"Qu'est-ce que c'est?"
Her cheeks turned a becoming shade of pink, albeit curious as well, and then she was suddenly reaching for his hand, and Philippe's entire body clenched as Charlee-Mae's lips gently pressed against his knuckles.
"Je t'aime."
Her French, even when she was uttering one of the most commonly known phrases of his native language, was still as horrible as ever, and yet at the same fucking time—-
The sound of it had somehow become precious, and it was why, even with his phone continuing to ring inside his pocket, Philippe heard himself say in return, "Je t'aime, mon coeur."
Chapter Five
Charlee-Mae was properly bundled up in several layers of winter clothing when she stepped out of the en-suite and caught the tail end of her husband's conversation. Concern filled her when she heard his grim tone, and she looked at him uncertainly as he ended the call. "Is everything okay?"
"Oui, bien sûr," he assured her. "Forgive the constant interruptions. Everyone in the company has been feeling the pressure of our launch."
"You don't look pressured, though."
He gave her a lazy smile. "It must be because of you."
She smiled back at him sweetly, saying, "I think so, too." The answer won her a laugh, and its sound was so, so sexy it made her toes curl hard. Thank You, Lord, for giving me the hottest husband ever!
Philippe turned to the balcony, and upon following his gaze, it was then she belatedly noticed that their lunch alfresco had already been set up.
"Oh my gosh!"
His wife's gleeful squeal could only be described as shrill, but strangely enough, Philippe found this adorable as well.
"I can't believe it!" Charlee-Mae was so excited, she was practically hopping from one foot to another. The weather outside was gorgeous, and the landscape even more so, with the snow-capped mountain peaks in the distance. "Can we go out now?"
"As long as you give me your word," he said strictly, "that you understand we can only be out for an hour."
"Um..." Charlee-Mae squirmed. Just an hour? Really?
"I mean it, ma femme. Konstantin already made me feel like I know no better than a horny teenager," Philippe muttered in self-disgust, "when I was forced to tell him this morning why you had passed out." His wife giggled at this, but Philippe was still feeling slightly disgruntled. "And thanks to your alfresco request, my friend is now convinced I have lost all common sense since marrying you."
Charlee-Mae could no longer keep herself from grinning. Basically, what he was saying was that Dr. Manolis believed she had her husband wrapped around her finger. Wasn't he?
She saw Philippe's gaze start to narrow, and she quickly wiped the grin off her face and sought to distract him with a mournful shake of her head. "I'm so sorry, mon Philippe. I didn't mean to have you suffer a lecture from your friend." Inspiration struck, and she said, "But maybe I can make you feel better?"
Philippe was startled when his wife suddenly rushed towards him.
"I shall kiss your bad feelings away," Charlee-Mae announced.
And so she did...by suddenly bending down to press a quick little kiss to his trousers, and right on top of the telltale bulge of his manhood.
Nom de Dieu!
It was the simplest and cutest little thing, but it still aroused him...even as it also made Philippe throw his head back with a laugh.
His wife straightened up, her amber eyes aglow once again with mischief. "Feeling better now?"
Philippe shook his head "I think you need to do it again, but this time sans clothing?"
Charlee-Mae would have loved to say yes, oh yes...but with her stomach suddenly growling, all she could do was smile sheepishly. "Can I take a rain check?"
She expected him to laugh, but instead Philippe was swiftly urging her out to the balcony even as he scolded her for not informing him she was that hungry. The lecture continued as he started heaping food on her plate, but throughout it, all she could think about was how she would have hated every word if it were Landon or Charlotte doing the scolding.
But because this was her Philippe, and anything her husband did was adorable—-
This only meant he loved her so very much, she thought happily, and she therefore didn't mind if he were to scold her every day of their lives.
When Philippe finally settled in his seat, it was Charlee-Mae's turn to talk, and Philippe surprised himself by answering his wife's seemingly endless stream of questions without feeling impatient or irritated.
No, his older brother did not work for the company, and it was because Pierre had passed away seven years ago.
No, Greta and Pierre had not met at work, but instead the three of them had grown up together.
No, she had not yet met his mother, but she would soon, since Sandra was also here in Jackson Hole.