“I suppose that was inevitable. You can ask me anything you want about her, Rachel.”
“I know that. Camille was the one who offered information she suspected I’d like to know.”
“Did you learn anything new?”
“Only that Paulette was fun-loving like Yves.”
“Once upon a time she was.”
Luc’s honesty was another quality she admired. But this was one time when the truth was like a bullet wound straight through the heart.
“Is there anything else you want to know about Paulette before we close the book on her?” he asked, sounding so remote all of a sudden, she didn’t know how to reach him.
Rachel took a shuddering breath. “Can you? Close the book, I mean?”
“It closed when I saw the vacant look in her eyes and realized that her spirit had gone.”
With those words spoken, there was nothing more to be said.
Desolate, Rachel stared out the passenger window. They drove the rest of the way to the house in tension-filled silence. The kind that made her feel worlds apart from him though their bodies were almost touching.
The moment they pulled in front of the garage, Luc jumped out and came around to let her inside the house.
He’d put his hand on the back of her neck to guide her. “You go ahead and get ready for bed. I’ll bring in the baby’s things.”
She had an idea that if she argued with him by insisting she help, he would go all forbidding on her.
Being an expectant father for a second time made him feel a deeper sense of responsibility for her than normal. She couldn’t fault him for it, but she’d never been treated like a piece of prized porcelain before.
So far her pregnancy had gone well. She hadn’t experienced any morning sickness. According to what she’d learned from Luc, Paulette’s pregnancy had seemed routine up to the moment the doctor had told her the baby was no longer alive.
Paulette again.
Rachel needed to stop thinking about her, but how?
After a quick shower, she put on a nightgown and climbed into bed. She could hear Luc down the hall bringing more things in from the car.
He was taking so long, she finally switched off the lamp while she waited for him in the darkness. But after a half-hour, she gave up hope that he had any intention of joining her.
In excruciating pain, Rachel turned over and buried her wet face in the pillow.
At some point she must have gone to sleep. She didn’t realize it until something disturbed her. Once again she woke up to discover she was alone in Luc’s bed. Her watch said nine-thirty in the morning.
The house was quiet. It meant Luc had gone to bed downstairs.
She threw back the covers to put on her robe and sandals. Without hesitation she stole down the hall. The second she saw the assembled crib in the nursery, her heart melted to think he’d spent part of last night putting it together.
Needing to talk to him, she went down the stairs to see if he was up yet. If so, she would fix him breakfast.
The moment she reached the storage room, she noticed the door to the vineyard was ajar, letting in light.
She poked her head outside and saw his well-honed frame hunkered down in the vines on the lower slope.
Whether in a sport jacket or jeans and navy T-shirt as he was wearing this morning, he took her breath away.
She walked outside and made her way carefully between the rows to catch up to him.
“Luc?” she called his name in a quiet voice.
He stood up abruptly and wheeled around. “Rachel—what’s wrong?”
Why did anything have to be wrong?
“Nothing. I just came out to find you and say good morning.”
The blood had actually started to drain from his face. There was a look of fear in his eyes, causing her heart to twist in pain because he was so anxious.
He raked an unsteady hand through his hair. “Ma chérie, you’re all right.” His eyes scrutinized her relentlessly.
Like the day of the storm, he was so upset she was beginning to understand just how much this baby meant to him.
She rubbed her palms against her hips nervously. His gaze took in the telling gesture.
“I looked in the nursery. You did a fabulous job putting the crib together. It looks beautiful in there.”
He didn’t say anything. She babbled on. “I’m glad we picked the walnut. Our baby’s going to be very happy. But you could have waited until today to do it. After a late night, how come you’re up so early? You need your sleep, too.”
He glanced out over the landscape. “Insomnia has plagued me for a long time. I’m sorry if my movements disturbed you. You need your rest.”
All she needed was her husband’s love. But his mind was so far removed from being with her, let alone making love to her, she was shattered.
“You’re right, Luc. The more rest, the better for the baby. But I got a good sleep and am up now. Would you like breakfast?”
“Thank you, but I’m not hungry this morning. I’ll come in later and fix lunch for us.”
Making a snap decision, she said, “I won’t be here for lunch, but I’ll make it for you before I go.”
His dark gaze flew to hers once more. “Go where?”
“To the winery. I’m meeting with Giselle. Which car do you want me to take?”
Her question appeared to have caught him off guard. If anything, he looked more ashen faced.
“You want to start work today?” He sounded incredulous.
“Like you, I’m somewhat of a workaholic.”
His mouth thinned. “If that’s what you want, then I’ll drive you.” He started walking toward her.
“That won’t be necessary. You’re busy doing your work. I need to be able to drive to mine.”
“I sold the Maserati and need to buy you a car. For the time being, I’ll take you,” he declared in a tone of finality. “If you leave in the Wagoneer and were to get into trouble, I wouldn’t be able to help you.”
