“I’d always been the one to suggest the more dangerous activities. But my sense of adventure overtook common sense one too many times. There was a price to be paid. One of the results was that I discovered you can’t count on the permanence of life.
“Marriage was no longer part of my future agenda. But that doesn’t mean to say I don’t enjoy women thoroughly...as you’ve already discovered,” he added.
She couldn’t look at him for a minute. Her pain for him went too deep.
“Now it’s your turn, Jasmine.”
But all she could think of was the terrible pain he’d lived through. “That explains why you were so vehement about me not going cliff jumping. It makes sense now. I could tell you were more than a little upset. How horrible for you, Luc. I’m so sorry.”
“It happened a long time ago. I hadn’t thought about it in years until I heard a couple of the teenagers scream and I had a flashback. When I saw you start for the steps of the cliff, I was seized by fear for you. I was afraid there could be another tragedy.”
“I understand and I was an idiot not to let you know I didn’t plan to participate.”
“Not an idiot. You had no idea who I was or what I might have been up to. Unfortunately there are enough awful things that happen to innocent people to force you to protect yourself.”
She looked around, seemingly conscious of the other diners. “Why don’t we talk in the car on the way home? We’re not the only people out here anymore.”
“You’re right, and everyone is staring at you. Whether they recognize you from television or not, you will always draw attention, just like your grandmother, Megan.”
Her gaze flicked to his. “Remy must have talked to you about her.”
“Only that you reminded him of her and he couldn’t say no to you. Did he love her?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “You figured that out?”
“It wasn’t something he could hide. I doubt he was even aware of it.”
“Papa always feared Remy would never get over loving her too.” Jasmine looked away. “Let’s go.”
* * *
On the way to her house, Luc drove past the land she intended to purchase and pulled over to the side for a minute. Night had fallen over the landscape. He reflected that the soil here in Grasse was coveted by the farmers of the world for its exceptional ingredients, producing flowers of the highest quality.
But as he looked out to the sea, Luc realized Grasse possessed many more qualities not found anywhere else. With the gentle breeze blowing off the water to dishevel Jasmine’s hair, the land, the twinkling lights of villas seemed locked in a kind of intangible enchantment.
Without eyeing her, he said, “Can you honestly walk away from this and leave Remy to carry the load alone?”
He heard her shallow intake of breath. “He’s getting his life back and has his own family to help him. I have loved ones waiting for me at home.”
Luc turned to her. “Why wasn’t this special man with you on Yeronisos?”
She wouldn’t look at him. He sensed her calm was forced.
“Ranching isn’t unlike farming. To coin your phrase a different way, Luc, a rancher isn’t long separated from his cattle herd.”
“Not even for the woman he loves?” She was evading him. “Is he divorced with a child?”
She gasped. “Why on earth would you ask that?”
“It’s a legitimate question. A rancher has a foreman to take care of things if he wants to get away, but if he has a child to consider, that makes it more complicated to arrange a trip. Is that why you’re turning your back on part of who you are? Has he asked you to marry him and help raise his child? To consider what you’re planning to do means you would have to be driven by a compelling reason.”
“For heaven’s sake, Luc—”
She was sounding more and more flustered. He flicked her a glance. “I can’t fathom a man who wants to marry you leaving you alone for a second. How much do you truly love him when you’ve been separated so much of the time?”
Her inability to come up with a response convinced him she was hiding something. He had enough patience to wait until they were in a less public spot to find out what was going on inside her. After a couple of cars drove by, he pulled back on the road and headed down the gorge.
The moment he pulled up in front of her house, he saw her hand reach for the door handle. “Careful. I haven’t turned off the engine yet. Why are you acting so frightened of me?”
She took an unsteady breath. “It’s not fear, Luc. I simply don’t want to take up any more of your time.”
“Would you still say that if there weren’t a man waiting for your return?”
A sound of exasperation came out of her before she turned to him. “Yes!”
“So you have no interest in me except for what I’ve been able to do for you.”
Her features hardened. “I came to you with a business proposition. You know how grateful I am for what you’ve done for me—”
“But it’s all work and no play, even though you’re separated from your beloved by thousands of miles?”
Those blue eyes looked haunted. “What do you want from me?”
“How about honesty.”
“I’m being honest,” her voice trembled.
“The hell you are—” he whispered fiercely. Having taken all he could, he pulled her close so their mouths were almost touching. “I’m feeling something I’ve never felt before and I know you’re feeling it too, but your guilt is preventing you from admitting it. The fact that guilt is getting in the way means you couldn’t possibly love this man the way you should.”
A strangled moan escaped her lips.
“I’m going to kiss you, Jasmine, and then we’ll know for a certainty.”
Luc found her mouth and coaxed her lips apart. In the next instant he felt her begin to kiss him back with such answering hunger, it took his breath.
He’d wanted this kiss to happen for so long, and now that it had, he couldn’t stop. Her passionate response took them to a deeper level until they both moaned with pleasure.
