Mend

by Autumn Grey

  I SAT back with my fiancée’s hand in mine, watching while she chatted with her sister and her parents. I caressed the back of her hand with my thumb, unable to keep my hands to myself. She seemed calmer these days and her mood swings had lessened with the help of the cognitive behavioral therapy she had been receiving since she woke up from the coma. On the night I brought her home from the hospital, Ines and Anthony sat me down for a talk. They expressed their worry about Selene and the baby, and that I had proposed too soon given that we hadn’t known each other for long. They had a right to worry. I could imagine what they had gone through after Selene lost her child and husband. Even though I was determined to show them that she meant more to me than a three-month fling, I wanted the decision to be hers. Which she explained to her parents yesterday when they had the same talk. I met her, and somehow I knew she would change my life. I hadn’t foreseen the proposal though. It just showed how much she affected me.

  Lifting her hand to my lips, I kissed her knuckles. I was never one to shy away from public displays of affection. I loved her and I wanted everyone to know she belonged to me. My heart picked up several beats whenever she turned around to smile at me as if she knew I needed that.

  I did.

  Somehow I felt needed when she turned to acknowledge me at her side. I didn’t want to intrude on the reunion. Besides, my mind was still grappling with the Colette situation. Every time I thought about her—which was quite often—terror ripped through me. What if Selene left after learning the truth? Time was running out. I had to look for a way to tell her, but right now, I needed to focus on what was going on around me before Selene noticed something was wrong. She had asked me several times since leaving Marseilles if everything was all right and I had told her yes. I loathed lying, especially to her. But this time, I had to go against my own rules.

  We had held off telling Adrien about the baby because Selene had been worried something might happen and wanted to wait until she was discharged from the hospital here in Paris before we said anything.

  The minute he walked through the door, he came rushing toward us and gave me a kiss before rushing to Selene’s side and hopping on her lap. He hugged her fiercely.

  “I missed you, tiger,” Selene said, grinning hard as Adrien’s small arms rounded her neck in a hug. My heart squeezed as I watched them together.

  My fiancée and my son.

  Selene and I exchanged a look. I nodded at her to break the news to him. At this point, I had no idea how he would react to having a brother or sister.

  “We have something to tell you, Adrien,” Selene said, and he focused his gaze on her.

  “Are we going to Euro Disney?” he asked, his eyes huge and glimmering with hope.

  I chuckled softly, as did everyone else in the room.

  “No. Something smaller,” Selene said, pushing his hair off his forehead. “You know your papa and I will be getting married.”

  He nodded, grinning. “I will carry the ring, remember?”

  Selene laughed. “Yes, I do. So, how would you feel about having a little sister or brother?”

  “How little?” he asked, frowning.

  “Baby little.”

  “Baby.” He wiggled his nose and glanced at Selene’s stomach. As soon as he opened his mouth, question after question shot from his lips. He asked what the baby’s name would be, if he would be allowed to sleep in the baby’s room, if he or she could eat normal food like everyone else. The last question slammed hard in my stomach. He’d dropped his gaze and whispered, “Will you and Mama and my mamie still love me even after the baby comes?”

  “Always. Nothing will change after the baby.”

  “I could share my toys with him.” He smiled shyly and right there, I heard the longing for companionship, for siblings, in those words.

  By eight o’clock, Selene was yawning. After saying goodnight to everyone, I followed her upstairs with Adrien leading the way.

  “Can I sleep in your bed tonight?” Adrien asked, already kicking off his shoes and socks, and hopping on the bed.

  I quickly tackled him, tickling him.

  Within minutes, Selene had changed and was softly snoring, and Adrien was shifting restlessly at my side while I attempted to read him a story. I sighed, content, enjoying this moment. I opted to push Colette to the back of my mind for now.

