded. “My father can’t bear to see me part with all her money. One day she’ll be an heiress. Her parents feel the same way about the Fontesquieu fortune. Being married to me, she had access to some of it.”

  “Does your father know about Sabine’s lie to you?”

  His dark head reared. “No one knows except Sabine, the doctor, Dominic and Nathalie, Arlette and now you.” And Cami’s mother. “That’s the way it’s going to stay. The ugliness over money and power in this family has gone on long enough. My father, along with Sabine and her parents, have done everything in their power to keep us together, but it’s far too late.”

  “I love your mother for doing that for you.”

  Their gazes met. “It’s a miracle she was able to convince Sabine to return the paintings and the journals to me. Naturally the news will get back to my father, and Maman will pay a price for it. That’s what concerns me.”

  “It’s obvious she was willing to take the risk. That’s because you’re her only son and she has never stopped loving you. You have to know the truth of that deep down.”

  “I do. I think this was her way of giving me a peace offering. I told her recently that I would be leaving the business soon.”

  “I don’t know how your father ever let you go.”

  “He had no choice.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I’ve told you about him. There’s no hope where he’s concerned. I’ve refused the CEO position. That, plus my divorce, has hardened his heart. When I said goodbye, he didn’t try to stop me.”

  “How tragic for him, but I know your mother couldn’t feel the same way. Oh, Raoul—you should have seen her eyes when she glimpsed Alain for the first time. They were flooded with tears. I had the distinct impression she was seeing you when you were his age. You both look so much alike.”

  “That’s the reason Nathalie had such a hard time trying to figure out which Fontesquieu was Alain’s father.”

  Cami smiled. “Delphine brought him downstairs and I introduced them to your mother who was speechless. I have to tell you that Delphine is the perfect person to be his nanny. She handled those first silent moments with your mother with such grace and respect, I was stunned.”

  “What about you? How did she treat you?”

  “Your mother was civil.”

  Raoul stopped pacing. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

  “Please don’t misunderstand. The second she saw Alain, everything changed for her.”

  * * *

  Raoul loved this woman who was trying her best to defend his mother. He moved closer. Using his free hand, he traced h
er beautiful features with his index finger. “Do you have any idea how wonderful you are?”

  She averted her eyes. “Y-You’re not listening to me,” her voice faltered. “When I saw her to the door, I could tell she’d undergone a shock and I felt sorry for her. Alain is so adorable and she’s missed out on the joy of watching her only grandson grow to this point. No doubt she has suffered over the loss of Celine, just as you have.”

  He loved the depths of this woman. “When I call to thank her for the gift, I’ll tell her she can see him whenever she wants. We’ll see if she can talk my father into coming around. But it’s you I need to thank for being you and knowing how to deal with this whole ugly situation.”

  She was trembling. “Don’t forget Delphine was a saint.”

  “In my opinion you’re both candidates for the title. This news has made my day.

  “Are you really all right, Raoul?”

  He nodded. “The trouble at the winery was easily solved. Word still hasn’t reached some of the workers that I’m no longer associated with the business. They insisted on an explanation.”

  “It’s hard for people to let go.”

  “That’s true for me too. What is the one thing you haven’t told me? I’m still waiting for that answer.”

  “I’ll give you one, but I didn’t expect to stay this long.”

  “That’s my fault.”

  “I promise we’ll talk again, but not tonight. Suffice it to say I’m not ready to talk about marriage yet. It’s too soon.”

  “So are you saying you need more time?”

  “Yes, now I have to go.” She got up from the table.

  “Cami—”

  “Please—it’s all I can tell you right now.”

  It was pure torture to watch her leave. He waited until he saw her headlights and she’d gone. If she needed time, he’d give it to her.

  The first thing he did after getting in bed later was phone his mother. Cami’s explanation over what had happened earlier went a long way to help him find the right words.