Lucien (5 page)

Luc shook his head and grabbed for her hand. “Elise, that figure is what you would get if you married me.”

He heard her sharp intake of breath then an audible gulp. “What did you say?”

Damn. He hadn’t meant for it to come out like that. “Elise, you need money to save your mother and I need a wife to save my mother and sisters. Raven could keep Aphrodite and—”

“Married?
Married
?” She raised a shaking finger and pointed at him. “You’re nowhere near turning thirty. Your birthday isn’t for another—”

“Ten days.”

“Ten days,” she practically shouted. “You let Margot walk out of the building when you were only ten days away from… what the devil were you thinking?”

“At the time, I was more concerned with controlling certain urges,” he retorted dryly. “Another minute and Margot would have encountered an entirely different scene.”

“Lucien, don’t you try and sway me with your glib tongue.”

“I know better than to try. If you’d been sway-able, Margot would have ditched me long ago.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring.

“I am not marrying you. I’ll work for you, but I am not marrying you.”

“Why not,” he demanded. “I know you don’t have a boyfriend.”

“How do you know that?”

“Never mind how. Why won’t you marry me?”

She scowled at him. “Because I don’t marry men on the rebound. That’s why.”

He stared at her, slack jawed. Rebound? Where the hell did she get that? “I am not on the rebound.”

“You are, too. Margot dumped you today and you’re drunk and you—”

“I am not drunk,” he ground out. “You’re the one who’s sucking down whiskey sours like they’re going out of style.”

Her eyes snapped angrily at him. “If my car would have started, I wouldn’t be sucking down anything alcoholic, but Gaia saw fit to kill my car along with your love life.”

“What love life? I don’t have one. I had a fiancée my mother picked out of a lineup.”

Her chin lifted a notch and she flicked her long hair over her shoulder. “If you didn’t work so much you would have been able to find your own fiancée and you wouldn’t be in this predicament.”

Luc was seconds away from losing his grip on reality. Sitting across from him was the most exasperating woman he’d ever met. Not only that, but Elise was the sexiest female he’d stumbled upon in a damn long time. He had to make her agree to marry him. “Elise,” he began in his calmest, most rational tone, “do you or do you not want to save Raven the pain of losing Aphrodite?”

Her eyes narrowed and he knew he’d hit his mark. She’d do just about anything for her older brother. “Do you have any idea how my family will react if I suddenly announce I’m getting married?”

“I don’t care what they’ll think. If you don’t marry me, then Raven will have to sell his bike and you’ll have to live with the guilt of knowing that you could have saved him the pain.” He felt like a bastard manipulating her like this, but he was desperate. He needed a wife and she was the best candidate. They already spent most of their days and nights together. They got along well, most of the time. They could argue and still respect each other. And most importantly, Luc knew she wanted him. Well, he wasn’t absolutely positive, but he could make her want him as much as he wanted her. He’d have to if he had a prayer of a chance in keeping his sisters and mother living in the lap of luxury.

“Getting down on one knee might have moved me to accepting, but handling me like your grandfather did you…? I may never forgive you for that, Lucien.” Elise snatched the ring out of his palm and slid it onto her finger. “You will be with me when I tell Moonbeam, Raven, and Dad. If you survive that, then you’ll get your wife.”

Luc gave a heartfelt sigh and relaxed for the first time since hearing his grandfather’s ultimatum. He picked up Elise’s ice cold hand, giving her a grateful squeeze, and opted not to tell her about the other part of the deal with his grandfather that he was required to fulfill.

Three days later, Luc placed a hand at the small of Elise’s back and propelled her towards the back of the restaurant. “You’re not leaving me to face Raven alone. Move.”

She sidestepped his hand and latched onto his arm. “Luc, it’s not too late to find someone else.”

He smiled down at her and tapped his finger against her nose. “Not a chance. After we tell your family, we’re as good as married.” And it couldn’t happen soon enough for him. He was tired off keeping his hands off her.

She whimpered and dug her nails into his arm. “Don’t expect me to protect you if Raven goes for your throat.”

He laughed and hauled her to the table where Moonbeam and Raven waited for them. Raven stood as they approached.

Moonbeam resplendent in an airy, purple dress smiled brightly up at him. The tiny bells on her wrists chimed as she lowered her menu to the table. “Lucien. What a nice surprise.”

“You look lovely today, Moonbeam.”

Elise’s mother blushed and touched her long silver hair which was styled much like the last time he’d seen her—in a style which reminded him of a Greek statue. “Thank you.”

Luc turned his attention to Elise’s older brother and held out his hand. “Raven. Good to see you again.”

Her brother reluctantly shook his hand. “Luc. Elise forgot to mention you would be joining us.” His words were directed towards Elise who was clinging to Luc’s arm.

“I can’t imagine why she would have forgotten.” Luc pulled out a chair and, detaching himself from Elise, lowered her into the chair. “She’s been under quite a strain lately. I’ve been worried about her working too hard.”

