Chapter 19

CHAPTERNINETEEN

This is just as hard for them as it is for me.

But the fact they’re willing to let me go

makes me love them even more.

~ Chloé

“CHLOÉ…”

THE SOUND of her name in that deep, seductive voice had Chloé stretching her legs in the morning sun and sipping on her coffee as she looked out at the Eiffel Tower.

She smiled to herself and reached for the croissant on the plate beside her. As she took the first bite, she picked up her book and settled in to read a little more about the rakish pirate who’d just kidnapped the daring damsel, and the brave prince who’d come to save—

“Time to wake up, petite fille.”

This time, the voice was a little louder, and one she recognized.

“You have guests waiting on you.”

Thathad her eyes snapping open and staring up into the face of the rakish pirate—Ethan smiled down at her.

“There you are,” he said, brushing a kiss across her lips. “That must’ve been some dream you were having. You didn’t want to come back.”

Chloé hummed and stretched beneath the sheets. “It was pretty nice.”

“Is that right?”

She grinned and reached up to wrap her arms around his neck. “Yep.”

“And are you going to tell me about it?”

“I was sitting outside on our balcony in Paris.”

“Oh, well, I like it so far.”

“And I was reading a book about a pirate—”

“A pirate?”

“A very rakish, bad pirate.”

Ethan’s lips twitched against hers. “Should I get Zayne up here for this?”

“Probably, because there was also a very brave prince, and he was fighting the pirate over the woman he had just kidnapped.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes. It was very alarming.”

“I’m sure it was.” His words were serious, but she could see the amusement in his eyes and could only hope to one day come home to a sword-wielding pirate hellbent on keeping her captive, and inflicting delicious torture on her brave savior. “But right now, I need the damsel to get out of bed.”

Chloé groaned and flopped back down on the mattress. “Ugh, that’s not how it goes.”

“No?”

“Nooo. And why do I have to get up? I don’t have to go to work until later tonight.”

“I know. But like I said, you have guests.”

Oh shit, that’s right, he did say that. “What time is it?”

“Nearly ten thirty.”

“Oh my God.” Chloé sat up, and the sheet fell down to her waist. Ethan’s eyes immediately fell to her naked breasts. “I can’t believe I slept in that long.”

“And I can’t believe I’m going to walk away from you right now.” Ethan got to his feet and took a step back, and Chloé knew exactly who was downstairs.

“My fathers are here, aren’t they?”

“Yes, they are. So, stop tempting me and get your gorgeous ass in that shower and downstairs. You have a big day ahead of you.”

As Ethan disappeared inside the elevator, Chloé jumped to her feet and headed for the en suite, and that was when his words hit her: You have a big day ahead of you.

What does that mean?

She’d been planning to lounge around in front of the fireplace and do, well, not much until she went in to work later tonight. But it seemed that was off the table now that she had other plans. Plans that apparently involved her parents, and if she had to guess, a conversation about why she still hadn’t told them what she wanted to do about Paris.

The thing was, she knew what she wanted, had known all along. But being brave enough to take it?

She tipped her head back under the spray and closed her eyes, trying to push aside all the noise that had been in her head this week. Because when things went quiet, when she was sleeping, she was dreaming of Paris—and that was the answer. It always had been. Now she just had to be brave enough to follow through.

She got dressed and downstairs in record time, and when she stepped into the living room, she fully expected to see Ethan and Zayne in there with her fathers.

Instead, the room was empty, and it wasn’t until she looked outside that she saw her fathers sitting by the outdoor fireplace. Before heading out there, she quickly popped her head into the kitchen and Ethan’s office, and still there was no sight of him or Zayne.

Chloé frowned, and was about to head outside when she spotted Isla and hurried over to her.

“Morning, Isla.”

“Good morning, Chloé.”

“Have you seen Ethan or Zayne?”

“Yes, they left just a few minutes ago for a walk by the lake. Did you want me to call them?”

“No.” She shook her head. “That’s good. I was just checking.”

“No problem. Let me know if you or your fathers need anything.”

“I will, thank you.”

As Isla disappeared into another room, Chloé headed back to the doors that led outside knowing that Ethan and Zayne had left to give her some privacy.

