Parisian Affair (30 page)

'Oh, Todd,' she said. 'Don't be upset with
me. You can do something you'd like to do while I'm busy. I won't
be all day, you know.'

He gently brushed a finger down the side of
her face as if to placate her. 'I'm not upset. We can go our
separate ways, then meet somewhere for lunch or whatever.'

'That's a fabulous idea,' she said. 'What do
you think you'll do?'

'Oh, I don't know. Maybe just do a lot of
walking. Looking at buildings and stuff. You know how I love
architecture, and there's so much to see here.'

'That sounds fun,' she replied.

'What about lunch?' he asked. 'Do you have a
place in mind?'

She shook her head. 'No, not really.
You?'

'I was thinking about Le Grand Vefour,' he
said. 'It's supposed to be one of the best restaurants in Paris,
and I'd like to see what it looks like inside. I've seen pictures,
but I've never seen the real thing.'

'Sounds wonderful,' Allegra said, wondering
if he knew that the restaurant was in the Palais Royal, where Jules
Levant Joaillier was located.

'What time?' he asked after taking another
sip of coffee.

'Oh . . . let's give ourselves plenty of time
this morning,' she said. 'Around one thirty?'

'Okay. I'll see if I can get
reservations.'

She leaned over and gave him a kiss. 'You're
a prince,' she said, 'and I love you.'

'Is that because I'm an accommodating
prince?'

'That, too.'

They finished breakfasting, then began
dressing for the day. Todd called Le Grand Vefour and secured
reservations. Allegra hadn't paid any attention to him while he was
getting ready, and when he appeared in the bedroom wearing a suit
and tie, she was dumbfounded.

'My God,' she said. 'Look at you. You're
dressing up like that to go for a walk?'

'Well, we are going to Le Grand Vefour for
lunch,' he said, 'and it's a dressy place, from what I hear.'

'Oh, you're right,' she said. 'I didn't think
about that.'

'I might as well dress now instead of coming
back here and changing,' he said.

'You look so handsome,' she said, giving him
a kiss.

'And you look beautiful,' he replied.

'You really think so?' She looked down at her
simple black cashmere sweater with matching cashmere slacks. Around
her waist was a black alligator belt with a closure in the shape of
a frog. It was made of brushed gold, with peridot eyes, and it was
an attention grabber against the black.

'Are you fishing for compliments?'

She nodded. 'A lady can't get enough,' she
replied, twirling once in her high, black heels.

'Well, you are one beautiful lady, and you
look especially beautiful today.'

'Thank you,' Allegra replied. 'Are you
ready?'

'Ready.'

They donned their coats and left the suite
together, then descended to the small but regal lobby. They were
about to step out onto the place Vendome when Allegra abruptly
stopped.

'What is it?' Todd asked.

'I don't believe it,' she said. 'I have to go
to the bathroom. You go ahead.'

'I'll wait,' he said.

'That's ridiculous,' she protested. 'Start
your walk, and I'll take care of my business.'

'If you say so,' Todd said with a shrug. He
gave her a kiss. 'I'll see you at one thirty at Le Grand
Vefour.'

'I'll be there,' she replied.

Todd went through the doors and out onto the
place Vendome, and Allegra went straight back upstairs to their
suite. In a matter of minutes she had the ring out of the room safe
and in her shoulder bag. Her first order of business, she'd
decided, was to get the ring to safety once and for all. Allegra
went back down to the lobby. The doorman hailed a cab for her on
the place Vendome, and she was off to her first stop. Taking the
cell phone out of her shoulder bag, she dialed the number for stop
number two.

Todd glanced into the shop's windows before
going inside and was glad that he had dressed up. He probably
wouldn't be given the time of day if he had come in dressed in
ordinary street clothes. It's like Van Cleef & Arpels, he
thought. A lot of expensive merchandise and a lot of attitude. They
check you out before they let you in. He looked at his reflection
in the glass and adjusted his tie slightly, then strode to the door
confidently. When he saw a buzzer for entry, he pressed the button
and waited. The buzzer sounded and he pushed the door open.

