Page 28 of Brooke
Hi Daddy! I heard you had a great time in the Loire. Can’t wait to hear more. Also, we need to talk about what you want to do with your new apartment. I have the painters’ schedules, so we can finalize plans before your official move next month. Love you!
She called Nanine, whose phone also went to voicemail. But that was less of a surprise. Nanine hadn’t been picking up lately. So she texted her as well.
Hi Nanine! I’m so happy to hear you went to the Loire Valley with everyone. The fresh air and wine must have been spectacular. I can’t wait to see you and hear more. Much love! Brooke
She was just finishing the note when her phone dinged with a text from her father.
Hi princess! Yes, we had a grand time in the Loire. Your old man found some fabulous bottles for the restaurant and his own personal stash, which you will benefit from. Hope you’re kicking butt and taking names like normal. As to the decorating, don’t worry about it. I’m still getting my feet wet here and need some time to figure out what I want. We’ll deal with it later. Love you back! Dad.
Deal with it later? Her insides crammed up, her design ideas curling up into balled-up paper. He knew she’d planned to take care of his place. Hadn’t she handled everything for him when he’d moved into his apartment on Park Avenue?
She blew out a frustrated breath. Painting and remodeling were a pain after moving in. She thought about reaching for another cigarette but discarded the idea. Otherwise, she’d be smoking nonstop and fretting until Axel’s arrival at four.
So she did what she always did when she wanted to avoidworrying. She pulled out her day planner and started updating it. Keeping busy was her best course, and one she did all too well. The time mostly flew as she did her self-improvement reading, listened to another podcast, and then called the painters for her father’s apartment and gave them a heads-up they needed a little more time before scheduling. Sure, she kept glancing at her watch every thirty minutes or so, but by the time four p.m. came around, she felt in command of her life again.
Satisfied, she checked her makeup and headed downstairs. She made sure to position herself beside the call box so she could let him in as soon as he rang. He was on time, of course, and she watched from the salon as his large frame emerged through the entryway leading to their garden. His attire couldn’t have been more different than his tailored suits. Today, he had on jeans and a cream Irish fisherman’s sweater and looked good enough to eat.
Was that stubble on his cheeks? God… He was rugged and manly, and she was going to have a heart attack, which wasn’t a funny thought given her father’s history. She had to fight the urge to rush toward him in her heels as she smoothed the front of her chartreuse silk blouse. Still, she decided to pull the door open before he could ring the bell so the others wouldn’t hear.
“Welcome back!” She went out onto the step, leaving the door cracked to give them a moment of privacy. “Thank you again for the flowers and fabric. I sent you a text.”
He tilted his head to the side, those glacier blue eyes of his intent on her face. She wondered if he was thinking about kissing her. She was certainly thinking about it. But he wasn’t French, and it seemed weird. “I received your text when I reentered civilization this morning. Did you think I’d ignored you?”
She startled, about to give the polite response.Of course not. I know you were busy.But his gaze pinned her in place. Atremble rocked her midsection, and suddenly she was bursting anew with vulnerability. “I’m in new territory here, Axel, but my past experience would have said it was possible.”
He curled his large hand around her shoulder, bringing her closer to his body and making her feel very small and sheltered. “I am not your usual, Brooke, and you are not mine. I was not ignoring you. That kind of game men and women play is cruel and dishonest and only leads to heartbreak. I was at my remote house in the woods, clearing my mind before I began our project, something I always do. But the forest, the river, and the quiet did not satisfy me completely. I found myself missing you. And if we were not embarking on a design meeting, I would kiss you until you forgot all your doubts so you would believe me.”
She pressed her hand to his chest, feeling shaky, like her blood sugar was suddenly off. “That is…such a better response than the one I’d imagined. Axel, I need to take a breath before we start. I’m flailing a little professionally when I was just telling myself it’s my top priority. Because I want to kiss you too.”
He touched the space covering her heart, caressing the silk and then the open slit between the buttons, making her bare skin underneath burn. “Channel it. From here. That is what I plan to do. I believe I see someone in the entryway behind you. Shall we go inside?”
Nodding, she took a deep breath and then opened the door wider. Kyle was standing in the entryway with Sawyer, who was clearly trying to distract him from his interest in the two of them, waving his arms around as he talked wildly about the latest travesty in the news.
Before the men could do more than nod in that male way of theirs, Thea rushed out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on her pink apron. “Hi, Axel! Welcome back. I’ve got apricotwalnut bread fresh out of the oven if you’d like some along with a crème.”
“What a wonderful treat,” Axel returned in his deep voice, matching her friend’s smile with a wide one of his own as Madison slipped into the entryway with her arms crossed. “You make me feel very welcome. How is everyone?”
“Good,” Kyle said, shaking his hand firmly, his eyes laser sharp as he watched their guest. “Looking forward to giving you and Brooke what you need. Right, Sawyer?”
“Of course,” Sawyer answered, taking off his gold-rimmed glasses and cleaning them as Dean ran down the stairs two at a time. “Everyone wants this project to go well.”
God, the formality and male posturing was going to kill her.
“Am I late?” Dean asked as his feet hit the landing. “Why didn’t anyone yell up that Axel’s here?”
“Because we don’t live in a zoo, Dean,” Madison said with her usual snark. “Axel, thanks so much for the notes onLe Cirque.Also, my only contribution to the interior thing is no animal print in shared spaces. When I see it, I think of old men in Speedos trying to get back their youth with teeny-bop trophy wives who have everything surgically altered.”
Brooke wanted to groan, but Axel only laughed. “You will be relieved to hear, Madison, that animal print has never been on my mind for this house.”
She mimed wiping her forehead, which caused a few people to laugh.
“I personally think zebra is overdone,” Dean said in a mock British voice. “But truthfully, chap, cheetah is perfectly stunning. All those golds and browns. Madison, I wouldn’t rule it out.”
Her flipping him the bird made Brooke want to get out a whistle like a referee and call foul. “If everyone could treat this seriously,” she pleaded, drilling a few people with heryou’d better behave or elselook.
“Actually, the honesty is refreshing and very helpful.” Axel gave a murmur of a chuckle. “I want you to act and speak exactly as you would if I were not here. This is your house, and it should reflect your personalities. I spent the long weekend at my woodland retreat in Norway, thinking about all of you. Individually and as a group.”
“That’s so cool!” Thea breathed out, dancing in place. “You were in Norway?”
