Take Cover (2 page)

We hadn’t made it to the master bedroom last night, or even, much farther from the front door. Instead, we wound up just a few feet away in the family room, laid out on the beige plush European carpeting. Father had purchased it when we first bought the estate. We snuggled in front of the fire intimately, even though we hadn’t been physical.

Words were not necessary. Neither of us uttered a sound. Instead, we lay in each other’s arms. The sound of his heartbeat engrained in my mind, as the hours passed us by, with sleep on neither of our minds. It was a sound I enjoyed. I yearned for the day when my own heart would beat alongside his, signaling that we had truly become one flesh.

When morning came, I had half expected to find myself alone, and Jules long gone with his senses returned, just as he’d done before. But to my surprise, he lay behind me still, his strong arm wrapped around my waist pulling me close against him. I smiled immediately at the rush of memories that came flooding back as I recalled his declaration of our new arrangement, but my excitement was short lived.

Images of the desperate heartbroken creature I had become, when Jules had first escaped my bed, flooded my mind. Surely, he would change his mind and go running to that Emily woman, once morning light set on his beautiful gray-brown eyes.

He had been in a vulnerable place last night, after Emily’s
accident.
He had hastily chosen to give our relationship a chance, but I was no fool. He would leave again; just as he did the morning after the ball. He would leave me and return to his precious whore, and I’d be left to pick up the pieces of my shattered heart. He would indeed leave, and I wouldn’t chase him this time... I would have to let him go.

My love for Jules would be the death of me, should I pursue him further. The compromises I had already made, would cause my honorable father to roll in his grave. He wasn’t one to reduce himself to groveling or dirty tactics; he was strong, powerful, and even noble in his superiority.

Pulling away from Jules’ embrace, ever so gently, I rose to my feet and looked down at the man now lying beneath me. He was absolutely breathtaking, this man. I couldn’t help the lump in my throat at the thought of walking away from him. In my last attempt to win him, I had become someone my father would have detested and for that... I had to let Jules go.

I would never believe Emily to be deserving of him. She was a commoner, an ordinary woman thrust into a life she knew nothing of. She would surely crumble under the scrutiny of the press and the lifestyle Jules and I lived. There was no doubt. I, on the other hand, would be a perfect fit for Jules. It was why his father thought it best we wed.

Releasing a sigh, I slowly lowered myself onto my knees beside Jules’ strong, solid form and kissed his warm temple, letting my lips linger for a moment, before pulling away. His father would be heartbroken to hear of our separation, but it would be for the best. He would have to come to terms with it, as would I,
someday
.

I hadn’t the faintest idea what would become of me. I had to believe that time would help the pain he would leave behind, once he was gone.

Deciding to retreat to the study, I straightened myself and made my way upstairs; all the while preparing myself for the sobering moment Jules would walk out of the door.

I am a Delacroix. I need no validation from anyone, not even my beloved
, I recited to myself.

If only I could believe that in my heart. Je vous aimerai toujours, Jules.
I will always love you, Jules.

Shane decided to stay last night on the couch. Between the loud sighs and his insistent grunting, I guess the old couch didn’t live up to whatever bedding he was used to. Each time I heard him groan, I had to suppress the urge to laugh. I knew I shouldn’t take pleasure in his discomfort, but dammit, I just couldn’t help but enjoy it. He wanted so desperately to appear unfazed by his family fortune, but the man was as uppity as they come.

I hadn’t slept much, my mind often wandered to Julien. I had no idea how he was doing. Although I tried my hardest, Shane wouldn’t give me any details.
Men and their fucking guy codes.

“Morning, grumpy head,” I greeted, as I made my way into the kitchen. I noticed that Shane had already folded up the comforter I had given him last night neatly on the couch.

As I began making coffee, I went to pull out some eggs, but stopped just as I was about to reach for them. I suddenly felt guilty for thinking of making another man breakfast and slowly closed the refrigerator door. Darting a look at Shane, who was now standing by the window peering out, much like the first time I had met him. I wondered how Julien would feel about my making breakfast for Shane. He was his brother, after all.

