Accidental Heiress

Chapter Two

Margeaux paused in the hospital hallway, a death grip on the bouquet of colorful flowers. The door to room 436 was ajar, and classical music drifted through the scant opening. She drew in a steadying breath of antiseptic-smelling hospital air and summoned her strength. On the other side of the door was the man she hadn’t seen in more than sixteen years.

Her father.

She was an accomplished photographer. She’d put herself through college and had taken herself all over the world.

But standing there, about to see her father for the first time after all the years and bad blood that had passed between them, she was suddenly desperate for her father’s approval.

Sadly, she wasn’t entirely sure he’d be glad to see her.

She was so nervous she couldn’t get a good breath, and for a heartbeat, she was paralyzed—right there in the hallway as the nurses and orderlies passed by with purpose. One of Margeaux’s hands held the flowers like a torch; the other was frozen in mid-knock as a deluge of emotions and questions rained down on her.

Run!

Turn and run!

But this is your father. He’s sick. He needs you.

Right, he’s never needed you. What if he doesn’t want to see you? What if he sends you away again?

Suddenly, she felt sixteen again, awkward and unsure of where she fit into the life of her only living relative. A girl out of control, starving for the acceptance of a self-involved father who was too busy to deal with her antics.

But she wasn’t a child anymore, and it had been at least three years since the press had skewered her with scandal.

Knock.

Her hand did just that. As if on its own, her knuckles sounded a quick tap-tap-tap on the door.

“Qui?” What? barked a gruff voice from inside. Her breath caught, icy in her chest, and a rush of adrenaline urged her away. Run! Go! Leave now!

“Papa, it’s me.” The voice sounded as if it came from outside herself, but it was her own. Then for the span of several heartbeats all she could hear was the blood rushing in her ears. Until the gruff voice softened and asked almost tentatively, “Margeaux? Is it you?”

Her fingertips grazed the door’s cool wood surface as she pushed the door open a hair and looked in.

“Why are you lurking out there in the hallway?” The voice was gruff again. “Come in here.”

Before her feet could carry her in the opposite direction, she pushed the door open the rest of the way, and found herself face-to-face with her father. Unsure of what to do—whether to sit or stand, whether to hug him or hang back—she simply stood there and drank him in.

His once dark, full head of hair was thinner and silvery white. His cheeks were hollow and his previously strong, proud shoulders appeared rounded. Hooked up to IV bags, pulse monitors and a host of other machines, he looked wizened and frail, but the fire in his dark brown eyes burned strong, belying time’s havoc.

She tried to see past the lines time had etched on her father’s face. She tried to ignore the creases around his eyes and the wisps of silver hair. She tried to see past the lost years and the pain of rejection to the possibility of new beginnings. He needed her. She was here. Wasn’t that enough?

Please let that be enough.

“Come in and shut the door,” he insisted. “No use allowing the entire ward to gawk at us.”

As if paying penance for the obedient child she’d never been, Margeaux found herself submissively closing the door and turning back to him, still unsure of what to do with herself.

“Come over here so I can see you.” The commanding tone of his voice was just as strong as the fire of self possession that blazed in his gaze. As she approached his bed, her father’s gaze took her in, but his expression did not betray an ounce of approval. In fact, he watched her so stoically she wondered if he even saw her, or if, as had usually been the case, he was looking right through her, toward his own affairs. Immersed in a world that had always taken him away from her.

Finally, his eyes locked onto hers—a steel trap closing around her heart, and they stared at each other for a long moment. Margeaux didn’t know what to do with her hands, so she wrapped her arms around her middle as if to keep herself from falling apart. She stood there searching his face for something, anything. A sign to tell her how to proceed.

Breaking the ice was the hardest part, she reassured herself. She’d been giving herself a pep talk from the moment she’d decided to come home: Everything will be fine as soon as we make it past…this.

Margeaux tried to ignore the voice inside that asked, would it be fine? Why would it be fine now when it had never been fine before?

“Sit down.” Colbert pointed to a chair adjacent to the bed. That’s when she noticed his hand was shaking. Maybe this wasn’t easy for him, either. Or maybe it was the effects of the stroke.

Either way, it was unsettling.

Margeaux settled herself in the chair and smoothed her cotton turquoise skirt.

“Tell me, what are you doing these days?” her father demanded.

“I’m a photographer.”

He pursed his lips as if a bad taste had assaulted his mouth.

“So you’ve turned the tables, eh? Now, you’re the one taking the photographs rather than serving as the paparazzi’s favorite subject.”

Then something miraculous happened: he smiled.

And Margeaux could breathe again.

“Oh, Papa, how are you?” She ignored the sting of tears. She wouldn’t cry. She couldn’t allow herself that luxury because her father would see that as a weakness. And things were going so well.

