Redemption

by Jennifer Bene

  “Sure, but right now I’m starving, and slightly hungover. So, I want breakfast.”

  “Fine. Back into the fray,” he said, saluting her before he gestured toward the door, and Lianna laughed.

  Eight

  Lianna

  “I can’t wait to show you around,” Emilie said, almost bouncing in her seat as she finished the last of her juice.

  “There really is a lot to see here,” Anaelle added. “Nothing compared to going into Nice, but we’ll still have fun.”

  “I’m just desperate for some girl time.” Amanda laughed a little, raising her hands. “And some more kid-free time.”

  “Girl time sounds great, and everything looked so beautiful on the way in yesterday, I can’t wait to see it all.” Lianna took another sip of coffee, grateful she’d popped a few pain relievers in the bathroom to help her headache. That, combined with the caffeine and the food, might be enough to handle it.

  “If you don’t want to hang out with the girls all day, David, why don’t you come with me and Mathieu? We can show you around the property the fun way,” Rémi said, chuckling as David looked up at him from his plate. “On the four-wheelers.”

  “The most fun part of it might be seeing just how bad Rémi is at driving one,” Mathieu snarked, grinning at his brother when Rémi glared at him.

  “I’m pretty sure only one of us broke his arm riding the four-wheelers.”

  “I was twelve,” Mathieu retorted, shaking his head. “You’re just annoyed that I outpaced you so quickly.”

  “We’ll see.” Rémi laughed again before he turned back to David. “What do you say? Come with us, or hang out with the girls all day?”

  “You should go have fun,” Lianna whispered, leaning closer to him. “Let me have some girl time.”

  David glanced at her, and she could tell he didn’t like the idea of being separated from her, but there really was no reason to refuse their offer. After a long moment, he lifted a shoulder in a slight shrug and turned back to Rémi. “Okay, I’ll go.”

  “Maybe I can pester you about some of the security stuff while we’re out there,” Mathieu said, and David nodded.

  “Sure.”

  “Why don’t you head out now? The views from the eastern grove should be beautiful right now,” Jean-Luc suggested, and Rémi and Mathieu looked at each other for a second before they both stood up.

  “I get the black one!” Mathieu called out, pushing his chair back in as he hurried toward the door.

  “That’s not how it works, Mathieu! You’re an adult now, you should act like it!” Rémi called, but his brother was already gone. Sighing, the man looked at David again. “Come on, I’ll show you where he went.”

  David got up from the table as well, pushing his chair in, and she leaned back to grab his arm. “Have fun, okay? I love you.”

  “Love you too,” he replied quietly, squeezing her hand before he nodded at Rémi and followed him out.

  “He’s so quiet,” Emilie said as soon as David left the room.

  “But sweet,” Amanda replied, laughing. “My husband was too concerned with racing his brother to even tell me goodbye!”

  “I think David is just a little overwhelmed by everything, you know?” Lianna tilted her mug up and finished the last of her coffee. “He’s never been out of the country before, so all of this is… a lot.”

  “Well, you guys seem to really love each other.” Emilie sighed, leaning back in her chair. “All the guys I meet are such jerks.”

  “What guys are you meeting?” Jean-Luc asked, and Emilie blushed as she suddenly sat up straight.

  “No one in particular,” she answered defensively, and Jean-Luc chuckled.

  “You’re twenty-five, Emilie. I’m under no belief that you aren’t dating, I was just curious.” Smiling, Jean-Luc glanced at his watch. “Okay, girls, if you’ll give me a few minutes with Lianna, I promise she’ll be yours for the rest of the day.”

  “Thank God,” Emilie muttered under her breath, escaping the room, and her father, as quickly as possible. Amanda and Anaelle said their goodbyes and followed after her a moment later, both of them laughing as they walked into the hall.

  “I’ll go see what boy Emilie is so flustered about.” Cécile smiled warmly then leaned over to kiss her husband on the cheek. “See you in the garden.”

