A Gentleman’s Offer (15 page)

O
ver next several months Yvette buried herself in work. She kept to herself, leaving Greg to handle clients while she dealt with the dogs. She never came out from behind the curtain until the end of the day. Her routine was made up of work and home. She didn’t return phone calls or e-mails. She didn’t want to talk to anyone. One evening, while she was teaching James a new trick, someone knocked on the door. She sighed, glancing briefly outside as the late-autumn wind beat at her window, then answered. Bernard stood there with a large canvas.

“What are you doing here?” She gripped the door handle, stunned.

“Sorry it’s a little overdue.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“May I come in?”

Yvette stepped aside and he entered. He glanced around, impressed. “Nice place.”

“Thanks.”

He rested the canvas against the wall then bent down to pet James.

“What are you doing here?”

“Nate’s sister, Diana, gave me your address.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know.” He sat then said in French, “I’m not the enemy.”

Yvette stood and faced him, unmoved. “There’s nothing for us to say.”

“At least look at the painting.”

“There’s no point.”

“Please,” he said softly.

She reluctantly tore off the paper and stared at the finished portrait. It showed Nate as her valet and she as his mistress. A flood of memories threatened to come forth, but she pushed them back. “It’s beautiful, but it represents a time of make-believe and that time is over.”

“I met Nate when he was in the hospital. I worked at the hospital doing art therapy. He was one of my best students. He had the heart of a true artist, intense, passionate with an eye for detail.”

“I know how talented he is.”

“Through him I was able to meet his family when they came to visit. I got to know his father and his aunt and his cousin.”

Yvette made an impatient motion with her hand. “What does what you’re telling me have to do with anything?”

“Have you been to the Kerner mansion?”

“Yes.”

“Have you seen a large painting of Cathleen with her mother?”

“You painted that?”

“Yes. I got to spend a lot of time with Cathleen when her mother wasn’t around, which wasn’t often, but it was often enough to allow me to fall in love with her.”

“With Cathleen? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I wasn’t sure how she felt about me. I was just a poor artist working with patients at a hospital. I didn’t feel I had anything to offer her. She was young and pretty and rich. What would she like about me, I thought. So once I finished my contract at the hospital, I left without a word. Although I thought about her often, I felt certain I had made the right choice. Until I saw you.”

“Me? Why?”

“You dared to live life fully and freely. You enjoyed every moment not caring about the next day or the next moment. You lived without fear. I watched you show Nate that same fearlessness. And I knew I wanted to be fearless, too.” He pulled out a ring. “She may say ‘no’ or she may say ‘yes’ but that doesn’t matter to me anymore because at least she’ll know that I love her.”

“Now may not be the right time,” Yvette said, thinking of Lewis.

Bernard shrugged. “
Now
is the only time we have.”

Cathleen sat on the edge of the waterfall sculpture, staring blindly at her reflection in the water. The day was unusually warm for autumn, the rays of the sun pounded her back but inside she still felt cold. Lewis’s betrayal still stung, but what hurt her more were her last words to Nate and his abrupt departure. She hadn’t been able to reach him—no one had, (except his father who wouldn’t tell anyone where he was) but when she got the chance she’d make it up to him.

He was her cousin and her friend and she’d been unfair. She’d been flattered by Lewis but she hadn’t truly loved him. It had taken her an agonizing month to realize that and face how foolish and blind she’d been.

“You look like a painting.”

She turned when she heard the voice then jumped to her feet. “Bernard!” All her sorrow disappeared as she remembered the months she’d spent with him. She’d missed his face and his easy grin, but most of all their walks together down the hospital corridor where she’s shared her worries about Nate and her relationship with her mother and he’d listened without judgment. Then one day he’d left without saying goodbye. “Nate’s not here.”

“I know. I didn’t come to see him. I flew all the way from Paris to ask you a question.”

She frowned confused. “What?”

He got down on one knee and held out a black box. “I should have asked you this over a year ago, but I didn’t have the courage. I love you, will you marry me?”

“Absolutely not!” Penny said, coming through the patio doors. “I want you to leave.”

“He’s not going anywhere, Mother, because I will marry him.” She turned to Bernard. “But he will have to wait.”