He shrugged. “Other than being irritated and inconvenienced by being here, I’m fine. In fact, they say I’ll probably be released tomorrow.”

“That’s great news!” He must not be as sick as he looked.

He waved away her joy. “Lord knows, I don’t have time to spend one more day in this place. I told them if they kept me here I’d probably end up killing myself. So, they’re smart and are doing the right thing by releasing me.”

Margeaux frowned. He’d had a stroke and was darn lucky the episode hadn’t set him back any more than this. His body might be showing the wear of time and toil, but his will was stronger than ever. Impatient as ever. Obviously, that hadn’t changed. Maybe that’s why he was in here. In fact, given the lethal combination of high-stress politics, mixed with his explosive temper, she was surprised he hadn’t found himself in the hospital before. This was a warning he needed to heed. He’d only been in the hospital less than a week, and it seemed awfully fast for him to be going home after suffering a stroke.

“Dad, don’t be stubborn. When it comes to your health, you shouldn’t push it. Business will wait. The Crown Council won’t make any important decisions without you. The only thing that matters is that you rest and allow your body time to heal.”

Again, he waved her off. But this time he seemed too tired to argue the point. He simply turned his head and gazed out the window.

Pink and violet hues of twilight painted the sky, which was crowded with cumulus clouds gilded molten by the setting sun. The window framed the melancholy scene, provoking an air of sadness in Margeaux.

There was something about twilight—that limbo between day and night—that had always unsettled Margeaux. She wasn’t sure if the pull of sadness tugging at her was because of that or her father’s aloofness.

He’d always been aloof. Now, the two were virtual strangers since they’d been estranged for so many years. Margeaux knew her antics certainly hadn’t helped them bond, though until he’d made the quip about her being the tabloids’ favorite subject she hadn’t been certain he’d ever seen any of the sensationalized stories, since his responses to the press were usually, “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” or a steely “No comment.”

Now they were face-to-face, trying to reach each other over a rickety bridge of years suspended precariously over oceans of differences. But when she’d decided to come back to St. Michel she’d resigned herself to the fact that it wouldn’t be easy.

He was sick and this wasn’t about her or the past. All that mattered was what happened from this moment forward.

“I’m sure you’ll understand that I need to talk to your doctor as soon as possible. If for no other reason than to make sure I understand your care plan?”

He didn’t answer her, and a food-service attendant broke the silence when she entered with a tray.

“Good evening, Monsieur Broussard,” she said. “I certainly hope you’re hungry. Tonight’s meal is a treat—chicken scaloppini. You’re going to love it.”

She offered him a broad grin as she set the tray on the bed table and rolled it in front of him. “And who is this lovely lady?”

Her father stiffened ever so slightly. It was so subtle that it would’ve gone unnoticed by most, but Margeaux saw the reflex. She wasn’t sure if he was reacting to the woman’s acting so familiar or if he was embarrassed by Margeaux.

“Hi, I’m his daughter, Margeaux Broussard.”

“My name is Nadine. So nice to meet you. For some reason, I was under the impression that the Monsieur did not have family…or at least none close by.”

“Well, I’m all he has. I live in Texas right now, but I came as fast as I could when I learned my father had taken ill.”

“So good of you to come and care for him.”

Colbert cleared his throat, “Excuse me, my dinner is not getting any warmer. Would you please allow me to enjoy it before it becomes any more unpalatable?”

Nadine gave a quick nod and excused herself, and Margeaux settled back into her seat, waiting for him to uncover the tray and take the first bite.

Instead, he cleared his throat again.

“You should go, too.”

His dismissal was formal and impatient.

“Why? I want to stay with you while you eat.”

He shook his head. “You watching me eat would be awkward. Please go. You may come back tomorrow and take me home.”

Margeaux stood, not wanting to leave. He was sending her away so that he could eat dinner alone. She wondered if she should push or comply. He’d always been blunt. In fact, the thing about Colbert Broussard was he always said what he meant—for better or worse. Her mother, Alice, had always been the buffer between father and daughter, smoothing the rough edges of his candid comments. After she died, things fell apart.

In hindsight, Margeaux knew both she and her father had been devastated by her death. But at the time, she’d felt lost and alone. A motherless sixteen-year-old and a despondent widower—not a good recipe for a functional family.

She wondered if Henri, who had once been like the son her father never had, had looked in on him. But the last she knew, her father had banished Henri, too.

Now was not the time to open that box.

Later.

They’d have plenty of time to sort that out in the coming months.

Colbert picked up his knife and fork and carved a small bit of chicken, but he set down his fork rather than taking a bite.

