‘Can’t. Too much to do.’
‘Hattie, you can’t keep going. Come on. You’re not well. I’m taking you up to bed.’
‘That’ll be nice,’ she said and then realised to her horror she’d said it out loud.
He hugged her soft body closer to his chest as he carried her up the stairs and tried to straighten out his thoughts, some of which were too busy thinking about her pert bottom nestled just below his right arm, while blood was being diverted to a certain part of his anatomy it had no place going at this moment.
It was a relief to arrive at her bedroom door and shoulder his way through into the mirror image of his own room. He laid her on the bed and turned away immediately to pull the drapes, surprised at how bereft he felt letting her go. He went into the bathroom, dampened a face cloth with warm water and came back to gently wash her face.
Her hand gripped his wrist and an electric frisson raced up his arm. ‘You don’t need to do that, Luc.’
‘Shh, lie back. Let someone else look after you for a change.’ He suspected it didn’t happen very often. It struck him that she was very self-sufficient. She didn’t demand much from anyone but always seemed to be doing things for other people.
‘That feels lovely, thank you. I’m not used to anyone looking after me.’ She gave a derisory half-laugh. ‘I’m always doing the looking after. Sometimes I feel more like a nursemaid than a girlfriend.’ He noticed she used the present tense, as if she hadn’t yet let go. It bothered him, not for himself but for her. That she still felt responsible.
He had the urge to lie down next to her and take her in his arms and tell her he’d look after her.
He hesitated, wondering whether to leave her to sleep, and then realised that her eyes were wide open.
‘Do you need anything?’
‘No. I don’t know why I thought I could do this.’
‘Do what?’ he asked sitting down, worried by the defeat in her voice.
‘The wedding. I’m not really a proper wedding planner. I was the assistant to the wedding planner. This was supposed to be my big break. Me setting up on my own. Something for my portfolio. But now, I’m not sure I do know what I’m doing.’
‘I bet as an assistant you were very involved. Besides, lots of people have weddings without wedding planners. Isn’t it just common sense?’
Hattie shrugged listlessly. ‘I thought so but nothing seems to be going right. The house is never going to be ready on time and although I’ve got Fliss here now. I’m not sure whether we can cater for a hundred and fifty people.’
‘Why don’t you leave her to worry about that? She’s the caterer.’
‘That’s just it. She’s like me. This is her chance to prove herself too. We’re both amateurs. Am I expecting too much from her?’ Hattie caught her lip between her teeth. ‘I haven’t even thought about, linen and all that stuff. And then there are the flowers and favours and table decorations. And my cousin hasn’t let me know what she wants.’ She huffed out an exasperated sigh. ‘And sorry, it’s not your problem.’ She sounded so stoic all of a sudden, his heart went out to her. ‘And there are mice. Loads of them by the looks of things. What’s the word for exterminator in French?’
‘I don’t think there are any mice,’ he said. That was one thing he could reassure her on.
‘There are. There’s enough mouse poo down there to sink theTitanic.’ She paused, lowering her voice. ‘In fact, I’ve got a horrible feeling that Yvette got it wrong. It’s not mice, it’s rats.’ He felt her shudder. ‘Which is really bad news. I’ve been trying not to think about it.’
He had a pretty good idea that Yvette had been exaggerating the problem but this was concerning to hear. No wonder Hattie was worried.
Wanting to reassure her, he lay down next to her, slid an arm beneath her and drew her towards him. She stiffened at first and then went limp.
‘Hattie. It’s all going to be fine. I’ll take a look and get an exterminator in if we need one.’ Which he doubted very much. ‘You’re not feeling very well. You need to stay in bed for a day.’
‘I’m okay. Just tired and headachey. Maybe a bit stressed.’
He looked at her pale, drawn face. ‘When was the last time you had a proper day off and did nothing?’
Her expression went noticeably blank. Interesting. Why did he get the impression she’d been chasing her own tail for a long time? As she started to protest he shook his head. ‘Have a proper rest and then we’ll sit down with Fliss and Solange and make a plan. One step at a time. Like eating an elephant. Bit by bit.’ And he would have to speak to Yvette about her sabotage tactics. It really wasn’t fair on Hattie – she was only trying to do a job and make a fresh start for herself. He could relate to that. How would he feel if someone was trying to stop him making champagne?
‘But I can’t.’
‘Hattie, you can. I’ll tie you to the bed if you’re not careful.’
‘Kinky.’
His eyes met hers. ‘I can be,’ he said and felt a satisfying hitch in his pulse when her eyes widened slightly. They stared at each other for too long a moment before she said, ‘God, you must think I’m such a wuss.’