Rachel was confused. “Why did you sell it?”
He pursed his lips. “Now that we’re a family, it’s not safe or practical.”
“But you didn’t know we were going to be a family until a week ago. What made you sell it?”
“It was Paulette’s. I arranged for it to be sold the day after she died.”
“I see.” Rachel could understand how hard it would have been for him to keep something like that of hers around.
She turned to go back in the basement, then paused. “Your mother said you’d built this house in the hope that when Paulette woke up, she would start a new life with you here.
“If you want to sell the house, but were afraid to broach the subject with me, it’s all right, Luc.”
She’d almost made it to the door when she sensed him close behind her.
“Mother was wrong about that, Rachel. I didn’t start building this house until eight months ago. She assumed it was for Paulette. In reality, I built it for me.”
What?
Rachel’s hand clung to the door handle.
“Maman was getting too used to my living with her and Giselle’s family. I only stayed in her house as long as I did because she had a bad time of it after Papa died and my being there seemed to help her cope better, but there came a time when I realized I needed to be on my own again.
“As for the car, it was the one Paulette was driving the day of the accident.”
Oh, no.
Rachel shook her head. “When I think what terrible things I said to you about not wanting to ride in it with you—”
“You were preaching to the converted,” he murmured. “I’m glad it’s gone. I had the repairs done because everyone assumed she would come out of her coma within days or weeks, and kept the car with me as her family couldn’t bear the sight of it. The few times you saw me driving it, I was making sure it stayed in good running condition.”
He shifted his weight. “Why don’t we buy you a Wag
oneer like mine? It’ll be safe for you and the baby. Plus you’ll find it convenient when you take future clients on tours of the vineyards at odd hours.”
Rachel was incredulous. “You want me to do that?”
“Of course. It wasn’t something Paulette could or would do. She didn’t know that much about my work, and showed little interest in it. You on the other hand are going to be one of Domaine Chartier’s greatest assets.”
Luc could hear her mind working back to the night they had first met.
“Then—”
“I lied that night,” he cut in on her. Those gorgeous dark-fringed blue eyes widened in astonishment. “I wanted to be with you, and I refused to take no for an answer. But I didn’t want to frighten you off, so I made up the part about my ex-wife normally doing the honors. I hoped it would reassure you. Does that shock you?”
Her expression was a picture of bewilderment.
“Don’t you mean you didn’t want to lose a possible sale?”
“No,” he whispered. Unable to hold off any longer, he gripped her arms covered by her silky pink robe. “I didn’t care about anything except making sure you didn’t get away from me.”
Her eyes looked wounded. “You don’t have to say that, Luc. I know how you felt about Paulette. How you still feel…”
“Listen to me.” He shook her gently. “I loved her. We got married and had some wonderful years together, but everything came apart before we were actually divorced.
“Until I laid eyes on you coming around the bend in the road, I didn’t know how over our marriage I really was.
“Out of the blue came this knockout woman driving toward me. The truth is, I almost ran into you because I was so attracted, every other thought went out of my head.”
She eyed him soulfully, as if measuring the veracity of his words.
“I’d memorized your license-plate number and intended to track you down. Then a miracle occurred because there you were, sitting in the Hotel du Roi dining room drinking my wine.”
He smiled. “Right then I made up my mind I had to have you no matter how long it took, or what I had to do.”
Rachel’s body tingled as he pulled her closer. “I swear to you Paulette didn’t figure in my consciousness. All I could think of was how to get you into my arms. You were the most beautiful sight I’d ever seen.
“I wanted to kidnap you that night. You have no idea the will-power it took to put Giles in charge of you. But I crumbled the next morning, and that night, and the next day and night.”
He kissed her astonished mouth. “My feelings for you were so intense, I was terrified I’d frighten you off.
“When the storm came up and you offered to help me tie my vines, I couldn’t get you to my house fast enough. Do you understand what I’m telling you? I fell in love with you, Rachel Chartier. Completely, irrevocably. It happened so fast, I’m still reeling.
“It happened that night in the vineyard. You took over my heart. I wanted you in my bed, in my life for ever.”
“Luc—”
“It’s true, mon amour. The morning after we made love, I planned to tell you everything about Paulette before I asked you to marry me. But you were still asleep so I slipped out early to drive to Thann.”
“Thann?”
“I couldn’t propose to you without a certain necessary item.”
She looked stunned. “You mean the nuptial jug?”
“Yes.”
“But if you’d already drunk from it with Paulette, I—”
“Rachel—that jug never left the armoire until I went for it the morning after we made love. You see, I never officially proposed to Paulette.”
“You didn’t?” she asked tentatively.
“No. One day Yves said, ‘You two should get married or never see each other again.’ That was it.”
“But your mother said you went to the hospital, and—”
“Maman said a lot of things without knowing the truth of the situation.”
