Bound As His Business-Deal Bride

‘Yet we’re looking to reorganise and sell a few companies that don’t quite fit into our current strategy. Gage and I are in France, trying to decide which ones. Our vineyard is likely to be the first to go.’

‘Hmm.’ Greta took a sip of water as the waiter poured their champagne. ‘We may need to talk some more about that.’

Eve cleverly guided the discussion, but she clearly already had Greta on the hook for the vineyard. Her skills in drawing out the conversation about a possible sale were subtle and impressive. So subtly done that it didn’t affect the mood of the evening at all. He might be wrong, but it seemed Greta had warmed to him by a few degrees, and that was all Eve’s doing.

Greta picked up her glass of champagne. ‘I understand congratulations are owed to you both.’

Eve smiled and looked down at her ring, which sparkled under the low lights. Something about her seemed wistful and a little sad. ‘Thank you. They are.’

They toasted, glasses clinking round the table. ‘And yet your families’ rivalry is renowned. I hope for your sakes they took it well.’

‘Mine were circumspect,’ Gage said. The lie niggled uncomfortably. He’d travelled to see his parents to give them the news, not wanting to tell them in a phone call or, worse, for them to find out through the media. While he’d told Eve they just wanted him to be happy, his mom and dad had not reacted well.

‘Still, Gage? Didn’t you learn last time? We told you a Chevalier can never be trusted. Ever.’

His mom and dad wanted a wedding, grandchildren, but that would never happen with Eve. Right now he couldn’t see it happening at all. Would his parents be happy when he ended things? Likely. Gage took another a swig of his champagne, a waste of a magnificent vintage because he was unable to savour it. None of this felt like triumph to him. It all seemed hollow and pointless.

Eve toyed with a napkin on the table-top. She huffed out a laugh. ‘Mine will take a lot of convincing.’

The honesty and pain of the answer surprised him. Without thinking, he reached out his hand, placed it on hers and squeezed. Eve’s skin lay soft and cool under his own. She gave him a watery smile and a moment passed between them, something he couldn’t explain but which felt a lot like understanding.

‘I’m sorry. Family is important and my life’s greatest reward,’ Greta said. ‘To work with my children, I can think of nothing more fulfilling, and I hope that for you. Although usually the gossip magazines have tales of burgeoning romances like yours, there’s been no hint of anything between you, which is a surprise given your reported history.’

Gage stiffened. Pictures of him in his twenties being hauled out of a police car with a bruised and bloodied face had been excellent fodder for the gutter press. Gage’s greatest shame was the suspicion he’d brought on his family in those times. He had said nothing to reporters, maintaining a dignified silence. But those pictures were easy for anyone to find, if they looked. Even though he employed people to ensure his online reputation was clean, there were some things you couldn’t hide, no matter how much money you paid.

Gage let Eve’s hand go and was about to reach for his glass when a discreet waiter leaned in to refill it. If Greta had any suspicions about the truth of their engagement, a check of the internet tomorrow would have photographs of their kiss and that would quell any uneasiness.

‘You don’t look like a person who’d read gossip magazines.’

‘Usually I don’t, but I’m interested since I’m a romantic at heart. Given the past, what started your reconciliation?’ She turned to Eve. ‘Since you’ve spent the past seven years in France, it would have been difficult for you both to cross paths.’

Eve leaned forward like she was going to tell a secret.

‘Few people know this but Knight’s having some liquidity trouble in the States. Gage offered to invest,’ she said smoothly, placing her hand on his arm. Gazing at him with her head to one side, her pupils big and dark. ‘He rode in like a knight in shining armour to save the day.’

Gage laughed, that recollection absurd but sounding so real. ‘I think, cher, that description owes more to fantasy than reality. I seem to remember I was more corporate raider than white knight.’

She laughed too, something in her eyes flaring as she did. ‘Maybe you were a bit piratical. Somewhat of a marauder.’ Her lips curved into a sultry smile. ‘I obviously like that about you. That’s the power of our love. It’s never changed.’

The words tore through him like an electric current. A waiter handed them their menus, but for him the words blurred on the page. They’d said they’d loved each other so many times in the past. He’d believed they had but had come to learn love wasn’t for him, it hadn’t been for years. He’d lived first-hand through the pain of betrayal and couldn’t do it again, although on some nights, late, the thoughts crept in. What if they’d stayed together all those year ago? Could they have had a relationship as long as Greta’s?

He’d never know. Gage quashed the thoughts, ignored the ache inside. Of overwhelming loss, of missed opportunities. He was made of harder stuff than this. And he didn’t care anymore. This was all a means to an end.

They ordered their meals. Ate the exquisite food, which he barely tasted as he watched Greta and Eve talk because any involvement by him proved unnecessary.

Eve was perfection—warm, engaging, genuine. There was no flighty socialite at this table, no precious society princess. She and Greta connected as if they were old friends. He was mere garnish on the side.

And even though it was all going to plan, his anger began to simmer

and boil. He breathed through it. Sipped more wine. Sat back and laughed on cue, commented where necessary, but couldn’t completely hold back the burn. This could have been them for real. Yet Eve had thrown it all away, and for what? Daddy, Mommy, a trust fund? A damned flower farm in the South of France? He would have bought her the world if she’d asked for it. They could have done it all together, not spent these years apart.

But Eve couldn’t have loved him. Love wasn’t cruel, like she’d been. Love was about protecting the person you adored. No matter how good the sex still was between them, no matter that there appeared more to their story than he’d assumed over the years, she’d still strung him along and dumped him when convenient. Once this was done he’d do the same and walk away without a backward glance. He had to.

The twisting in his guts only hinted at the lies he told himself.

‘This has been a most engaging evening,’ Greta said, bringing him back into the conversation.

Gage smiled. ‘I hope there can be more.’