He revved up the engine, and his tires squealed as he left the parking lot. In a few minutes he reached his mother’s home where he’d been living temporarily. But he was so conflicted by feelings and emotions tearing him apart, he knew there’d be no sleep for him tonight.
Because of a certain enigmatic Frenchman, Rachel tossed and turned during the long, dark hours of the night. Relieved when the light of dawn crept into the room, she showered and got dressed in a silky cream blouse and tan skirt for her work day with Giles Lambert.
He’d phoned her last night to make the arrangements, promising her a thorough tour of the winery.
Like her grandfather, he had a zest for life and possessed so much charm she was already predisposed to like him.
She could only hope a productive day spent with him would take away her disappointment that it wasn’t Luc Chartier doing the honors. Part of her feared that, when she left Alsace, no ploy would be able to banish him from her thoughts.
Like a comet that only passed near the earth once in a lifetime, he’d left his indelible impression on her, then hurtled on into deep space supposedly out of mind and sight.
Maybe when her grandfather had recovered from his latest bout of illness, the two of them could come back to Alsace so she could legitimately meet with the owner of the Chartier vineyards again.
Legitimately…
Good heavens—she was as bad as a teenager plotting ways to get the most gorgeous guy in the world to be interested in her. It seemed her attraction to him was so intense, she wasn’t above using her grandfather to accomplish her objective.
Filled with self-disgust, Rachel grabbed her cell phone to put in her purse before going downstairs to eat breakfast. To her surprise it rang before she could leave the room.
For one foolish moment she thought it might be the man whose image had haunted her all night. Just the thought of hearing his deep voice caused her heart to leap. She clicked on eagerly, not bothering to check the caller ID.
“H-hello?” she answered, sounding out of breath, because she was!
“Rachel—”
Her spirits dropped like hot rocks.
“Dad—
“Something must be wrong for you to be calling me this early in the morning.”
Normally he didn’t show up at work until ten-thirty or later. But evidently a problem had arisen and he needed someone to bark at, mainly her.
He always sounded impatient when he was at the restaurant he managed with her half brother Max. Since every day was hectic behind the scenes, she supposed he could be forgiven.
But being this far away and hearing him so abrupt with her caught her off guard.
“What’s this I hear about you traveling to Alsace? I don’t recall us discussing a stop there. Today’s the fifteenth. Your itinerary says you’re supposed to be in Champagne.”
Uh oh. Somehow her grandfather must have let it slip. Not that it was a secret.
Clearing her throat, she said, “Grandfather asked me to look up an old friend in Thann as a special favor.”
“So I’ve heard, but I don’t want you spending too much time there. We can’t afford to slight our other suppliers.”
Her temperamental father knew her better than that, but he had to say it because she hadn’t obtained his seal of approval first.
“I wouldn’t do that, and I’ve already contacted Monsieur Bulot to let him know I’ll be there in a few days.
“The point is, now that I’m here I’m doing a little research, so please don’t worry.”
“You’ve been to Angers, then?”
“Of course, and St Emilion. They’re filling our orders as we speak, so you needn’t be concerned.”
Her explanation appeared to mollify him somewhat because his curiosity finally won out enough to ask, “Have you come across anything interesting?”
Rachel’s eyes closed tightly.
It wouldn’t be possible to answer his question with one succinct answer. Too much had happened since she’d met Luc Chartier. Getting to know him had done something to her. But it was too soon to find the right words to describe what was going on inside her.
“I’m discovering that Alsace is a land of enchantment. I’ll tell you all about it when I get home.” She needed to change the subject. “How is Grandfather? What about his pulse-ox level?”
“I never got the chance to find out. Last night John barged in, so I left.”
The rivalry between her dad and his half brother reminded her of her own unwitting problems with her sister. They lived too far apart with Rebecca working in New York as a highly successful advertising executive.
Though they were unidentical and conducted different lives, they were alike in dozens of small ways. Rachel knew instinctively Rebecca would be enamoured of Alsace too. How sad they couldn’t have shared a trip like this.
She heaved a troubled sigh. This morning she didn’t want to think about insoluble family problems.
“Dad? I have to go, but I’ll call you when I get to Champagne.”
“Don’t stay in Alsace too long.”
“I won’t.” She frowned. “What else is bothering you? You sound more upset than usual this morning.”
“Titan stepped on a rusty nail. The vet took care of him, but he’s not himself yet.”
Translated, the Dobermann had been well sedated. Too bad that couldn’t be his permanent condition.
“I’m sure he’ll be back to normal in no time.”
Her father’s dog made everyone nervous, even Rachel. She preferred Saffy, the miniature poodle who belonged to her father’s wife, Bev. The poor little thing cowered every time she saw Titan coming.
That was exactly what Rachel did when her father felt threatened by John and became difficult, which was most of the time these days.
“I’ll talk to you soon, Dad.”
She hung up the phone, thankful to have found a small corner of paradise here in Thann where she could put that seething cauldron of tension aside for a little while.
A few minutes later she entered the hotel dining room. During those times when she had to sample wines, she always ate a good meal first, even if she wasn’t hungry. Today was a case in point. Luc Chartier’s stranglehold on her feelings seemed to have affected her appetite as well.
Luc couldn’t swallow the croissant, let alone his coffee. He pushed himself away from the breakfast table and got to his feet, startling his mother.
“Where are you going at this early hour?”
“To the hospital. Where else?”
“But you were there late last night—has something happened to Paulette you haven’t told us about?”
“Maman—” Giselle blurted impatiently. “Surely if there’d been any change in her condition, we would all know about it.”
She switched her dark gaze to Luc, “But I have to admit I’m curious why all this extra vigilance over her. What’s going on with you, mon frère?”
That was a question he couldn’t answer yet.
“I’ve been so busy lately, I decided to spend quality time with her. Dr Soulier says the more stimulation, the better.”
“As you should do,” his mother remarked.