With a broad smile on his face, Raoul hurried over to her and put her in the water next to his namesake. At first she stood up and looked around, then sat down. Pretty soon she wanted the toy Raoul was playing with.
Kellie was curious to see what her son would do.
He was a natural born tease. She would reach for the plastic doughnut, but he’d hold it just a mere inch away from her outstretched fingers. Growing bolder, she stood up and held on to his shoulder to get it.
When she finally took it from him, Kellie thought he’d cry. But he didn’t. Instead he looked around the pool and handed her another toy. Soon she had one in each hand.
After a while she sat down and handed them back to him. They traded back and forth. They were both smiling and laughing.
“Is anyone thinking what I’m thinking?” Kellie spoke up.
Raoul’s flame-blue gaze sought out Philippe’s. “There will be no betrothals while I’m alive. If the two of them get together one day, it will be because they’re madly in love and can’t live without each other.”
“Amen,” Kellie’s husband murmured with intense emotion.
“I don’t know,” Lee said with a mysterious smile on her face. “Little Raoul is our godchild. He comes from the best stock around. He’s going to grow up to be as gorgeous as his father. I kind of like the idea of our daughter getting involved with him.”
Playing along Kellie said, “So do I. You can see that our godchild Christine is a real charmer. A royal beauty just like her mother. She and Raoul look quite perfect together. He certainly couldn’t do better than to marry a princess.”
Raoul’s face went chalk white. Philippe’s complexion wasn’t that much different.
“Darling— I was only teasing,” Lee rushed to assure her husband. The anxiety in her eyes made Kellie feel guilty.
“We both were teasing,” she insisted.
Raoul’s reaction gave Kellie her first inkling of how traumatic it had been for him to grow up being betrothed to a woman he didn’t love. Philippe had been Raoul’s confidant all those years. She would never touch on the subject again.
“I’m sorry if I upset you, Raoul.”
“You didn’t. If I reacted, it was because this day has been magical for me.” He grasped his wife’s hand and clung. “I’m with the woman I love. I have a daughter I adore, and our best friends are celebrating with us.
“Your comment reminded me of all I would have missed if Philippe hadn’t sat with me in my boat one hellish morning. He came up with a master plan to help break that damned betrothal. You were inspired that day, Philippe.”
Kellie’s husband put his arm around her shoulders. “That’s because I’d already met my wife-to-be. I couldn’t imagine being forced to marry someone I didn’t love, and didn’t want that to be your fate.”
She bowed her head. Once upon a time she’d thought she could force Philippe to marry Yvette. How little she’d understood of life. How much more she understood now.
Later in the day, after they’d gone home to put Raoul down for a nap, Kellie wrapped her arms around her husband.
“I love you so much, I can’t fathom not being married to you.”
He sucked in his breath. “I think maybe you’re beginning to understand how I’ve always felt about you. Come on. Let’s take our own nap.
“After today’s experience I’m thinking we ought to talk about providing a little brother or sister for Raoul so he won’t always want to play with Christine.”
Kellie was way ahead of him, but she kept silent as they walked through the connecting door to their bedroom. She hadn’t thought the better times of their marriage could get any better, but she was wrong.
ISBN: 9781408945667
The Baby Dilemma
© Rebecca Winters 2002
First Published in Great Britain in 2002
Harlequin (UK) Limited
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