“There’s nothing you can do tonight. The doctor won’t make his rounds until tomorrow, and it will be too uncomfortable for me if you sit there and watch me eat. So go. Come back tomorrow, when you’ll have a purpose for being here. Tomorrow, you’ll take me home.”

Having been relieved of her hospital duty, Margeaux got back to the hotel earlier than she’d expected. She’d left her father only because he’d insisted. She left because she didn’t want to fight with him.

Surrender. That was the name of the game right now. All in the name of keeping the peace. She hadn’t come here to fight. She’d come to make things right.

Tomorrow morning, she and the girls would wind their way up the serpentine road to Margeaux’s childhood home and get the place ready for her father’s homecoming later that afternoon.

Tonight, she was free to enjoy herself.

Though it felt a little wrong to be planning a night in the casino while her father was laid up in the hospital, that’s exactly what she intended to do. The alternative was to spend the evening holed up in her room. That wouldn’t do anyone any good.

Her friends had come with her to act as backup support. Though they understood the situation—on all levels—she wanted to show them how much she appreciated them circling the wagons. They’d met by chance but had remained friends by choice. They were the sisters she’d chosen. Tonight was the perfect opportunity to show them a good time St. Michel–style.

Margeaux had called them on her way back to the hotel. They graciously waited as she raced to clean up and put on one of the many dresses that Pepper had carted over.

“So, now you’re happy I overpacked.” Pepper clapped like a child who’d just found the prize at the bottom of the Cracker Jack box. She addressed her comments to no one in particular, everyone in general. “If I’d been the practical traveler that y’all had tried to convert me into, just imagine the fix we’d be in right now.”

“Oh, horrors, we might’ve had to go shopping so that Margeaux could look presentable.” Caroline sipped champagne from a crystal flute. “Imagine that.”

The number of bags Pepper Meriweather had brought might suggest that she intended to stay for the summer, rather than the planned two weeks.

Right now, the fifteen evening dresses and twenty-five pairs of shoes and sandals Pepper couldn’t leave home without were proving to be a lifesaver.

Margeaux chose a slinky little black dress and a pair of sexy, strappy sandals to complement it. As they made their way down to the casino, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirrored hallway leading to the grand lobby of the Hotel de St. Michel. It had been a while since she’d dressed for a night out. Pepper had styled Margeaux’s long, blond hair into a chignon that looked as if she’d gone to the salon.

The sexy black dress made Margeaux’s skin look a little paler than she would’ve liked, but she’d been working so much lately that she hadn’t had time to build the deep bronze glow that had been her trademark.

Even so, seeing her reflection made her check her posture and hold her head a little higher. She was still pushing against the inner struggle of whether going down to the casino was the right thing to do with her father in the hospital. It smacked of fodder for tabloid headlines: Margeaux Broussard Parties while Father Lies in Hospital Bed. Tonight, the only thing better than being anonymous would be rendering herself invisible. But her father was fine. She’d done her duty by him tonight and would follow his wishes to come back and get him tomorrow.

Besides, this dress was far too fabulous for invisible.

Bottom line: Margeaux Broussard had never shied away from life, and she didn’t intend to start now. Tonight would simply be a nice night out with friends.

Nothing scandalous about that.

“We all look like Bond girls,” said A.J. “I wonder if we’ll meet any spies in the casino tonight?”

The girls laughed and as they forged ahead toward the casino, Margeaux hung back in the lobby, reacquainting herself with the hotel’s ornate beauty. The chandeliers hung from frescoed ceilings, dripping honeyed light, warming the gold-and-marble atrium. She took in the sculptures, the caryatids and the bas-relief motifs etched into the walls.

Throughout her youth, she’d seen this place dozens of times. The memory had her gaze shifting until she’d located a certain long, dark hallway that led to one of the seven elevator banks.

Once on a dare, she’d dragged Henri here; they were only thirteen years old and he was her best friend. They’d hid in the hallway with a bag containing a big, black rattle snake, which he’d trapped in the overgrown orchard that grew between her homes. She’d dared him to let it loose in the lobby during the high-season rush.

He didn’t want to, but she’d taunted him until he’d buckled.

“Okay, I will on one condition,” he’d said, and Margeaux had been too full of mischief to even ask about the condition. How bad could it be if he was too chicken to do something like this? All she wanted was for Henri Lejardin, son of the Minister of Security and Protocol, to break out of his shell and do something fun for a change.

She didn’t care if they got caught. The worst that would happen was that it would rile up her father. Sure, it would embarrass him if it came to light that his daughter had a hand in the prank.

But shouldn’t a man who had no time for his family feel a little embarrassment? At least he’d have to make time for her—even if it was to reprimand her.