He was so far gone and so enamored of her that when she suddenly wrenched her mouth from his, it brought a protest from him.
“No more,” she cried. Breathing heavily, she eased herself out of his arms. She sat back and said, “I knew deep down there would be a price to pay for your generosity that went beyond bank boundaries. Am I to presume this is the payment you’re really after for bending your own rules to help me?”
In that second while the unexpected question caught him off guard, she moved away and got out of the car.
He stared at her through narrowed lids, making no move to stop her. “Now we know the truth, don’t we? A moment ago you were right with me, kiss for kiss, and obviously feeling even more guilt about it than I realized. Otherwise a woman like you who is sacrificing everything for the good of one man and the company would never accuse me of buying you to get you in my bed.
“Need I remind you that you came to me first? In case you think your moment of righteous indignation for whatever you believe I’m guilty of has ruined everything, be assured our deal still stands. I’m a man of my word. À bientôt, Jasmine.”
As he drove off, Luc thought he heard her calling him back, but in his savage state of mind, he knew it safer to keep on going.
Mortified was the only word that even came close to what Jasmine experienced as she watched Luc disappear from sight. The insult she’d flung at him was unconscionable and could never be erased. The second his mouth had descended, she’d started kissing him back with a fervency she hadn’t known herself capable of. But it had frightened her so terribly she’d torn her lips from his.
What kind of evil streak did she possess to kiss him as she’d done while pretending
there was a man in her life? And then to turn on Luc with such cruelty because he’d guessed the truth.
Luc would never have to buy a woman. He could have any woman he wanted. He’d been honest with her about his painful loss. He’d opened up to her. That couldn’t have been easy to do. In fact, he would never tell something that private to a person he didn’t care about. In so many words, he’d let her know there was no significant other in his life since that terrible time.
And look what she’d done to him—
Tonight he’d wanted to kiss her. Heaven knew she’d wanted him to kiss her, but after she’d felt his mouth devouring hers, she’d been afraid it wouldn’t stop there. And not because of him.
Jasmine wanted to crawl in a hole. Without his willing help, who knew how long it would have taken to get a bank loan somewhere else. She had to do something to fix this, but didn’t know how.
Maybe he hadn’t heard her call out for him to stop. If she tried phoning him right now, would he answer? He’d only been gone a few minutes.
Desperate to stop the bleeding, she pulled out her cell and pressed the digit for his number she’d programmed into her phone. To her chagrin, the call went directly to his voice mail. When she heard the prompt, the words came pouring out of her.
* * *
Another phone call had gone to Luc’s voice mail. In this black mood, he didn’t dare talk to anyone. It was probably his sister calling again about the party for Sunday she was planning for her husband’s birthday. She wouldn’t relent until he let her know he’d be there with a girlfriend.
After the dark moment with Jasmine, he wasn’t fit company for anyone. Tomorrow he’d clear out for the weekend. Luc had no idea where he’d go. He only knew he had to get far away.
Further ahead of him, he saw lights flashing. There’d been an accident. He had to stop behind a line of cars. While he was forced to wait, he glanced at the caller ID on his phone. Seeing Jasmine’s name there almost caused his heart to palpitate out of his chest. In the next instant, he listened to her message.
“Luc? You have to forgive me for what I said. I didn’t mean it. You know I didn’t.”
He could hear her voice shaking over the line.
“I’m aware I don’t deserve a chance to explain, but I have to. You have to let me. Please turn around and come back. I won’t be able to sleep tonight until I’ve talked to you. You don’t need to call me. Just come. I’ll wait for you. Please.”
That urgent throb in her tone connected in a more powerful way than her words. He came close to causing another accident by turning around and peeling down the road toward Grasse.
The ten minutes it took to reach her house were the longest he’d ever known. He levered himself from the car and strode to the front door. As he started to knock, it opened. Jasmine’s nervous expression left little to the imagination.
“I’ve been waiting, but I can’t believe you came back. It proves what a good man you are.” That was the second time she’d told him that. She opened the door wider. “Come in and we’ll go out on the terrace.”
He followed, watching the sway of her womanly hips as she led him through the hallway to the salon. From the French doors, they walked out to a terrace with lawn furniture. It overlooked a flower garden. He walked over to the stone balustrade. The sweetness of the blossoms intoxicated him.
“What is that smell?”
“Rose de Mai. Papa’s Aunt Dominique loved this garden.”
“Heavenly stuff,” he murmured after turning to her. She’d perched on one end of the swing.
“You have to forgive me,” she began. “I’ve never been intentionally rude to anyone in my life. That makes twice now with you, but I don’t want you to think I’m the girl you thought I was on Yeronisos.”
He lounged against the balustrade, still struggling to deal with his emotions. “In other words, I bring out something in you that makes you cross a line, is that what you’re saying?”
She leaned forward with her arms on top of her legs, clasping her hands. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I take full responsibility.” Her head was down, causing her gleaming dark hair to slide forward. “I’d like to blame my cruelty on a nervous breakdown or temporary insanity or some such thing. But it wouldn’t be the truth.”
