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“What?” She sputters, delicately wiping her lips with the linen napkin.
“Mmhmmm,” I respond, pulling on the cuffs of my custom-tailored dress shirt.
“What do you mean… What are you saying, Luc? Tell me!” Lola demands, mouth agape.
I smile at my protégée.
“A business associate of mine has a partnership for his stores with STEELE. He told me word was out that they’re looking to make up for a poor deal and need to move fast with one that will offset the loss.”
Intrigued, Lola leans forward.
“So, what does that mean?” She insists, eyebrows scrunched.
“It means, petite chérie, that now is an excellent time to negotiate boutiques in New York and Las Vegas where STEELE has several properties. Rents on Fifth Avenue, on Prince Street, and in their premier Vegas shopping mall are not inexpensive. Lola’s Coterie can benefit from long-term leases set now when STEELE is not in the best position to play hardball,” I finish with a relish.
“Oh, Luc”—Lola jumps from her chair and pulls me into her warm embrace—“you are incroyable!”
Again seated, Lola turns all business. The smart, feisty woman I met six years ago resurfaces.
“When do we leave?” Her hazel eyes twinkle with glee.
“I take it Blair will attend the meeting?”
“Of course,” Lola responds, unaware of the reason for my question.
Despite how much I deny the attraction to my best friend’s daughter, my cock rouses in my trousers.
Merde.
2
Blair
“Okay, Blair. Will you promise not to give the guys who approach you the side-eye? For one night, just pretend you’re interested and not aghast. Mum worries about you. Just the other day…”
I tune my younger sister Jillian out as she goes on and on about the state of my love life. One would presume she’s the older one. But no, she’s thirty to my thirty-three. Even though her name means young child, she behaves as the oldest.
Our brother Jasper teases her incessantly. When she questions his business or personal decisions, he asks if she’s the eldest child, or is he the one who’s thirty-five. Then he’ll pinch her cheeks and laugh as she swats at his hands.
I love my sister to death. She’s my best friend. But I pay her no heed. I know the man I want. The one who makes my heart race. Just at the mere thought of Luc Montaigne, my pussy softens as my juices flow in preparation to welcome him into my body. Teeth clamp on my lower lip to stifle a needy groan.
From the time I turned thirteen and hormones changed my body, I realized the attraction to my father’s best friend was more than the uncle figure. Not understanding, I felt ashamed to dream about a thirty-year-old man. Dreams where I would sit on his lap like a Daddy—not for a sweet bedtime story. But for a raunchy tale where the prince didn’t kiss the sleeping beauty to wake her. Oh, no, he was more… creative.
When Luc married ten years later, the devastation hit me so hard I couldn’t attend the wedding at Château de Blois. My family went while I begged off with the excuse of not feeling well. Not a lie, since my heart ached, and my stomach roiled. Like a masochist, I scrolled through every single one of the society pages and the media websites for images of the four-day-long extravaganza.
There in four-color stood my prince beside another woman. Her silvery gray eyes filled with happiness outshone the elaborate diamond tiara perched atop her blonde head. Her petite frame nestled against his side as he towered over her by over twelve inches. He smiled down at her with equal love.
I barely made it to my en suite bathroom before I retched.
For three years, I avoided Luc whenever he came to London to visit my Dad, even if his wife didn’t accompany him. My heart hurt too much to be near him, knowing he would never be mine. At dinner one night, my Dad announced Luc called with great news. She was expecting a son. Bile rose, and I excused myself from the table.
As much as I hated she was in the place I wanted so desperately, genuine sadness befell when she and the baby died in childbirth. No one deserves such pain and loss. I attended their funeral with my family. Luc was inconsolable. He never mingled with the mourners. Only my father spent time with him, locked in the study for hours.
My heart ached for Luc. I wanted to comfort him in my arms. Run my fingers through his jet black hair. Cup his cleft chin in my hands as I stared into his sapphire blue eyes to tell him all would be better. I didn’t have the chance. My family and I returned to London a couple of days later. Luc threw himself into work. Even avoided time with his best friend.
But the Universe always has plans we do not see.
Three years ago, I finally admitted to my father I had no interest in joining our family’s manufacturing business—Thomas Industries, Ltd. A world leader in the production of aluminum, coal, copper, diamond, iron ore, and uranium, it’s the largest mining company in the UK. Like my siblings, I interned in the various departments over the years to learn the business. However, after graduation, they accepted their full-time roles. My passion for fashion leads me on a different path.
