The Paris Connection (19 page)

“I’ll be all right. I have some money set aside. It should hold us for a little bit, provided I tighten up my expenses. I’ll probably have to contact the agency about transferring Avery’s au pair to another family.”

“Melanie? Avery likes her very much.”

Again, Emma was surprised, both that Brice knew Melanie’s name and that he was aware how much his daughter liked her current caretaker. She supposed Jacqueline had told him and wondered just how much her former mother-in-law had shared with him over the years.

“I think...” She wasn’t exactly sure how to say this next part. “Maybe... I might need you to sign away any rights to custody, if I want to go back to Oregon. I didn’t think it would be a problem, since, you know...you never really see her anyway.”

He sighed. “Emma—”

“I’m not trying to make you feel guilty. I’m just stating the facts. You’ve never shown much interest in Avery, but I want everything to be done as legally as possible.”

He was silent for a very long time. Emma pulled out the other bistro chair and sat, waiting for him to work through what she’d said. They didn’t see each other often, but she knew the distance this move would place between them was something he probably had to think about.

“What if things...changed?” He looked at her. “What if
I
change?”

She felt a faint unease. “What do you mean?”

He looked away again. The breeze continued to blow, and she realized her nose was becoming numb. She wondered if she could be back in America by Christmas, if she and Avery could spend the holidays in the States.

“What if I wanted to get to know my daughter?”

Nothing he could have said would have surprised her as much as this question did.

“Excuse me?”

“My mother adored Avery. She was always telling me stories, about things she said or did. I ignored her. I thought she was trying to make me feel guilty, for our divorce, for not wanting to be a father.” He placed his arms on the table between them and studied his hands. “And I’m not much of one. I know that. I’m not sure I ever will be because it’s not something that comes naturally to me.”

He slowly lifted his eyes. “But perhaps it’s time to try.”

She couldn’t stand the regret in his expression. She stood and paced back and forth across the tiny balcony. “Brice, you can’t do this to me now. I just decided to leave the country, and now you’re asking something that would require me to stay.”

“I know. I suppose I’ve always been too selfish where you are concerned. But she is my child, too.”

“She shares your blood, but that doesn’t make her your daughter. You weren’t there. You didn’t hold her when she cried. You didn’t get up in the middle of the night to feed her. You didn’t even change a single diaper, Brice! And now you want to be her dad?”

He looked chastened by this rebuke. “I know, Emma. And if you truly want to leave Paris and move back to America, then...I will not stop you. But, please. I would like the chance to know her. I’m asking you to stay. I will help you find another job, if you want. I will loan you money. But don’t take her away. Not just yet.”

She wanted to be angry with him, wanted to rail at this new hitch in her plans. But she couldn’t. It was the only thing she’d ever wanted for her daughter, to know her father.

“What does Christine have to say about this?”

“I think she understands. She’d like to get to know Avery, as well.”

Emma had no more reason to fight him on this. “All right. I’ll stay in Paris. We’ll work something out for Avery. But you can’t break her heart, Brice. If you stand her up even once, I’m putting a stop to it.”

“I understand.”

She sighed. She suddenly missed Cole. She wished he were here with her, or at the least, she wished she could call him when she got home, tell him everything that had happened today. She wondered what he had been up to in this past week. Had they promoted Marc to her position at Aquitaine? Despite what she had said, she wished Cole would call her. She supposed she could have called him, too, but she wasn’t sure what she’d say if she did.

Brice had stood. “I better get back.”

She nodded. “I should find Avery. We’re taking the train back tonight.”

They stared at each other, a trifle self-consciously.

“I’m sorry about your job,” he offered.

“Thanks. But I think your loss was greater than mine this week.”

He nodded. Before they turned to go, he touched her arm. She looked back at him.

“You deserve more, Emma. So much more than I ever gave to you.”

She tried to smile, but for some reason, his words made her want to cry instead.

