Kristi Gold - Hotel Marchand 04

by Damage Control

  Charlotte pulled the door closed, ventured across the room and dragged a chair up in front of Renee’s desk. “So what’s going on with you and the director?”

  Renee was too tired for twenty questions. She was too tired for even one question, particularly that one. “I’ve already told you, and our mother, we’re friends. Now let’s leave it at that.”

  “But you were with him all day, then out with him last night again. At your apartment.”

  Renee felt the initial flood of a blush. “Yes.”

  Charlotte’s knowing smile crept in. “And?”

  Realizing she wouldn’t get rid of her sister until she played true confessions, Renee decided to give Charlotte the answer she wanted. With a few embellishments, of course. “We had sex. Wild unrestrained sex in every feasible position and on every flat surface, as well as a few that weren’t flat. Are you happy now?”

  As usual, Charlotte didn’t appear at all shocked. “Question is, are you happy now? Because you certainly don’t seem very happy.”

  Dear Charlotte, who had always been able to read Renee like her favorite book. “It was fantastic. Better than fantastic. And that’s all there was to it, fantastic sex.”

  Charlotte inclined her head and studied Renee. “You’re lying. That’s not all there is to it. You have feelings for Pete. My guess is, really strong feelings for him.”

  She had guessed right. “It doesn’t matter how I feel about him. On Friday, he’ll be going back to his world while I stay in mine. And because Adam was injured last night, I doubt I’ll even see him between now and then.”

  “But if he makes his movie here, you can see him then.”

  Renee had considered that possibility, until this morning. “He might not be back for months. Maybe even a year. I’m not going to put my life on hold for him.”

  “What life, Renee?” Charlotte asked. “You go to work and you go home. You don’t mingle. You don’t date. You don’t do much of anything.”

  Renee couldn’t believe Charlotte’s nerve. “That’s a bit hypocritical, don’t you think? Because I could swear you and I have the same routine.”

  That earned Renee a scowl. “This isn’t about me. It’s about you and this incredibly gorgeous man, who happens to be a famous director. Don’t you think exploring a relationship with him might be worth a shot?”

  Not at the risk of her emotional well-being. “I can’t, Charlotte. Not this time.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because it hurts too badly to say goodbye.”

  Charlotte rose and pointed at Renee. “Here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to find some way to be alone with him again. You’re going to tell him how you feel, then you’re going to show him. And after that, if he decides to leave without any kind of commitment, then let him go. But don’t let him leave with things left unsaid. You’ll only live to regret it, and wonder what might have been.”

  The sincerity in Charlotte’s tone, her somber expression, led Renee to believe that she might be speaking from experience. “I’ll think about it tomorrow.”

  Charlotte grinned. “Spoken like a true procrastinating Southern Belle.”

  “Go away, Charlotte. I need to call the local newspaper and make sure they don’t identify Pete’s nephew in the accident report.”

  Charlotte straightened and tugged at the hem of her beige cashmere sweater. “How do you intend to do that?”

  “By making a few promises, namely agreeing to purchase a full-page ad in the special insert scheduled to come out the week before Mardi Gras.”

  “That’s a huge expense, Renee. We can’t afford it.”

  “We can’t afford the blow to our reputation if word gets out one of our famous guests—a child no less—was injured while under the care of our employees, even if it was an accident. I’ll use my own money if I have to.” To protect the hotel, and Pete.

  Charlotte lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “Okay. You’re the PR guru. I’ll have to trust you on this one.”

  “Thank you. Now go to work and let me do the same, otherwise neither of us will have a job.”

  Renee would do everything in her power to prevent the hotel from falling into ruin, and she knew her sisters felt the same. They needed to do more than simply have it stay solvent. They needed to make it thrive, to be assured that their parents’ legacy stayed in the family for years to come. And after Pete left, the Hotel Marchand would once again be her refuge, just as it had been when she was fired from the studio.

  “YOU NEARLY KILLED TWO KIDS, you bastard.”