It doesn’t matter what Julien thinks, you guys aren’t together anymore, remember?

I shook my head, feeling silly for feeling guilty over something so innocent.

“Breakfast?” I pulled the eggs out of the refrigerator and grabbed some frozen sausages. I was in no mood for a five-star meal this morning. Shane and I needed to get brainstorming on how we would exact revenge on that bitch, once and for all.

“Nope, don’t eat breakfast. I will take some coffee, if you don’t mind,” he stated, without turning toward me.

I made myself breakfast and poured us some coffee, before bringing it to the kitchen island and calling him over.

“So... we need to brainstorm,” I said, before taking a sip of the caramel coffee. The favor instantly brought to mind Diana, since we bonded over our mutual love of coffee. I suppressed the feelings threatening to surface. I couldn’t afford to take my focus off of Charlette, not now anyway. I needed to deal with one crazy bitch at a time. Diana would have to wait, I tried to convince myself, but a part of me missed her still.

“Right. About that...” Shane began in an unsure tone, which immediately sent me jumping from my stool and pointing my finger in his face.

“What about it, Shane Belmont?” I challenged him. “I swear if you even think about bailing on me, I will castrate your ass,” I threatened, watching as his eyes widened.

“Easy there, sweetheart, I’m not bailing. Just had some ideas come to mind while I was fighting with that thing, you call a couch, last night. Jeez, I am starting to wonder if I should be helping you get with my brother, what with you threatening to castrate me and all. Do you know how many fabulous women would die if you were to do such a thing? Heaven forbid,” he mocked with amusement.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, I lowered my finger from his face and resumed my place on the stool, shaking my head at what a fool he was. That man was completely into himself. Not that I could really blame him, or the quote many women who would die if I castrated him. He was a dream to look at, and any woman with a pulse would surely agree, but he was no Julien Belmont.

“So what did you come up with?” I asked, once his chuckles subsided.

He took a large gulp of coffee, placed the mug on the granite countertop, and turned to face me. “I was thinking that there is only one thing that Charlette Delacroix cares more about than Julien... Her precious vineyard, left to her after her father passed. We have to somehow turn her vineyard into the leverage that we need to force her to leave you and Julien alone.”

I pondered on his plan before responding, thinking of ways we could make this work and came up empty.

“How the hell am I going to use her vineyard as leverage?” I finally asked. I looked up at him and found him staring at me with a knowing smirk on his face. “Ah... That’s where I come in.”

I wouldn’t really consider myself a ‘nice guy,’ but there was something about the relationship between Julien and Emily that really tugged at my heartstrings. Those kids were crazy about each other. It was so easy to see it, but unfortunately for Emily, Julien had a bitch of a wife.

I wished I had told him how foolish his arrangement with Charlette had been back when he announced his engagement to the old bat, but at the time I was too busy
entertaining
. Back then, I hadn’t given a shit who my brother married as long as the wedding would be filled with sexy bridesmaids, and it was.

Now, I wanted nothing more than to help him do what he seemed incapable of... rid himself of Charlette, once and for all.

My first stop was at Belmont International to see my father. If my plan was going to work, I needed to raise the old man’s suspicions of Charlette.

Walking through the office door, I found him seated at Julien’s desk buried deep in paperwork. It had been a long time since my father had to tend to the day-to-day dealings of the business. The look of frustration, as I walked up to him, told me that he needed Julien back in his rightful place.

“Unless you are here to lend a hand and actually put your very expensive business degree to good use, I am quite busy,” he grumbled without looking up.

I would never get used to the fact that the man never needed to be announced of my presence. He often said it was because the smell of disappointment was strong enough for him to identify me from a mile away.

It was no secret that my father was disappointed in my not joining the family business, but I was never one to follow the rules laid out for me. Where others decided that pants should be put on one leg at a time, I was one to pull both legs on at the same time. Why? Because I could and I liked it that way.

“Is that any way to greet your favorite son?” I jested, with a smirk while holding my hand close to my heart in a wounded manner.

