Having the Frenchman's Baby

by Rebecca Winters

  “Be careful what you say, Maman. When we come back from our trip, that woman will be Madame Lucien Chartier, your new daughter-in-law.”

  At the stunned expression on her face he added, “We’re expecting a baby on the third of March. You’re going to be its grand-mère.”

  Giselle pushed herself away from the table and ran around to hug him.

  “I’m so happy for you I could burst!”

  “I knew I could count on you,” he whispered.

  Jean-Marc nodded at him with genuine affection. “Congratulations, Luc. I’m very happy for you. Does Giles know?”

  “Not yet.”

  “The news is sure to please him. He said if you let her escape, he would marry Mademoiselle Valentine himself, if he were younger and she would have him.”

  Luc smiled. He knew the old man had a crush on her.

  “Jean-Marc? I need you to do me a favor.”

  “Anything.”

  “Rachel has been a wine buyer for a long time. Now that she’s going to be my wife, I’d like you to teach her about the family business. Everything. She’s smart, and a fast learner. But the invitation is going to have to come from you and Giselle so she’ll feel a real part of our family.”

  His mother shot to her feet. Anger had replaced her tears.

  “If you marry her, you’re going to alienate everyone who knows us. After your father worked so hard to make the business what it is today, can you live with that on your conscience?”

  “How can you be so cruel, Maman?” Giselle intervened.

  “Don’t you know everyone who knows our family has been wondering why Luc didn’t get on with his life years before now?

  “No one has done anything wrong. Paulette’s chemical imbalance caused her to lose her mind. Let’s be honest about that. I don’t know another man who was willing to go through what Luc did, and now that he’s paid the price, it’s his turn to live. When people find out he’s married again and expecting a baby, they’ll cheer for him.”

  Luc kissed his sister’s cheek. “Thank you, chère soeur.”

  “You think Paulette’s family will cheer you?” his mother cried out.

  He glanced at her. “I can’t worry about that, Maman. I know Yves will support me. He never wanted Paulette hooked up to those machines in the first place.

  “But be that as it may, Rachel and I have a son or daughter on the way. It’s up to you if you want to be a part of its life.

  “Rachel’s mother died years ago, so you’ll be its only grand-mère.”

  Purposely leaving her with that bit of news to ponder during the sleepless hours of the night, he kissed her cheek before striding out of the house to his car.

  CHAPTER TEN

  “WOULD you like to make a detour to London and see your father? We could fly from there to Colmar.”

  Rachel sat next to Luc in the back of the taxi driving them to Kennedy airport.

  She shook her head. “I’d rather tell him over the phone and let him get used to the idea.”

  “Then we’ll do it now.” He pulled out his cell.

  She bit her lip. “I don’t know—”

  “I do,” Luc asserted in that natural voice of command he wasn’t aware of. “He’ll always be possessive of you, Rachel, so the sooner he finds out you have a husband devoted to you, the better.”

  She let out an anxious sigh. “You’re right.”

  “What’s his number?”

  When she told him, he punched the digits, then reached for her hand. This time he threaded his fingers through hers as he’d done at the doctor’s office as if to say they were partners now and would face the world together.

  She checked her watch. “It’s three-thirty over there. He’s probably home getting ready to go to work.”

  Rachel hoped he hadn’t left for the restaurant yet. Once he got there, he was usually out of sorts.

  “Hello, Mr Valentine? Luc Chartier here.”

  She held her breath while they exchanged greetings. Her gaze darted to the diamond ring and gold wedding band adorning her left hand. Luc had left nothing undone during their three-day whirlwind in New York.

  “I’m glad you like our wines. It was my lucky day in more ways than one when Rachel came to Alsace, because this morning she did me the honor of becoming my wife. We wanted you to be the first to know. Here she is.”

  Luc kissed the side of her tender neck before handing her the phone, making it difficult for her to think with any coherency.

  “H-hello, Dad?”

