Kitabı oku: «Captivated By The Brooding Billionaire»

CHAPTER ONE

Five months later

WITH HER LAPTOP packed between the sweaters in her suitcase, Abby left the bedsitter in Cologny, Switzerland, where she’d been staying for the last two weeks, and took a taxi to the train station in Geneva, Switzerland.

With her massive research project finished, today marked the first day of her vacation. No longer restricted to suits and dresses, Abby had pulled on her favorite pair of jeans and a crew neck, short sleeve white-on-black print blouse. She had the whole month of June to have fun before returning to San José.

Abby couldn’t wait to be with her friends again. They’d Skyped and phoned each other—sent emails—but it would be great to do things together in person.

Once in graduate school she’d become a teaching assistant in the humanities department and had worked hard. Specializing in the romance writers of the early nineteenth century, she’d received her doctorate, after which she’d been given more classes to teach. That’s when she’d met Nigel. In hindsight, what a disaster that meeting had turned out to be!

But she’d learned she wasn’t the only one who’d been burned in a relationship. One of the girls, Zoe, had just come out of a bitter divorce because her husband had been unfaithful. She’d insisted she would never want anything to do with a man again. Abby didn’t need to get inside Zoe’s skin to understand how she felt.

The pain of putting your trust in the man you loved only to discover he hadn’t loved you or believed in the sanctity of marriage had been too devastating. Abby felt like her heart had been murdered. How could she ever trust anyone again?

As for Ginger, she’d lost her husband recently to cancer and needed to get away from the pain. In a short time the three of them had developed a special camaraderie, and all three of them were ready to play.

Being in an especially good mood, Abby gave the driver a nice tip and walked inside the train station with her suitcase. Since she had fifteen minutes before she needed to board her train, she headed directly for her favorite food kiosk. She’d eaten here every time she’d needed to take the train someplace.

After making her selection of six small quiches, two for herself and two for each her friends, she bought a second-class ticket and boarded the crowded train.

She found a compartment and sat down across from a priest and a couple of teenagers speaking German. They started to listen to rock music, but their earphones didn’t block the sound all that much. Abby didn’t mind. Not so the priest, who finally got up and left the compartment. She decided she would wait to eat until she met the girls at the village of St. Saphorin, an hour and a half or so and a quick change of trains away.

The quiet, efficient train ran alongside Lake Geneva, the famous croissant-shaped lake called lac Léman by the locals. Abby settled back, almost preening like a cat in the sun because she was so happy to be free of responsibilities. The train glided from one picturesque village to another in a gentle rhythm.

The surroundings that included the sapphire-blue lake with the snow-crested French Alps in the distance mesmerized her. Before long she had to change trains and it wasn’t long after that that St. Saphorin appeared, wedged between the water and terraced rows of vineyards that ran up the steep hillsides.

When the train came to a stop, she reached for her suitcase and left the compartment. Several other passengers had already descended. Finally, she was going to see her friends. Abby was eager to be with them and on vacation.

Yesterday Zoe had flown to Venice, Italy, from Athens, Greece, to meet up with Ginger who’d been doing research in Italy. The two of them had boarded the night train to Switzerland. They’d planned to get off in Montreux to pick up the rental car and drive the few kilometers to St. Saphorin.

Relieved to be here, Abby walked around to the front of the station. There was no sign of the girls yet. She sat down and took in the sight of the Jura Mountains in the distance while she waited. After twenty minutes, she phoned Ginger and had to leave a message. Then she called Zoe, who answered.

“Abby? Are you in St. Saphorin?”

“Yes. Where are you?”

“The rental car we were promised isn’t ready yet. Too many tourists were booked. Ginger is dealing with them now. It may be a while, so I phoned the château where we’ll be staying. Someone will come for you soon. I gave them a description of you. Just stay put. We can’t wait to see you!”

“Same here,” Abby said before hanging up.

Someone was coming to get her, but it could be a while. She reached for a quiche and savored every bite. In the distance, she took in the vision of gray stone walls and steep inclines covered by the famous Lavaux vineyards of the region. They were riddled with hiking trails, a sport the Swiss adored. So, did Abby. She loved the yellowish colors of the homes spotting the landscape.

How lucky she and the girls were to be the recipients of their boss’s largesse! Magda Collier, one of the most acclaimed female film directors in Hollywood had hired the three of them to do research for a movie being produced by a revered mogul friend of hers.

After the New Year, Magda had brought Abby and the girls together in Los Angeles for a week with some writers who were working on an important script. She wanted to create a historically authentic film that accentuated the positive aspects of the colorful life of Lord Byron, the famous British romantic poet and satirist.

They’d been thrilled about the project and had become friends.

Magda had assigned each of them a different area in Europe to do research, and Abby had been sent to Switzerland. Now, because of their “great work”—Magda’s words after they’d turned in their information—she’d delighted them with a reward. It turned out to be a vacation at a château and vineyard called the Clos de la Floraison on the shores of Lake Geneva. Nothing could have pleased them more.

