Much as she knew this was wrong, her emotions had taken over, crowding out her misgivings.
He’d said he knew the reason for her abrupt departure. She couldn’t imagine how he knew, but at least they were going to talk, It was something she’d been craving since last night. This time he wasn’t hurrying off to meet another deadline. Just the opposite, in fact.
It had been such a wrench to leave this afternoon without seeing him again, she’d phoned Emma in order to hold on to what little sanity she had left.
Emma—
Rachel would have to call her back, but not right now. She couldn’t think. All she was capable of doing was keeping him in her sights.
Before long she realized the convent was his destination.
This time he took a circuitous route through a forested area of the estate. The private road wound through the underbrush until it came out on another courtyard where she glimpsed a rectangular swimming pool.
With the temperature of the air still rising, the blue water looked divine.
Luc parked his car and walked over to her.
“Before we do anything else, let’s cool off, shall we?”
“I didn’t bring a swimming costume with me.”
“That’s not a problem. Giselle and I both have apartments here. You can use her room. I believe you’ll find everything you need in one of the big chests.”
That explained how he’d changed out of his suit into casual clothes the first night they’d met.
He opened her door so she could slide out from behind the wheel. Before she knew it, he’d reached for her cases.
“This is a fabulous place, Luc.”
They walked toward a door he unlocked with a remote from his pocket.
“There’s a lot of history here. Giselle and I have always liked it. Years ago she staked out the mother superior’s room. It’s larger than the cells once used by the professed nuns.”
Rachel chuckled. “You didn’t mind?” she asked as he led her into a shadowy corridor with doors on both sides. They climbed the stone steps to the next floor.
“Not with this pool right outside. In the summers the parents would stay here. After they went to bed, Yves and I used to sneak in our friends.
“Of course the parents knew all about it. Maman would pretend to be shocked, but we always found food waiting when we raided the kitchen in the middle of the night.”
“How fun for you.”
“Our childhood was pretty idyllic.”
“That’s the way every child’s should be.”
Their eyes met in silent understanding.
He opened a door on the left. Rachel peeked inside and let out a soft gasp.
With the exception of a modern queen-sized bed, the interior looked very much the way it must have done in the fourteen hundreds.
“Oh, Luc—”
She didn’t think anything could eclipse this sight until she glanced at him and felt the full brunt of his captivating white smile.
He lowered her cases to the inlaid hardwood floor.
“There’ll be plenty of time for you to take pictures—” he read her mind “—but first things first.
“We have a rule around here. The last one in the pool will have to pay the consequences.”
“And what might those be?”
“You’ll find out.”
“So you think you’re going to win?”
A devilish gleam entered his eye. It sent her flying across the room to the chests he’d referred to.
Within seconds she found a drawer with half a dozen bikinis.
She grabbed the most modest one she could find. It was blue with tiny pink flowers that looked as if it would fit. Then she hurried into the en suite bathroom to change.
Hoping it was all right to use one of the bath towels, she rushed back down the stairs with it and opened the heavy door to the courtyard.
“No—” she screamed because Luc was already there dressed in black trunks waiting for her.
“Please, no—” But her frightened laughter and cries went ignored. His powerful arms and body fought off her puny struggles.
“In you go, ready or not.” Merciless to the end, he carried her to the deep area of the pool. But instead of dropping her like a hot potato, he took them both to the bottom.
The sensation of their legs and bodies intertwined with bubbles was more intoxicating than the Riesling she’d drunk with him last night. She scarcely noticed the cold water.
In reality it wasn’t cold, but Luc had created a fever inside of her. She felt like a fireworks sparkler that was sizzling beneath the surface of the water.
His dark eyes danced as she popped above the surface.
“Oh, no—my towel—” She could see it floating beyond his broad shoulders.
“You don’t need it,” he murmured.
They trod water together. Her eyes traveled to his dark brown hair sleeked back to reveal his handsome features.
The late afternoon sun bronzed his olive skin.
“You look like the off-duty captain of a pirate ship,” she teased to cover her emotions.
He burst into deep laughter. The joyous kind.
That remote, aloof side of his nature he sometimes displayed had gone into hiding. She wanted him to stay this way for ever.
“You look like the woman on the masthead of my ship come to life at my whim.”
Afraid he could see her blushing, she somersaulted away from him and headed for the side of the pool.
He was right at her heels, cleaving the water in a few long, masterful strokes.
She reached for the tiled edge. When she turned around, there he was, inches from her.
His eyes followed the line of her lips. “Before I have to be back on duty, my one desire is to taste my private treasure.”
So saying, he placed his hands on either side of her and lowered his mouth to hers.
Rachel had wanted this for so long, she met the pressure of his mouth with shocking urgency.
She’d kissed and been kissed by different boyfriends over the years, but this was different. So completely different it frightened her because she knew she’d never be the same again.