  Her father had viewed her resignation from the restaurant as a betrayal. Since then he’d been so surly over the phone, their conversations had been reduced to brief, unsatisfactory exchanges where he’d railed against her uncle John.

  “Damn if you aren’t a cool customer. I knew there had to be a reason you didn’t meet personally with Jacques Bulot. So when am I going to meet Luc?”

  “We’re flying to Paris in the next few hours, but we could change our plans and come to London instead.”

  “This weekend wouldn’t be the best time for me. I’ve hired a solicitor to fight the codicil in Father’s will. We’re going to be closeted at the house for the next few days.”

  Rachel shuddered. She wanted no part of a fight her father couldn’t win.

  “I understand. Maybe next month you could fly to Alsace and we’ll take you on a tour of Luc’s vineyards.”

  Her new husband could read between the lines and took the phone from her.

  “Harvest is an exciting time, Mr Valentine. We’ll look forward to entertaining you when you come. In the meantime, be assured I plan to take perfect care of your gorgeous daughter.”

  She turned her head away to hide her tears. Luc was going to be the perfect husband. But she didn’t want perfection. His love was what she craved…

  By the time they boarded their flight to Paris, exhaustion had caught up with her. She slept most of the way, thankful to have Luc who looked after her every need. At eight that night they arrived in Colmar.

  Her fatigue still great because of her pregnancy, she drifted in and out of sleep on the drive to the house.

  “We’re home, Sleeping Beauty,” he whispered as he carried her from the car.

  “You’ve mixed me up with my sister,” her voice slurred.

  “No.” Luc chuckled. He placed her on the bed in his bedroom.

  “It’s definitely you, ma belle au forêt dormant.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Literally, my beauty of the sleeping forest. You look exactly like a picture of her in an old fairy tale. I can’t decide which appellation I like better.” He removed her shoes and drew the duvet over her.

  “Other appellation?” she asked groggily.

  “Um. Madame Lucien Chartier. If we have a daughter we’ll have to change the name of the business to Chartier et Fille.”

  That was the last thought she remembered before she awakened the next morning alone on the bed still fully clothed.

  She must have passed out on Luc. Rachel couldn’t remember ever doing that before.

  Light from a semi-cloudy sky had filtered into the room. Disoriented, she lifted her head to glance at the clock on the bedside table. It said eleven-thirty. She’d never slept for so long!

  There was no sign to suggest that Luc had joined her during their wedding night. He must have slept in the basement bedroom.

  In New York he’d gone to a hotel, insisting she’d get a better sleep alone in Rebecca’s apartment.

  If this was going to be a pattern…

  Her heart lurched to think he might have gone to the winery this morning.

  Had he eaten anything before leaving?

  Her stomach was making growling sounds. Though she’d love some rolls and coffee, the doctor had told her to avoid stimulants, so she would have to settle for juice from now on.

  She was tempted to pad down the hall to the kitchen right now, but, after the experience of his mother walking in on her unan
nounced, Rachel decided to get showered and dressed first.

  Luc had put her two suitcases on the floor at the end of the bed. Once she’d found fresh underwear and clothes, she headed for the bathroom, anxious to remove her wrinkled blouse and skirt. After being on a plane, she always felt grubby.

  As she entered the bathroom she noticed Luc had put out his toiletries. His yellow bathrobe hung on the door.

  Unable to resist, she reached out to touch it and discovered it was damp. That meant he’d come in the bedroom while she’d been asleep, and not that long ago either. Maybe he was still here!

  She hurriedly submitted herself to the spray and gave her hair a good shampoo.

  Eager to see him, she towel-dried the wet strands, then brushed it before tying it back with a ribbon.

  Once she’d put on jeans and a printed blue top, she went in the other room to get her sandals out of the other suitcase.

  An application of lipstick and she was ready.

  Halfway down the hall she heard voices. A little closer and Luc said, “Awake at last. Come in, Rachel, and meet my sister Giselle.”