He grunted and resumed shuffling through a stack on his desk, ignoring me completely. A normal person would be hurt by his dismissal, but the sight of the old man so frustrated made my mission that much easier.

“I need to talk to you about something imperative. It’s in regards to The Crown Ivy buyout.”

Hearing the name of his greatest competitor peaked his interest enough for him to raise his head and look me in the eye.

Taking this as a sign to continue, I moved to the seat in front of the large wooden desk and proceeded. “I noticed something when I was covering for Julien. I would have mentioned it earlier, but I needed to do some more investigating,” I began. My father leaned back into his chair, his attention now completely mine as I forged on with my plan.

“I believe we have a mole within the company. Some of the information I discovered seemed a bit too personal for The Crown Ivy to know, if not for an insider funneling them the information. I have my suspicions, but I need full access to resources to confirm my findings.”

“Merde!
Shit!
Had you come to me when your suspicions first arose, I would have done everything to get to the bottom of it. Who knows how much information has been traded between then and now? What exactly did you find, son?”

I stood to my feet and began to pace around in front of him, trying to give the impression that he wouldn’t like what I was going to say.

“For the most part, The Crown Ivy’s resistance to giving up their company appeared genuine. But, when I broke down the minutes between the attorneys on both sides, there seemed to be great interest in one of our overseas projects. One that, I know for a fact, hasn’t been made public.”

“The Crown Ivy has been trying to get the upper hand on us, for as long as I  remember. Julien had to fire several employees this past year, because he suspected them of providing inside information to them. I can’t afford to have this deal go south; I need concrete proof of your findings. Where are they?” he demanded, his veins protruded out on his neck.

Just as I had hoped, my father was more than intrigued by my findings. “I passed them along to Julien to look over, when he returned to work. He didn’t think much about it, more than likely, too preoccupied with the opening of the new hotel downtown. How is that going by the way?” I asked, even though I knew the answer. I stopped my pacing, eager to hear his response.

With Julien no longer running the expansion, and rumors swirling around the pushing back of the opening date, it was clear that my father was in over his head. Back when he ran the company solely, he rarely took the chances that Julien was now known to take. Now that his precious prized son was out of the business, he was lost. The glass of half-drunk whiskey on his desk, in the middle of a messy pile, said it all.

He pulled away from the desk, stood to his feet and began his own set of pacing next to his desk. “I’m not sure what the hell that brother of yours was thinking when he started this project. The chefs he hired are inadequate. The managers he hired are incompetent, and I have had to push back the opening until I find suitable replacements,” he murmured, as he ran a hand through his salt and pepper hair.

I nodded my head, seemingly agreeing with him, all for his sake. We both knew he wasn’t going to admit that he hadn’t the faintest idea how to make this project a success. At least, not like Julien could, but I wasn’t about to be the bearer of bad news. Judging from the deep creases on his forehead, he knew the truth.

“Well, then, Father, you continue working on the hotel expansion. I’ll speak to our security team and have them screen the employees. I will also secure the files from Julien. I believe he’s home, right now,” I began, as I looked at my watch, “You know, since he is unemployed. I just hope Charlette isn’t there, so that we may speak freely,” I almost whisper to myself, just loud enough for my father to hear and he cocked his brow.

“Charlette? Why would it matter if his wife is with him? It would be about time that boy started paying his wife some attention. How she manages to stay married to him, after all the mess he’s put her through, is beside me,” he muttered, before taking his seat back at his desk. Suddenly deep in thought, I wait for him to give his final command or dismissal. It was always the same with him, even when I was a kid.

“Have Charlette give those files a once over, as well. She may be a woman, but she is sharp. She might have some insight as to where we should begin looking for the mole.”

My jaw tensed. I hadn’t thought he would trust his private files with Charlette, so I was completely taken aback by the suggestion. My father noticed my uneasiness and gave me a suspicious look.

I decided to use this to my advantage. “I don’t think that would be wise. Trust me when I say, Charlette is the last person you want to have those files,” I warned, as I backed away from him and turned to leave. Just as I reached the door, my father spoke, “Very well then, you may go.” I shook my head.
So predictable.