“What, your Mustang?” she asked.
Devon narrowed his eyes at her. “Be serious for a moment. I want you to come to Paris with me.”
Marie’s eyes bulged. “You want me to what?”
“Come to Paris with me.”
“Are you serious? I’m just supposed to leave my life and do what?” Marie asked, leaping to her feet. “What about my business?”
“You said you’re doing social media work. Can’t you do that from anywhere?”
Marie paced back and forth, her mind clicking like a high-speed camera. “I can’t just make this kind of decision without talking to Adriana about our business, then there’s my father and ...”
“I wish I could tell you that you had all the time in the world, but I have to let them know something pretty soon,” he said.
Marie shrugged. “How can you just drop this on me and expect me to make a decision?”
“Let’s be real: There’s no way we can continue a relationship with that much distance between us, and I understand your apprehension, but ...”
“No, you don’t understand, because if you did, you just would stay here!” Marie grabbed her purse. “Obviously, you’ve made your decision. You’re going and I’m not going to stand in your way.” She paused and took a breath. “Paris is your dream and I can’t keep you from that.”
Devon leapt to his feet and blocked her exit. “You want me to stay? Just say it; I’ll call them in the morning and turn them down flat.”
“And live to resent me? When you described Paris, I could hear in your voice that you’ve always had one foot in France,” Marie said. She blinked back tears and shook her head. “I guess I should get used to being without you.” Marie ran out the door in a blur of sobs and tears. Devon ran after her, but she made it to her car before he could stop her. He turned around, went inside, grabbed his keys, and then got into his car to follow her. Devon reached speeds of sixty miles an hour on the city roads, trying to keep up with Marie. He finally slowed down when he saw a blue and white police cruiser near Fifth Street. Marie turned into the parking deck of her condo complex and he followed her.
He double parked beside her and hopped out of the car. “Marie,” he called out.
“Why did you follow me?” she asked as she climbed out of the car. “Just go home, call the people in Paris, and tell them you’re on your way.”
“Is that what you really think I’m going to do?” he asked. “Marie, I don’t want to lose you.”
“And I can’t ask you to give up your dream, and you can’t expect me to ...”
“Give up yours?” he finished. “Then I guess we have to find a way to make this transcontinental relationship work.”
Marie dropped her head, sexy French women flashed in her mind. Sexy French women kissing Devon when he got the yearning late at night. “It won’t work,” she said quietly. “It’s all or nothing, and I refuse to stand in your way to living your dream. What’s holding you back?”
“Am I supposed to forget that I love you? Am I supposed to just forget what I feel and go to Paris?”
“You might not forget now. Or six months from now, but at some point when you’re in your Parisian chateau, you’re going to forget.”
“Do you have a crystal ball in that car so that you can see the future? If that’s the case, tell me if this show is going to be a success. Tell me if Paris is going to be worth anything without you there.”
“Devon,” she groaned. “Please, don’t make this harder than it has to be.”
He pulled her into his arms. “Do you think walking away from us right now is going to be easy?”
She shrugged, holding back her tears. “But it’s the right thing to do.”
Holding her against his chest, Devon shook his head. “I don’t want to do the right thing; I want you, and if it’s here or in Paris, then that’s what it will be.”
“No,” she cried. “I don’t want you to miss this chance, this opportunity that you’re excited about and that’s obviously getting buzz. You can’t let it slip through your hands again.”
“So, you want to give up? You want this to be the last time that I touch you?” He leaned into her, his lips inches from her face. “The last time I kiss you?”
Before Marie could reply, Devon captured her lips. The lie she was about to tell—yes—died in the back of her throat as his tongue danced in her mouth, bringing her temperature to the boiling point. He pulled back from her. “You want to walk away from that?” he asked, stroking her arm.
“This is so unfair,” she said. “If you stay, if you go, nothing will ever be the same.”
“What happens if you come with me?” The heat from his breath made it hard for her to think, hard for her to imagine her life without him.
“Devon,” she said.
“Marie.”
She didn’t say another word; she kissed him, and he lifted her into his arms and backed against the wall. When he slipped one hand underneath her skirt, he remembered that her panties, her flimsy lace panties, were in his pocket. She was wet. She didn’t want to be apart from him any more than he wanted to leave her. He needed to remind her that they were meant for each other, and apart, there would be no happiness. No dreams and no joy. Lifting her leg, he wound her around his waist.
“Tell me that you can be without me,” he said, his lips so close to her ear that she could almost feel his tongue. She pressed her hips against him, making his erection nearly burst through his zipper.
“I don’t want you. To. Go.”
“I want you to come. Right here and to Paris,” he moaned, then kissed her again. Devon suckled her bottom lip until she nearly exploded.