  GILLES STOPPED by while Selene was taking a nap and delivered the documents that proved Colette was in fact Diane. Right after Alexei had dropped us at the hospital the first time I visited Colette’s flat, Gilles had instructed him to go back and check if he could find something they could use for a DNA test. Watching Ines coming to terms with the fact her long lost daughter was still alive and trying to harm Selene was exceedingly painful. It hit me all over again. Two women, half-sisters, both played a role in my life. I had loved the first one, lost her and now despised her for everything she had done to my son and me. Then the second one; we had found each other and I loved her. I wasn’t about to let her go. Fate had a twisted sense of humor.

  “So what do you think of this one?” Selene asked, effectively dragging me out of my somber thoughts.

  I glanced up from the ledgers on my desk to the notebook she held up from across the room on the couch. “Sexy. What is it?”

  She rolled her eyes. “A bra,” she said proudly and proceeded to tell me she had made a few calls, searching for a seamstress for her designs.

  My mobile vibrated on the table, interrupting the conversation. I frowned at the words ‘unknown number’ flashing on the screen.

  “St. Germain.”

  “It’s good to hear your voice.”

  I froze, flexing my hand on the table.

  Merde! Colette. I had so many questions and I wanted to know the answers. But I couldn’t interrogate Colette with Selene in the room.

  “All right. Could you please hold on a minute? I will check if she is available to speak with you.”

  “She’s there, isn’t she? The bitch trying to take you and Adrien from me.” I could imagine her sneering as she said those words.

  My sight blurred with rage at those words. I clenched the mobile in my hand as I pressed a quick kiss on Selene’s lips and left the room, pretending the caller wanted to speak to my mother.

  “Where are you?” I asked when I was upstairs and out of earshot.

  She laughed. “Do you think I’m stupid? Anyway, how are you, my love? Did you love the irises? Remember you loved to send them to me as a promise to our love?”

  Bile rose in my throat. “You don’t have the right to ask me that and never will.” I took deep breaths to calm myself. Yes, irises were my flower of choice when Colette and I were dating. I had also sent irises to the women I had dated after her presumed death. I had watched the coffin being lowered into her grave, for Christ’s sake. I wasn’t going to allow her to distract me with the flowers. “Where were you all these years?”

  There was a long pause. “I want to come home.”

  “Tell me everything first.” I tried not to show my impatience or she might end the call.

  She sighed. “Buying time for forgiveness. After I arrived in Paris a week after the crash, I came straight home, eager to let you know I hadn’t died in the crash. Then I saw that woman . . . Madame Girard, leave the house and I knew she told you about me and her husband. Remington, it didn’t mean anything. I’ve always loved you . . .”

  Anger roared in my ears, blocking her plea. “Stop! Just fucking stop,” I snarled into the phone. She did as I ordered. “How did you get inside the château?”

  She laughed. I grunted, irritated.

  What is so funny about my question?

  “I sneaked in while Adrien and that man you had guarding him and the bitch,” she took deep breaths as if trying not to lose control, “were in the pool, and took the CD.”

  I shut my eyes tightly, hoping to ease the dull headache gathering a storm in the back of my head. Then I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling. “D
idn’t you realize Adrien could have been hurt? Your own son?”

  She sniffed. “I’m so sorry. My only intention was to scare that woman enough for her to leave. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. But she wouldn’t leave and that only made me angrier.” She said the last words in a cold voice.

  Mon Dieu, the woman is insane. Didn’t she feel any remorse for what she had done?

  “You never think about your actions and never have.” I gritted out the words. To hell with being patient. “I almost lost two people I love because of your actions. Jesus, you are sick. You need help.” I halted, taking in deep breaths. “How did you get past the guards? You almost killed Selene.” I gripped the chair arm as that thought crashed into my head. I almost lost Selene.

  I shot from my seat and started to pace as fury threatened to rip me in two. I heard nothing other than the pounding of my pulse in my ears.

  Calm down. At least until you coax more information from her, like where she is living or something to help Gilles track her down.

  “Why, Colette? Why did you fake your own death?” I asked the question that had been nagging me from the moment I knew she was the problem plaguing my life. “How could you do that to your own son?”