  A slender, attractive woman with light brown hair rushed across the living room to greet her. She looked to be close to Luc’s age and was almost as tall as Rachel.

  She kissed her on both cheeks, exuding a warmth that seemed totally genuine.

  “My husband and I were so excited to learn Luc had got married, we couldn’t wait to come and meet you. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Of course not. I’ve been wanting to meet you too.”

  Luc gave Rachel’s mouth a swift kiss. “Why don’t you sit down with Giselle and get acquainted? I’ll bring in some food. I happen to know you’re starving.”

  He’d probably heard her stomach growling earlier. How embarrassing.

  “Do you want cranberry or apple juice?”

  “Apple sounds good. Thank you,” she whispered before sitting on the couch with Giselle.

  Friendly brown eyes smiled at her, displaying none of the hostility their mother had exhibited.

  “Welcome to the family. I’m so excited. Luc told us you’re expecting a baby in the spring. I’m pregnant again, too,” she confided.

  “How exciting for you!” Rachel blurted. Their children would be cousins almost the same age.

  Giselle nodded. “It’s perfect. This means we’ll have to have two baby parties! My boys are seven and nine, so we need all new baby paraphernalia.”

  By now Luc had brought in a large tray of food. He placed it on the coffee-table before handing them plates.

  With one dark brow quirked he eyed his sister. “Does Jean-Marc know about this yet?”

  Rachel couldn’t help staring at him because he looked and sounded so happy. It made him seem younger and more carefree. She’d never seen Luc like this before.

  “Yes. I told him last night. He’s outside in your vineyard explaining everything to Patrick and Guy.”

  She grinned at Rachel. “You know how farmers always use the birth of a new calf or foal to explain reproduction to their children?”

  Rachel nodded.

  “Well, Jean-Marc’s method is a little different. Right now he’s telling them how the grape seed is implanted in the soil and soon a baby grape vine will poke its little head up.”

  Luc threw his head back in a burst of laughter. “Your husband and my wife have a lot in common.”

  He darted Rachel a devilish smile. It caused heat to fill her cheeks. To embarrass her further, Luc proceeded to tell his sister about a certain conversation in a certain vineyard in Thann.

  While they ate, Giselle winked at Rachel. “Giles said you had a feeling for the vine beyond the ordinary person. Have you thought about what you’ll do now that you’re not going to be buying wines for your family business?”

  Rachel finished the last of her juice. “Actually we’ve been so busy, that’s one subject we haven’t touched on yet.”

  “Good, because I have an idea.” Giselle set down her plate.

  “How would you like to work with me in the wine shipping department? I have helpers, of course, but it would be wonderful to work with another family member who knows what she’s doing.”

  Rachel was stunned by the offer. “Did you pack the shipment that came to Bella Lucia’s?”

  “Giles insisted no one else should touch it. How did I do?”

  “Every bottle arrived in perfect condition.”

  “That’s a relief. It’s a lot of fun really. When we get sore backs we can sit on stools, and if we’re nauseated or tired, we’ll take time off.”

  Rachel’s gaze swerved to her husband’s. “What do you think, Luc?”

  He’d just bitten into a peach. She waited for him to swallow.

  “I think you should do whatever pleases you.”

  “But how do you feel about it? Personally, I mean.”

  He stared at her through shuttered eyes. “Personally I’d love to see you join the family business. It isn’t as if you’re not used to it. But I’m warning you now. At times we can be as difficult and impossible as anyone within the Valentine organization, so you might not want to make a hard and fast decision today.”

  “No one could be more difficult than my father. I don’t have any reservations about working with Giselle.”

  Her sister-in-law clapped her hands to her knees. “Then it’s settled.” She eyed Luc, then Rachel. “I know he wants to keep you all to himself for a few days, so when you’re ready, come to th—”

  “Maman?” One of Giselle’s boys was calling to her.

  “In the salon, Guy.”

  Rachel turned in time to see Giselle’s cute brown-haired sons and husband come in the living room. They must have entered through the basement.