  For a moment Luc only heard the ominous sound of rasping breath, satisfied that he had caught Dan Corbin off guard. But his satisfaction was short-lived when Corbin said, “You’re walking on thin ice, Mr. Carter.”

  “Then you’re not even going to deny you slammed into the car last night.”

  “I would be careful about throwing around unfounded accusations if I were you.”

  Not exactly a denial, but not a confirmation, either. “If I find out you did have something to do with that wreck, then you and your brother are going down.”

  Another long pause. “And if we go down, then you do, too.”

  Luc had an idea what that entailed—a threat on his personal safety, and maybe others’. “If I keep up this charade, I have to have your assurance that innocent people won’t get hurt.”

  “Now, Luc, our tactics haven’t changed. Destroy the hotel’s reputation with whatever means necessary, then buy the hotel right out from under them. And you should keep in mind that if—when—we’re successful, you’ll finally have what’s rightfully yours. But only if you keep sight of your goal and force the Marchands to sell.”

  And in doing so, Luc would be entering into a permanent pact with not one devil, but two. Regardless of what he decided to do, right now he had no choice but to play their game, or at least pretend to play, until he figured out a plan. “Look, I have to go.”

  “Only two more weeks, Luc. If the Marchands aren’t cooperating by that time, then Richard and I will make certain they do. In the meantime, stay focused.”

  Luc couldn’t focus on anything but his dilemma, and the nagging feeling that he’d set a course of destruction.

  “WHAT ARE YOU UP TO?”

  Only Pete’s deep voice floating through the phone line could create such a sense of warmth in Renee. Only thoughts of Pete could keep her distracted and fully awake, despite her exhaustion. “I’m in bed, reading.” She’d basically been staring at the same page for over an hour. “How’s Adam?”

  “He’s okay. He’s been sleeping on and off all day. So have I.”

  Renee only wished she’d been so lucky. Even after her lack of sleep the night before, she couldn’t seem to settle down. Especially now. “I’m glad to hear you’re both getting rest.”

  His rough sigh filtered through the line. “About this morning…”

  “Really, it’s okay Pete. You don’t have to explain.”

  “I need to explain. I want you to know I’m not blaming you or your family for the accident. You’re right. Things happen that we can’t control. I also want you to understand why I need to spend the next few days with him.”

  “Of course I understand that, Pete. You’re entitled to consider your nephew’s well-being after all you’ve been through with him.”

  “That doesn’t mean I can’t be with you, even if it’s only on the phone.”

  Renee tossed the book aside, scooted down onto her pillow and grasped the phone tightly in her hand. “What exactly do you have in mind?”

  “Some adult conversation would help. Very adult conversation. I’d expand on my thoughts, but Adam’s asleep on the couch beside me. I wouldn’t want him to wake up and hear me, then report to his mother I was talking dirty to someone on the phone.”

  Renee could imagine what he might say. She’d heard him say those things before when he’d made love to her. “Just how suggestive did you plan to get?”

  “As suggest
ive as you’d like, babe.”

  “Now you definitely have my curiosity piqued.” Among other things. “But you’re right, Adam shouldn’t hear that sort of thing at his age. I suppose I’ll simply have to use my imagination.”

  “Then again, that’s why they invented cordless phones. Hang on a minute.”

  When Renee heard the sound of a door opening and closing, she asked, “What are you doing, Pete?”

  “I’ve gone outside onto the veranda where I can still see Adam through the part in the curtains, but he can’t hear me.”

  Then he proceeded to tell her exactly how he would make love to her if he were there, in great detail, right down to the strategic placement of his hands and where he would use his mouth. He ended by saying, “So there you have it, Renee.”

  Renee had it all right, a flush on her face, on her body, and a desire for Pete the likes of which she’d never known without being in the same room as him. Suddenly warm—no, hot—she tossed back the covers. “Thanks so much, Pete. How am I supposed to sleep now after that descriptive speech?”

  “If it makes you feel any better, I’m going to have the same problem.”