But Margeaux’s father wasn’t the only one who’d gotten a surprise that day. After Henri had set the snake free in the lobby and Margeaux had sufficiently delighted in the way people had screamed and scattered like handfuls of tossed marbles, Henri had run back to the dark hallway, backed her against the wall and kissed her senseless. She’d never seen it coming. She’d certainly never thought a boy who played by all the rules would ever do something so bold and out of character.

The unexpected feel of his mouth on hers had sent her reeling. She could remember it as vividly as if it had happened yesterday. Henri had kissed her boldly, ravenously, and she’d kissed him back, in awe at his hunger. It was as if they’d both done it before, though neither of them had.

Somehow, following instinct, they just knew what to do.

Over the next three years, instinct would lead them to new, uncharted territory. They’d explored together and discovered just how well they’d fit.

Their hands.

Their mouths.

Their bodies.

Henri was no longer the shy, hesitant one.

Margeaux had liked these new paths down which he coaxed her and she’d followed willingly.

Until finally, they’d reached a dead end.

Now Margeaux felt anxious. Her nerve endings were like live wires, burning under her skin. She put her fingers to her lips, remembering the feel of that first kiss. More than once when she’d kissed another man, she’d found herself fantasizing that the man was Henri, only to suffer the letdown when she’d opened her eyes to discover the familiar stranger in her arms.

The memory of that first kiss took her back. Tonight it was as if she were seeing everything for the first time, and it had an unforgettable emotional impact.

Henri was somewhere on this island, and she had a sudden urge to find him and rediscover some of those paths.

But the newly discovered rational side of her reminded her that it had been a long time since they’d talked, much less kissed or…He certainly had a life by now. Probably a wife. Maybe even a family.

She hadn’t kept up with him because it hurt too much. Too much history, too much…too much. She’d been lying low for the past couple of years trying to play the “out of sight, out of mind” game with the press. It had worked. The paparazzi had finally moved on to the newest celebutante train wreck.

Rehabilitating one’s self was not “sexy news.” Nobody cared that Margeaux Broussard had finally grown up and was making her own way. That she wasn’t stupid—it was dyslexia that had held her back. After that heaven-sent discovery she’d made with Pepper’s help, everything had changed. It was as if the world that had always been blurry and nonsensical had finally snapped into focus.

She wasn’t stupid. She was sober and productive and some had even deemed her talented. Through photography, she’d finally found her voice and her vision.

That was what had given her the strength to come home. Finally, she could prove to her disapproving father that she wasn’t the fille sauvage—the wild girl—as he’d written her off. It would take a while, but she was prepared to go the distance.

“Margeaux, come on!” called Caroline. “Hurry up.”

The girls waited for her at the entrance to the casino.

She took one last wistful look at the hallway and glanced around the lobby. She’d come back here and photograph the hotel lobby, she decided as she walked toward her friends. This would be the first of many places and people she intended to get reacquainted with.

Knowing that Margeaux Broussard was back in town made everything about St. Michel feel different to Henri Lejardin.

As he and Sydney entered the lobby of the Hotel du St. Michel, he was glad to have hands full of the materials they’d need to do a final edit of the copy for the show catalogue during their working date.

He’d made a final call to the curator of the Musée d’Orsay, pressuring him about the missing paintings. When the curator couldn’t assure their arrival by Wednesday, Henri decided to cut the pieces from the show.

It may have been a rash decision, but he’d been impatient all day and wanted closure on this project, so that they could move forward with plans for the opening.

Knowing that Margeaux was back had only added to his anxiousness. He’d kept thinking he was catching glimpses of her out of the corner of his eye. A mane of long, straight, blond hair here, a flash of long, strong, tanned leg there. But they all proved to be specters.

Maybe his rush to tie up loose ends with this show was so he could finally call her and get the inevitable out of the way. When it came to Margeaux, he’d always been reckless and impulsive. Obviously, nothing had changed.

He hadn’t seen her in years, but her presence permeated his being like a spirit.

He glanced at Sydney, feeling a little guilty for bringing her here tonight, even if it had been her suggestion and she hadn’t budged when he’d recommended other options. If he was fully honest with himself, he hadn’t vetoed her choice of meeting location because he hoped he’d run into Margeaux.

Tonight.

The sooner the better.

So, it almost came as no surprise when he heard a lovely brunette call from the entrance to the casino, “Margeaux, come on! Hurry up.”

He turned his head, and there she was. Looking like a grownup version of the girl he’d once loved so deeply. A vision in a black evening dress, her blond hair smoothed back into a sophisticated up-do that accentuated her crystal blue eyes.

She took a few steps toward her friend, and then her gaze snapped to the right as if he’d called her name.

He hadn’t. Not out loud.

It had always been like that between them.