Mix 'N Match (No Match for Love) (11 page)

“Yes.” Mitch held out a hand. “You must be Ms. Durand.”

“Please, call me Juliette.”

She batted her eyelashes, and Zoey blinked. Was Juliette flirting?

“Juliette, then.” Mitch gave her a warm smile—one he hadn’t given Zoey in months. “This is Zoey Carlson.”

“Ah, the maid of honor. Brooke told me she trusts your judgment implicitly.” Juliette’s eyes twinkled, and she extended a hand toward Zoey. “I can’t wait to meet Brooke. She is a very smart woman to not trust the details to a man.”

Zoey took the hand, trying to push back the flash of jealousy. Who cared if Juliette flirted with Mitch? They were both single and attractive. “It’s so nice to meet you, Juliette. Brooke really wishes she could be here herself, but the media situation makes it impossible.”

“Yes, I’ve talked with Brooke extensively over the phone. The security and anonymity of this event is of the utmost importance to me, I assure you.”

“Thank you,” Zoey said. “Brooke and Luke deserve the wedding of their dreams. I’m not about to let reporters ruin it.”

“Then we are on the same page. Would you like me to show you the event space now?”

Zoey looked around, eying the crowds of tourists. “Will we be able to see it?”

Juliette laughed. “Well enough. Please, follow me.”

Juliette said something in French and flashed a badge to the guard at the door. He held back the group of tourists, and the trio slipped inside.

Zoey let out a gasp. The palace was even more impressive inside the hall. Intricately carved molding accented the elaborate ceiling mural of cherubs and angels. Glittering chandeliers hung every few feet. Gold statues held candlesticks, with floor-to-ceiling mirrors in between. The hall was crammed with tourists holding cameras, the many different languages blending together in an almost musical roar.

“It’s beautiful,” Zoey breathed.

“The
Galerie des Glaces
, or Hall of Mirrors,” Juliette said. “The treaty ending World War II was signed here. Brooke discussed using this room, perhaps for the cocktail hour between the ceremony and dinner, but ultimately decided it was too opulent for her taste. She’s opted to hold the entire event at the gardens of the Grand Trianon.”

“This is gorgeous,” Zoey said. “But yeah, not Brooke’s taste. What’s the Grand Trianon?”

“Another palace on the grounds,” Juliette said. “Louis XIV had it built to replace the Porcelain Trianon when it fell into disrepair. It was one of his favorite places to escape court life. Some members of the extended royal family lived there full-time.”

“You mean there’s
another
palace?” Zoey said.

Juliette laughed. The sound was light and tinkling, and Zoey didn’t like the way Mitch’s lips curved up at it.

“Versailles covers more than two thousand acres,” Mitch said. “There are multiple palaces and gardens.”

“This is the main palace,” Juliette said. “But there’s also Marie Antoinette’s private estates, which include the Queen’s Gardens, Petit Trianon, and Hamlet. It was a little too country for Brooke’s taste. She considered a number of locations but decided containing the entire event at the Grand Trianon would be easiest from a security standpoint. The gardens there are quite extensive, so it’s an ideal location.”

“But won’t it be suspicious if the Grand Trianon is closed?” Zoey asked.

“No. It’s frequently closed for private events,” Mitch said. “It’s one of the reasons Brooke chose it.”

Juliette darted between a group of tourists, Zoey and Mitch close on her heels. She nodded to a guard, and Zoey followed Juliette behind a roped-off area and through a door. Sunlight poured onto the gardens, and Zoey gasped. Juliette hadn’t been kidding.
Extensive
didn’t even begin to cover it. Two large pools, with enormous sculptures spewing water, splayed out in front of her.

Juliette pointed to the fountains. “They were designed to reflect sunlight into the mirrors in the hall. It lightens up the space.”

“Amazing,” Zoey breathed. She turned in a slow circle, unable to believe she was actually here.

She glanced over at Mitch, but he was making notes on his iPad, completely unmoved by the sight. Was the guy a robot?

“The Grand Trianon is that way.” Juliette pointed. “I can radio for a golf cart if you’d like. It’s about a fifteen-minute walk.”

“Oh, we’re definitely walking,” Zoey said. Only someone without a soul would consider tarnishing this picturesque scene with something as twenty-first century as a golf cart.

Mitch sighed but didn’t protest. Not that it would’ve mattered. Zoey would fight him on this one. This was a moment she wanted to be completely present for.

They followed Juliette down the path. The sound of rushing water from the fountains created a melodic roar all around them. Zoey breathed deeply, the scent of flowers surrounding her.

“What’s the contingency plan if weather is an issue?” Mitch asked.

“We’ll move the entire event indoors,” Juliette said. “For now, Brooke wants the ceremony in the gardens, followed by cocktail hour on the Peristyle. The dinner and reception will take place inside the ballroom.”

“And what sort of security will be present?” Mitch asked.

“
Monsieur
Ryder has hired a private security firm from Paris that we highly recommend. Versailles has their own security staff as well, of course. They’ll be alerted to the event and will take extra precautions to keep the area off-limits to guests not associated with the wedding.”

“And what about parking?”

Zoey tuned Mitch out, preferring instead to let the awe of the moment overtake her. Mitch could worry about security and parking and whatever else he wanted to obsess over. But Zoey was going to memorize every inch of this place, so that when she spoke with Brooke on the phone, she could give her every detail. Brooke would look amazing walking down the carefully manicured gravel pathways in her wedding dress, the cathedral veil trailing behind her. And Zoey wouldn’t let any paparazzi tarnish that moment.