Magda explained she had a permanent arrangement with the old owner of the vineyard. From time to time she used it for herself and guests to enjoy. They could stay there while they did all the touring they wanted around the region.

Since the three of them had to return to their teaching assignments for the upcoming fall semester, they planned to take advantage of this time together and sightsee to their hearts’ content.

As they had another month before going back to the US, Abby was also hoping to find evidence of a poem that Lord Byron had been rumored to write called Labyrinths, or some such title, while he’d been in Switzerland. But it was a work that had never seen the light of day and many experts dismissed it as sheer fiction. But Abby hadn’t given up on the possibility of finding out the truth, if it existed.

Recently a fragment of a memoir by Claire Clairmont, who’d traveled in Switzerland with Byron, had been found in a branch of New York public library. It had shed new light on Lord Byron and Shelley. What Abby would give to unearth a find equally sensational, but no amount of digging had been successful so far.

While Abby sat there beneath a sunny sky, wondering where else she and the girls might look while they were here for the month, she noticed a vintage black Renault drive up and park.

Out stepped a tall man, maybe early thirties, who stood fit and lean. With his overly long black wavy hair, he epitomized her idea of the quintessential drop-dead sensational male. She didn’t know such a person existed.

Only a Frenchman had that appeal, the kind she’d conjured in her mind and fantasized about from time to time growing up. He had an expression much like the one she’d seen on the French actor Charles Boyer who had played the lead in a famous old film classic The Garden of Allah.

Abby had been a teenager when she’d first watched it and had fallen in love with the actor. He played the part of a monk who ran away from a monastery in North Africa and fell in love with an Englishwoman. They went out in the desert together, but he carried a terrible secret.

At times his sadness combined with his male beauty was almost painful to watch. Abby had watched it over and over again. His performance had seemed so real that she always been haunted by him and had decided there was no Frenchman alive more captivating.

Until now.

Abby couldn’t take her eyes off the stranger, something that had never happened to her before, not with Nigel or the boyfriend she’d loved earlier in her life. There was a brooding aura about him that caught at her emotions though she fought not to be attracted.

Who was he? Where had such a man come from?

Abby felt as if he was burdened by a great weight. It was there in the way he carried himself. The lines radiating from his eyes and around his mouth spelled pain. His work clothes, a white shirt with the sleeves shoved up to the elbows and dark trousers, told her he’d stopped whatever he’d been doing to get in his car and drive here.

This was the magnificent someone who’d come for her?

His bronzed complexion, close to a teak color, overlay chiseled features. The man worked in the sun. Beneath black brows his midnight-black eyes met hers and roved over her with an intensity that sent a ripple of sensation through her. She trembled for no good reason, something she couldn’t prevent.

There was an unrehearsed sensuality about the way his hard mouth smiled almost derisively, as if he knew she’d shivered slightly and found it amusing. Even though he’d caught her staring, she refused to avert her eyes. Her pulse raced as he approached her.

“Mademoiselle Grant?”

Those two words, spoken in a deep seductive voice, curled their way through to her insides. She heard no trace of the singsong French spoken in this part of Switzerland. He was a Frenchman down to every atom of his hard-muscled body.

“Yes. You must be from La Floraison.”

He nodded. “I was told to look for a woman with golden hair.” His excellent, heavily accented English came as a shock.

“You have the advantage. They didn’t tell me your name.”

“Raoul Decorvet.”

“I thought Magda’s friend was a great deal older.”

“He was. Sadly, Auguste died a month ago at the age of eighty.”

“Oh, no—” she cried. “We didn’t know. Magda didn’t tell us.”

“You weren’t supposed to know.”

Abby shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“I’m here negotiating the sale of this property business for the former owner. Auguste had a bad heart so he never knew how long he had to live. The vineyard managers, Louis and Gabrielle, have said that you and your friends are welcome to stay here for the month. I was on hand when Gabrielle received a distress call from your friends. She was busy so I offered my help.”

“Thank you, but this isn’t right. We don’t want to put anyone out.”

Again, she felt his penetrating gaze wander over her, missing nothing before it rested on her hair. “It’s no imposition. If you’ll get in the car, I’ll explain while I drive you to the château.”

His potent male charisma made her so aware of him, it was hard to act natural. She felt nervous. After her experience with Nigel, Abby was almost frightened by her visceral response to this total stranger who blew away every man she’d ever known. He reached for her suitcase and helped her into the front passenger seat before putting it in the back.

After he’d started the car, she said, “I’m sorry you had to come for me. I could have waited until my friends showed up. Providing taxi service is hardly the work of a busy Realtor.”

“Pas de problème.”

