Did he have any right to bring Sylvie into his world? Would she save him or end up drowning beside him?
He took a deep breath and tried to force the pessimistic thoughts out of his head.
He concentrated on how she’d felt in his arms. Soft and warm and perfect.
He wanted her. It felt good to want something again. Something for himself.
He would convince her to stay with him, that he could provide enough joy to counterbalance the annoyance of dealing with his family.
“Mr. Darois? Is everything all right? Your mother is a bit worried that something is wrong with all the comings and goings so late. She’s staying up to make sure you’re okay.” Mrs. Graham stood on the porch, still wearing the uniform she insisted was in keeping with her station in the house. It was a blue button-up dress with a white apron and sensible shoes. He’d told her she could wear whatever she liked, but she’d refused.
“I’m coming.” He had some good news for her.
He jogged into the house, hoping tomorrow would be a good day for his mother.
And a special day for him.
chapter four
“What do you mean, you’re getting married?”
Sylvie dropped her bag on the big desk in her office and turned to her assistant. “I mean, I need to move a couple of my appointments this morning because I’m getting married over at the courthouse at ten and I promised my mother we would go have a nice breakfast with Rene and Cricket after the ceremony.”
Her mother had insisted, and when she’d texted Rene to let him know, she’d gotten back a polite It would be our greatest pleasure.
She’d stared at that last word for way too long. Pleasure. In less than an hour she would be Rene’s wife, and he’d made it clear their physical relationship was all up to her. He would be more than willing to pleasure her.
She would be living with him . . . Maybe she was technically already living with him since he’d been true to his word and there had been a moving crew at her place bright and early this morning. Not that it would take them long. Most of the furniture wasn’t hers. She’d packed her own clothes and shoes and makeup. They’d quickly had her books and other possessions safely boxed up, and she’d been informed that a professional service would handle cleaning the house she’d lived in since she’d become the mayor.
It had been a shock to see how little time it had taken to bundle up her life and sweep it all away. When she’d helped Sera move, it had taken days to get everything over to Guidry Place.
Would she even fit in at Rene’s house? It was huge and had old-world elegance. When she’d been a kid, she’d always pretended she was a princess when she went over there. Rene had been the prince who would one day notice she was there.
Was she making a horrible mistake?
Gertie stared at her like she’d grown two heads. “Married?”
It was good to know Hallie and Sera had kept their cone of silence. And apparently so had Rene’s friends. She hadn’t realized she was interrupting his weekly poker night when she’d gone to his place the night before. “Yes. I know it’s a surprise, but I’m getting married. It’s a bit of a rush, but we have our reasons. It won’t interrupt the rest of the week, but I need some time today. And I’ll need some time in a couple of weeks. I’ll get you the dates.”
She wasn’t sure exactly when the celebration for Rene’s aunt was taking place, but she knew it would be important to this mission of theirs. He would need her to show a united front to his family.
Gertie hadn’t moved. “Dare I ask who you’re marrying? Also, Quaid Havery dropped a contract off this morning. He asked for you to sign it at your earliest convenience and have it sent back to him. I told him any contract you’re signing needs to be looked at by a lawyer of your choosing. I wondered if you were buying a new place, but now I fear it has to do with this foolishness.”
Sylvie picked up the envelope on her desk and pulled out the prenup. She wasn’t going to drag another lawyer into this. Also, there wasn’t another lawyer anywhere close, and this was the best time to catch the judge. She glanced through it and then signed because it wasn’t worth arguing. If she was still with Rene in three years, she would receive a bunch of stock, but if she was still with Rene in three years, then it would be because they were truly married. She wasn’t going to worry about that now.
She didn’t even want to think about the custody clause dealing with any children that came from the marriage.