That was what she loved most about them. They were always able to anticipate what she needed—and right now, she needed to talk to her fathers.

Chloé opened the door and stepped outside, and her fathers turned at her approach. Varying expressions of love and happiness crossed their features as they got to their feet and welcomed her with hugs and kisses enough to spare.

God, this is what had been making this decision so hard. The thought of being so far away from them.

“Bonjour, mon ange.”

“Bonjour, Papounet, Dad, Papa.”

They all sat down while Chloé poured herself a cup of coffee from the freshly brewed pot on the table.

“You haven’t been waiting too long, have you?”

“Not at all,” Dad said with a bright smile, then looked out at the gardens beyond. “But I’m not sure I would’ve cared if we had.”

“I agree,” Père said. “We knew this estate was beautiful at night, but during the day it’s even more so.”

“I know. It’s so relaxing. Ethan’s office overlooks these gardens and the lake. I swear, I don’t know how he gets anything done.”

Papa patted the spot beside him, and she went over and took a seat. “We didn’t get here too early, did we?”

“No, I was just taking advantage of having nothing to do.”

“And we ruined it.”

She laughed and shook her head. “You know that’s not true. I love seeing you, and if you hadn’t come here, I probably would’ve tracked you down today anyway.”

“Oh?”

She looked at all three of her fathers and nodded. “Yeah. I wanted to talk to you about Paris.”

“Bien.” Père leaned back in his seat and rested his hand on the top of it behind her dad. “Because that’s why we’re here.”

“I thought it might be.” She curled her legs up under her and took a sip of her coffee. Well, here goes nothing. “First, I want to say that I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you. I didn’t mean to drag my feet; it’s just—”

“Chloé?” She turned to her papa. “This isn’t a job interview with strangers. You don’t have to apologize. You can take as long as you want.”

“I know. I just feel bad about how I might’ve come off as, I don’t know, unappreciative.”

“Oh, my darling girl.” Dad shook his head. “We never thought that. But we’d be lying if we didn’t say we were a little shocked at first by how you took the news.”

“I know.” Chloé looked down at her mug and traced the rim with her finger. “My only excuse is that…you caught me totally off guard. I didn’t know what to say.”

“And we understand that.” Papa reached over and put a hand on her arm. “You don’t need to make excuses with us for what you’re feeling—ever. If you’re happy, sad, angry, or upset, we want to know about it.”

Chloé bit down into her lip and tried to think of the best way to say what had been on her mind, and then finally she just blurted it out. “I’m scared.”

“Come here.” Papa sat up and moved over on the seat until he could pull her into his side. She snuggled in and looked at her Dad and Père, who were watching her with mixed emotions playing on their faces.

“What are you scared of, bichette?”

Chloé let out a sigh. “I don’t know—everything?” She laughed a little at herself and shook her head. “It’s stupid, but all of these ridiculous thoughts have been running through my head about how if I go, I’ll never get to see you anymore or that you’ll forget about me. Or how I might make a mess of the restaurant and you’ll be upset with me and never forgive me. I don’t know, I told you it was stupid.”

“You’re not stupid.”

She looked up at her papa. “I didn’t say I was stupid—I said my idiotic thoughts are.”

“Well, maybe that’s because we didn’t say everything we were feeling either, the night we spoke to you.”

“I don’t understand.”

Papa let out a sigh and leaned in to kiss her hair. “We’d talked about the possibility of you going to Paris one day.”

Dad nodded and reached for Père’s hand as though he might need something to hold on to. “But the idea of sending our baby girl to another country was—is—terrifying.”

“But,” Père jumped in, rounding off their thought, as they always seemed to do, “it wasn’t fair not to offer you this opportunity.”

Chloé could hear the vulnerability in their voices, and it did something to her that their excitement last week hadn’t been able to—it made her understand.

This was just as hard for them as it was for her. When she had gotten quiet in her contemplation and worry over missing them and not seeing them, they had put on a brave front, and that made her love them even more.

“It is going to absolutely kill us to let you go.” Papa kissed her on top of her head. “But it would kill us even more if we didn’t let you.”

