coiled spring, she screamed, “Stay with me, mon coeur!” before shuddering with waves of orgasmic bliss.
“I’m here, cher. I’m yours!” he cried, spending himself within her beloved body, then holding her close until they both drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 13
There is happiness.
And then there is joy.
For the next two weeks, Jax learned all there was to know about joy.
In all her adult life, Jax had never known what it was to wake up in someone’s arms every morning after making love throughout the night. She’d never known the playful glances over teeth brushing or the luxury of having a deliciously male perma-date for dinner. She hadn’t shared her home with someone in years, and she had forgotten how much she liked having constant company—but even more, Gard’s constant company. His French terms of endearment, the way he touched her and reached for her, even when they sat side by side reading Philadelphia Vice, trading comments and asking each other questions, made her heart swell with love. She missed him when he spent a few hours every day at the Englishes, and the moment he returned, she attacked him with kisses, dragging him up to her shower. They were voracious for each other, their bodies insatiable every night, their hearts loving deeper and stronger with each passing day.
She reached out to the screenwriter of Philadelphia Vice and arranged to acquire the script, and she met with a friend of a friend who produced a police procedural in New York. He loved the concept for Philadelphia Vice and said he was not only happy to speak to an East Coast studio on her behalf, but he knew of an available showrunner who’d worked on CSI: New York for several years and might be interested in taking on Philadelphia Vice too. For the first time in months, she felt in charge of her life’s direction, felt stronger and more excited, hopeful and passionate…and she laid all that positive change at Gardener’s feet.
About a week after Gard moved in, he had Le Chateau thoroughly assessed for security needs and made recommendations for cameras and laser sensors, which Jax immediately approved. The first snag in her forward motion, however, came two weeks later, when she was driving to Daisy’s house for lunch. Her phone rang and she pressed the button for Bluetooth.
“Hello?”
“Is this Mrs. Rousseau? Mrs. Liliane Rousseau?”
“No,” said Jax. “This is her daughter.”
“Ah-ha. Well, this is Universal Security, and we have a new order for cameras and surveillance at twelve Blueberry Lane in Haverford, but we require the owner of the house to be present in order to proceed.”
“My mother lives in France,” said Jax. “But I can be prese—”
“We’re going to need to get work-order approval from the owner in writing, miss, before we can get started.”
Jax was silent for a moment, wiggling uncomfortably in her seat. She’d put off the conversation with her mother about purchasing Le Chateau, but if she truly wanted to make the estate her home, it was time to bite the bullet and talk to her mother about purchasing it. Then she could make all the changes she wanted.
“Hold the order, please,” she said. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
“Thank you, miss. Bye now.”
She hung up the call, pulled into Daisy’s circular driveway, and before she lost her nerve, she dialed her mother’s number. It was only six o’clock in Paris, three hours before her mother could possibly have evening plans with friends.
“Bon jour?”
“Maman. C’est Jacqueline.”
“Jacqueline! How are you, darling?”
“I’m well, Mother. How are you?”
“Readjusting to Paris after a month in the states is a nightmare. But it’s so good to be home. Promise me, darling, when you get married, it will be here, not there.”
Jax sighed. Her mother hadn’t handled one iota of Étienne’s wedding aside from being a snarky pain in the ass about every detail chosen by Kate English. But how like her to act like the burden of the work had been hers. Jax shook her head. Be nice. You catch more flies with honey.
“Mother, when you were leaving, you mentioned that you wanted to sell Le Chateau at some point in the future and—”
“But as you pointed out, it’s such a hassle. When I’m ready, I’ll hire someone to take care of selling it.”
“What if I had a buyer for you?”
“Well! I’d say someone’s a little miracle worker! Who is it?”
Jax took a deep breath. “Me.”
“I’m sorry, darling, but I can’t be understanding you right. You? You want to buy Chateau Nouvelle? How ridiculous.