Read Online IntheArmsofaLover by Madeleine Oh - Free Book Online

wild spirals.
Her entire aura and presence affected him to a degree that made no sense. Or was
it simply fascination with the first person to demand a change in a contract
with a Prioux and get it? Luc hadn’t just met her request, but he did it after
a mere five seconds of deliberation over the phone.
    Unheard of in all the years he’d been handling the family
affairs.
    Why? Good question that. Did Luc want her for himself? Unlikely,
he was still smitten with his American librarian. Had to be his obsession with
dual purpose of thwarting Jean and ingratiating himself with their mother. For
his part, Stéphane agreed with Poppy. Jean’s proposition made better business
sense. Not that the Prioux coffers needed bolstering and besides, the whole silly
spat had brought Poppy across his threshold.
    “I must say,” she said, yanking him out of his thoughts, “It’s
a different drive up here in my Mini.”
    She drove one of those silly English Minis? She deserved
something sexier and sportier. “You may need another car once you live up
here.”
    She chuckled. Had his suggestion been that witty? Or was she
laughing at the idea? “It’s going to have to wait. Monsieur Prioux pays well,
but not that well. What I was thinking was, in a couple of months, asking him
about a van. It could be painted to advertise the farm and would be useful to
carry things up and down.”
    “I could talk to Luc about that.”
    She shook her head. Interesting. He’d expected her to jump
on the idea. Jump on it with gratitude perhaps? “Not just yet. Let me get my
feet in the door first.”
    “You have your own ideas how you want to run things?” She’d
better understand Luc had his own agenda.
    “Yes and no. I know what worked and didn’t work in Sussex.
But this,” she paused, “is a very different climate, different soil. And once
we do get it going, a different market. Added to which, this place is horribly
neglected. When we started at home, we had fertile, well-farmed and
well-managed arable land. “
    “You think it a fool’s errand?”
    “Oh no! If I did, I’d never have taken it on. My concern is,
I don’t think Monsieur Prioux has a clear idea of what’s involved. I suspect
he’s never done any farming, maybe not even gardening.”
    Was this the celebrated English humor? He hadn’t been able
to hold back a laugh. “You are right there. Luc does not worry himself over
things he can have others do for him.”
    She smiled at him. “I sort of got that impression.”
    “May I call you Poppy since we will be working together?”
    “Why not? What’s your name?”
    “Stéphane.”
    “Fine with me, Stéphane.”
    He loved the way she said his name. Not quite perfectly but
close enough. “You speak French well.”
    “Thanks.”
    That earned him another smile. She was definitely easing the
formal “I’m all business” attitude. “Did you learn at school?’
    “Yes I did, but the school was in Switzerland.”
    “And now you are here in Nice. What made you come?” She
hesitated. Was he intruding? Asking more than she wanted to share? Luc wouldn’t
have any problem with that but he wasn’t Luc. Never had been, never would be.
    “It’s a bit complicated.”
    “We still have a good drive ahead of us.”
    “Okay then. I ran away. My partner Tommy died. It wasn’t
unexpected. He had cancer but it was still shock when it happened. That was
just the beginning. Once the funeral was over and I tried to get back to work
in our business, his estranged wife and grown children put in their spoke and
claimed the land, the company and everything. Even the house we lived in. I
began to think I was back in the middle ages, but I’d been such a fool. I can
hardly believe it now but the business, house, premises, everything was in his
name not mine. Knowing he was dying, we should have sorted things out ahead of
time but we didn’t. Things got so messy and nasty that I threw up my hands and
left them to it. My old aunt gave me