“You will need the address to her flat in Paris. Otherwise, you will never find her.”
Drew waited while she wrote the information down on a Post-it note. He again thanked her before walking out of heroffice. He’d have to get to Paris as quickly as possible. And during the flight, he intended to work out a solution to the problem he had created. He loved Eden. And now, somehow, he had to convince her of it.
CHAPTER 19
Eden slid into the seat across from Renard at the breakfast table. “Well, I just finished talking to Sophie, and it seems our plan is working. Since you’ve announced you’re gay, she is pretending her heart is broken.”
“And when you refused to return to Boston to marry Mark, he pretended the same thing,” Renard said, smiling.
“Soon Mark and Sophie will begin dating to mend their broken hearts,” Eden added.
“Cheers,” they said, tapping their coffee mugs together, grinning widely.
“So, are you ready to celebrate your birthday this weekend?” Renard asked her.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. Like I told Sophie, I want to keep things simple. Now that my photo shoots are over for the remainder of the year, I plan to relax and take it easy. Are you looking forward to your cruise?”
“I sure am. On Monday, I’m taking the train to London for the day. Then, at the end of the week, I’m checking out of the hotel and flying to the Netherlands. I’ll start the cruise there. You sure you don’t want to come with me?”
“Sounds like fun, but I’m sure. This has been one hectic year, with photo shoot after photo shoot. Next year will be even busier.”
“What new language are you learning now?”
She smiled. After recently discovering her knack for picking up new languages, she was trying to absorb a new language everyfew months. And even better, her tutor had put her in touch with someone who would speak that language back to her. So far this year, she’d learned basic Russian, Italian, and sharpened her French. In the new year, she’d start learning Chinese.
When the doorbell sounded, Eden said, “Would you grab that door for me, Renard? It’s probably the service technician. My dishwasher has been acting up. Right now, I need to make a quick call to my hair stylist to see if she can squeeze me in at the salon one day next week.”
“Sure. No problem,” Renard said, getting up from the table and heading for the door. Eden stood, as well, and moved toward the phone in her bedroom.
**
Drew glanced around outside Eden’s apartment. It was in a quaint section of Paris, off a single lane where no cars were allowed to drive. Instead, there was only minimal foot traffic. It appeared that there were seven apartments connected, similar to row houses, with a French Provincial architecture that gave them a distinguished appearance. He verified the house number before knocking and then shifted his gaze to a bed of flowering plants in several decorative pots beside the door. He recognized the scent of one of the plants as jasmine. He should not be surprised.
“May I help you?”
Drew jerked his head around to look at the male who answered the door -tall, muscularly built, and dressed comfortably in slacks and a shirt. He looked at the house number again, then said, “I am looking for Eden Tyson.”
The man lifted a brow. “And you are?”
Drew frowned. Did that mean he had the right house, and some man was opening Eden’s door like he lived there? Did he? “I’m Drew Steele.”
The man lifted a brow again and lounged in the doorway, not bothering to invite him in. “So, you’re Drew Steele?”
“That’s what my parents named me,” Drew said smartly, trying not to get upset at the thought that he had been replaced already. “And who are you?” Drew asked.
It took the man long enough to answer. “I’m Renard, a friend of Eden’s.” The man stepped aside. “Come on in. Eden is in the bedroom.”
At least the man hadn’t said she was in bed. After entering, Drew asked, “Would you please tell Eden that I would like to see her?”
No sooner had Drew made the request than he heard Eden’s voice from somewhere in the back part of the apartment. “Who was at the door, Renard?”
Suddenly, she appeared, and her gaze moved from the man she called Renard to him. She stared at him as if she were seeing a ghost. “Drew! What are you doing here?”
He could only stare back at her. She looked beautiful in a pair of beige linen slacks and a purple blouse that seemed to bring out the color of her eyes. Her hair was tied back, away from her face, and the style placed emphasis on just how perfect her features were. Those dangling earrings in her ears added the finishing touch. And she was wearing the necklace.Hisnecklace. Seeing it around her neck gave him hope.
“Drew?”
He wanted to counter her question and ask what the other man was doing there, but couldn’t. He had no right. He had told her to move on, and obviously, she had. What he should do was preserve whatever dignity he had left and turn to leave. But he couldn’t do that. He loved her enough to fight for her.