“Take me inside,” she cried. Marie wrapped her arms around his neck and Devon nearly ran to the elevator as she stroked the back of his neck and his desire rose like yeast-rich bread.
The elevator couldn’t move fast enough as Marie closed her lips against his neck. Her heat was becoming unbearable and told Devon that he wasn’t going to leave Charlotte without her. As they reached her floor, Marie realized that she couldn’t and wouldn’t let the best thing that happened to her leave Mecklenburg County without her. Devon planted her on the floor as she dug her keys out of her pocket. With trembling hands, she unlocked the door. Once they were inside, she looked him in the eyes and said, “I can’t let you go to Paris without me.”
“Maybe I won’t go at all, at least not to stay,” he said before covering her mouth with his, coaxing her tongue into his. As he pushed her skirt up around her waist, she unbuckled his belt and unzipped his pants. Marie stroked his erection until he moaned with anticipation. Their need for each other was electric and crackled as Devon ripped her blouse open. Her breasts heaved and tingled as he caressed and squeezed them. “Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.
“Yes! Yes,” she moaned.
“I mean, moving to Paris,” he said as he thrust into her wetness, ignoring the fact that he needed a condom. She felt so good around him. Tight. Hot. Wet. His. Yes, Marie was his and he wanted and needed her to be his forever. She couldn’t go to Paris as his girlfriend. She was going as his fiancée, and he’d marry her in the sweetness of a Paris spring with the flowers in bloom.
Marie thrust her hips forward and reveled in the skin-to-skin feeling, wishing that she was making love to her husband. She wanted and needed him as much as she needed her next breath.
“Devon,” she moaned. “Oh, baby.” Marie tightened herself around him and felt him shiver with desire.
He scooped her into his arms and they fell on to the sofa. Marie straddled him and Devon looked into her eyes and smiled. “Love me,” he moaned as she ground against him, milking his passion, making him shiver before he exploded inside her. Marie collapsed against his chest and released a sigh of relief. Devon stroked her back and kissed her chin while she struggled to keep her eyes open.
“Devon,” she whispered.
“Yes, baby?” he replied.
“I love you,” she said.
“I know and I love you, too.”
“But I’m really scared about going to Paris,” she said honestly.
“What are you afraid of?” He held her chin, not allowing her to look away. “Marie, if you don’t want to go to Paris, don’t feel as if you’re forced to come. I’ll still love you.”
“That’s not why I’m afraid. I’ve visited a lot of places, but I’ve never lived anywhere else. What happens if you decide that you don’t love me anymore or vice versa? Then what?”
“You really think that’s going to happen? I’m going to love you forever, Marie Charles.” Devon kissed her with a gentle passion that was as reassuring as it was hot.
Chapter 24
After Devon called Amélie Michel and accepted the position in Paris, he had to tell the ladies at the shelter about his decision to leave. Part of him wanted to wait until the fund-raiser was over, but he wanted to tell his culinary class before they read about it or heard it from someone else. He was happy that his class had been getting smaller over the last few weeks. Marie had worked her contacts to find jobs for a few of the women, and many of them had found places to live. Devon was going to send part of his salary to My Sister’s Keeper so that the shelter could continue with the classes and add more staff to help the women continue on their quest to getting back on their feet.
The fund-raiser was a step in the right direction, and he hoped that My Sister’s Keeper would be around to help women like Bria for years to come. As he headed inside, Bria met him at the door and wrapped her arms around him. “I have great news!” she said.
“What’s that?” he asked as they broke their embrace.
“Marie’s dad got my trust fund handed over to me. I was just on the phone with him. I can finally get my life together, and I have you and Marie to thank for this,” she said. Bria hugged him again. “Is she with you or are you two still fighting?”
“She’s not with me, but we are definitely not fighting. I wanted to talk to you ladies about some news I have,” he said as he and Bria walked inside.
His students, who were milling around the shelter doing different chores and finishing up errands for the fund-raiser, smiled when he walked in. “Ladies,” Devon said, “we need to talk.”
“Wedding plans?” Shay asked. Though she didn’t live at the shelter anymore, she was still involved in the planning of the fund-raiser.
“Not yet,” he said. “I’m not going to be teaching culinary arts anymore.”
The ladies exploded in moans of disappointment. “Why?” Bria asked.
“I’m taking a position in Paris,” he said. “As much as I hate to leave you ladies, this is an opportunity that I can’t turn down.”
“So, what happens now?” Rita asked. “Is the class over?”
“I’m going to talk to Mrs. Harper about bringing the new chef from Hometown Delights in to continue the class, because I know how important this class is to all of you.”