Her whole being felt swallowed up in him. While he drove their kiss deeper and deeper, she forgot they weren’t one flesh of heart-throbbing need.
She made a little moan of protest when he lifted his mouth.
“Now that we have that out of the way,” he said on a ragged breath, “tell me why you ran from me today.”
She couldn’t meet his eyes. “I didn’t run.”
“No?” he demanded. In the space of a millisecond his mood had changed. She edged further away from him.
It was the wrong thing to do. He just moved in closer so their bodies brushed against each other in the water.
He put his hand beneath her chin and lifted it so she was forced to face him. “I don’t know what else you’d call it.”
“I—I felt I’d become a nuisance,” she stammered. “Normally I make plans to visit a vintner several months in advance. But in your case I arrived unannounced. You’ve had to make all sorts of accommodations for me. Poor Giles—”
“Poor Giles has been having the time of his life,” Luc cut her off.
“So have I,” she confessed. “I’ve learned reams about wine from him. In my opinion he’s a national treasure.”
Disarming laughter broke from him once more.
“An apt description of Giles. I can’t wait to tell him.”
“He and Solange are both terrific individuals.”
“I couldn’t agree more. It’s a small world when a stranger comes to Thann and ends up brightening the lives of two people who love to live in the past.”
She made the mistake of looking at him. “You’ve just described my grandfather. He always tells me he feels sorry for me because I didn’t live in the golden age following World War II.”
He held her glance. “My grandparents said the same thing to me. Each
generation thinks theirs is incomparable.”
She nodded. “I suppose it is to them.”
“But you don’t feel that way about your life?”
Rachel bit her bottom lip. “I don’t know. I haven’t lived all of it yet.”
“Touché,” he murmured in such an odd tone she trembled a little.
Though they were talking on one level, something else was happening on another. She had a premonition they weren’t making idle conversation any more.
Without warning he heaved himself from the water, then extended his hands to pull her out.
“Let’s get dressed and drive into town. I know a little place that serves pasta Alsacienne style.”
His moods changed so fast, she couldn’t keep up with him.
“That sounds good.”
Except that she wasn’t hungry, not after trying to keep up with his mercurial emotions.
“Oh—the towel!”
“I’ll get it later. Let’s go.”
He grasped her hand. They walked back inside the convent. Whatever was on his mind had to be serious. Maybe over dinner he would tell her.
CHAPTER FIVE
LUC ushered Rachel inside the Petit Vosges. The fragrance from her strawberry shampoo assailed him.
“I often come here with Giles after work. As you can see, it contains all sorts of memorabilia from the war years.”
“It’s amazing,” she exclaimed. “I’ll have to bring Grandfather when he gets better.”
Luc was planning on it.
He ushered her to an empty table in the corner and motioned the waiter over.
“Do you trust me to order for you?”
Rachel’s blue eyes fastened on him. They looked more brilliant in the candlelight against the leaf-green of her suit. She was so damn stunning, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
“Of course. In fact I’d prefer it.”
He had to tear his attention away from her to order the scampi pasta and beer.
After the waiter walked away, a bewitching smile broke the corner of her mouth. An incredible mouth. The memory of that kiss had altered the rhythm of his heart.
“I understood your French, but I didn’t know you liked beer.”
“Only the draft on tap here. I’m curious to know how you’ll like it, and the music.”
Her expression livened. “What kind?”
“Are you familiar with Edith Piaf?”
“Yes. Grandfather said she was called the little French bird who sang her heart out during the war.”
“That’s true. The female vocalist who performs here looks and sounds incredibly like her. If you have a favorite song from the past, she’ll sing it for us.”
“I know Grandfather had one. It had something to do with the soldier who didn’t come back.”
Luc nodded. “I know the one.”
“As I recall, it was very sad.”
Rachel’s voice sounded wistful just now, reminding him of what she’d said earlier about life.
I haven’t lived all of it yet.
Those words had resonated in some secret part of him. That was because he hadn’t lived all of it yet, either.
Being with her made him hunger for the things he’d thought were over. He needed to tell her, but he would wait for the right moment.
“The pasta is marvelous,” she said a little while later.
“And the beer?”
“Well…” She made a little face that caused him to chuckle.
“It’s all right if you don’t like it, Rachel. I have to admit it’s an acquired taste.”
“How long did it take you?”
“To acquire it?” he questioned poker faced. “To be honest, I never really did.”
“I knew it.”
She leaned forward. Her eyes flashed blue sparks. “You’re a purist, and a horrible tease. I bet your sister could tell me stories—”
Giselle would approve of Rachel. Luc knew that in his gut.
He was about to tell her so when the singing started.
Luc moved his chair around so he could put his arm on the back of Rachel’s. He needed that closeness and the warmth of her body next to him.
