The Unexpected Bride (Montana Born Brides) (12 page)

With that thought, she decided that this was what she needed to concentrate on. Back in the coffee shop, Laurent had reached out and asked for her help. She just had to work out how she could give it to him and help him realize that losing Brooke hadn’t been his fault.

After dinner, Laurent went to his workshop.
It would be Evie’s fourth birthday in May, and he was making her a workstation-come-desk for her bedroom, where she could draw, paint and make models to her heart’s content, and store her materials, as well as place a basic computer. She clearly had the Deslongchamps artistic talent and he wanted to nurture it. Pascale had been helping him design the desk, advising on surfaces and storage areas for brushes, crayons and paints, and even recommending that he should include a small easel-like construction where Evie could pin sketch paper. Pascale and Robert had promised to stock the desk with materials as their gift to their granddaughter, and Ren would be contributing some too.

Around ten-thirty, he sat back from his labors, rolling his shoulders and moving his head from side to side to release his tired muscles.
But it wasn’t just working on the desk that had caused the knots in his shoulders. He’d been mulling over this afternoon’s little scene. He was surprised at how uncomfortable Evie’s wedding plans had made him feel, not to mention realizing how irritated he’d been by her running commentary on his resemblance to her imaginary friend, the bear. He wondered why all of it was getting to him so? After all, she was just a little kid, and Emma had been right: she was just trying to find a solution to the problem in her own three-year-old’s way.

A few weeks ago, he’d been at his wits’ end. Then Emma had arrived and changed his children’s world. He had to admit that she’d spread more than a little sunshine into his. If he’d met Emma in a bar, he would have happily indulged in a fling with her…He steered his mind back to the coffee shop, wondering if Emma had been upset by Evie’s wedding plans as well. She’d visibly tensed up when Evie had announced her marriage idea. And yet, he also recalled how quickly Emma had put her own feelings aside, and placed a comforting hand on his arm, trying to help him understand, and he’d seen the caring look in her eyes. She was one helluva woman, and if he was available, well, it would be easy to give his heart to someone like her…

He drummed his fingers on the desk-top and forced himself to return to the issue at hand once more.
As today’s events had shown, clearly Evie missed her mother as much as ever and craved a mommy-daddy set-up. That ever-present sensation of guilt sat heavily on his chest. What could he do about it?

That thought pulled him up short.
It was a problem, a real problem. At the very least, he couldn’t leave things as they were. He saw now that Evie and Jerome needed something more than he had been able to give them. There was also no doubt that Emma was crucial to their well-being. But what to do to make things better, which would give his kids the mom they wanted and, at the same time, keep Emma at Copper Creek…

His eyes scanned around the workshop and he saw some odds and ends of timber lying in a corner.
Aha! Here was a start. Something practical. He would do what he did best and use his skills to make Evie a box for putting out the bear’s Easter egg in the woods, and he’d personally take her—and Jerome—up there on Sunday to place the offering. He only had a couple of days to get it done, but he’d manage it. The kids would be happy, which would make him happy, and he knew Emma would be delighted by that.

While he didn’t yet have a solution, he felt better for knowing he would be doing something—something that was fun for his children—and trying to make things a little better.
He grabbed his jacket and put it on, then turned off his lathe and the workshop lights. He emerged into the yard and locked the door, then turned to walk across to the house, but stopped abruptly when his attention was caught by the sight of Emma in one of the second-story windows. A soft light was on behind her as she stood in profile at the window of her bedroom, framing her in a golden glow. His breath caught as he realized she was naked and holding out her nightgown as she prepared for bed. She appeared oblivious to his presence in the dark yard below. His heart raced as he saw her breasts, pale and surprisingly full for her small frame, tipped by large pink nipples, swaying as she moved. His mouth went dry and he felt himself go hard. He watched transfixed as she held the nightgown over her head and shrugged into it, her breasts bobbing as she did so. Then she lifted her silky hair free of the nightdress and its fabric pulled tight against her body, framing and restricting her beautiful voluptuousness. A small groan escaped his lips.

She turned to close the drapes, so he sidestepped into the shadows where he remained for a
couple minutes, waiting for his pulse to slow. Then he made his way to the back door and let himself into the kitchen, to the sound of Bobo’s claws clattering across the wooden floor as the little dog came to meet his master. He squatted down and fondled the terrier’s ears, deep in thought. A new, more compelling strategy began forming in his mind…It was crazy and, yet, it might just be the answer to all their problems…

Over the next days, Laurent was incredibly busy in his workshop. The whining sounds of his saw and lathe, followed by vigorous sanding, drifted across the yard.
He said he had an important job to finish by Easter. Strange feelings of loneliness and loss descended on Emma. Were the effects of what had taken place at Copper Mountain Chocolates the other afternoon still lingering with him, and was that why he was apart from the family yet again? She took a deep breath and remembered the resolution she’d made: she had to put her feelings for him to one side. Maddening yet compelling though he was, he needed her support and she just had to find the right way to give it. Though sometimes she truly wondered whether she ever would.