  The only thing that would make Renee feel better would be having him back in her bed. “Sorry, but it doesn’t. However, it’s getting late and I’m going to have to try.”

  “Before you go, I have one more thing to say.”

  She wasn’t sure she could handle one more thing. “As long as it doesn’t have to do with sex.”

  “Not exactly, but I do want to see you again before I leave, whether that involves sex or not.”

  Before he left, but what about after? Of course “after” didn’t figure into the equation. As she’d told Charlotte that morning, they lived different lives, had different goals. And she needed to remember that. She needed to protect herself from more heartache, even if that meant letting him go now instead of later, at least from an emotional standpoint. “Maybe we should keep it simple. A goodbye dinner. Adam could come with us.”

  “And a handshake after that?” His tone radiated sarcasm.

  “Look, Pete, you need to take care of Adam, and I need to take care of business. But I’d be glad to see you both off at the airport on Friday if you’d prefer not to have dinner.”

  “Fine. If that’s what you want.”

  It wasn’t what she wanted at all, but it was for the best. “It is what I want, and you should want that, too. A clean break between friends.”

  A short silence followed before he said, “Is this your idea of getting back at me? ‘So long, Pete, it’s been great. Now get lost.’”

  “Pete, I—”

  “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. You’re right. A clean break between friends works better. No complications. No expectations. Take care, Renee.”

  The line went dead, and Renee’s remorse came to life. She wanted things to be different. She wanted to believe that perhaps a future could exist between them. But too many things stood in their way, the least of which was distance. And her own fear of opening her heart and soul to him, only to have the door closed when he came to the conclusion that she wasn’t what he wanted after all.

  She turned off the light, but she couldn’t turn off her mind, or thoughts of Pete. But as she had before, she would survive losing him again. After all, she couldn’t really lose something she’d never really had.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  WHEN HE HEARD the rapid knock on the door, Pete practically shot off the sofa like he’d been hurled out of a cannon. Three days had passed since Renee had told him she wanted a clean break. He’d spoken to her one other time, a tense conversation that had revolved around Adam’s health. So much still needed to be said, and he hoped when he opened the door, he would be granted a second chance.

  But Anne Marchand, not Renee, stood on the other side of the threshold. “It’s good to see you, Mrs. Marchand.” He worried his disappointment resounded in his tone, but if Anne’s bright smile was any indication, she hadn’t noticed.

  “It’s good to see you, too, Pete, and what’s this ‘Mrs. Marchand’ business? It’s Anne. You’re practically family now.”

  Pete would bet his lucky boots that Renee would argue the point. “Come in.”

  He stepped aside, allowing Anne to enter, and after he closed the door, she stood in the middle of the room and looked around. “Where’s our boy?”

  Pete pointed to his left. “In the bedroom, watching some horse-racing movie for about the fifth time. He’s not too happy I’ve kept him inside for the past few days, but I didn’t want to encounter any more problems.”

  Anne frowned. “Problems as in those photographers Renee told me about?”

  Photographers that Pete would delight in getting alone in a dark alley. “Yeah. I have a feeling they could’ve had something to do with the accident, but we’ll probably never know.”

  “Probably not.” Anne sighed. “I’m so thankful it wasn’t worse. Adam is doing all right, isn’t he?”

  He gave her a reassuring smile. “It hasn’t slowed him down a bit. He’d run the streets of New Orleans if I let him.”

  “I’m glad he’s okay,” Anne said. “I was afraid the children might have suffered some serious emotional trauma, but that doesn’t appear to be the case, at least with Daisy Rose. Both Luc and Melanie are still having a hard time with it, but I suppose children truly are much more resilient than adults.”

  Pete couldn’t agree more. “Adam doesn’t seem to remember much about it. In fact, I think he’s enjoying the cast on his arm, even if he has problems doing things, like brushing his teeth. Can’t say that he’s minded that at all.”

