Page 20 of Fake Fiancée, Real Baby
“I know so. We can both have our dreams, can’t we? The freedoms we both want.”
“As long as you really mean it. I can’t just leave everything and be left with nothing,” Claire said, clutching at the last thoughts of practicality, even as she was caught up in the dream that was now coming true.
“I promise you I mean it,” he whispered, and, leaning forward, he kissed her gently on the lips, slipping his arm around her as he did so.
Claire closed her eyes, caught up in the moment — the unexpected climax to an unexpected evening. As their lips parted, she breathed a deep sigh. It was all for show — she knew that — and yet there was no one there to see, and the feelings that now welled up inside her were very real indeed.
“Then so do I,” she replied, as opening her eyes, she gazed into his, and their lips met in another kiss.
CHAPTER 11
ADRIEN
Opening his eyes, Adrien rolled over to find the bed empty. Sitting up, he looked around him. Claire was gone. He smiled to himself, lying back on the bed and gazing up at the ceiling above. It had been quite a night.
She’s probably worried someone saw her.
Yawning, he stretched out, thinking back to the events of the previous night — to what he’d asked of Claire and what she’d agreed to. It had been a risk, of course. She could so easily have turned him down, or, worse, threatened to sell the story to the newspapers — “Playboy prince in proposition scandal.” But she hadn’t. Instead, she’d agreed.
“She actually agreed,” he said out loud, laughing at the very thought of it, even as he knew what it meant.
The yacht was to return to Monaco that day, and the cares of the world would be waiting. But something had changed — a lot had changed. It felt as though a burden had been lifted, though what was to come still held its challenges. Adrien would have to explain to his parents why he was so suddenly engaged and whythey’d never heard the name Claire Bellamy pass his lips before. He’d say they’d kept the matter secret for fear of publicity, and that the yacht had been the place to make absolutely certain of their feelings for one another.
Perhaps that’s a bit far…
Nevertheless, what had happened the previous night had certainly been real. It had taken Adrien by surprise — how natural it had seemed. The kiss. The softness of her lips, the gentleness of her touch, that sweet caress. He hadn’t meant it to happen, but it had. It made him smile just thinking about it. Getting up, he crossed to the cabin window, gazing out at Île Sainte-Marguerite — the unexpected location of his salvation. For that was what it was. Claire’s promise meant he’d be taken seriously from now on. No more rumors, no more speculation, no more lies written about him. He was engaged — betrothed in the formal language of the court. It felt good, and he hoped the show would be enough to prove he was no longer the person he’d once been.
But it can’t last. I suppose there’ll be a quiet separation. There’ll be sympathy for us.
Dismissing this thought, he showered and dressed before stepping out on deck. The yacht was now maneuvering from its mooring to put out to sea. Adrien watched as the island grew smaller, before sitting down to breakfast, and glancing hopefully at the door leading down to the galley. To his disappointment, it was the maid who appeared with his coffee. He smiled at her, wondering if she had any inkling of what had passed between him and Claire the previous evening.
“Your coffee, Your Highness,” she said, setting down the pot.
“Thank you. Would you ask the chef to come up, please? I want to discuss the arrangements for lunch.”
The maid nodded, though she looked sulky at the request, and disappeared below deck. A moment later, Claire appeared, smiling as she set down a dish of sliced pineapple and kiwi fruit.
“You wanted to see me,” she said, blushing under his gaze.
Adrien smiled at her. “I didn’t realize you’d left until I woke up,” he whispered. “I’m going to speak to Giuseppe today. He’ll be angry, I’m sure, but let me deal with him. We can go straight to Flandenne. I was planning to fly from Monaco this evening.” He hoped she hadn’t changed her mind. Was there a look of doubt in her eyes? “You do still want to come, don’t you?”
Claire glanced towards the steps leading below deck, nodding, as Adrien breathed a sigh of relief.
“I didn’t sleep at all last night. I was thinking it over. I don’t know… well, I’m sure we can make it work. But I know if I don’t take the chance then it won’t come again. As long as you’re certain, too.”
Adrien nodded. “I was the one who asked. It’ll be all right, I promise. I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t think you could do it. I want to help you achieve your dreams. You can cook, Claire. I’ve never eaten so well in all my life. Everything you’ve made… it’s all been delicious. You’ll have the best restaurant in Flandenne. And people are going to come to it because they’ll read about us, and see you cooking, and… I’m really grateful to you.”
Claire smiled. “It’s me that should be grateful to you, I…” she began, but she was interrupted by the return of the maid, who started clearing the table noisily.
Claire excused herself, and Adrien rose, watching as the yacht sped along the coast back towards Monaco. It had been a trip full of surprises, and though he knew it was all an act, there was something real about it, too. The memory of the kiss they’d shared — of the night they’d spent together — lingered, and it made Adrien wonder what was to come.
“You want to do what? Adrien, that’s… Are you mad? You’ve only known her a few days. I lend you my yacht, and I come back to find you engaged to my chef?” Giuseppe exclaimed, staring incredulously at Adrien, who’d just told him of his engagement to Claire.
For the charade to work, no one else — not even Giuseppe — could know the truth. Adrien had learned the value of keeping quiet when it came to personal matters. He’d explained how he and Claire had gotten to know one another over their shared love of food, and how their feelings for one another had grown strong amid the confines of the yacht. Why should it come as such a surprise?
“She’s a remarkable woman,” Adrien replied.
“She’s a cook. You can’t marry a cook,” Giuseppe said, raising his hands in a gesture of astonishment.