“This is what you were born to do, baby.” Dad’s eyes welled as he looked her over. “You’ve been following your papounet around since you could walk.”

“That’s right, and now it’s time for you to fly, mon ange.”

Chloé blinked, her vision blurring as tears of happiness and joy escaped. “Thank you.”

“We love you, Chloé,” Papa said. “Don’t be afraid to follow your heart.”

“You’re right.” She nodded, her conviction growing with every word they said. “I want this. I want Paris.”

“Then you should go.”

“I’m going to.”

“Good, and knowing you have Ethan and Zayne going with you will make it a little less difficult for us to let you go.”

She chuckled and cuddled into her papa’s side, smiling at her dad and père.

“Speaking of your handsome men…” Dad pulled out his phone and shot off a quick text. “I think it’s time that we leave you to them.”

“Wait,” she said, sitting up, and her fathers got to their feet. “You’re leaving now? You just got here.”

“No.” Papa chuckled. “We got here nearly an hour ago. We had breakfast with Ethan and Zayne and then waited to talk to you.”

“What? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Pèrecame around the coffee table and kissed both her cheeks. “Because we needed to talk about you.”

Chloé’s eyes widened, and Dad laughed.

“They’re on their way back, so that’s our cue to leave and for you to have a wonderful day. Don’t worry about seeing us off—we know the way.”

“You’re all being very cryptic right now.”

“Yes,” Dad said as they headed toward the door. “We are. Bye.”

As they disappeared inside, Chloé turned to look out at the gardens, and sure enough, Ethan and Zayne were walking up from the lake.

Hand in hand, they looked absolutely gorgeous in their fall wear—Ethan in a pair of dark pants and maroon sweater, Zayne in his jeans and bomber jacket.

They took her breath away, and as they got closer, she ran down to them, throwing her arms around them both and greeting them with a kiss.

They pulled her in and kissed her back with the same sweet enthusiasm, and when they finally pulled apart, Ethan asked, “Good visit with the parents?”

“The best.” She took in a deep breath, then said, “Still want to go to Paris?”

Zayne chuckled and took her hand in his. “About that…”

Ethan took her other hand and, as they led her up to the house, said, “We need to show you something.”

* * *

ZAYNE GLANCED IN the sun visor mirror for what felt like the hundredth time since they’d left the estate, and each and every time Chloé was staring right back at him.

She was onto them. She knew they had some kind of surprise for her, and he had the worst poker face ever. But as long as she didn’t start asking difficult questions, he should be able to hold out.

“So wherever we’re going right now, it’s not so you can let me down easy, right?”

Zayne frowned. “Let you down?”

“Yeah, you know, some pretty restaurant where you sit me down and tell me you can’t come to Paris with me.”

“You really think we’d do something like that?”

She grinned. “No, so where are you taking me?”

“Nice try,” Ethan said, his deep chuckle filling the car. “Leave poor Zayne alone—he’s horrible at keeping a secret.”

“Why do you think I’m asking him?”

“Hey, I’m right here, and I can keep a secret. Did you know about the earl, the viscount, and the duchess?”

“You only found out after dinner at JULIEN,” Ethan pointed out.

“Still, I didn’t tell her on the way home in the car.”

Chloé started laughing then. “Okay, okay, I won’t make him crack.”

“I understand the desire to,” Ethan said. “He’s lovely to torture.”

“Are you two trying to drive me crazy?”

Ethan placed a hand on his thigh and winked. “Not trying, succeeding, and if you manage to keep our secret, Z, I just might reward you for it.”

Chloé huffed. “That’s not fair. Now he’s never going to cave.”

Ethan eyed her in the rearview mirror. “I know.”

They were right. That promise, and that name, had Zayne’s mouth clamping shut like a vault. But luckily for him, they were almost there.

Ethan turned off the main highway and started to make his way toward the airport, and as they got closer, Chloé’s questions started up again.

“Are we going somewhere? Is that why you were talking to my fathers? You switched my shift, didn’t you?”

Zayne shook his head and pulled out the blindfold they’d stashed in the glove box earlier. “Nope. Nope. And nope.”