Elise sent him a warning look.

Luc just smiled and motioned for Raven to sit. It still amazed him that Raven and Elise were brother and sister. They looked nothing alike. Except for their eye color. They shared the same blue shade which proved that Moonbeam was indeed their mother. Raven was around the same height as Luc, six-two. Where Elise was fair, Raven was dark with shoulder length black hair and a natural looking, year-round tan. Luc doubted they had the same father. Neither child looked like Moonbeam. Elise certainly didn’t. Moonbeam was tall with exotic features. Elise was petite, her features classical.

Raven stared at his sister and she fidgeted. “Elise. Do you have something you’d like to share with the group?”

“Oh yes, Elise. You must catch us up on things.” Moonbeam smoothed her napkin across her lap and smiled benignly at her daughter. “I’m so happy you and Lucien decided to have an affair. You two really do make the cutest couple.”

Luc’s jaw dropped.

“You’re in it now,” Elise whispered, then smiled far too sweetly and nudged him. “Yes,
darling
, why don’t you explain everything to Mother.”

Raven folded his arms across his chest, leaned back in his chair, and glared at Elise from underneath sharply arched brows. “I think I’d rather hear it from you, Sister Elise.”

“Too bad, Brother Raven. I promised Luc he could tell you.”

“But I don’t know Luc well enough to know if he’s bending the truth.”

“Luc won’t be bending the truth. Will you,
darling
?” Elise emphasized the endearment with a hard squeeze to his hand, her nails digging into his palm.

The exchange between brother and sister gave Luc the moment he needed to recover from Moonbeam’s statement. “This is not something I would lie about.” He cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and pulled Elise’s left hand above the table.

Before he could make his announcement, Raven cursed under his breath. “Tell me that isn’t what I think it is.”

“It is,” Luc told him.

“Oh, how beautiful,” Moonbeam chimed. “And it’s Elise’s birthstone. How thoughtful of you, Lucien.”

Luc’s brow furrowed. What the hell was Moonbeam talking about?

Elise tapped him on the arm. “My birthstone is diamond. I was born in April,” she informed him politely. “Luc, you’re going to have to spell everything out for Mother. She doesn’t see things the way you do.”

“Spell it out? Fine. I’ll spell it out. Moonbeam, Elise and I are getting married next Saturday.”

The benign expression on Moonbeam’s serene face mutinied. Apparently, she wasn’t thrilled with the prospect of having Luc as a son-in-law. Which didn’t make any sense, since Moonbeam seemingly had no qualms with Luc having an affair with her daughter.

Elise scooted closer to Luc. “She’s gonna explode.”

Raven glance at his mother. “What did you expect, Elise? Mom hasn’t lost her temper since the early eighties.”

“That’s not true. She lost her temper when Dad used her altar to research
The Seven Blades of Death
. It took forever to sand the grooves out of the stone.”

“
The Seven Blades of Death
? Your father wrote that?”

Raven shook his head and pointed to Elise. “Her father wrote it.”

Luc turned on Elise. “Your father is Jeffrey Wyndemere? You never told me that.”

“Would you have asked me to marry you if I’d told you?”

“Yes,” he answered quickly. “Why would it make a difference?” Damn. Elise’s father wrote books that made Luc break into a cold sweat. Damn.

“Because,” Elise explained patiently, “people are afraid of Daddy. It has something to do with the way he looks at them.”

“It’s more than that,” Raven said. “Wyndemere stares at you like he’s envisioning the best way to dismember you.”

Luc looked at Raven. “Much like you’re looking at me now?”

Raven’s smile was all the answer Luc needed, but he added, “Naw, Wyndemere’s better at it.”

“Let me guess, your father is Dexter,” Luc murmured, referring to Wyndermere’s favorite villain-slash-blade-carrying-hero, Dexter Quimby.

“Raven, stop looking at Luc like that.” Elise exhaled sharply. “Raven was the model for Dexter Quimby.”

Raven’s evil smile deepened. “My father is Apollo.”

Luc felt a headache forming. Whatever he’d expected, this was not the simple luncheon he’d predicted. “As in the Greek Sun god?”

“Uh, no. As in the leader of the Apollo Temple of Love. My father has a small commune in California where he keeps his harem.”

Luc stared at Elise. She could have told him some of this before they’d walked into the restaurant. “Where is your father?”

Raven answered. “Wyndemere couldn’t make it. He was dissecting someone on page seventeen. I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it. When you’re introduced, of course.”

“Naturally. Why wouldn’t he,” Luc muttered under his breath.

“He may even let you touch his scalpel.”

“Raven,” Elise warned. “You’re not going to scare this one away.”

At Luc’s surprised expression Raven explained gleefully, “Her last boyfriend and page three hundred and twenty-six of
The Seven Blades of Death
.”

A sound from Elise’s mother drew his attention away from Raven and Luc glanced at Moonbeam’s purplish face. He couldn’t help but think the hue of her cheeks complimented her outfit. “What happened on that page?”