“Non, merci,” I thanked her. “Just send Dauphine down when she’s changed out of her swimsuit.” A wet towel was still on the chair next to me from where Dauphine had abandoned it. She’d spent the morning in the pool begging me to join her while I took calls and tried to organize childcare. I adored spending time with her, but it was impossible when she was out of school for the summer and I still had a business to run. Of course, in a month or so business would be slower. It was almost August, and practically everyone would be on vacation for les grandes vacances. But for now it would be tricky to manage without help.
“Any luck?” Martine pressed, glancing down at my laptop. “I’m sorry I have to leave before you found a replacement nanny.”
“I have a call with the American agency this afternoon. Hopefully they’ll have someone else for us.”
“Keep me informed. I can try to shorten my trip if necessary.”
I waved my hand. “No, no. You must go and see your family. It’s not your fault our summer au pair fell through at the last moment.” She’d very unprofessionally cancelled her contract three days before arriving. “The American agency will have someone else, I’m sure of it. They’ve always come through for us in the past.”
She gave a brief nod. “D’accord,” she said, looking unconvinced.
If it wasn’t for knowing that Martine’s sister had been diagnosed with cancer, I’d insist she stay until I had someone else lined up. But Martine disliked coming on the boat, always butting heads with our chef, and I wanted us to head out on my yacht for at least a month. It was time we did something together, Dauphine and I, that didn’t involve rattling around this big old house with all its memories. If I wasn’t working on one of the biggest deals of my business life, I’d suggest we go overseas somewhere and reset.
“J’arrive!” Dauphine spun out the door. Her lanky ten-year old body was dressed in a t-shirt and denim shorts, her hair unbrushed.
“And I’m leaving,” responded Martine and pulled her into a tight hug. Then she set her at arm’s length. “You be good for your papa, you hear? I will see you in two months. Try not to get sunburned, brush your hair and teeth, and don’t forget to keep up with your reading. Less YouTube, more words. Okay?”
I stood and gave Martine a kiss on each cheek. She’d been a Godsend after Arriette died two years ago, filling as much of a motherly role as she could in our household. Not that my late wife had been an exceptional mother, I hated to admit, but Martine was a female presence at least when my mother couldn’t be around.
Dauphine and I sat and ate the Pain Bagnat sandwiches and drank our sparkling drinks. Orangina for her and Perrier for me.
“Do you have more work again, Papa?” Dauphine asked when she’d exhausted all her topics of chatter.
“Mon chou, I always have work. I’m the boss. My work is never done.”
She folded her arms. “I’m bored.”
“Only boring people get bored.” I shrugged.
She slitted her eyes. “I’m not boring!”
“I know.”
“Hmm,” she griped. “So what should I do? I’m bored of swimming, and you won’t let me be on a screen. You know I could learn something on a screen.”
“Like what?”
She gnawed her lip. “Like … baking?”
I inwardly cringed, knowing that would lead to her wanting to cook something, and with no Martine here to supervise, that was an impossibility.
“How about drawing?”
“That’s boring.”
I raised my eyebrows, unwilling to be pulled into a disagreement over that particular hobby. She loved to draw. “What about coding your own video game?”
Her head cocked to the side. Her nose, slightly pink and peeling, was dotted with tiny freckles. I needed to be better about sunscreen.
“Truly?” she asked.
“Yes. Find a YouTube video about basic coding and see if you can make a game we can play against each other.” I pushed back from the table and stood, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Or draw,” I suggested again, knowing that’s what she would probably pick. “Now, I have to get on a call to America. Please take our plates inside on your way.”
After she’d left, I poured another water just as a movement caught my eye. Looking up, I saw Evan striding toward me, having come around the side of the house.
“Christ. You’ll give a man a heart attack sneaking up like that,”