  “My work gave me the freedom I wanted. When I left Paris, I felt free. No attachments. And then the airplane crashed and I knew I would lose whatever freedom I had if I returned home.”

  “So you faked your own death. What I don’t understand is, if you wanted to be free, why didn’t you ask for a divorce? I wouldn’t have stopped you.”

  “Look, I made a mistake, okay? Remember how you said that you loved me so much you would follow me to the ends of the Earth? That you would always wait for me no matter how long it took for me to come back home?” she asked, the words jumbled up in her hurry to get them out. She went on spouting words and I couldn’t make head or tail of what she was talking about.

  Gone was the coherent moment of less than five minutes ago, replaced by what I now believed was madness.

  “We were young. And also before I found out you were in the habit of wrecking homes. I wasn’t enough for you. I never was.”

  She was quiet for a long time. Had she disconnected the call?

  “So it’s true that you love her. Is it because she looks like me?”

  I gritted my teeth. “No. It’s because she is the complete opposite of you.”

  “If I can’t have you, then no one else will.” Her voice was cold, final. Then, the line went dead.

  THE CAR pulled to a stop outside the townhouse. After turning off the ignition, Remington laid his hand on my knee and gave it a squeeze. Commanding. Possessive. And my body fired up as it always did when he touched me. I shivered, leaned my head back, turning to look at him.

  Jesus. That look on his face.

  He continued to look at me, his hungry gaze roving all over my face. He ran his tongue along his lower lip before biting it.

  Holy shit! I couldn’t take it anymore. I glanced out the window to make sure no one was around. His closest neighbor was farther down the street. It helped that trees surrounded the place so no one could actually see us. Then unbuckled my seat belt, slipped out of my coat and scrambled across the console, crawling onto his lap. I threaded my fingers into his hair, giving it a gentle tug, just the way he loved it. His eyes slipped shut as he shuddered, rumbling deep in his throat.

  God, I love that sound. “Thank you for being so patient with me.” His eyes slowly opened and he watched me lazily, his bottom lip snagged between his teeth. “I know I’ve been difficult and moody, and probably a new level of challenge—”

  He pressed a finger on my lips, cutting me off. “You are not a challenge. Your body needs time to adjust to the baby. How is your head today? Any dizzy spells?”

  “Just earlier today, but I’m fine now. The doctor gave me something for the pain.” I shifted on his lap, readjusting my center on the bulge in his jeans. “You and I are inevitable. We always were. It took me a knock to the head to realize that.”

  “It did.” His hands skimmed my legs, slipping under my dress and halting on my thighs. “I knew it the second I met you in Hotel L’Arc. What I felt at that time completely terrified me. It turns out I had no reason to fear anything.”

  I scrutinized his face. What was going on behind those green eyes? He had been distracted and secretive for a while now. I had cornered him several times, but somehow, he had managed to sidetrack me. My squirrel mind wasn’t helping much either because I’d completely forget why we had an argument in the first place. I didn’t doubt his feelings toward me. This man took every chance he had to spoil me, taking the doctor’s instructions seriously, which was quite sweet.

  No. Something else was going on and I hated not knowing what it was that bothered the man known for his attentiveness.

  “What’s really going on, baby?”

  Immediately his expression shuttered. “What do you mean?”

  I chuckled. “Your acting sucks. Not Oscar-worthy, really. Why can’t you tell me what’s going on?”

  He sighed, removing his hands from under my dress and placing them on my hips. He dropped his gaze to my boobs and licked his bottom lip. “I’ll be fine now that you’re home where you belong.”

  “I’ve been home for the past five days.”

  His jaw clenched. I knew that look. He wasn’t going to talk anytime soon. I’d done so much worrying the past couple of weeks. I had to take the doctor’s advice for the sake of the baby.

  “I hope you’ll feel comfortable enough to talk to me soon.” I tugged my dress, rearranging it around my hips.