* * *

C
OLE
HAD
STACKS
of paperwork waiting to be addressed, and he couldn’t find an ounce of incentive to work on them. It had been a long and frustrating week at the Aquitaine offices. Lillian was determined to forge ahead with Emma’s replacement while Cole battled with her to have a couple of weeks to sort things through and consider their best options. Julien said little during these discussions, leaving Cole and Lillian to circle round and round without reaching any conclusion on the matter.

She hinted at the truth during these arguments, that Cole had become too personally interested in his managing director to be able to make the necessary decisions now that she was gone. While Cole could agree with that accusation up to a point, he also knew that it was more than his attachment to Emma that made him reluctant. She had been good at her job, and replacing her would be more difficult than Lillian realized. He and Emma had made a good team, and promoting Marc, or anyone else, was not something he wanted to rush into. If Emma needed to be replaced, he wanted to choose someone who could measure up to the standard she’d set.

He tried to explain this to Lillian, each time they debated the matter, but he feared he made little headway. Lillian wanted things settled in Paris. She wanted the Reid and Aquitaine merger to continue to take root. But you couldn’t force something to happen by sheer will. He told her so, though he feared he had come perilously close to crossing the line on that one.

She had left him alone for another day, to contemplate the matter, but had informed him that she expected his decision by Monday.

He stared at the stack of files in front of him but couldn’t will himself to reach for one. He was wondering about Emma and what she’d been up to in the past week. Had she interviewed for a position at Léon Professional yet? They’d be foolish not to hire her; her track record in the field was impeccable, not to mention how quickly she’d advanced. And if they had no scruples about Solene’s dubious tactics then surely they’d have no issue with why Emma had been dismissed from Aquitaine. If not for him, she’d be sitting in this seat right now, CEO of the entire Paris branch for Reid and Aquitaine. Perhaps Emma’s life would have been better if he’d never come to France, if he’d rejected the ultimatum from Lillian and let things play out on the other side of the ocean. Too late now for such musings, he decided. And besides, selfish though it might be, he didn’t think he’d have changed coming here for anything. This city, for as much as he’d resisted it, had captured his heart. He had spent the past week viewing it through eyes that no longer held blinders. He saw it as Emma did, as Ophelia must have once seen it, a timeless blend of ancient and modern, classic and contemporary. There was no other city on earth like this one. Paris was the place he’d sworn never to accept, and not only had he learned to call it home, but he had found love here, as well.

He turned around in his chair to look out over the La Défense district with its high-rises and forecourt featuring fountains, sculptures and the Grand Arch, its symbol of hope.

Where was his symbol of hope? He had begun to put down roots in this place, had opened himself up in ways he had never dared to before, and what did he have to show for it? He had lost the two people who had begun to matter more than anyone else.

What good was it to love a city if there was no one in it who loved him back?

Before he could contemplate the answer to this question, a beep sounded from his phone’s intercom. He turned around and pressed to answer it.

“Mr. Dorset, there is a woman in the lobby requesting to see you.” He experienced a swell of hopefulness. Emma? “Send her up.”

There was hesitation on the other end. “She’s been banned from the offices here as a security risk.”

Emma. It has to be Emma.

“I’ll vouch for her. Send her up immediately.”

“If you say so,
monsieur.
”

He stood, uncertain. Should he greet her at the elevators? Wait for her to come to his office? Better to meet her when she arrived on the floor, so she wouldn’t have to face any of her former coworkers.

He hurried from his office, smoothing down his hair as he stepped into the hall. Several employees greeted him, and he nodded briefly to each, careful not to linger lest they try to engage him in conversation.

“Going somewhere, Cole?”

He halted at the sound of Julien’s voice.

“Yes. Well, no. I’m...meeting someone.”

Julien waited for a more thorough explanation. Cole felt a ripple of unease. How was he going to explain Emma’s arrival to Julien? Lillian had banned her from the building, and Cole had just defied that mandate by telling them he would vouch for her presence.

“Are we expecting a client?” Julien prompted.