  “I’ll be there soon,” Jean-Luc replied, watching his wife walk out of the dining room before he turned to look at Lianna again. “I just wanted to check in on you after last night. How are you feeling? Is all of this too overwhelming?”

  “A bit, to be honest.” Lianna toyed with her water glass. “It feels kind of like when you surprised me in the US. Just… a lot to process at once, but it’s not overwhelming in a bad way.”

  Chuckling, Jean-Luc nodded. “Well, I do hope you feel welcome. That’s all we wanted.”

  “I feel very welcome, I promise.” Glancing toward the doorway, she could hear the girls laughing and she wondered what it was about.

  “I don’t want to keep you, but I wanted to check in and see if you had any questions for me now that you’ve met everyone.” Jean-Luc plucked a grape from the half-eaten bunch on his plate and popped it in his mouth, and she almost declined the offer to ask questions — but then she remembered that there was really only one reason she’d been able to come to France at all.

  “Actually… there is something I wanted to talk to you about in private.”

  His eyebrows lifted, but Jean-Luc took a sip of his coffee before he spoke. “All right. What would you like to talk about?”

  Just say it.

  “Well, I never got to thank you for your generosity in paying for my apartment when my assets were frozen, and, of course, for taking care of my legal issues.” Lianna’s heart was racing as she laid all her cards on the table.

  Jean-Luc stayed silent for a long moment, keeping his gaze on the coffee cup. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Lia—”

  “Don’t lie to me,” she snapped, raising a hand to cut him off. “I obviously can’t make you answer me, but don’t ever lie to me, Jean-Luc. I had enough of that from my father.”

  Sighing, he looked up at her, his expression turning pensive as he rotated the cup back and forth on the table. Eventually, he nodded and took a deep breath. “You’re right, Lianna. I shouldn’t lie to you, and I apologize. Honestly… I had hoped to keep my involvement in your situation confidential because I didn’t want it to sway our relationship one way or another. However, you are correct. I did rent the apartment for you.”

  “Why?”

  “It seemed unfair for Alain’s actions to take more from you than they already had.” Jean-Luc leaned back in his chair, shaking his head slightly. “I handled it through a few companies we own to avoid any easily identifiable links to the Faure name, but I should have known you’d see through that.”

  “Well, you had just arrived in town to meet me for the first time,” she reminded him, and he raised one hand from the table, turning his palm up in a half-shrug.

  “I admit, it wasn’t the most well-hidden ruse, but I assure you I just wanted to help.”

  “Like you helped with the investigation keeping me from leaving the country?”

  Jean-Luc’s face went blank, and his answer was short. “Family takes care of family. La famille avant tout.”

  A frisson of anger buzzed through Lianna’s veins as she stared at him, waiting for an actual explanation that apparently wasn’t going to come without her pushing. “Well, what was it? A bribe? Did you threaten them so they’d drop the investigation?”

  “Lianna…”

  “We’re not in public, Jean-Luc. There’s no need to be coy or evasive. I think I deserve an answer, don’t you?”

  His gaze met hers again, but there wasn’t anger there. He didn’t seem upset at all. If anything, he looked a little sad.

  “You’re right. You do, and my answer is similar to why I rented the apartment for you.” Jean-Luc sat up
in his chair and braced an elbow on the table, cradling his forehead in one hand for a moment. “Everything that Alain did was his choice, but as a father he should have thought beyond himself. As parents, it’s really all we’re here on this earth to do. We are supposed to make the world better for our children… and my brother failed you in that.”

  “Yes, he did.”

  “Exactly. You didn’t deserve to carry the burden of his crimes, Lianna, and so — yes. I used our family’s influence to encourage the case against you to be dropped, because there was no case against you, mon oisillon. They were dragging it out to punish you because Alain was dead, and…” Jean-Luc paused, his hand tightening into a fist atop the table before he moved it to his lap.

  “And?” she prompted.

  “And I didn’t want you to be hurt any more than you already had,” he finished, raising his warm brown eyes to hers. “All I want to do is keep you safe, Lianna. And for you to feel loved by your family. If I crossed a line in doing that, I apologize.”

