Chapter Thirty-One
We’d been in Paris for two months and I’d spent the majority of my time overseeing the construction in Aramis’s apartment. He decided that he wanted a new apartment, but instead of putting this one up for sale and buying another, he had a team gut the entire thing from the kitchen to the master bedroom. We’d been vacillating between my apartment and his whenever we had to be there too early to not sleep there for the better part of two months. I was looking at this week’s schedule when he walked in with his mother trailing closely behind.
“There is entirely too much dust in this place, Aramis.” She looked around and shook her head.
“Why do you think we’ve been staying at Joslyn’s place?”
She looked at me. “Maybe you two should stay at my place. I’ll be in Spain for a few weeks.”
“We don’t mind. It’s a short drive to my apartment.”
“Short drive? With no traffic maybe and when is there ever no traffic?”
She wasn’t wrong.
“Besides, you’ll be closer to Adeline and Elias.”
“That’s true.”
“You can help with the baby while I’m away.”
“I’m pretty sure they have nannies,” Aramis said.
“Nannies they don’t even take advantage of. You know Adeline wants to be hands-on. I don’t think that woman has gotten sleep in months.”
“She’s not wrong,” I said. “Maybe we should help out more often.”
“Her mother is there,” Aramis said.
“Her mother has been in London for a month now. She has too many events coming up.”
“We were over there last night and they seemed fine,” Aramis said.
“Addie looked tired. She’s not going to complain. You know her.”
“Joslyn is right. Besides, all of the events you have lined up this week are closer to my house.”
“That’s true,” I said.
“Fine then. We’ll stay over there.” Aramis looked at his mother. “When are you leaving?”
“I’m on my way to the airport now. I wanted to speak with you.” She looked at me. “We’ll just be a moment.”
I nodded and grabbed my phone before walking out into the hall. There, I continued looking at the schedule for the week. It was more of the same—more classroom appearances, some cocktail events, and a few ribbon-cutting ceremonies. With Elias home with Adeline and the baby, Aramis and Pilar were left to take on a bigger role. The issue was that Pilar was traveling with Ben for some football appearances and that meant Aramis had to take on all of it. Before long, the door opened and the Queen Mother stepped out.
She smiled at me. “I’ll be seeing you, Joslyn.”
“Have a safe trip.” I smiled back.
“Keep me posted on things here.”
“I will. Try to relax a little. Everything will be fine over here.”
“For the first time in a long time, I can truly say that I have no doubt about that.” She stepped forward, closing the distance between us and patting my cheek. “Thank you for being so good to us.”
“You don’t need to thank me for that. That’s what family is for.”
She smiled wider and walked away. I walked back inside and went to Aramis’s bedroom while he spoke to the construction people. Most of his things were already in my apartment, but I needed to make sure to grab some of his suits. After all, he couldn’t wear the same ones he wore last week.
“Packing for me again?” he asked, walking into the closet.
“If I don’t, who will?”
“I used to pack my clothes.”
“When?” I blinked over at him. “Was this around the same time when you used to do your own laundry?”
“Funny.” He chuckled. “You know I’ve never done my own laundry.”
“So spoiled.” I shook my head.
“Hey, I told you that you didn’t have to do yours either. You’re the control freak.”
“Because I don’t mind washing my own intimates?”
“I wouldn’t mind washing your intimates.” His gaze darkened, despite the playful smile on his face.
“Let’s keep it PG. There’s a crew of men in this house right now.”
“Fine.” He walked over and kissed me sweetly. “I’m ordering Indian food for us to have at my mother’s house tonight.”
“Perfect.”
“In the meantime, do you want to help me pick out cabinets?”
“I feel like I’ve picked everything and this isn’t even my house, but okay.” I walked out of the closet and he followed.
He grinned. “We also need to pick the color of the grout.”
“Are you just making me do this because you’re regretting tearing this place apart?”
“Yes and no.”
“Yes and no?” I laughed.
“Once it’s finished, it’ll be your place too.”
“I have my own place.” I raised an eyebrow at him.
“Are you completely opposed to breaking your lease?”
“Are you asking me to move in with you?”
“Yes.” No hesitation.
“Then, the answer is yes.”
“The food is here,” I called out.
Aramis was taking an eternity in the shower. That’s what it felt like anyway. We’d spent the rest of our day packing and then upstairs at Elias and Adeline’s place. This family owned four buildings and all four buildings had the higher floors closed off for them alone. The rest of the floors were open for the rest of the family to buy, but even then there was a long checklist their uncles, aunts, and cousins needed to get through before they were allowed to move in. I was always curious as to how many people they’d said no to, but I didn’t exactly want to ask any of them. I opened the door and took the food back to the table. My stomach was growling by the time I finished plating everything.