Laura’s love astounded and humbled him.
* * *
A week later the family priest officiated at the late-afternoon wedding ceremony in the living room of the summerhouse. The first person to embrace Laura after she and Nic became man and wife was Maurice.
In a croaking voice he said, “Little did I know when I had to say goodbye to my beloved wife for the last time, I’d be welcoming a new Madame Valfort into the family. My own beautiful granddaughter.”
She let out a gentle laugh. “Don’t get me started on the tears, Gran’père, or I’ll never stop and my brand-new husband won’t know what to do with me.”
Nic’s strong arms went around her waist from behind. He was never far from her. “If you believe that, then you don’t know me at all,” he whispered into her neck, thrilling her. Her cream-colored lace suit, which she’d chosen rather than a wedding dress, made it easy for him to pull her against him. She’d wanted simplicity.
It was a day of intense happiness. Her gaze took in her mom and Yves, who both broke off talking to hug them. Yves had videotaped the wedding and had also volunteered to drive her mother back to the villa. She would stay the night before he drove her to the airport to return to San Francisco.
All of Nic’s family had assembled and welcomed her as one of their own. What Maurice and Irene hadn’t been able to enjoy had come back to bless Laura and Nic in profound ways. Two families were healing. Her aunt Susan was in therapy in San Francisco. Laura had a feeling her grandmother was looking down and smiling.
Nic tugged on a strand of her blond hair, which she’d left long the way he loved it. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to leave.”
She turned in his arms. “We can’t go yet. You know we can’t.”
“Then kiss me so I can stand it.”
In this mood Nic was irresistible. She raised up to press a kiss to his lips, but he took advantage and gave her a husband’s kiss, hot with desire. Heat swarmed her cheeks because everyone would have noticed. She burrowed against him for a moment to gain her composure. “Be good, darling.”
“I’m being as good as I can for a new bridegroom.”
“No, you’re not.”
“But you love me.”
“You have to know that by now. I’ve been living to become your wife.”
“I want more proof.”
Her pulse raced. “I promise you’ll have it later tonight.”
“Don’t you know I have a voracious appetite for you and want it for the rest of our lives?”
They heard someone tapping on a Champagne glass. Flushed with love and desire, she turned in his arms. Maurice’s brother, Auguste got to his feet with difficulty.
“I’d like to propose a toast to Nicholas and his bride. Everything good started to happen the day she flew in to Nice. I wish we had gathered like this for my brother and Irene. Our family should have celebrated their marriage and I’m sorry about that. But we can celebrate new beginnings with the new generation of Valforts. May Nic and Laura be happy and fruitful.”
“To new beginnings,” everyone joined in.
Nic’s arms held her tighter. “Did you hear that, mon amour? It’s time to go and fulfill every wish. Our bags are packed and waiting for us in the car.”
She blushed again. “Where are you taking me?”
“It’s not far, believe me.” He reached for her hand and pulled her toward the foyer with him. Everyone rushed forward as they slipped out the front door to the car. Yves kept filming them as Nic helped her inside.
“Let’s have a kiss,” he called out, but Nic didn’t respond.
Surprised, maybe even a little hurt, she lowered the window. “À bientôt, Gran’père. I love you. See you soon.”
“Take your time,” he called back. “There’s only one honeymoon.”
In another minute Nic had started the car and they pulled away. He grabbed hold of her hand. “Before you leap to the wrong conclusion, I had two reasons for not kissing you just then. Dorine and I saw Maurice’s video of our wedding after we got home from our honeymoon. When I realized you’d seen it, too, I didn’t want you having to make comparisons that could hurt y—”
“Don’t say any more.” She cut him off and squeezed his hand. “I love you for being so sensitive to my feelings. I’m afraid I love you too much.”
“If you want to know my second reason, it’s because I almost devoured you in front of our guests after the ceremony. To be honest, I didn’t trust myself not to do the same thing again given the chance.”
“If we’re talking truths, I never trusted myself with you from the moment you picked me up at the airport in Nice.”
“Ours was a trial of fire from the beginning.”
She nodded. “Thank heaven that part is over. Do you swear we don’t have much farther to go? I don’t think I can stand to be this far apart from you any longer.”
“Do you recognize this highway?”
She looked around and let out a half squeal. “You’re taking me back to Eze—”
“This time I only booked one room. Just remember that after we get there, I won’t let you out of my bed, let alone my sight.”
“You think I feel any different?”
Once they reached the parking area, he grabbed their bags and they walked the trail to the little hotel.
“The night is so glorious, Nic.”
“Balmy, just the way I like it.”
The concierge greeted them and handed Laura the card key. Her body trembled with anticipation as they ascended the stairs to the next floor. She opened the door for them. This was so different from last time. For a moment she wondered if this was really happening.
“It’s really happening,” Nic murmured and put down the bags. He knew her so well he’d read her mind. After he opened the glass door to let in the night air, he turned to her. “Come here to me, my love.”