  Luc made the introductions. The boys shook Rachel’s hand.

  “Bonjour.”

  “Bonjour.”

  “Speak English to your aunt,” Jean-Marc prodded them.

  Rachel smiled. “It’s all right. I’d rather they helped me with my French.”

  The youngest boy said, “You and Maman don’t look enceinte.”

  Rachel knew that word. It meant pregnant.

  With a poker face Luc said, “They’ll look like swollen grapes by Christmas, Guy.”

  “Lucien Chartier, what a horrid thing to say!” Giselle chided him, but she said it with a twinkle in her eye.

  “By next spring they’ll both need a vineyard cart to get around,” Jean-Marc heaped it on.

  Giselle put her arms around her boys. “Don’t listen to them. Just think—next year there will be two new babies in the family.”

  “Chouette.” This from Patrick.

  Rachel lifted her head to ask Luc to translate. Her husband read her mind easily. “It means ‘cool’.”

  “It’s very chouette,” Rachel agreed with him.

  While they helped themselves to the food, Luc came to stand behind Rachel. He slid his arms around her waist, resting his chin in her hair. “Rachel has agreed to work with Giselle for a while.”

  Jean-Marc smiled at Rachel. “There’s no better vintner to learn from than my wife.”

  “Were you always a vintner too, Jean-Marc?”

  “I worked for another winery in Guebwiller.”

  “That’s not far from Thann,” Luc explained. His breath fanned her hair. The sensation made her insides melt.

  “One day a package came to the winery meant for Chartier et Fils. The owner told me to deliver it after work. When I walked in the St Hippolyte winery, Giselle was there. We both said hello, and bam, the coup de foudre hit me just like that.”

  Rachel’s heart skipped an extra beat. She could relate.

  “It didn’t hit me quite as fast,” Giselle said, getting her own back at her husband.

  Everyone smiled except Guy. He looked at his mother with sober eyes and asked her a question in French Rachel couldn’t decipher.

  “Non, mon fils,” Giselle answered, giving him a kiss on the cheek, b
ut it didn’t make his worried look go away. At that point Jean-Marc announced they were leaving so the newly-weds could be alone.

  With Luc’s arm around Rachel’s shoulders, they walked Giselle and her family to the front door to see them off.

  When their car disappeared below the crest, Rachel looked at her husband whose expression had grown pensive.

  “What did Guy ask that made everyone so upset? I heard the verb mourir in there somewhere.”

  Luc breathed in deeply and walked her back to the living room. “He’s at the age where he worries about everything.”

  “Like his mother’s baby dying?” Rachel asked.

  Luc nodded. “It’s more than that. He’s afraid the baby will die like Paulette’s and mine did, and that will make his maman die.”

  Rachel bowed her head. “That poor child, but I suppose it’s only natural when you consider what happened.” She eased away without meeting any resistance. It told her a lot about his state of mind.

  “Did the doctor know why Paulette lost the baby?”

  “Its heart just stopped. He couldn’t give us a medical explanation, nor could the autopsy. At a time like that, it was too hard for Paulette to hear the priest say, ‘It was God’s will’.”

  “I don’t know how you lived through it, Luc.” Her voice shook. “Was Paulette working at the time?”

  “No. She liked to shop with her friends and occupy herself with home-making hobbies. We went out to dinner often and enjoyed films. The doctor couldn’t attribute her lifestyle to the baby’s death. It was just one of those things that sometimes happens.”

  Rachel looked at him. “Are you worried about our baby?”

  His dark gaze slid to hers. “Yes. I’ll admit I’m terrified.”

  She bit her lip. “Would you rather I didn’t work?”

  He raked a hand through his hair. “Until you deliver a healthy baby I’m going to be holding my breath no matter what you do. So I’d rather see you happy doing something I believe you’re going to enjoy.”

  “I know already I’ll love working with your sister. I’ve never been around anyone so effervescent.”

  He nodded. “Her bright energy infects everyone.”