Unbreak My Heart (Childhood Sweethearts Reunited)

by Helen Scott Taylor

  That baby! "Our daughter's name is Keiko. She's a person, not a thing, and you don't deserve her. If it had been up to me nobody would ever know you were her father, you selfish jerk."

  Face burning with anger, Kate punched the off button on the phone and smacked it down on the sofa. Long minutes ticked past as she listened to the reassuring domestic sounds of Andre clattering around in the kitchen and calmed down. Then he appeared in the doorway holding two steaming mugs.

  "I thought you might need this." Andre came over and sat beside her, offering the cup of tea.

  "Dan's a self-obsessed pig," Kate burst out.

  "Tell me something I don't know. What confuses me is why you ever got involved with him."

  Kate went back over the thoughts she'd had a few days ago about Dan, how he'd been there for her when she moved to England and needed someone. How he'd helped her get over the heartbreak of Andre. Right now she wasn't feeling quite as charitable toward Dan, and she didn't want to discuss it and start another deep and meaningful reminiscence session with Andre. So she settled on something vague."He was nicer when I first met him."

  "Nice," Andre repeated, eyebrows raised. "Really?"

  "Accepted me for who I was," Kate elaborated. "When I needed acceptance."

  "I did that too."

  "Did you?" She hadn't meant to pick at this wound again, but she really wanted to know.

  Pain flashed across his face. "Of course I did. Do you think I pretended to like you from the age of three?"

  Kate shrugged. He took her cup from her hand, placed it on the table and pulled her into his arms. "Forget everything I said the other night. I'm an idiot."

  One of his hands rested on her bare back. She felt the pressure of each hot fingertip like a tiny brand. She wanted to stay with Andre. If she lived forever, there wasn't another man in the world she would ever want as much. But a whisper of mistrust floated between them now, a cobweb of doubt that obscured her vision. "There's nothing else, Andre, is there? Nothing else you need to tell me?"

  He tensed against her and then kissed her hair. "Nothing for you to worry about, Kat."

  His words weren't reassuring.

  "Are you going to continue working on ideas for the Caspian now?" he said, changing the subject.

  Kate had almost forgotten Andre's project. The realization she must stay until it was completed generated a wave of relief. "I'm thinking about it," she said, pulling away from him and hitching up her towel.

  "That's good. I'm determined this will be a launch pad for your career, and get you some freelance work."

  "Why are you so dead set on me having a high profile career?"

  "It doesn't have to be high profile. I just think you're wasted on pet portraits."

  "Hmm." Kate glanced away. Trust him to bring that up now. She knew he'd use her embarrassing secret against her sometime. "At least they bring in some cash."

  "If you build a professional reputation as a designer, you'll command higher fees and secure Keiko's future."

  "You're confusing the real me with the fake fiancée me, Andre."

  "Why do they have to be different? You lived the role at Edmund's party and it did you good. I saw a beautiful, confident young woman at home among the wealthy business leaders who could be your clients. That could be the real you if you chose."

  "I'd always feel like a fake. I can't live that way."

  "Well, one thing's for sure; you can't continue living the way you were. A caravan isn't an option with a baby."

  Kate bit down to avoid the retort on her lips. It was all right for him. He'd inherited a fortune.

  "Isn't it better to make an effort to improve yourself than simply drift on in the same old way?"

  "Drift on," she said incredulously. "I earned a degree in graphic design. I had a job in a good ad agency."

  "So don't waste your experience," Andre continued undaunted. "Take it to the next level. If you want to court potential clients with money, you must meet them in their world, on their terms. If you aren't like them, then fake it!"

  Chapter Eight

  The sun streamed in through the crack between the curtains when Kate woke the next morning. She closed her eyes and tried to sneak back into the black nothingness of sleep, but it had shrunk away and left her exposed to her thoughts.

  Reluctantly, she cracked open an eye and focused on a curly white feather on her pillow. Andre wasn't going to give her any peace. He was determined to push her out of her comfort zone and make her live in his world. Of course, she could bail on him and return to England. She had two options there, visit her mother or go back to the caravan in the Blackdown Hills. Kate wrinkled her nose. A few weeks ago the caravan had felt like a secluded hideout. Now all she remembered was the inconvenience and discomfort, no hot water, the moldy smell in the cramped bathroom, the isolation.