  Anne laughed. “I suppose not.” She paused a moment before continuing. “Actually, I’m here to make an offer, if you’re willing. Daisy Rose is downstairs right now and we plan to spend the evening here in the hotel. She would really like to have Adam come and visit. The staff will be dropping by to say hello and we wouldn’t go out at all, so you wouldn’t have to worry about that.”

  “You’ve already done enough, Anne. You’ve got to be tired taking care of one preschooler, much less two.”

  “Believe me, Pete, it’s my pleasure. I enjoy having them to fill in the lonely hours.”

  Pete could relate to that kind of loneliness, and Adam had saved him from it on more than one occasion. “Renee did tell me you had a health scare a few months back.”

  Anne frowned. “I keep telling everyone I’m fine, and I am. I refuse to get old before my time. Besides, you’ll be doing me a favor. Adam and Daisy Rose play so well together that I don’t have to find ways to entertain my granddaughter. And it would be a shame not to let them have one more play date.”

  Pete could probably use the break, but because Adam would be leaving tomorrow, he preferred to be with him for the evening. Then again, it would be totally selfish on his part if he didn’t at least ask Adam what he wanted. “Let me go get him and see what he thinks about the idea.”

  He crossed the room and opened the bedroom door. “Hey, kiddo, someone’s here to see you.”

  Lying on his belly, Adam turned his attention from the television. “Is it Renee?”

  Unfortunately for Pete, no. “Why don’t you come see for yourself?”

  Adam scampered from the bed, rushed past Pete and practically hurled himself into Anne’s arms. “Hi, G-mama! Where’ve you been?”

  She gave him a long hug and a pat on the head. “I’ve been moving a few things back to the hotel because I’m going to live here again. And that’s why I’ve come to see you. Would you like to play with Daisy Rose this evening here at the hotel? And if it’s okay with your uncle, you could spend the night, too.”

  Adam raised his left fist in the air and shouted, “Yeah!” before looking up at Pete. “Is that okay, Uncle Pete?”

  He should have known Adam would choose a pretty little redhead over him. “Why don’t you play with Daisy Rose for a while, and then we’ll see about the overnight thing.”

&n
bsp; “But I didn’t get to spend the night the last time. I had to stay in that hospital, remember? Can I spend the night this time? Please?”

  Pete didn’t have the heart to tell him no, even if it was their last night together for a long time. And maybe, as it had been with Renee, this was Adam’s way of letting go. “If that’s what you want to do, kiddo.”

  He nodded his head with a jerk. “Uh-huh. Daisy Rose can write on my cast, and we can eat popcorn and ice cream.”

  “Whoa, buddy,” Pete said. “Why don’t you let Daisy Rose help with the planning?”

  “She likes popcorn and ice cream,” he said. “And she likes me, too. Can I go get my clothes now?”

  “Sure. Put a few things in your backpack. And don’t forget your toothbrush.”

  Pete had barely delivered the directive before Adam had hurried back into the bedroom. “Have a seat,” he said to Anne, indicating the sofa while he took the chair opposite.

  Once they were settled in, he told her, “I appreciate this. He’s been bored out of his mind. But if he acts up, call me and I’ll bring him back to the suite.”

  She folded her hands primly in her lap. “He’s not a problem at all. In fact, he seems to calm Daisy Rose down quite a bit. I also thought it might give you the opportunity to visit with Renee before you leave tomorrow.”

  After their last conversation, Pete wasn’t sure Renee would be willing to see him again, even for that goodbye dinner. “I’ll give her a call later.”

  “Actually, she’s in the restaurant right now with Melanie. Why don’t you stop by and see her in person?”

  And provide her with the opportunity to have him ejected if she didn’t like what he had to say. He probably deserved that. “Unfortunately, the last time we talked at length, she wasn’t too keen on seeing me again.”

  Anne’s expression turned suddenly serious. “There’s a few things you need to know about Renee, Pete. First of all, people have always been drawn to her. And it’s not only because she’s physically attractive, or beautiful, some would say.”