  The frustration bled out of her as he confirmed her suspicions. She’d been ninety-nine percent sure it was Jean-Luc, but until she heard it from his lips, her mind wouldn’t rest. All she’d wanted was honesty, and he’d given her that… and more.

  Jean-Luc had talked about carrying the burden of her father’s crimes, which she had — in more ways than he knew — but wasn’t he asking her to do the same thing? As wonderful as everyone had seemed at the party the night before, the mere fact that he could do something like ending the investigation into her with barely any effort spoke volumes of what the Faures were capable of.

  But he’d used all that power to do something good, to help her… so was it still wrong?

  She wanted to pretend it wasn’t, but she knew in her gut that it was. If they would have eventually dropped the case against her, why not just let it happen in due time? It had sucked to be harassed by the government, to be dragged to interview after interview, but she was innocent and that would have come out eventually.

  Innocence doesn’t always matter.

  Sighing, Lianna shook her head. “I can’t pretend that I’m not grateful for everything you’ve done, Jean-Luc. I didn’t want to lose that apartment. I’d worked hard to pay for it myself, and it meant a lot to me. And I was never involved in my father’s illegal activities, so I’m glad the investigation is over. But”—Lianna leaned forward, making sure he had his eyes on hers—”I don’t want to carry the burden of your crimes either. Even if they’re for my own sake.”

  His eyes widened slightly, but then he nodded, his lips pursing together for a moment. “Well said, Lianna. I respect that. As I told you over lunch when I came to see you, I am doing everything I can to change the future for my own children. To move our family away from things that could endanger that future… and I’m doing this so my children never have to bear the burden of my crimes, or any of those done in the name of Faure.”

  I really hope that’s true.

  “Thank you for your honesty, Jean-Luc,” Lianna said, pushing back from the table to rise from her chair and end the uncomfortable discussion. “That’s all I want or need.”

  “I hope that you feel you can always be honest with me as well, Lianna,” he replied, a small smile twitching up the corner of his mouth as another round of raucous laughs came from nearby. He glanced toward the doorway, and once again she could see the clear love he had for his family. “I believe the girls have quite the day planned for you.”

  “It seems like they do,” she agreed.

  “Enjoy it. All I want is for you to feel at home here.” Standing up, Jean-Luc’s smile spread further. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have a date in the garden with my wife.”

  “That sounds like fun,” Lianna said, and Jean-Luc laughed a little as he escorted her into the hall.

  “Well, my job is to dig the holes and not touch the plants. Cécile says I have a black thumb.” Waving at her, he pointed into another room as he moved the opposite direction. “I believe the girls are waiting for you in the library. Have fun!”

  Lianna stayed in the hall after he disappeared around the corner, letting all of the new information settle inside her. She was glad that David hadn’t been present for the conversation, it would have only confirmed all of his negative opinions about Jean-Luc’s intentions… but she didn’t interpret it in quite the same way he would. Yes, he wanted her to be comfortable in his home, to get to know his family, but none of his actions seemed to be about keeping her in France.

  He wouldn’t have paid for her apartment if he’d wanted her here.

  “Papa! Nous avons des choses à faire!” Anaelle shouted as she walked out of the library and almost barreled directly into her. “Oh! I’m sorry, I thought you were still with Papa.”

  “We just finished up,” Lianna replied, slapping on a smile as Anaelle waved her back into the library.

  “Good, because we’ve been chatting through our ideas for the day.” Anaelle stopped short of the chairs where Emilie and Amanda were sitting. “To start with, I know you studied art history, so I wanted to show you some of the nice pieces our family has here on the property.”

  “I want to show you the horses. Ours are so sweet, and we can even go for a ride in the grove if you want!” Emilie added.

  Amanda held her hands up. “We can do whatever you guys want. I just really want to end the day relaxing around the pool with drinks in our hands. Maybe we can do a tour of Jean-Luc’s very well-stocked wine cellar before we relax outside.”

  “It’s too cool to swim right now,” Anaelle said.