  “What are you doing, ma belle?” he asked in a hoarse voice, caught between amusement and desire, staring at me through hooded eyes while his hands gripped my hips, squeezing gently.

  “It depends. What do you want me to do to you, St. Germain?” I wiggled on his lap until I felt his huge cock right where I wanted him.

  He cocked a brow. “Feeling a bit feisty, aren’t we?”

  “Feisty and extremely horny.”

  “Bloody hell! I want to do some very dirty things to you right now.”

  “Yeah? Like what?”

  He shifted on the seat, pushing his hips up at the same time bearing me down on the bulge on his jeans. “Like fuck you hard. God, I’ve missed this. And I think I will punish you for teasing me on the phone.” He slid his hand to my front, pressing the heel of his hand to my pussy and rubbing insistently. “This sweet pussy.” He removed his hand from me, brought it around my neck and pulled me to him. He crushed his mouth to mine and he kissed me hungrily. He nipped my bottom lip and I responded, wanting him, his tongue, his cock in me. He grunted in approval, pushing his hips up, rolling them. I ground into him, wanting the friction, the satisfaction only he could give me.

  “You’re going to have my baby. Our baby,” he murmured against my lips. I could feel the smile pressing on mine. “You’re going to look so bloody beautiful, so fucking perfect. Not that you don’t take my breath away now, but mon Dieu! I already see the potential.”

  “Potential for what?”

  “Driving me insane with your curves and everything else.”

  “Holy hell, Remington. I want your big cock filling me right now. Do you know how long it has been since I’ve had my Remington fix? Centuries.”

  His shoulders shook before he threw his head back and this deep, rich sound rolled out of his mouth. God, his laughter was a thing of beauty. An aphrodisiac, because I was completely turned on.

  “You’re losing points, St. Germain.”

  He chuckled. “I thought the points system was over.”

  “You wish. How do you think I’d get you to do what I want?” I asked, leaning down and kissing his jaw, moaning as his scruff tickled my face. Then I nipped his chin.

  He took my face into his hands, making sure my eyes were on his. Fierce. Passionate. “I will always fulfill your every need. Points or no points.” And as if to stress his point, he bro
ught his hand where it was before, slipped a finger underneath my underwear and entered me as he watched me closely.

  “Harder. Deeper.”

  His fingers froze. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “You won’t. I promise.”

  His thrusts seemed hesitant at first, then they became bolder. He brought his lips to my neck, trailing kisses, and murmured, “Aren’t you afraid someone will see us?” I shook my head, the idea of doing something this naughty exciting me even more. “When did you become so naughty, ma belle?”

  “The moment you promised me three months of debauchery and hedonistic pleasure. Come on, St. Germain.”

  “I love how responsive you are.”

  I leaned forward, nipping his jaw. “I have a surprise for you.”

  He cocked a brow. “Which means you won’t tell me.”

  I nodded. “Later. Now I just want you to make me come. God, I love how you fill me.”

  He grunted, working his fingers faster and fucking me harder and harder. His mouth connected with my neck and he trailed kisses down my throat. He paused on my shoulder and gently bit down.

  I screamed and came right before those wicked lips of his crushed on mine, swallowing the rest of my scream as he kissed me.

  “Are you all right?” he asked, his voice hoarse, concerned.

  I nodded, smiling. Breathless. “You earned some major bonus points.”

  He pulled his fingers out of me, and licked them, his green eyes gleaming sinfully. “Hmm, you taste incredible.”

  I squirmed on his lap, feeling turned on again. But before I could do anything about it, the sound of a car door slamming shut startled me. I scanned our surroundings outside the car.

  He chuckled. “I thought you weren’t afraid of being caught having sex in a car.”

  “What I want to do is for your eyes only.” I winked at him and shrugged into my coat, rearranging my clothing before opening the driver’s door and slipping out, shivering at the biting cold.

  He followed suit while pulling the collar of his pea coat to his chin and quickly snagged me around my waist, pulling me to his side as he swung the door shut and activated the lock using the key remote control.