Bria and Andrea nodded. “It won’t be the same,” Andrea said. “We’re going to miss you.”
“And I’m going to miss all of you, but I expect big things from you ladies,” Devon said as he walked through the students and hugged them.
“Are you taking Marie with you, too?” Shay asked as she and Devon embraced.
He smiled. “That’s the plan,” he said.
“Well, I hope you plan on marrying her before you go to another country,” Shay said, then popped him on his shoulder.
“Or at least asking her father for her hand in marriage,” Bria said.
“You know what,” Devon said, feeling as if a lightbulb had exploded in his head. “You ladies are right. I have one last assignment for us. We have a wedding to plan. I’m going to marry Marie in two days at the fund-raiser.”
The ladies squealed in excitement. “Wait,” Shay said. “How are we going to do this without Marie knowing? There’s the marriage license and other legal details to take care of.”
“We’re going to need a lot of help,” Devon said as he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and called Jade.
Marie smiled as Adriana told her about the six new clients they’d just landed. “Things are really turning around for us. We should have a party, kind of like the old days, but not with you getting arrested or kicked out.”
Marie shook her head. “My party days are over. As a matter of fact, my time in Charlotte is coming to an end.”
“What?” Adriana asked. “Are you serious?”
“Yes,” she said. “Devon asked me to move to Paris with him.”
“Paris? As in Paris, France? Wow. This is major. I can’t believe you’re leaving Charlotte. What about M&A?”
“I’m still going to do the social media part of the business,” Marie said. “But you will officially become the face of the business. Look at what you’ve done while I was going through my legal trouble. You gave us respectability, profits have increased, and I haven’t had to take my clothes off to get attention.”
“Except from Devon,” Adriana joked. She crossed over to Marie and hugged her. “I’m going to miss you.”
“Calm down, girl, I’m not leaving for at least a month,” Marie said. “Don’t forget, we have that fund-raiser at Hometown Delights in two days. One more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“I told Mrs. Harper from My Sister’s Keeper that we would do some publicity work for the shelter. Since I’m not going to be here ...”
“Say no more, I’ll handle it. Working with Shay showed me just how important that place is. I’d be happy to keep that promise for you. Just make sure you send me lots of presents from Paris. The shoes that you’re going to be wearing,” Adriana said. “I’m jealous.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll share,” Marie said. “Let’s go and have lunch at ...” Before Marie could finish, the phone rang and Adriana picked it up.
“M&A Events, Adriana speaking,” she said. Marie smiled and returned to her tweeting. When Adriana hung up the phone, Marie turned to her and said, “Well? Are we going to lunch?”
“Actually,” Adriana said. “I have a meeting; silly me, I nearly forgot. Let’s meet at Nordstrom after work?”
“Nordstrom? I’m there,” she said as Adriana headed out the door. Once she was alone, Marie pulled out her French-English dictionary and looked up how to say, “Does that shoe come in a size eight?”
Devon walked into Richard Charles’ office, and for the first time in his life, he was intimidated. Richard’s presence filled the room like water in a fish tank; it was everywhere. “Mr. Harris, what can I do for you?” Richard asked as he rose to his feet and extended his hand to Devon.
“Well,” Devon said, “you can call me Devon.”
“Force of habit, I’m usually dealing with clients or adversaries. What’s going on? Have a seat.”
Devon sat across from Richard’s desk and looked down at his watch, then back up at Marie’s father. “Sir,” he said. “I love your daughter.”
Richard laughed. “I’ve noticed. And I’ve noticed that you’ve been a very positive influence in her life.”
“And she in mine,” he replied. “That’s why I’m here.”
“OK.”
“I want to marry her and I want to do it in two days.” Richard folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. “What’s the rush? Should I be getting my shotgun?”
“Oh, no. It’s nothing like that, but I’m moving to Paris, and I don’t want to take my girlfriend with me. I want my wife to fly to Paris with me and share in my life there.”
“Paris? You want to take my little girl to Paris?”
“And marry her, with your blessing, of course,” Devon said.
Richard rose from his chair and crossed over to Devon. “You know, I love my daughter more than anything in this world. She’s been my life for a long time, and over the years, I’ve given her everything that she’s ever wanted. Marie is headstrong and she rebelled. Dated some of the biggest jerks and wannabe players in the world, and then she met you. Certainly a step up from the lot she normally aligned herself with, but Paris. That’s a long way from Charlotte. However, don’t think, for one second that if my baby needs me because you’ve hurt her, I won’t be on the next flight over there to help her.”
Devon nodded in deference to Richard’s point of view as he stood up and looked the man directly in the eye. “I would never do anything to hurt Marie. So, when you come to visit, you won’t have to bring that shotgun of yours.”