  Staying with Andre was best for her baby, but was it best for her if it meant sacrificing her identity?

  Keiko whimpered. Kate set aside her worries with a sigh and climbed out of bed. As she breast-fed Keiko, they quieted each other. She anchored her thoughts in practical options. Working on the promotional ideas for the Caspian would occupy her with something she enjoyed and keep her in Jersey a little longer. But eventually she'd have to leave unless Andre asked her to stay. With all his talk of developing her career and standing on her own feet, she wasn't sure if he was grooming her to fit into his world or setting her up to fend for herself when she left.

  August always seemed to be a time of change for her. Andre's birthday also fell in this month. Kate put Keiko to her shoulder to burp her and padded barefoot downstairs to the kitchen. The small calendar on the fridge showed it was two days till Andre's birthday. Her gaze unfocused as memories rolled through her head. Nine years ago on his birthday, he'd asked her to marry him. The following day he'd walked out of her life. She stared at the calendar with a sense of disquiet.

  Kate didn't make it over to the hotel until late morning. She held Keiko close and threaded her way through a group of French businessmen outside the front entrance.

  As Kate mounted the steps to Andre's office, his secretary glanced up and shook her head. "He's not here, I'm afraid. He's doing the rounds." She checked her watch. "Try housekeeping. Start with the laundry room."

  Kate backtracked down the narrow oak stairway and took a small door off the reception area. The dimly-lit staff corridor beyond smelled of coffee and clean linen. The scent tugged on numerous tiny threads woven into the fabric of her childhood memories. As she approached the laundry room, Andre's laugh drifted to her like a welcome. Her stomach clenched in a warm burst of expectation.

  He stood with his hand rested on the edge of a sink, chatting with Mrs. Cooper, the head housekeeper; the woman who had babysat Keiko.

  Mrs. Cooper smiled with genuine pleasure as Kate walked in the door. The housekeeper bustled over to peer at Keiko asleep in the baby carrier.

  "How are you, love? This little one looks comfy. You're very lucky you know. She's such a good girl, no trouble at all. Not like my daughter. She's twenty-three and still gives me sleepless nights." She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Better not get me started on that subject or I'll be here all day." She patted her apron and smiled at Andre. "If that's all, Mr. Le Court, I'll be getting back upstairs to supervise the changeovers."

  "That's fine, Sheila. We're done here." Once Mrs. Cooper left, Andre frowned at Kate. "You're back in your old clothes."

  The pleasurable expectation she'd felt in the corridor snuffed out. Kate had dressed in a yellow cheesecloth sundress she'd brought with her. The thought he might disapprove hadn't even occurred to her. "What are you, the fashion police?" She should have realized that if she was to be seen with Mr. High-and-Mighty she had to look the part.

  "It was a simple observation." He leaned his hip against the sink and crossed his arms. "Ready to brainstorm some ideas?"

  She had been. Now she simply wanted to brain him. "Did you get out of the wrong side of the
bed or something?"

  "Or something." He gave her a wry smile. "It's been a troublesome morning. Let's wind back the last few minutes and start again. Good morning, Kate. I hope you slept well."

  Somewhat placated, she decided to play along. "As well as can be expected. I've been mulling over ideas for the Caspian. Want to hear them?"

  "I do." He inclined his head toward the door. "Let's go out on the terrace, have a cup of coffee in the sun and chat."

  It was a quiet time of day between departures and arrivals. Only a few tables were occupied. Andre led Kate to the most secluded table and gestured to the waiter. A few minutes later the man returned with two cups of cappuccino topped with lots of foam and chocolate powder.

  During her pregnancy, Kate couldn't stand the smell of coffee. It was a rediscovered pleasure. Carefully holding her cup to the side so she didn't spill hot liquid on Keiko, she savored the rich aroma and sipped the coffee. Andre slouched in his chair, his gaze dark and brooding as he watched her lick foam off her lips.