For the next half-hour he found the greatest of pleasure watching the woman next to him enjoying the show. Especially when the vocalist performed Luc’s request.
“Thank you for today,” Rachel said later when he drove them back to the convent. “It’s been unforgettable.”
“That sounds like another goodbye speech.”
Her head was bowed. “I really can’t stay in Alsace any longer.”
“What if I asked you to stay through the weekend? Since my divorce, I haven’t wanted to be with another woman. Then…there you were.”
He heard a little moan escape her throat.
“You must have loved her very much.”
“I did. In fact I couldn’t imagine moving on. But meeting you has made me realize life is full of possibilities.
“Think about it and tell me in the morning.”
Before he made the mistake of rushing her, he got out of the car and went around to help her.
When he let her inside the convent, he held back from climbing the stairs with her.
“I’m going to do a few laps in the pool before bed. You go on. I can tell you’re sleepy. Don’t worry about anything. You’ll be as safe as a nun tonight.”
An hour later Rachel was still wide awake, no closer to deciding what to do than when she’d first slid beneath the covers.
She finally sat up and turned on the lamp to find her laptop.
Luc expected an answer in the morning. What tortured her was the knowledge that if she stayed, she’d be giving him her heart and soul.
But she couldn’t say the same thing for Luc. If he’d been telling her the truth, and she was the first woman to interest him since his divorce, then he couldn’t possibly be in the same place emotionally that she was.
Three days together might be all he wanted or needed from her. She couldn’t risk playing with her life’s happiness that way.
If they lived in the same city…
But they didn’t.
Luc was a prominent man with a whole company looking to him for their livelihood. He couldn’t come to England on a moment’s notice.
Under the circumstances there was no way a lasting relationship could develop.
Heartsick, she needed something to occupy her mind, so she brought up the file on her book. It made her feel closer to Luc. She could still hear his voice explaining everything in that unforgettable French accent.
“The dry wine of Alsace tends to have a fullness which provides a rich contrast from, say, the Mosel wines. Its fruity flavor goes especially well with food.
“Alsace’s unique geological make-up is the reason for the exciting aromatic differences found nowhere else in the world.”
Because of his knowledge and intelligence, being with him was a great thrill. All she had to do was say yes to his invitation and she could have three more days with him.
And then what? Never see him again?
Her body ached with pain. Luc had no idea he was the reason the book she planned to write was starting to take shape. Already a title had come to mind.
One day years from now, when she was brave enough to ask him to read the first draft and make suggestions, she would prevail on him to write the foreword.
In order to do that, she’d be wise not to get into deeper waters. If she said goodbye to him tomorrow, she could leave with the memory of that kiss, and still retain their professional friendship.
Letting out a tormented sigh, she put everything away and turned out the light again.
Before she finally fell asleep, her pillow became so water-logged, she had to grab the other one.
She awakened in the morning in agony, but her mind was made up.
Determined to leave looking her best for him, she showered and applied a pink lipstick. Then she dressed in one of her favorite outfits,
a sleeveless pinstripe dress in blue on white. The summery material was so light, it seemed to float around her legs.
She tied her hair back at the nape with a white ribbon, and slipped on white sandals. Once she was ready, she made up the room. After a look around to make certain she hadn’t forgotten anything, she went downstairs with her cases.
Luc was already in the courtyard putting the last lounger from the pool away in a storage unit.
He was such a beautiful man, her heart pounded outrageously. It always did that at the first sight of him.
His dark head swiveled around, making eye contact with her.
He walked toward her looking amazing in jeans and a T-shirt that molded his powerful body, but there was no greeting from him.
She sensed immediately something was wrong.
“I had a feeling in my gut you might decide to leave without telling me.”
His remark brought her up short. Her body stiffened. “I would never have done that.” She spread her hands. “Luc—what’s the matter?”
A somber expression marred his striking features. He grimaced. “Admit you were going to tell me you couldn’t stay.”
She held his fiery gaze. “Yes. I think it’s for the best.”
He would never know her pain, but she was fighting for her life.
His jaw hardened inexplicably. “If that’s your wish, then I’ll follow you to the Hotel du Roi in Thann where you can stay until tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? What do you mean?”
“I mean you can forget driving to Champagne or anywhere else today.”
She blinked. “I don’t understand.”
His brows furrowed. “A storm alert has been issued. We don’t often get electrical storms on this side of the Vosges, but when they come, they can be vicious.”
His warning alarmed her. Not so much from his words, but the intensity with which he’d said them.
If her senses didn’t deceive her, she’d heard a tone of real concern in his voice.
“You honestly think it could be that bad?”
His brown eyes turned black as jet. “In two thousand a ferocious storm wiped out thirty-five per cent of the trees in Alsace.”
Her body shuddered at the thought of such terrible devastation.
“Look behind you if you need proof.”
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