Cole shook his head. “No, it’s... No. It’s Emma. She’s on her way up.”

Julien’s eyes widened, but before he could react further, the elevator door chimed. Cole turned, a smile on his face, but it wasn’t Emma who stepped off the elevator. He hadn’t met this woman before in his life.

The mystery was soon revealed, however, as he heard Julien say the arrival’s name.

“Solene.”

* * *

H
E
HAD
EXPECTED
Julien to rail, perhaps even call security. He had heard the rumors about Solene Thierry and the bitter parting between her and Aquitaine, and of course, there was her involvement in the pilfered candidate lists. But Julien made no protest, even when Solene announced she was there to speak with Cole.

Perhaps he was simply weary of seeing people dismissed from his building, or maybe he was curious what had brought Solene back to the office. In any case, he suggested they head to the conference room for some privacy. Already, prying eyes were staring in the direction of the elevators.

“The conference room is this way,” Cole directed, but her eyes narrowed at this.

“I know perfectly well where it is.”

“Oh. Right.” Of course she would. She had worked here for years. He tried to surreptitiously study her as they made their way down the hall. She was a beautiful woman, with a classic French profile, and wore a business suit that hugged her curvaceous frame. Her posture was stiff and erect as they moved along, but it was only once they were in the conference room with the door closed that she dared to speak.

“I came to talk with Cole, Julien. Not with you.”

“Despite the fact that my company has merged with another, these are still my offices, and you came here,” Julien reminded. “So your business is as much with me as it is with him.”

She clicked her tongue in annoyance and moved around the table dominating the room to take a seat. She swiveled it around, studying the room, and then stopped to look at them.

“You haven’t changed a bit, Julien, nor has the office. You always were a creature of habit. Didn’t I tell you it pays to be open to new ideas?”

Julien scowled. “I am all for keeping abreast of the latest tactics, Solene, so long as they’re ethically sound.”

She leaned forward, and Cole sensed they were about to wage a full-out verbal battle unless he intervened.

“Ms. Thierry, I hardly think you came here to discuss recruiting techniques with your former employer. Why is it you asked to see me?”

She smirked at him. “No wonder Emma is smitten. You really are quite handsome.”

The mention of her name caused his heart to pound a little faster. “You’ve spoken to Emma?”

The smirk quickly faded from her features. “That’s the reason I’m here.”

Julien huffed. “If you’ve come to gloat, to tell me she’s been hired at Léon, you are wasting your breath. What Emma does now is none of my business.”

“Quiet, Julien. You always think you know what someone is going to say, before they even say it. This is not about Emma working for Léon Professional.” She straightened and looked at the hands resting in her lap. “In fact, Emma has no plans to work with me again. She never did. I was the one who inquired about hiring her. I wanted us to be on the same team again, but she made it clear she didn’t want to leave you.” Her gaze rose and shot to Julien. “Even though I told her you would betray her, given enough time. You already sold out her promotion to the American here. It was only a matter of time until you turned your back on her again. I warned her, but she would not listen. Emma is utterly loyal. You should have known that.” She clicked her tongue once more. “You should have known she would have stood by your side through anything.” She sagged back in her seat. “Perhaps we both learned that lesson too late.”

Cole’s eyes darted between the two of them, watching as Julien pulled out one of the conference room chairs and sank into it.

“Lillian said Emma planned to resign, and go work for our rival.”

“Lillian obviously didn’t know the full story,” Solene said. She looked to Cole now. “I came to tell you that Emma was innocent of any wrongdoing. The files may have come from her computer, but it wasn’t Emma who sold them to me. It was Henri.”

“Henri?” Cole frowned, trying to place the name. After a moment, it dawned on him. “The janitor? He’s responsible for this mess?”

Solene gave a short nod. “Henri remembered me from my time here at Aquitaine. He looked me up and asked if there would be any sort of monetary remuneration for information from this office. I told him there might be. Things progressed from there.”

“Did Emma know?” Julien demanded.