He felt as if he were in a pinkish beige
cocoon of extraordinary luxury. A huge, sparkling crystal
chandelier was suspended from the center of the ceiling, and the
jewelry was displayed on the walls and, directly in front of them,
in cabinets that formed a semicircle around the room. Two enormous
flower arrangements in crystal vases sat at opposite ends of the
counter. Behind it, directly ahead of him, stood a woman somewhere
over the age of sixty, he estimated, although it was difficult to
determine due to her auburn-dyed, perfectly coiffed hair, liberal
use of makeup, and smooth, wrinkle-free skin. She had once been a
beauty, he thought. She wore a beige Chanel suit with heavy braid
trim on the jacket. Beneath it was a simple silk blouse down which
several strands of pearls cascaded. A Maltese cross of various
colored enamels with a large ruby center was pinned to her jacket.
Todd immediately sensed that beneath her surface polish and hauteur
was a woman who was lonely, unhappy with her station in life, and
possibly in need of a friend. She was a woman who would welcome his
attention.

He approached her, and her lips spread in a
close approximation of a smile. '
Bonjour, madame
,' he
said.

She nodded slightly. '
Bonjour,
monsieur
. May I assist you?'

Todd wondered if he looked American, although
he was grateful that she spoke English. '
Oui, madame
,' he
replied. 'At least I hope so.'

'Yes?' She looked at him questioningly, her
thinly penciled brows arching.

'I came to Paris for the auction at Dufour
yesterday,' Todd said. 'I was interested in Princess Karima's
emerald ring, you see.'

The woman's eyes lit up, and he could see
that they were blue and still held the capacity for liveliness,
perhaps even mischief. 'So were many others,' she said, smiling
now. 'It is a very beautiful ring. It came from this shop, you
know.'

'Yes, I did know,' Todd said. 'That's why I
came here. I was not the high bidder.'

'How unfortunate for you,' she said, 'but
there were many bidders, monsieur, were there not? Princess
Karima's property is highly prized.'

'Yes, indeed,' Todd said. 'I had no idea.
Anyway, I'm getting engaged and my fiancée has a passion for
emeralds.'

'Don't we all?' the lady said with a hint of
laughter in her voice.

'Yes, well . . .,' Todd said, looking at her
and smiling charmingly, 'I'm hoping to be able to find an emerald
ring like the one at the auction for her, and I thought that since
the ring had come from Jules Levant, perhaps you could help me. I
know I can't get a replica, but maybe something about the same size
and color.'

The lady's eyes suddenly took on an intensity
he had not seen in them before. She was taking him seriously now,
probably calculating her commission.

'Your pearls and cross are very beautiful, by
the way,' Todd said to her.

One of the woman's hands went to her chest,
and she fingered the pearls with perfectly manicured nails that
were painted a lustrous beige. '
Merci, monsieur
,' she said,
looking up from the pearls and over at him. 'These, and my Maltese
cross, were a gift from my late husband.'

'He had exquisite taste.'

She looked back down at the pearls. 'Yes . .
. yes ... he was known for his taste,' she said in a faraway voice.
She emitted an almost soundless sigh, but Todd heard it. Was it
wistful? Or had he had taste and lacked something more ...
substantial? Perhaps something to fall back on so that she wouldn't
have to work in this shop?

'I hope I can find something as beautiful for
my fiancée,' he said. 'I wanted the emerald for her so much.'

The woman returned her full attention to him.
'You must be very much in love, monsieur.'

Todd assumed a sheepish expression. 'I ... I
really am,' he said.

The lady smiled. 'She's a very lucky young
lady, and I'm certain that we can find something for her,' she
said. 'We have many beautiful things, including emeralds, in the
shop.'

'As I said, I would be particularly
interested in an emerald about the same size and color of Princess
Karima's.'

'Yes . . .' The lady looked off into the
distance as if lost in thought. 'We've had several over the years,'
she finally went on. 'I'm trying to think what we've got in stock
presently.' Her eyes wandered into the distance again, then
returned to him. 'I know,' she said. 'Before I start bringing out
everything in the shop, I'll show you our book.'

'Your book?'

'Oh, yes,' she replied. 'We have a book that
pictures all of our stock. The stock that we have currently. Even
the jewels we've sold in the past. Everything at Jules Levant is
documented, Monsieur . . . ?'