“Then what are we doing here?”

“Put this on.” He handed her the blindfold. “And you just might find out.”

Chloé looked at the black satin eye cover and arched a brow. “I’m not going to have sex as a plane flies over.”

“Good to know,” Ethan said, a wicked smile playing at his lips as he changed lanes. “But if you don’t put that on in the next ten seconds, you don’t get your surprise.”

“Okay.” She slipped on the blindfold. “You know I’m a sucker for a surprise.”

They did know that, and when her eyes were finally covered, Zayne leaned over and kissed Ethan’s cheek.

Then he whispered, “Let’s go surprise our girl.”

* * *

ETHAN PULLED INTO one of the designated parking spots and drew the SUV to a stop.

When Chloé had told them about Paris, she’d brought up some valid points and concerns over the fact that they had business and family they’d be leaving behind back here in the States.

He and Zayne had no problem with that, since for them it was the business side of things, and they would’ve had to manage something from afar no matter where they were living.

The family side of things, however, was a whole different story, and a delicate one at that.

They knew Chloé had been struggling with the idea of leaving her family behind, of the fact that if she moved to another country, she couldn’t just drive over to their house or see them when she went to work.

So, he and Zayne had come up with an idea that they hoped would help her adjust.

As they guided her out of the SUV and toward their final destination, Ethan opened the door and Zayne led her inside.

“Okay, Red, stand right here.” Zayne positioned her as Ethan moved to her other side. “On the count of three, you’re going to remove your blindfold.”

Ethan nodded then started counting. “One. Two. Three.”

Chloé reached up and pulled off the blindfold, and a loud gasp left her. “Oh my God.”

She brought her hands up to cover her mouth, her wide eyes full of disbelief as they scanned the private hangar they stood in, and the shiny new Dassault Falcon 900 jet that was parked center stage.

They’d had the crew decorate the space with hundreds of candles and flowers and French mementos, including flags and Eiffel Towers—there were even a couple of replicas of the Louvre.

It was over the top, but completely worth it to see the enormous smile now plastered all over Chloé’s face.

“What… What is going on?”

They each took one of her hands and guided her over to the foot of the open stairs, where a man dressed in uniform— including a French beret—held a tray of canapés.

“This”—Ethan looked up at the jet—“is your surprise.”

Chloé’s jaw dropped. “This?”

“Yeah, Red.” Zayne grinned from ear to ear, clearly delighting in Chloé’s complete and utter shock. “And by this, we don’t mean the canapés.”

Chloé shook her head as she took in the sheer size of the plane, and then she turned.

“You bought me a jet?”

Ethan did his best to keep from laughing. “Technically we bought us a jet. Since we’re all going to use it.”

Her eyes bugged wide. “Are you insane?”

“No. I’m rich, and we spend our money on ridiculous things. But if truth be told, we were already thinking about it, and Zayne and I thought this would be the easiest way for you to go back and forth to visit your family.”

“Or for them to come visit us,” Zayne added.

“I…” Chloé looked over her shoulder again, her hand coming up to her chest. “I don’t even know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything.” Ethan took her other hand and squeezed. “We love you. We know how hard it is for you to think about leaving your family, but hopefully this can make the distance seem a little less.”

A soft sniff filled the air, and this time when she turned back to them, she had tears running down her cheeks.

“I can’t believe you bought us a plane.”

Zayne laughed and pulled her in under his arm. “You haven’t even seen the best part.”

“There’s more?”

“Oh yeah.” Zayne walked her down to the end of the jet, and Ethan knew exactly where he was going. “We had to give her name.”

Chloé looked up at the tail end of the plane, and right there, written in beautiful script, was—

“Petite Fille.” Chloé looked so scandalized they both started to laugh, and Ethan reached for one of her curls and tucked it behind her ear.

“It’s perfect, don’t you think?”

“Perfect if you never want my fathers to set foot in it.”

“It’s perfect for you,” Ethan said. “Our girl. The one we’re going to love for the rest of our lives.”

“In Paris?” Chloé asked, her voice full of wonder as she looked up at the two of them.

Zayne winked at her. “Oui, in Paris.”