  "Okay," he said, as if dragging his attention back to the task at hand with difficulty. "What are your suggestions for rebranding the Caspian?"

  "I've got a few ideas, but I want longer to develop them. My process is that I start with an idea and see where it takes me. It's like a treasure hunt through my mind. I never know what's around the next corner."

  Andre leaned forward, appearing more relaxed now they were talking business. "Good. Give me some hints on what you have so far."

  Kate took a sip of coffee and stared into space as images scrolled through her mind. "The other proposals you showed me seem to be suggesting you change the Caspian to give it a unified look." She glanced at Andre to gauge his reaction, but his expression was unreadable.

  "Go on."

  "I think they've got it completely wrong. The Caspian is unique because it's quirky. The stairs are crooked, the timbers warped, the walls uneven. The building is a mishmash of architectural styles from the thirteenth century onwards where each new owner added a wing or changed the style. There's something different around every corner. I think you should play up the whimsical feel. Don't decorate all the rooms the same way; do the opposite. Give each room its own character, its own theme. How many requests do you get for the round tower bedrooms?"

  Andre touched his fingers to his brow thoughtfully. "Far more than we can accommodate. They're always the most popular rooms."

  "That proves my point. People want to stay in a unique room. One they'll remember."

  "You don't have to sell me on the idea. I agree. But we still need an overall theme to work with, something that will transform it into a marketable concept and catch the visitors' imagination."

  Kate leaned back and smoothed her fingers across Keiko's downy hair to sooth her as she stirred. "I've been considering that. At first I had the idea of using Shakespeare as the unifying theme."

  Andre laughed. "Let me guess, the Romeo and Juliet honeymoon suite—"

  "Give me a bit more credit for originality," she broke in defensively. "I'd thought of 'Titania's Bower' for the honeymoon suite. The place where Titania takes mortal men to mesmerize and…" Suddenly she became aware of Andre's speculative gaze on her and her cheeks heated. "Well, you know, seduce them."

  "Nice idea, but it's been done before," he said softly. "There are a number of Elizabethan hotels in England that trade on the Shakespearian connection. Any other ideas?"

  "Perhaps we should go back to the medieval health spa idea we had before the party."

  "Ah, the party…" Andre flashed a wicked grin that took Kate by surprise and memories of the kiss they'd shared sent a burst of heat through her.

  A loaded silence hung between them for a moment. "Anything else imaginative going around in that mind of yours?" he asked.

  "Yes." And most of it had nothing to do with the Caspian and everything to do with its owner. She cleared her throat and tried to get her thoughts back on work. "With the popularity of high fantasy in books and films, I think you could capitalize on the mythology surrounding the Caspian. Utilize the magical creatures dotted around the grounds. Link the fantastical elements to the history of the place. Each room could be named after a different creature from literature or mythology, maybe dragons. Although I'm not sure if the idea will appeal to your target market. They might think it's childish."

  "Or too much like a theme park."

  He didn't like her idea. Kate's heart fell. She'd been sure he would go for it. But maybe he'd grown out of his dragon obsession.

  Andre tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Acceptability probably depends how the theme is handled. Let me consider it." He finished his coffee and stood. "Do you remember the notes I made about dragons? The folder and drawings you did for me are in my bedroom somewhere. Would it be useful if I found them?"

  Kate nodded, clamping down on the trickle of excitement that ran through her.

  "Come and do some research on the internet while I finish my phone calls, then we'll go back to the cottage and see if we can dig out the old notes."

  ***

  When they arrived at the cottage, Kate fed Keiko and put her down for a nap in her crib. Andre had already set to work in his bedroom, the door standing open. He'd removed his jacket and tie and laid them on his bed. Kate hesitated in the doorway, a smorgasbord of emotions unfurling inside her at the sight of him surrounded by the familiar things from his childhood.

  Casting her a sideways glance, he unfastened a couple of buttons on his shirt and rolled up his shirtsleeves. "Are you coming to help or just watching?"