The second she walked into his arms, she knew pleasure beyond anything in this life. They took their time getting to know each other in ways she hadn’t even dreamed about. Nic was such a beautiful man. To think he was her husband. His possession of her was to die for.
But she didn’t die. She was vibrantly alive and sought the rapture of fulfillment he gave her again and again. Toward morning he fell asleep. She lay at his side and watched him as the lavender tint he’d told her about illuminated the sky. Minute by minute the color changed to the indescribable pink he’d talked about.
The magical hues filled the room, bringing out the Gallic features that made him such a gorgeous man. She gasped quietly in awe, but he heard her. His eyelids opened. The gray of his irises between his black lashes had turned crystalline in the early-morning light.
“What is it, ma belle?”
Laura loved it when he called her that. She leaned over to kiss his mouth. “Nothing’s wrong. I simply felt like looking at you. No woman could be as lucky as I am. I’m hoping that one day soon we’ll have a baby. It won’t matter if it’s a boy or a girl, because either way, they’ll have the Valfort traits and qualities.”
He kissed the palm of her hand. “Don’t forget the Holden genes.”
She smiled. “While I was getting ready for the wedding, Mother said you’re the most sinfully handsome man she ever saw. I thought the same thing the first time I laid eyes on you, but I’ve never heard her express herself like that before.”
“Sometime you’ll have to ask Yves what I said about you.” Her heart thudded in reaction. He raised up on one elbow. His eyes radiated excitement. “You honestly want a baby soon?”
Suddenly she felt anxious. “Don’t you?”
“Now that I’ve got you, I want it all.”
“If I was pregnant right now, would you mind?”
“Mind?” He pulled her on top of him.
“How can you even ask me that?”
“Because we didn’t ever really talk about it, but last night we didn’t take precautions.”
“So you’re not on the Pill?”
“No. I’ve never slept with any man, so I didn’t need to be.”
A cry of joy escaped his throat. “So I could have made you pregnant during the night?”
“Yes. You have no idea how much I want your baby. I want us to be a real family. You’re going to make the most wonderful father.”
Suddenly he rolled her over so he was looking down at her. “I don’t want you to move. We’re going to stay in this room for the next couple of days. I’ll order breakfast, lunch and dinner for us. In between meals we’re going to be busy doing what I love doing best with you. Have I told you yet what a wonderful lover you are? You’re the light of my life. I love you, mon amour. Je t’aime,” he cried, burying his face in her hair.
Laura’s joy was full. She held the world in her arms and sang a certain song to him she’d memorized because of that night.
“Let’s dance the old-fashioned way, my love. I want you to stay in my arms, skin against skin. Let me feel your heart, don’t let any air in. Come close where you belong. Let’s hear our secret song and dance in the old-fashioned way. Won’t you stay in my arms? We’ll discover higher highs we never knew before, if we just close our eyes and dance around the floor. It makes me love you more.”
“Laura—”
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt from A VERY SPECIAL HOLIDAY GIFT by Barbara Hannay.
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CHAPTER ONE
THE PHONE CALL that changed Chloe Meadows’s life came when she was poised on tiptoe, on a chair that she had placed on top of a desk in a valiant attempt to tape a loop of Christmas lights to the office ceiling.
It was late on a Wednesday evening, edging towards nine p.m., and the sudden shrill bell in the silent, empty office was so unexpected Chloe almost fell from her precarious perch. Even so, she slipped as she scrambled down awkwardly in her straight grey business skirt and stocking feet.
She was slightly out of breath as she finally grabbed the phone just as it was due to ring out.
‘Hello? ZedCee Management Consultants.’ She wondered who would call the office at this late hour. On a Wednesday night.
There was a longish beat before she heard a man’s distinctly English voice. ‘Hello? I’m calling from London. Could I please speak to Mr Zachary Corrigan?’ The voice was officious, like the command of a bossy teacher.
‘I’m sorry. Mr Corrigan isn’t in the office.’ Chloe politely bit back the urge to remind the caller that it was well after office hours in Australia and that her employer was almost certainly at a social function.
On any given week night, Zac Corrigan was likely to be socialising, but that possibility had become a certainty this week, the week before Christmas, when almost everyone was at some kind of party. Everyone, that was, except Chloe, whose social calendar was quiet even at this busy time of the year.
Sadly, the red letter date in Chloe’s festive season was the office Christmas party. This was the third year in a row that she’d put up her hand to be the party’s organiser. She’d ordered the champagne, the wines and beer, as well as a selection of delicious canapés and finger food from François’s. And she’d been happy to stay back late this evening to decorate the office with festive strings of lights, shiny balloons and bright garlands of tinsel and holly.
Secretly, she loved this task. When she’d first landed her job at ZedCee she’d also moved back home to care for her elderly parents, who weren’t overly fond of ‘gaudy’ decorations, so this was her chance to have a little Christmas fun.
‘To whom am I speaking?’ the fellow from London barked into the phone.