Richard laughed heartily, then extended his hand to Devon. “Welcome to the family,” he said as they shook hands. Then Richard’s phone buzzed, signaling a call from his assistant. “Excuse me,” he said as he crossed over to his desk. “Yes, Libby.”
“Ms. Adriana Kimbrell is here to see you and Mr. Harris,” she said.
“Send her in,” Richard said, then eyed Devon suspiciously.
“I can’t surprise Marie with a wedding without help,” Devon replied as Adriana walked in.
“Marie is going to die,” Adriana said excitedly. “Hi, Mr. Charles.”
Richard nodded toward Adriana and smiled slyly. “So, how are we going to plan a wedding without my daughter knowing? Marie has to be in the middle of everything.”
“I have an idea,” Adriana said. “If you’re doing it at the fund-raiser, all we have to do is get a preacher there and, of course you, Mr. Charles ...”
“There is also a need for a marriage license,” Richard interrupted. “Perhaps I can work some of my connections to speed that process up.”
“That’s a great idea, sir,” Adriana said. “We’re going to Nordstrom today to get her wedding dress and shoes. I know a few photographers who can get shots of the ceremony, and ...”
Devon held up his hands. “Slow down. You seem to have everything taken care of.”
“Yes, this is what I do. Now, let me see the ring,” Adriana said.
“That’s a slight problem, I haven’t gotten one yet,” Devon said. “I was hoping you knew Marie’s ...”
“You don’t need to do that,” Richard said. “I’ve been holding on to my wife’s engagement ring, and I’d like you to give it to Marie. She’s always loved that ring, and with it on her finger, I’ll feel like a piece of my wife is there at the altar with her.”
Adriana’s eyes watered with tears. “That’s so sweet.”
“I’ll line up the preacher and prepare the cake,” Devon said.
“And I’ll bring the ring to you tomorrow,” Richard said. “This is pretty exciting. Now, you’re sure Marie’s going to say yes?”
“I have a pretty good indication that she will,” Devon said with a smile.
“All right,” Richard said. “I hate to cut this short, but I have a meeting in about fifteen minutes. You two handle the details and I’ll be there to stand up for my daughter.”
The two men shook hands again, and then Devon and Adriana headed out the door.
“That’s a first,” she said once they were out of Richard’s earshot.
“What?” Devon asked.
“Mr. Charles liking a man who showed interest in his daughter. He usually finds something to intimidate him about. You’re special, Devon, and lucky.”
“I know it,” he said. “Marie’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I want her to know how special she is.”
Adriana nodded. “And this is going to be another first, pulling the wool over Marie Charles’ eyes. She’s the one who’s usually full of surprises.”
“Why am I not surprised by that?” Devon laughed.
“So, what are you wearing on your wedding day? I think Marie should get married in a red dress, so that’s what we’re going to shop for today.” Adriana pulled out her cell phone and called someone. Devon stood back in awe and watched her work. “He’s Devon Harris,” he heard her tell the person on the other end of the phone. “He’s going to come in the back of the store. A nice black suit and a red tie, yep. I can’t tell you that, just make it happen, Hayden. And I love you, too. Don’t forget to send your donation to the fund-raiser at Hometown Delights. I hope to see you there. Smooches.” With that, Adriana hung up the phone and turned to Devon. “Hayden Smalls is a personal shopper at Nordstrom, and he’s expecting you. You need to be out of there before five, because that’s when Marie and I should be arriving to find her red wedding dress.”
“Got it,” he said. “I guess I’d better head over there now.”
“Then tomorrow, we get the wedding band once we see what Mr. Charles’ engagement ring looks like. I bet it is beautiful.”
“You’re sure Marie’s going to be all right with wearing her mother’s ring and not having one of her own?”
Adriana nodded. “I’m sure she’s going to love it. This is going to be so amazing.”
After leaving Adriana, Devon headed to Hometown Delights to share his wedding plans with his friends. Looking at his watch, he knew that he was going to have to keep things short and to the point if he was going to be able to get fitted for his suit before Marie and Adriana arrived at Nordstrom.
When he arrived at the restaurant, he headed for the office and was happy to see Jade, Alicia, and Serena were there. “My sisters, what’s going on?”
“Hey, Devon,” Serena said. “We were just talking about you and the fund-raiser.”
“Really?” he said with a smile.
“The
Observer
did a great piece on My Sister’s Keeper today,” Alicia said as she turned the screen toward Devon. He gave it a perfunctory glance and nodded.
“The fund-raiser is going to do more than raise money for the shelter,” he said.
“What do you mean?” Jade asked. Serena and Alicia looked on with curiosity blanketing their faces.
“Well, I’m going to marry Marie.”