  “I don’t need to swim, but sunny and warm with a nice cool breeze is perfect sunbathing weather to me,” Amanda replied.

  “You only think that because you and Rémi spend all your time in England where there’s never any sunshine,” Emilie retorted, and Amanda laughed.

  “I won’t deny that, but it’s really up to Lianna what we do today.”

  Three pairs of eyes swiveled toward her and she shrugged. “Let’s do all of it!”

  The day flew by faster than Lianna had expected. Between Jean-Luc’s incredible collection of art, loving on all the horses, and strolling through the olive grove to take in the sights, she was more than ready to relax by the pool by the time four o’clock rolled around.

  Lounging in the sun, there was no chance of getting a tan in her clothes, but it was still the best end to the day. Wine in hand, the sunlight shimmering on the surface of the pool, and getting to know her cousins even more, she felt completely at peace. It was almost like she’d known them for longer than a couple of days. There were no awkward breaks in conversation, no topics that everyone couldn’t contribute to in some way, and the weather was perfect for it. A cool breeze meant that even with the clear sky she wasn’t too warm, and the views were definitely better here than back in New York.

  Turning back to the girls, Lianna smiled as they continued talking.

  “You’re so right. Netflix is both the best and worst thing ever. I mean, I love that I can always find something to watch, but if I do find something it’s way too easy to binge watch,” Amanda said, shading her eyes to look up at everyone.

  “Yes!” Emilie shouted with a groan. “I open my laptop and turn something on and suddenly it’s six hours later, and I realize I haven’t moved at all.”

  Laughing, Lianna nodded. “I’ve done that way more often than I’d like to admit.”

  The sound of engines getting closer drew all of their attention, and she sat up to look out at the grove of trees. Weaving in and out was a trio of four-wheelers, but what pulled Lianna from her seat was the sound of laughter and male voices shouting over the roar of the engines, which only got louder when the vehicles finally disappeared from view, parking close to the house. Moving to the stone railing, she peeked over the edge and was surprised to see David laughing along with Rémi and Mathieu.

  He looked... happy. Comfortable.

  Trying to hold herself back from gettin
g too excited by the prospect of him finally getting over his issues with her family, she waved down at them. “Hey guys! We’re up here around the pool. Come join us!”

  “On our way!” Rémi shouted, and David looked up at her with a wide smile that she hadn’t seen in too long.

  Turning back to the girls, she spread her arms with a little shrug. “Seems like the boys had fun.”

  “I never had a doubt. I’m glad David went with them,” Amanda said, sitting up on the lounger as the men’s voices came up the side stairs to the terrace. “Rémi really wants to help David feel more comfortable here.”

  “That means a lot,” Lianna answered, taking her seat again just before the guys appeared, still laughing. Mathieu nudged David and said something too quiet for the rest of them to hear, but then they laughed even louder. A moment later, their gazes met, and she couldn’t help but smile when she saw just how ridiculously handsome he looked with that grin on his face.

  “Hello darling,” Rémi said, stopping beside Amanda’s chair to bend down and kiss her.

  David’s shirt was clinging to his chest, slightly darker in spots from sweat, but it only made him look better as he approached her. Bracing his hands on either side of her head on the lounger, he leaned close, and she felt that delicious frisson of anticipation run down her spine as his dark eyes met hers. “I missed you today.”

  “I missed you too,” she whispered, and then he closed the gap, capturing her lips in a kiss that was probably a bit more than any of her cousins expected to see — but David managed to keep his hands off her, which kept it rated PG-13 instead of R. Barely. His tongue brushed hers, a low growl rumbling in his chest when he nipped her bottom lip before claiming her mouth again. Finally, he pulled back and sat down on the edge of the lounger, running his hand over her thigh, and Lianna couldn’t help but blush, chuckling a bit as she pushed her hair behind her ears. “So... you’re in a good mood. Did you have fun today?”

  “It wasn’t miserable.” Shrugging, David turned to glance at the others, a smile hovering on his lips as he watched Mathieu and Anaelle shoving each other on one of the loungers where Mathieu was clearly trying to steal it from his sister.