Honesty from her at last...
“I’ve lived a very selfish life, Luc. Been given every gift without counting the cost.”
His brows furrowed. Where was she going with this?
“When you told me how you felt after the plane crash, it pressed on a nerve inside me.
“I’d always had this feeling of immortality too, that I could fit everything into the life I wanted, when I wanted. I had time for all there was to accomplish. There’d be no bell tolling for me.
“Then I woke up on my twenty-sixth birthday and realized the day had come when everything was now on my shoulders. Papa had put me in charge to carry out his wishes and trusted me not to fail. Up until then it had seemed like some dream that wasn’t based in reality. But it wasn’t a dream!” She lifted her head. “Suddenly I felt my mortality for the first time, and I was terrified. I still am...”
Luc knew that feeling all too well.
“It’s not just the fear of failing Papa. It’s the realization that I failed the parents I adore. So many missed chances that I can never recapture.”
He moved closer. “I’ve been following you until now. What do you mean, missed chances?”
She got up from the swing. “To show them my love. I’ve been a selfish daughter, Luc. I—I’ve been as horrible to them as Paul Ferrier was to his son.” Her voice faltered. “I neglected them by putting my interests first. Papa was such a fascinating figure, I loved being with him. In the process, my father took a back seat without my meaning for it to happen. He and Mother made it so easy for me. Too easy. I see that now.”
“Aren’t you being too hard on yourself? I’m sure your parents recognized you had a special destiny. A good parent enables their child to live up to her full potential.”
Her face was a study in pain. “Even so, I recognize what I’ve done and want to make it up to them. My siblings have always been there for them when I was nowhere around.”
Luc was beginning to put all the pieces together. “So now you’re going home to live and make things right.”
“If it isn’t too late to repair the damage.”
“Jasmine—there’s no damage. Your case isn’t anything like that of the prodigal son. You had their blessing. When you spent so much time in France, you didn’t turn your back on them or fritter away your inheritance.”
“But in a sense I did, Luc! I left my father’s home and the life he’d planned with Mother for our family.” She started to sob. “I’m worse than Paul Ferrier.”
Without conscious thought, Luc reached out to crush her guilt-ridden body in his arms. “Hush,” he murmured into her hair. He’d finally gotten the truth out of her. There was no man waiting for her. But the realization had thrown him into a new quandary.
Luc could have handled that form of competition. But he had a much greater adversary in the form of her father, whom she now wanted to shower with love for the rest of her life. That meant her leaving France for good.
If she were to get involved with Luc, he’d be the one standing in her way. That’s why she’d said something hurtful to him when he’d known in his gut it was totally out of character for her. Luc had found out that when Jasmine did something, she went at it with all the energy of her soul.
He got it.
This was a moral dilemma staring him in the face on a whole new scale. Luc didn’t know if he had the fortitude to do the right thing and walk away. But if he continued to feel her beautiful body pressed against his, he’d start to make love to her.
Do you want to take the chance that
she’ll say something hurtful again and mean it this time, Charriere? Do you want your life to be utterly destroyed by loving this woman whose destiny lies on the other side of the world? Get away while you can.
To his dismay, she must have been reading his mind because she eased away from him first and hugged her arms to her waist. “Thank you for giving me the chance to explain.”
Luc took a deep breath. “You’re under a tremendous amount of stress. I’m going to leave so you can get to bed.” Get out of there before you’re tempted beyond endurance. “If you need me for anything, call me. Good night, Jasmine.”
He left her standing on the terrace and hurried out to his car. This time she didn’t call him back. How in the name of all that was holy was he going to handle it?
CHAPTER SEVEN
THE DAY OF the board meeting had finally arrived. The Ferrier members on the board hadn’t been at all happy about her bringing the date forward to Friday, but so far none of them had formed a mutiny. Everyone had assembled in the conference room of the perfumery.
She’d found it hard to sleep since Luc had left La Tourette a week ago. His brilliant mind had figured out what she’d been trying to tell him. So far he hadn’t phoned her. She’d known he wouldn’t, but it devastated her to the point she felt ill.
Over the last week she’d spent all her time with Remy. They’d planned he would stay out in the reception area with his family until she called for him to come into the room and be introduced to the board. Remy had been amazing through it all.
He knew the board might not vote for him, but Jasmine could see he was handling it because her grandfather’s ghost had been laid to rest for good. Getting back the house and the estate where he’d grown up had made a huge difference in him. Jasmine knew he would go on being a flower farmer and helping his family, but with one difference. He’d be happy.
Before she walked in the conference room, she said a little prayer. “I’ve done everything I could, Papa. The rest is no longer in my hands.”
Squaring her shoulders, she entered the room and walked to the head of the long conference table. Giles LeClos sat on her left, Roger Ferrier, her oldest uncle, on her right. Her eyes traveled around the table, lighting on her relatives and staff members, all fourteen of them.
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