He kissed her throat. “When are you going to start listening to me? I was so madly in love with you, Paulette wasn’t in my thoughts.
“Shh.” He quieted her with his lips as she started to protest again. “Maman was projecting her own feelings about Papa and hasn’t been through a divorce to understand how my failed marriage killed my feelings for Paulette. Happily married couples can’t comprehend what it’s like, and I swear to you that the only thing driving me for the last few years has been…guilt.”
She shook her head in bewilderment. “Why guilt? You didn’t do anything wrong,” she declared passionately.
He drew in a sharp breath. “I thought I did.”
“What do you mean?”
“When Paulette and I separated, I told you I moved back into my parents’ home so she could still live in the house I bought for us.
“Two days after the judge granted the divorce, Paulette phoned me about the deed to the house I’d given her in the decree. She wanted it to give to her attorney, and asked me to bring it to her, but I suggested she come by the office because I was too busy.
“There was a terrible storm that day, the kind you and I got caught in last month, and during the downpour the truck skidded into her car and knocked her unconscious. If I’d dropped what I was doing and had gone to her, she would still be alive and able to work out her future.”
Rachel cupped his face. “You couldn’t have known that truck would run into her. That wasn’t your fault!”
He kissed her hands. “I know that now. But all those feelings and fears got twisted for a long time. Once I heard about the accident, I didn’t cease begging her forgiveness. But I could never be sure if she heard me.
“I knew that once her family made the decision to turn off the machines, there wouldn’t be a possibility of her hearing me, let alone forgiving me.”
He smiled sadly. “That’s why I was determined she would wake up. That had been my torture until you told me about your twin, and I saw what guilt did to you for something that wasn’t your fault. You helped me understand how wrong it was to keep punishing myself. That’s when I let go of my guilt.”
“Oh, Luc—” She threw her arms around his neck. “You poor darling. So that’s the reason you were so upset when you carried me in the house during the storm. You kept saying it was your fault because we’d worked outside too long. I couldn’t understand your suffering.”
He pressed his forehead to hers. “The thought of anything happening to you almost paralyzed me and you know why, don’t you? I love you, Rachel Chartier, and I believe you love me. But I’ve never heard you say the words. Tell me you love me,” he begged.
“I have told you—” she cried. “Over and over again. Why do you think I married you? It was for one reason only. I’m in love with you!
“When I told you that you were the only man I ever wanted, I was really telling you I’d fallen head over heels in love. But I didn’t know your true feelings.”
He crushed her mouth with his own, drowning in euphoria because she was kissing him back with the whole of her heart and soul.
His mother’s words filled his mind.
If you could have heard the joy in her voice, or have seen the stars in her eyes…
Luc was hearing and seeing and feeling it all now…
He bound her soft, curving warmth to him.
“When I came to your hotel room in Colmar and you told me I’d made you pregnant, I learned the meaning of joy, and vowed I’d never let you out of my sight again.
“Because of my past history with Paulette, I wanted to give you time to accept the fact that I was in love with you. Staying away from you every night has been an agony I never want to go through again.”
“Neither do I!”
“You have to forgive me for going about everything the wrong way, Rachel. If you hadn’t come back to Alsace, I would have tracked you down in New York the next day.”
She covered his face with kisses. “I’ll forgive you for ever
ything on one condition.”
His breath caught. “Anything.”
“Take me in the house and propose to me in the time-honored Chartier way. If we have a son, then I want to be able to tell him that’s how his father made our marriage official.”
Hours later Rachel stirred in her husband’s arms. He was finally out for the count.
She smiled, unable to move because their legs were entwined and his arm was fastened possessively around her hips.
At last she knew he was madly in love with her and wanted only her for ever.
They hadn’t been able to get enough of each other.
So much the better since they had the rest of their lives stretching before them to shower each other with that love.
She looked over at the ancient green jug sitting on the end table.
“The marriage ritual of the vine,” Luc had called it, while his eyes had blazed with adoration.
Rachel gave a great sigh of contentment and nestled closer to her impossibly handsome French prince.
Somehow she had the feeling her grandfather knew she’d found her great happiness.
If she and Luc had a son, how she’d love to call him Guillaume Valentine Chartier. She’d already decided on the name Rebecca if they had a girl.
Of course Luc would have to approve of her choices.
Impatient to know his thoughts on the subject, she kissed him with growing hunger to bring him awake.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” he murmured feverishly. Though his gorgeous brown eyes were still closed, he responded with breathtaking ardor.
Rachel realized it was going to be a while before she had her answers.
But it didn’t matter. She’d come home to God’s garden with her husband. They had all the time in the world…
ISBN: 9781408945803
Having the Frenchman’s Baby
© Rebecca Winters 2006
First Published in Great Britain in 2011
Harlequin (UK) Limited
Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, including without limitation xerography, photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
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