Abby was sure that wasn’t true, but Raoul Decorvet had a certain air of authority. She didn’t want to argue with him since he’d put himself out on her behalf, so she kept quiet while he started the car. They headed toward the road and wound around the village toward the hillside. En route she detected a flowery scent.

“What is that fragrance I can smell in the air?”

“La Floraison is greeting you.”

She studied his striking profile. “What do you mean?”

“The flowers of the grape vines open in June. This is the reason why Magda wanted you to come now. For the next fifteen days, they’ll emit their intoxicating perfume while they undergo automatic pollination. Their dual reproductive organs, mostly female among the male, ensure the future of the species.” Their glances fused. “Nature’s way is remarkable, n’est-ce pas?”

For some reason the subject of their conversation sounded personal, especially the way he said it in that deep, silky voice. It brought heat to Abby’s cheeks. “Have you found a buyer yet?” she asked in order to change the subject, hoping to break his spell over her.

“Oui. It’s already done. The new owner will take possession at the end of June.”

“Please don’t tell me you put it off for the benefit of me and my friends.”

“For your information, it’s to honor the commitment Auguste made. While you’re here, Gabrielle will take care of you. You’ll be staying in the unattached farmhouse next to the château and should be comfortable there.”

“I’m sure it will be wonderful.” Magda had seen to that, but the appearance of this fascinating Frenchman had knocked the foundations out from under her.

Before long the château came into view. Abby marveled at the gray stone structure. It reminded her of a small fortress and caught at her imagination. In former times it would have been a commanding landmark.

He drove them along rows of lush vineyards in full flower and past a thriving vegetable garden until they arrived at a charming farmhouse with a mansard roof.

“There’s Gabrielle now. It’s getting late in the day. She’ll make something for you to eat if you’re hungry.”

“No, no. I’ll wait for my friends.”

Abby spotted the wiry, middle-aged woman wearing a straw hat with a broad rim, who came around the side of the farmhouse. She was dressed in slacks and a tunic.

“Bonjour!”

The woman’s warm smile made Abby feel welcome. She got out of the car, liking her already. “Bonjour, Madame.”

“Soyez la bienvenue!”

“Merci. Thank you.”

“I see Raoul found you.” The Swiss people impressed her with their ability to speak good English. “My husband is up in the higher vineyard and I was doing some pruning. When your friends called about their difficulty, Raoul volunteered to take our car and go for you.”

“I’m very grateful to both of you.”

“I understand they should be here soon. Come inside with me.” She reached for Abby’s suitcase. “We have five bedrooms with en suite bathrooms. Since you are the first one to arrive, you may have your pick.”

“This is exciting. I’ve been looking forward to this vacation for a long time.”

Abby turned to Raoul. He was too gorgeous and too intriguing. She should be relieved to say goodbye to him, yet deep down she would rather have stayed outside to talk to him, which was crazy. He had the power to sweep any woman away, especially Abby. She couldn’t believe her feelings were so strong, not when she’d promised herself never to get seriously involved with any man for the rest of her life.

“Thank you for picking me up.”

His brooding dark eyes narrowed on her features. Again, she sensed he was in some kind of turmoil. She could feel it. “Don’t forget this.” He handed her the purse she’d left in the car.

What on earth was wrong with her? In his company she’d forgotten all about it and had left it lying on the seat. The slight contact of skin against skin sent another shiver through her body. “À bientôt, mademoiselle.”

She knew that phrase well enough. It meant “see you soon.” To read any real meaning into it meant she was a fool. But he had called her mademoiselle. Maybe he’d noticed she wore no rings. For that matter she hadn’t seen a wedding ring on his finger either, but that didn’t necessarily mean he wasn’t married.

Abby turned and followed Gabrielle inside the house, but her mind was filled with unanswered questions about him. Why would a French Realtor be doing business here?

Maybe he lived on the French side of Lac Léman and was authorized to operate in both countries. In that case he wouldn’t be staying at the château. If he had a car, where was it? She wondered if he’d be leaving soon. The manager would know the answers, but if Abby were to ask her anything, it would suggest she was interested.

Don’t do this, Abby. Don’t be a fool.

Gabrielle led her through the beamed common rooms. She found the restored nineteenth-century farmhouse warm and inviting. They went upstairs to the bedrooms. Each had a mini fridge filled with drinks, and every room had a basket filled with fruit and Swiss chocolate.

Abby chose a room that looked out over the vineyard to the west. She could see the estate workers. One of them was probably Louis. Of course there was no sign of Raoul.

“If you need anything, pick up the bedside phone and ring the château. I’ll answer. Your friends know to come straight to the farmhouse. Your breakfast will be laid out at seven every morning in the dining room.”

Abby turned to Gabrielle. “Everything is perfect. Will it be all right to open the window? I love the fragrance coming from the vineyard.”

“Of course.”

“Thank you.”

“De rien. À tout à l’heure, mademoiselle.”