That morning, when she’d settled the children to play happily in the den, and knowing Linda was nearby to keep an eye on them, she decided that she needed to take the opportunity to mend some fences. She had a piece of good news to tell Laurent: she’d taken Evie and Jerome into Marietta again the day before, where they’d bumped into his brother, Ren, who’d invited them to have hot chocolate again at Sage’s.
Once more, the kids had been little angels and they’d all had real fun. She hurried into the kitchen and made some fresh coffee using the French press. Having placed it on a tray, together with mugs, stirring spoons and cream, she grabbed her coat and then made her way out across the yard in the bright spring sunshine. There was a fresh wind blowing along the valley and her hair ruffled slightly out of its ponytail as she made her way to the workshop.

“Hi!” she called out, and popped her head around the door.
Bobo’s head shot up in the old armchair and he emitted a little bark.

Laurent raised his head, too.
He was talking with Luke over a large dining table, which Luke had been polishing.

“I’ve brought some fresh coffee for you,” Emma announced cheerfully, walking into the room and nimbly skipping to avoid Bobo, who had bounced out of his chair and was circling around her feet, still emitting small barks of excitement.
“Careful, Bo!”

“Hey, crazy dog!”
Laurent paused, and then said, “Luke was just going to the lumber yard. Weren’t you?”

“Sure…yes!
Sorry, Emma, I’ve got an order of timber to collect. Maybe some other time?” Luke hurriedly reached for his jacket and the keys to the truck, then scurried out of the workshop.

“Oh!
That’s a shame. I brought three mugs,” Emma felt a little confused, as she watched Luke disappear out of the door at warp-speed.

“More for you and me to enjoy.” Laurent took the tray out of Emma’s hands.
“Smells good.” He set it down on his desk.

“I thought it might be nice to have some real coffee for a change,” Emma said brightly, glad that he seemed quite cordial this morning.
“You look a little tired,” she added, noticing the dark shadows under his eyes.

“It’s very welcome.” Laurent pushed the press down in the coffee pot and poured out the steaming brown liquid into two of the mugs, then added cream.
“I know you don’t take sugar. I’ve been working late on this project I have to finish and haven’t got much rest the last couple of nights. Here.” He handed a mug and a spoon to her.

“Thanks.”
Emma studied her coffee for a moment, wondering how to broach the subject of their outing to Sage’s the other afternoon and get him to talk about it. It seemed to her that he’d lost sleep over it. Perhaps mentioning that they’d seen Ren yesterday wasn’t the best thing to do in the circumstances.

Laurent broke the silence. “I’ve been making Evie a box for the bear’s Easter egg, so that she can leave it out safely on the mountain.
I thought we could take it up there Sunday.” He reached over and showed her a five-sided wooden box, with a neat little cup for the chocolate egg inside it. The panels on the outside were decorated with carved-in flowers.

“Oh, Laurent, that’s amazing!
She’ll love it! What an incredibly nice thought.”

“And Luke is making Jerome a little model Bobo.” He held up a small wooden dog that still needed two back legs carving.

Emma clapped her hands and, without thinking, stepped forward to give him a hug. She felt him stiffen and her hands dropped to her sides.

“Emma…”
She could see he was clearly choosing his words carefully. “Emma, about what Evie said when we were at Sage’s place…that you and I get married…it’s a cute idea…”

“Yes, it’s very cute.” Emma was encouraged that he seemed to be feeling brighter about the incident and seeing
Evie’s remark for what it was.

Laurent ran his hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck. “…So you agree it’s not such a bad thing?”

“Yes, I do. She’s a bright child, your Evie. At three-and-a-half, she’s already able to work things out, come to reasonable solutions...”

Laurent gave a half-smile and took hold of Emma’s hands.
She stilled and gave his hands a squeeze and smiled back, hoping to show him that there was no need for him to feel so bad about his children wanting a mum.

He scanned her face, his gaze intense.
“It’s kind of weird that we should agree that a three-year-old’s solution is the way to go. But sometimes, I guess, out of the mouths of babes and all that…”

“Way to go?” Emma echoed, not quite comprehending what he meant.

“Yeah. But it’s great that both of us feel it’s a neat solution,” Laurent pressed on. “The children adore you and you obviously love them. They need a mother. That’s why my dad hired you and it’s turned out real well. You’ve said that you want to stay with us. So why not make it a permanent arrangement?”

Blood rushed to Emma’s head and she felt as if all the air had been punched out of her lungs. “What are you saying?”

“I’m asking you to marry me.”

Her head spun. “But—we don’t love one another,” she managed to push out.

Laurent held steady eye contact with her. “You’re right. It’s not a love match. But you seemed fairly certain that you don’t want any involvement after your failed engagement, and I…well, I can’t see me tying myself up with someone emotionally for a while to come.”

“That sounds a bit bleak,” Emma responded, finding her voice again.