  He sat cross-legged on the floor and lifted a dusty stack of folders from the bookcase. Head bowed, he sorted methodically through the pile. Kate joined him, crossing her legs under the full skirt of her dress. She grabbed a heap of folders, but got distracted watching the play of muscles beneath the tanned skin of Andre's forearms.

  "Hey, remember this?" Andre tapped a notebook containing a record of life in a rock pool. He leafed through it. "God, we were dedicated. We checked that pool twice a day for six weeks during the summer vacation." He was silent as he ran his finger down a column of figures. "Those were the days." He shook his head wistfully. "You were so patient, waiting while I counted everything, keeping the records for me." He raised his eyes from the childish writing and reached out to tweak her bare toes. "We were a good team, you and I."

  "You had so many plans," Kate said sadly. "What happened to your dream of visiting the rain forest?"

  Andre's gaze became unfocused. "Life happened." He compressed his lips, glanced down at the book he held, then closed it and set it aside. "Running the hotels wasn't what I'd planned to do, but Grandpa loved the Caspian and the Court Royal. He left them to me because he knew Dad would sell them off the moment he got the chance."

  He checked another folder, and added it to the discard pile. "Grandpa was there for me after Mum and Dad split and she went back to France. Without Grandpa, my father would either have left me with a nanny or passed me around among his girlfriends. I owed the old man, Kat. He asked me to make the Caspian the best hotel in Europe, so that's what I'm trying to do." Andre glanced around the room; his gaze skipped across his treasures and books. "Sometimes life doesn't work out how you plan, but you have to make the best of things."

  She tried to imagine what he'd gone through, the compromise he'd made to abandon his dreams in favor of his grandfather's. Her mind skittered away from the insight like an animal fearful of being trapped. "Do you have any regrets?"

  Andre sighed. "It's pointless to dwell on what might have been. But I do have regrets. They get me down occasionally." Their eyes met and held. "Sometimes you just have to let the past go and move on. I did what I had to do, and it's not so bad. I love the Caspian as much as Grandpa did. Every time I walk into the foyer and absorb the history-soaked atmosphere, I'm happy to be here, happy to have the future of this beautiful building in my hands so I know it's safe."

  Kate looked down at her lap. Andre spok
e of his own experience, but his message was clear. He thought she was stuck in the past and should change. She'd been determined to resist earlier. Now she felt ambivalent. The new clothes, the sleek hairstyle, the party, none of it had been as bad as she expected. In fact, the confrontation with Eric Tierman had empowered her. If she were honest with herself, she'd actually enjoyed the party.

  "Success!" Andre brandished a black folder. "The dragon records, milady, in all their mythical, medieval splendor." He vaulted up and piled everything else back in the bookcase. "I'm famished. Let's go down to the kitchen and have a sandwich while we go through these notes."

  ***

  On the morning of Andre's birthday Kate wandered into the cottage kitchen and was surprised to find him sitting at the table drinking coffee.

  He held up his cup. "Pour yourself one, and let's toast our new brand. Everyone seems to like the idea. I rang Edmund yesterday and explained we were using dragons as a motif and magic and mythology as a wider theme." Andre glanced down at the list of taglines they had brainstormed. "I can't decide if I prefer 'The Caspian Hotel, Experience the Magic' or 'The Caspian Hotel, A Taste of Magic.'"

  "I've used the second one in the mock-ups." Kate poured herself a coffee feeling strangely subdued. She was delighted Andre liked her concept and the designs and logo ideas she'd worked up. But now her work was finished she had no reason to stay.

  "Cheer up! This is a celebration. Why so gloomy?"

  "I'm pleased you're happy, really. It's just…" Kate wanted to ask if she could stay, but what reason could she give? She needed to get on with her life and stop hitching a ride on Andre's coattails. He had encouraged her to make her own way, develop her career. He obviously didn't expect her to be a permanent lodger. He probably wanted his privacy back.

  "What's the matter?"

  "What will you tell Edmund about our supposed relationship when I leave?"

  Lines gathered between Andre's eyebrows and he looked down. "Why do I need to say anything? People conduct relationships at a distance."