Between his cousin’s private wedding where no Fontesquieu had been invited, plus the infuriating news that Raoul’s divorce had gone through, not to mention his refusal to become CEO, they’d outraged both sets of parents and couldn’t leave fast enough.
Everyone else would go on to the family cemetery on the eastern end of the estate to bury Armand Fontesquieu. All Raoul could think about was seeing Cami again. He couldn’t wait to see her again and learn more about her. She was like a breath of fresh air.
Dominic dropped him off in front of the villa. Arlette had probably come and parked in back. The first thing Raoul did was hang his suit jacket and tie in the sitting room closet. After loosening the top buttons of his white shirt, he searched for Cami, nodding to some of the cleaners on the way.
Raoul found her in the large room he’d designated for a playroom where Alain could bring his friends. It was down the same hall near the indoor pool. She’d put a drop cloth on the floor and was kneeling while cleaning the vents. He couldn’t be more pleased to find her alone. Her mother had to be somewhere else cleaning.
“Mademoiselle Delon?” he said softly. Their eyes met. It made him glad to think she’d taken her maiden name, which meant she’d chosen not to keep her married name after her divorce. Obviously there’d been trouble in a marriage she’d chosen to forget. He and Cami already had something in common.
“I take it the funeral is over.”
“Oui, thank heaven.” He sat down by her and settled against the wall, resting his hands over his raised knees. “At least you weren’t up on the ladder when I walked in.”
She chuckled.
He undid the cuffs of his shirtsleeves and pushed them up to the elbows. “Can I help?”
“I’m almost through here.” She lifted those heavenly eyes to him. “Are you all right?”
“I am now.” Knowing she’d be here after the funeral had made his day. “I’m expecting a new applicant for the nanny job in a little while. Until then, give yourself a rest and put me to work.”
“The way you’re dressed, I wouldn’t dream of it. This isn’t a normal day for you. I’m aware you’ve just buried your grandfather and have turned down the CEO position. None of it could be easy for you.”
He studied her for a moment, marveling at her capacity for understanding, even if she didn’t know what was really going on inside of him. “This is probably going to shock you, but this has been a liberating day for me in so many ways you can’t imagine. That may sound harsh to you, but I’m telling you the truth. Today I’m happier than I’ve been in years! My son’s coming to live with me and a whole world has opened up. Since I feel like celebrating, I have an idea.”
“What would that be?” Her engaging smile lit up his insides.
“If you’re finished, why don’t you come to the kitchen with me? We’ll grab a drink and go into the sitting room to wait for the next woman to show up. You can help me vet her, maybe give me a signal one way or another what you think.”
“As if I’d dare,” she answered with a teasing tone.
“Why not? Once we’re in there we’ll have something comfortable to sit down on while we talk. All the furniture I’ve bought won’t be delivered until tomorrow.”
At his suggestion, she removed her gloves. “You once lived at the château, right?”
“All my life until now.”
“What about the furniture you brought with you?”
“It went with my ex-wife.” Including the two paintings Jerome had done years earlier and given to Raoul before his death.
She looked surprised, but didn’t comment on it. “So in order to fill this villa, you’ve had to purchase everything?”
“That’s right.”
Her fabulous eyes widened. “You must have been shopping for ages.”
“And having the time of my life. It’s been a treat buying modern furniture that wasn’t invented when the château was built. Alain wouldn’t feel comfortable—”
“The way you weren’t comfortable?” she surmised sotto voce. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Don’t be sorry. Your instincts are right.” Cami was amazingly easy to talk to. They seemed so keyed into each other, it had caused him to let down his guard when he was with her.
“Still, please forgive me.”
“There’s nothing to forgive. You were only speaking the truth. The first time my cousin Dominic and I were throwing a ball around in his family’s suite, we broke a statue by accident. Needless to say, that never happened again. Life at the château was never meant for children, let alone lively ones. The paintings and tapestries covered up what I always thought was a gigantic prison where children couldn’t be themselves.”
“And here I’ve found myself envying you.”