‘I’m Mr Corrigan’s PA.’ Chloe was used to dealing with bossy types, matching their overbearing manner with her own quiet calm. ‘My name’s Chloe Meadows.’
‘Ms Meadows, this is Sergeant Davies from The Metropolitan Police and I’m ringing from The Royal London Hospital. I’m afraid the matter is urgent. I need to speak to Mr Corrigan.’
‘Of course.’ Instantly alarmed, Chloe forgave the policeman his bossiness and reached for a pen and paper. She was appalled to think that this urgent matter was in any way connected to her boss. ‘I’ll call Mr Corrigan immediately and tell him to ring you.’
Sergeant Davies dictated his number, Chloe thanked him and her stomach clenched nervously as she connected straight to Zac Corrigan’s mobile.
* * *
The zip in the young woman’s black silk dress slid smoothly downwards and the fabric parted to reveal her delightfully pale back. Zac Corrigan smiled. She was lovely. Tipsy after too many champagne cocktails and without very much to eat, but at least they’d escaped the party early, and she was quite irresistibly lovely.
With a practised touch, he caressed the creamy curve of her shoulder and she giggled. Damn. Why did champagne make girls giggle?
Still. Her skin was soft and warm and her figure was exquisite and, for a repeat of the night they’d shared last weekend, Zac could forgive her giggling.
With a firm hand cradling her bared shoulders, he leaned closer to press a kiss to the back of her neck. His lips brushed her skin. She giggled again, but she smelled delicious and Zac’s anticipation was acute as he trailed a seductive line of kisses over her shoulder.
The sweet moment was spoiled by the sudden buzz of his mobile phone and Zac swore beneath his breath as he sent a frustrated glare in the direction of the armchair where he’d dumped the phone along with his jacket and tie.
‘I’ll get it!’ the girl squealed.
‘No, don’t bother. Leave it.’
Too late. She’d already wriggled free and was diving for the chair, laughing excitedly, as if answering his phone was the greatest game.
* * *
Chloe suppressed a groan when she heard the slightly slurred female’s voice on the line.
‘Hi, there!’ a girl chirped. ‘Kung Fu’s Chinese Takeaway. How can I help you?’
‘Hi, Jasmine.’ Chloe was unfortunately familiar with most of her boss’s female ‘friends’. They were usually blessed with beauty rather than brains, which meant they were always ringing him at work, and Chloe spent far too much time holding them at bay, taking their messages, placating them with promises that Mr Corrigan would return their calls as soon as he was free, and generally acting as a go-between. ‘Hold the jokes,’ she said now. ‘And just put Zac on.’
‘Jasmine?’ The voice on the end of the line was slightly sloshed and distinctly peeved. ‘Who’s Jasmine?’ Her voice rose several decibels. ‘Zac, who’s Jasmine?’
Oops. Under other circumstances, Chloe might have apologised or tried to reassure the silly girl, but tonight she simply spoke loudly and very clearly. ‘This is Mr Corrigan’s PA and the matter is urgent. I need to speak to him straight away.’
‘All right, all right.’ The girl was sulky now. ‘Keep your hair on.’ There was a shuffling, possibly stumbling sound. ‘Mr Corr-i-gan,’ she said next, sounding out the syllables in a mocking sing-song. ‘Your PA wants you and she says y
ou’d better hurry up.’ This was followed by a burst of ridiculous giggling.
‘Give that here!’ Zac sounded impatient and a moment later he was on the line. ‘Chloe, what’s up? What the hell’s the matter?’
‘An urgent phone call has come through for you from London,’ she said. ‘From the police. At a hospital.’
‘In London?’ There was no missing the shock in his voice.
‘Yes. I’m afraid it’s urgent, Zac. The policeman wants you to call him immediately.’
There was a shuddering gasp, then another sound that might have been—
No. It couldn’t have been a sob. Chloe knew her ears were deceiving her. During three years in this job she’d never detected a single crack in Zac Corrigan’s habitual toughness.
‘Right.’ His voice was still different, almost broken and very un-Zac-like. ‘Can you give me the number?’
Chloe told him and listened as he repeated it. He still sounded shaken and she felt a bit sick. Normally, she refused to allow herself any sympathy for her boss’s personal life, which was as messy as a dog’s breakfast, as far as she was concerned. But this situation was different. Frightening. She couldn’t recall any connection between her boss and London and she thought she knew almost everything about him.
‘I’ll let you know if I need you,’ he said.
* * *
Zac was as tense as a man facing a firing squad as he dialled the London number. This emergency had to involve Liv. He was sure of it. He’d been trying to convince himself that his little sister was an adult now and quite capable of running her own life, especially after she’d ignored his protests and left for England with her no-hoper boyfriend... But...
Liv.
His baby sister...
All that was left of his family...
His responsibility...
‘Hello,’ said a businesslike English voice. ‘Sergeant Davies speaking.’
‘This is Zac Corrigan.’ His voice cracked and he swallowed. ‘I believe you’re trying to contact me.’
At the Chateau for Christmas Page 16