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I did? I am? Veronica was too dazed to question this distortion of the facts, while Zoe’s second cough sounded h

‘Bonsoir, M’mselle Veronica’ The slow and lazy intonation colea all over her body, his use of French setting her teeth on edge, particularly the heavily accented version of her name So what if he made it sound sinfully sexy?

‘Kia ora, Lucien,’ she pointedly responded with the traditional Kiwi salutation, trying to pitch her voice to the level of casual a it tip over into sarcasm

Melanie rushed in to fill the pause before it threatened to beco Luc for another couple of days but he arrived a little while before you did, Veronica—and promptly crashed out on his bed! And no wonder he’s exhausted—this is his first real break in years

He works too hard in , he now has all this added stress—’ She broke off, biting her lip and casting a guilty look at her stepson

‘Don’t worry, Melanie, I have a tried-and-truewith pressure,’ he interposed s his eyes off Veronica’s pale face, watching the colour ht call it one of man’s most cherished stress-relievers’

‘Don’t tell a—’

‘Don’t be naïve, Mel, he’s a twenty-nine-year-oldabout sex,’ cackled Zoe

‘Oh’ Melanie looked flustered, and then slightly alar yourself any deeper into complications, have you?’ she ventured tentatively

‘Not the kind you’re worrying about, no,’ he said, to her evident relief ‘I’ve been out of London for the past few days, remember’

‘Oh, of course—you decided to forget your flights and come down via Paris instead So you and Veronicathere at the same time, Luc—it’s a wonder you didn’t run across each other It’s because Luc owns an apart that he heard the short-ter up for sale and persuaded us to buy it as a good investment,’ she told Veronica, who hadn’t realised that the Reeds owned the Paris apartot it at a otiator…’

‘And yet he looks so harmless’ She couldn’t help the sarcastic co intensity, like a predator conte a tasty morsel

‘I’ pussy-cat,’ he purred at her, as if he could read her mind ‘Actually, Veronica and I did have a brief encounter in the rue de Birague yesterday,’ he said, hat she brieflycandour ‘She wanted to know the best place to watch the fireworks…’

‘Oh, what a pity you didn’t tell us about your change of plans, Luc I could have suggested you take Veronica under your wing,’ said Melanie innocently ‘It was her first time in Paris, you know’

‘I rather gathered that froirl attempts to communicate’