‘He promised me he’d ensure that every door in Paris was closed in my face if I told anyone,’ she said, as Antoine’s hand fell away. They were words she’d never uttered out loud, held so close to her heart that she’d been afraid to even imagine they might come true, words that had fuelled her determination to succeed and that echoed in her mind at every turn, but tonight, she’d shared them with a stranger. Because there was something about Antoine that made her want to be honest with him.
‘Evelina, he is no longer in a position to dictate such a thing. The name on everyone’s lips, come tomorrow, will be yours.’
She looked up at him, not sure how to respond. What, precisely, was he trying to tell her?
‘Because…’ she began, hoping he’d finish her sentence for her, feeling oddly vulnerable as she realised how much this one man could change her life, could make her dreams come true overnight.
‘Because I’m going to place an order that will ensure every fashionable woman in Paris hears your name and covets your dresses, and then I will tell everyone in the fashion world about my new protégé.’ He smiled as he drained his drink. ‘This is just the beginning, chérie, I promise. If you’ll let me be the one to introduce you to the heart of fashion, that is?’
Evelina had heard a man promise her the earth before, only to forget all about it the following day. But something about Antoine told her that he wasn’t the kind of man who’d forget, or wouldwantto forget. If he liked her designs as much as he said he did, then he had everything to gain from buying her collection—he could stand to make a small fortune from her. And she wasn’t so naive that she didn’t understand how the world worked; without an influential man in her corner, it would be almost impossible to succeed.
She forced herself to take a long, slow breath and lower her shoulders, not wanting him to think she was anything other than relaxed. She certainly didn’t want to appear surprised.
‘You will place an order and sign a contract in the morning?’ Evelina asked.
He nodded and reached for her champagne glass, placing it on the table beside her.
‘I will. I will take the entire collection that you’ve presented tonight, and if they sell well, then perhaps we can come to an exclusive arrangement,’ Antoine replied. ‘But tonight is not the time for business. Tonight is a time for pleasure.’
He lifted his hand and gently cupped her face, his palm to her cheek, staring into her eyes for a long moment, as if giving her the chance to say no. She breathed slowly in and out, feeling his skin against hers, her mind racing as she considered what this would mean for her. Yet despite her better judgement, despite knowing that she should have resisted, Evelina leaned into him, melting into his arms as Antoine’s lips touched hers in a kissso soft, so gentle, that she found herself taking a handful of his jacket and pulling him back for more.
It’s only a kiss. She wouldn’t let it go any further; they’d both been drinking and he had a wife to return home to, after all. But it had been so long since she’d been kissed so passionately by a man, and never by a man as charismatic and intriguing as Antoine.
‘Antoine, you’re married,’ she finally murmured, pulling back slightly as she caught her breath.
‘Ma chère,’ he whispered, his eyes full of longing and vulnerability, ‘what kind of man do you think I am, that I would hurt my wife? It’s merely a marriage of convenience, for the sake of business,’ he said.
‘But—’
‘Evelina, you have nothing to worry about,’ he whispered. ‘My wife has her life, and I have mine. If it was anything more than a marriage in name only, I wouldn’t be here with you.’
She should have pushed him away, but the way his skin glided against hers and the sound of his deep voice were proving impossible to resist.
She melted into his arms, pressed to his chest as their kiss deepened, as the noise of the city surrounded them, lights twinkling below.
‘I have a feeling I’ll never be able to get enough of you,’ Antoine whispered against her skin as he held her close, as his mouth moved down her neck, his lips featherlight as they traced her collarbone.
14
PRESENT DAY
Usually there was a point in an evening where Blake was more than ready for it to end. She’d start yawning, or lose interest in the conversation and wish she were curled up in bed with a book. But not tonight. There was something about being with Henri that made her feel as if they’d known each other forever, while at the same time fluttering at the newness of it all. They’d talked about everything and anything, easy in each other’s company.
And then there was the way he’d pause and glance at her mouth, as if he were about to kiss her, only he never did, which had made her heart positively thunder in her chest all evening from anticipation.
They’d nibbled on eclairs that were so good she’d laughingly told him that she desperately needed another, forgetting all about how full she was, which had sent him running back to the little café before it shut. Then they’d strolled to get coffee from somewhere that was surprisingly still open despite the late hour, and now they were sitting on a bench as the late night stretched into morning.
‘Tell me something that you’ve never told anyone else,’ Henri said, his fingers gently stroking her hair as she nestled into his shoulder.
‘I’m afraid of life just passing me by,’ she said, without even thinking. ‘And you?’
‘I’m afraid I’ll never be able to step out of my family’s shadow.’
She considered his words, wondering who his mother or grandparents were, and how they were involved in the fashion industry, but she chose not to ask.
‘Life goes by so quickly, Blake,’ Henri said. ‘You need to enjoy every moment.’
His arm closed around her shoulders and she tucked herself even tighter against him.