Versailles was a logistical nightmare. Mitch shook his head in frustration. Extensive grounds, sprawling buildings, ornate fountains . . . there were at least a dozen points of entry into this place, and two dozen more where reporters with telephoto lenses could hide. If Brooke and Luke’s end goal was to keep the wedding a secret, they’d picked pretty much the worst location ever. It had been a big enough nightmare making travel arrangements for over a hundred guests, all while trying to keep the exact date, time, and location of the wedding a secret, in case any guests had loose lips and leaked the information to the press.

Mitch rubbed a hand over his short curls. Brooke and Luke were trying to give him a heart attack. They asked the impossible—keeping the wedding a secret until after the honeymoon—then gave him Zoey as his counterpart.

He glanced over at her. She’d asked a million questions on the way to the Grand Trianon, and now she kept pointing out areas of the gardens and what would look perfect there while Juliette enthusiastically agreed. Zoey looked sexy but professional in a white sleeveless blouse and bright yellow skirt, which swished gently around her legs. The outfit gave her an innocent, fresh look that contrasted with the jet-black hair and bright teal highlights falling in soft curls around her face.

Zoey was a walking contradiction, and he didn’t like how she created all these confusing emotions in him.

“It’ll look beautiful,” Juliette said.

“Brooke will love it,” Zoey agreed. “Do you think the caterers can manage?”

“I know they carve watermelons. I imagine carving pineapples won’t be too different. I’ll make sure they do a few trial runs so we can create a backup plan if necessary. It’ll be unique and elegant.”

“And go perfect with the sundae bar.”

“I’m sorry,” Mitch cut in. “Carving pineapples?”

“It’s going to look awesome,” Zoey said. “They’ll be cut in half and have a heart with Brooke and Luke’s monogram carved near the top. We’ll hollow out the center to use as the ice cream bowl.” Zoey turned back to Juliette. “Now, I know Brooke wanted a monogram on the dance floor. How will that work?”

“I have a few different monograms that I’ll send over for her approval today. We’ll bring in a wooden floor for dancing and either project or hand-paint the monogram on it, depending on Brooke’s preference.”

“I think she’ll want it hand-painted, but I’ll check with her.”

Hand-painted monograms and a hundred sculpted pineapples. The whole thing was so ridiculous. When Mitch got married—
if
he ever got married—he wanted a quick ceremony at the courthouse, and that was that. No wasting hard-earned cash that could be invested into a retirement fund on a party that would last less than a day, and that everyone would soon forget.

Okay, no one would forget Brooke and Luke’s lavish affair anytime soon. But the whole thing still seemed frivolous.

His mind flashed to Zoey, a short veil shrouding her face, bright red lipstick begging him to kiss her. A white silk gown hugged her form, very old Hollywood. He couldn’t imagine she’d ever agree to a courthouse wedding, although she was spontaneous enough for an elopement.

He shook his head. It didn’t matter what Zoey wanted for a wedding. Some other guy would get to deal with that.

Get to deal with that? What was wrong with him? More like have to deal with it.
It would take a special guy to handle Zoey’s brand of chaos, and Mitch was man enough to admit he didn’t have what it took.

“I think that’s all for today,” Juliette said, tucking her iPad back into her messenger bag. “We have an appointment to review the set list with the quartet tomorrow at ten.”

“We’ll be there,” Mitch said. “Are you sure there’s nothing else we should be doing today?”

Juliette smiled. “Just enjoy yourselves. Things are going to get busy very quickly. This is Zoey’s first time in Paris, no? Show her the sights, and enjoy the downtime while you can.”

Zoey shot Mitch a smug grin. “Thank you, Juliette,” she said. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Juliette waved and left the gardens.

“An afternoon of freedom,” Zoey said. “I’ve got a list of what I want to see.”

“Did you sleep at all on the plane? You’ve got to be exhausted.”

“I’ll sleep when I’m back in California.” She looked around the gardens regretfully. “I think I could spend a week just admiring Versailles, but I’m sure we’ll be at the gardens a lot over the next two weeks.”

“Do you want to give the Eiffel Tower a try, then?”

“I think that’s best experienced at night. We could go to Notre Dame. Oh, or maybe Sacre Coeur! Or the Louvre or the Arc de Triomphe.” She took off down the path, calling over her shoulder, “Hurry up, slow poke.”

Mitch shook his head, admiring the view more than he should as she walked away. He hated how much he wanted to follow her anywhere, to do anything. Zoey was like a poisonous plant, luring in her prey. One bite and you were as good as gone.

Zoey’s enthusiasm as they drove into Paris was infectious. She had the window rolled down and kept pointing out landmarks with a squeal.

He’d traveled the world while working for Ryder Communications, but rarely had time to see more than the inside of a conference room. He’d forgotten that going to new places could be exciting. Mitch was glad they had some free time in their schedule to visit some of the sights. Zoey deserved to experience Paris, even if he was a crappy tour guide.

Zoey tapped away at her phone, then flipped to what looked like a map of the city. “Brooke says to go to the Arc de Triomphe first. Apparently the traffic circle from up there is insane.”

“It’s like five in the morning in L.A.”

Zoey shrugged. “She doesn’t sleep much these days. Looks like the Arc de Triomphe is within walking distance from Luke’s, and we can take the metro everywhere else, like a true Parisian.”

“Okay.” Mitch couldn’t stop his lips from curving up in a smile. Zoey’s eyes sparkled, making the green flecks hidden in pools of caramel pop.

“What, no complaint?”

“For the rest of the afternoon, I’ll follow your lead.” He’d just have to remember that today was a one-time thing. They were here to work, not to flirt.