'Oh, I'm terribly sorry,' Todd said. 'I'm
Todd Hall. It's nice to meet you.' He put his hand over the
counter, and she shook it with surprising strength.

'Monsieur Hall,' she said. 'I'm Madame de la
Montarron. Jacqueline. It's a pleasure to meet you, also.'

Her hand, he noted, was birdlike in its
skinniness, age-spotted, wrinkled, and knotted at the joints. Her
face must have been lifted several times, for it was sixty while
her hands were at least seventy.

'Documented?' he said.

'Yes, of course,' she said. 'All truly great
jewelers document their stock. Their stones and jewelry. Here at
Jules Levant Joaillier, we've documented every single item we've
bought and sold for . . . well, as long as I can remember . . .
even before I was here.'

'You've been here a long time?' he asked.

She nodded. 'Yes. Since before Monsieur
Levant died. After his wife died, I came in to help out off and on,
then when Monsieur Tadjer took over, he asked me to stay on
full-time. I know so many of the clients, you see.'

'Of course,' Todd said. 'You must be
indispensable.'

She laughed. 'I'm afraid no one is
indispensable, but I have been here a long time. Well, wait here a
moment, and I'll get our book. If you like, have a seat at the
table over there.' She nodded toward an ornate
bureau plat
that sat in a small area behind the semicircular display
cabinet.

She turned and went through a jib door hidden
in the paneling, and Todd, trying to hide his excitement, began to
peruse the contents of the cabinets. After a few minutes, he could
see that the shop was truly world- class and sold only the best and
most expensive merchandise. Going to the
bureau plat
, he sat
down in a suede-upholstered, gilt-wood bergere and gazed about the
shop. He could see at least three video cameras, and he was sure
that there were more. They were motion sensitive, silently
following any activity from their mounts up near the ceiling. He
had been on camera ever since walking in the door.

Madame de la Montarron appeared from behind
the jib door, carrying two large books bound in leather the same
pinkish beige that was everywhere. She set them down on a counter,
closed the jib door, then picked them up again and walked to the
bureau plat
. She placed the books on it, then sat in a chair
opposite Todd.

'Now, Monsieur Hall,' she said with a
secretive smile, 'I'm going to show you things few customers of
Jules Levant Joaillier ever get to see. We'll start with the
emeralds, shall we?'

Todd nodded. 'Madame de la Montarron, I would
be honored.'

If I hadn't worn slacks, she thought,
this
is when I'd show him a little thigh. As a reward
. Instead,
Allegra heard herself cooing to the handsome banker, 'I appreciate
your help so much, Monsieur Lenoir. I don't know what I would've
done without you.' Then, as a reminder of exactly whom he was
ultimately dealing with, she added, 'Neither will Hilton—Mr.
Whitehead—when I tell him about it.'

Lenoir smiled disarmingly. 'It was nothing,'
he said, his gaze traveling up her crossed legs to her breasts,
where his eyes lingered before finally looking into hers. 'And I
told you I would be glad to be of service. Are you absolutely
certain there's nothing else I can do for you? I would be glad to
show you a bit of Paris. Or perhaps take you for a drive? I could
show you some of our more . . . rural delights.'

His eyes swept up and down her body again,
and Allegra felt as if he'd undressed her and had a long,
lascivious look at every inch of her bare flesh. She could imagine
him drooling in anticipation of enjoying the pleasures that she had
to offer
. Well, I asked for it,
she thought
. I've
practically thrown myself all over him to get him to do what I
asked
. But it was a pity, she reflected, that a man as handsome
as he was and as charming as he could be was also as obviously
hungry for sex. There was something repellent about his paying so
much attention to her.

'I wish I could,' she said, 'and it's awfully
nice of you to offer. But I have a full schedule, I'm afraid.' She
looked pointedly at her wrist- watch. 'In fact, I'd better get
going or I'm going to be late.' She rose to her feet.

Allegra held out her hand, and Monsieur
Lenoir took it in both of his and caressed it. Allegra quickly
withdrew it and picked up her shoulder bag and coat. 'I really must
hurry,' she said, turning toward the door.

'Let me help you into your coat,' he said,
following close on her heels.