Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Elise
K enny dangled a key in his hand and grinned so wide, he looked like he had multiple sets of teeth like a shark.
“Knew having a set of your keys would come in handy,” he gloated and sauntered into the living room. “Your sister wasn’t sure you’d be home, and she forgot to ask for a key. We ran into each other outside the resort and got to talking. In the name of NATO and our relationship as allies, not to mention my place as your adopted brother, I offered to get them in.”
Luc loosed a pent-up laugh and I exhaled out a heap of tension.
Liz’s eyes were wide, brow raised, and she had “we have some catching up to do” written all over her face.
Girl, do we.
I owed everyone an update, but Liz had been gone and super busy with wrapping up her life elsewhere, and we’d only swapped a few texts. The more I got to know her and spend time with her, the more I liked her and wanted her to know me. That thought was novel because I’d only had it with my existing friends, and to feel it so keenly for someone new was unheard of for me.
Granted, I felt that way more and more with Luc.
Liz had let us in either because Jo had sort of forced us on her, or because she’d allowed it—probably both. But I hadn’t done the same. I’d kept everything close and deluded myself to think I was doing them all a favor.
I’d kept everything to myself when I was with Callum, and I thought I’d learned the lesson about not leaning on myself when I had friends who genuinely loved and supported me. And yet, the doing of it was so hard. Sharing myself and what felt like my massive failures—to see what a jerk Callum was, to successfully fund this business on my own, to handle the pressure from my awful ex, and maybe even to navigate this fake fiancée business without catching feelings… I didn’t look forward to it. But at the same time, I would do it because I wanted them.
“You barged into my home for what reason?” Luc asked, his face more than a little perturbed.
“We came to say hi and see how it’s going,” Kenny said, smacking a piece of gum between his teeth. “See how the happy couple is handling Grandpappy’s visit.”
The meaningful glance he gave Luc communicated much, not the least of which was that he wasn’t about to ruin the whole thing by letting on that he knew we weren’t actually engaged.
I went to Liz and opened my arms, eager for a reprieve from the weird tension and genuinely wanting to welcome her home.
“Everything wrap up okay in DC?” I asked, knowing she couldn’t tell me much about her past life in the CIA, but hoping she’d settle in and feel more and more at home here.
“All done.” She blinked, a smile growing wide. “I worried I’d be kind of heartbroken, and there have been some bittersweet moments for sure, but mostly I just feel happy.”
I hugged her tight again, then released her, joining in her smile and feeling the happiness coming off her in waves.
“And how long are you going to make him wait? I heard he’s waiting for permission to ask you to marry him?” It was perfectly Kenny that he’d be ready and waiting for her.
What would it be like to have a man like that? Someone so eager to commit to you and delight in you?
My gaze flickered toward Luc and found him already looking back at me. A cork popped and pinged around inside my chest when his eyes seemed to soften and a smile flashed across his face before he focused fully in on whatever Kenny was saying.
“I’m not sure. I think the bigger question is… how’s engaged life? You’d know, wouldn’t you?” Liz’s eyes narrowed on me.
With a deep breath, I brushed the hair out of my eyes and nodded, glancing to make sure the others weren’t listening. “Kind of, yes. And I plan to fill everyone in at book club this weekend. We have the gala tomorrow, and I’ll see you and most of the guys there, and then I’ll be ready to explain everything Saturday.”
Nerves whistled through me at the thought of both the gala and laying it all out for my friends.
It’d be a relief to have both events over with.
Liz patted my shoulder. “It’s your life, Elise. Just want to make sure you’re okay.”
She studied me in a way that made my heart prick. She must’ve known a bit about Callum if she was worried about me—or maybe she’d dealt with women who’d been in bad situations. I loved her for checking on me, even when my supposed fiancé was her almost-fiancé’s best friend.
“I really am okay. I promise.”
She accepted my vow, and Kenny announced they’d leave us to family time. The phrase had an odd kind of wistfulness winding through me as Liz and Kenny left and we found Aurelie and Michele ready to catch up.
“Grand-père was unspeakably rude, Elise. I am so sorry.”
Aurelie clasped my hands and squeezed as though she could imbue me with her sincerity via the touch.
“It’s nothing. I’ll admit I wavered for a minute, but once he started in on education, it actually helped. I’ve made peace with my choices in that regard, and I have no regrets.” It’d hurt to be reminded of my family’s faults, but it’d given me a chance to remind myself I’m not the same woman my mother was. And I was my own person. Whoever couldn’t take me as I was could leave it. Their loss, not mine.
Revisiting that part of my history while the business was struggling had been a good thing. It’d reminded me I’d made choices, and I’d stuck to them. Maybe I’d lose the business. Maybe Callum would prove yet again he was determined to be the worst version of himself and finagle a sale of my company to someone I didn’t even know just to punish me for not doing what he wanted. But in the end, I’d tried.
Even though I’d had a little help, I had tried. And I’d made some freaking awesome donuts.
“Wonderful. You’re resilient. That’s a wonderful quality to have in a partner,” Michele said with a beaming smile at me, then shifted it to Luc.
Uncomfortable with any amount of praise for the situation, I shifted awkwardly and moved to finish scrambling the eggs I’d planned to make for dinner. After another minute or two chatting, Aurelie and Michele went off to bed since they were still adjusting to mountain time, and Luc sat at his bar while I cooked our simple dinner. We ate in silence, both drained and fully aware Aurelie or Michele could come out at any time.
And then it was time to go to bed.
We took turns changing and going through our routines for sleep. It hadn’t felt this surreal last night, even before he’d declared he’d sleep on the couch. But now, my heart wouldn’t stop pattering around like an amateur tap dancer and I saw my hand visibly shake when I picked up my ereader.
Luc entered not long after I’d settled in with soft-looking shorts and a T-shirt. I averted my eyes from his legs because it felt oddly intimate seeing them after only ever seeing him in pants. They were muscular and covered in dark hair like his arms and just as attractive as everything else on him.
It also made him seem closer to naked. Technically, he was, right? He was missing feet of material covering those shapely calves and the bottom few inches of his ridiculous quads, not to mention his knees. How had no one warned me how sexy knees could be?
Get a hold of yourself!
“This okay?” he asked, standing on his side of the bed with his hand on the duvet.
“Yes. We can handle it.”
I can handle this.
By now, I knew him well enough to know he wouldn’t try to take advantage of this situation nor would he be upset if I told him I wasn’t okay with it. I truly wasn’t scared of him, and the nerves rattling around inside me were more on the thrilled end of the spectrum. I wasn’t about to delineate that thought, so “We can handle it” it was.
He slipped into bed. I couldn’t even feel the mattress depress because it was some kind of super luxurious king-sized dream, and once he was settled against the pillows, we were still a solid two feet apart.
But then he did it.
That sneaky Frenchman knocked the wind right out of me with one easy move.
He slipped on a pair of thick-framed reading glasses and pulled out a book.
And all my confidence melted into a steamy little pile of swoon.