Bernard’s hands trembled as he placed the ring on her finger. “As long as you want me to.”

“My God!” Penny cried. “You have nothing to offer my daughter.” She looked at Cathleen. “He’s only after your money.”

“No, he’s not. I’ve learned the difference between flattery and true love.”

“But we don’t know anything about him. How old are you?”

They shared a glance then Cathleen replied, “Thirty-five.”

She’d made a big mistake.
She shouldn’t have come to New York and she certainly shouldn’t have come here. Yvette sat inside the taxi, tugged on her jean skirt, which covered her last pair of new stockings. She took a deep breath.
She had to do this. She had to see him again.
There were so many things she wanted to tell him and so many things she wanted to know. Kim hadn’t been able to tell her anything about where Nate had disappeared to over the last few months, but all she knew was that he’d returned home the past two weeks.

Yvette looked out at the building in front of her. It wasn’t an ordinary house but it wasn’t a mansion, either. It was too small. It was a lot like Nate—unassuming, but grand; stately yet homey. It rested on acres of land dusted white by a brief winter snow. She glanced down at James, who sat in his carrier. “It’s now or never.” She opened the door.

The taxi driver unloaded her luggage. Yvette paid and tipped him. She heard the taxi drive away as she made her way up the front steps. She knocked on the door. A man answered but it wasn’t Nate. He was a tidy-looking man with a stocky build and dark eyes. He took her bags before she could introduce herself. “Follow me,” he said.

“Don’t you want to know who I am?”

He motioned to a framed sketch in the hallway. “Is that you?”

Yvette blinked surprised. “Yes.”

“That’s what I thought.” He led her into the living room. “Please, take a seat. You can let James out.”

“You know about James, too? Has he told you about me?”

He only smiled. “Please, take a seat. I’ll tell him you’re here.”

Yvette let James out of his carrier, but she didn’t sit down. She couldn’t. She was too excited to see him. Had he been eating well, sleeping well? The moment he came into the room she knew the answer. He hadn’t.

He looked terrible. His eyes were red and his face unshaven. He looked tired, but managed a sly grin. “Hello.”

She ran up to him. “I don’t care how much time you have. I want to be with you. I understand if—”

“Yvette.”

“I have to be by your side. I won’t leave you alone.”

“Yvette.”

“And I want you to know that—”

He grabbed her shoulders. “Yvette. Listen.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t worry. I just didn’t sleep last night. I got a call from my doctor.”

Her heart stopped. “And?”

He began to smile.

She stared at him in numb astonishment. “You’re cancer-free?”

He smiled and nodded. “Yes, I’m in remission.”

She threw her arms around him, nearly knocking him over. “I missed you.”

He hugged her back so tightly she thought her ribs would break, but she didn’t care. She pressed her head against his chest and listened to his heart beat, its strong rhythmic motion making her want to weep with gratitude.

“Come. Let’s sit down.” He led her to the couch, but not before scooping James up and patting him on the head. In the excitement of seeing Nate, he’d had a little accident but only the valet noticed and discreetly cleaned it up. James licked Nate’s face.

Yvette snuggled close, not wanting any distance between them. “What made you change your mind?”

He sighed with remembered pain and put James down. “The check. When I opened that envelope and saw it, I knew you didn’t want or need my money. At first I was angry. That’s why I left. Then I realized that I had relied on it a bit too much. I always used it to get what I wanted. I thought it was my money that got you and thought I would use it to keep you, but you made me see that I was wrong.”

“I was wrong, too. I may not always agree with you, but I’ll always stand by you.”

He gathered her close. “You don’t have a choice because I don’t plan on letting you go. You made me want to live again.”

She rested her head on his shoulder then saw a familiar face in a photo. She sat up and reached for the picture.

Nate looked over at her. “That’s my dad with his two sisters when they were young.” He pointed. “Aunt Penny hasn’t changed much and that’s Aunt Maggie. She’s sort of the black sheep of the family. Every few months she likes to dress up like a bag lady and pay homeless people for their pets, especially dogs. She’ll then have the pets cleaned and groomed and either keep them or put them up for adoption. She’s rescued lots of dogs this way. You two have a lot in common.”

Yvette gripped the side of the frame. “I already met her.”

Nate raised his eyebrows. “You did?”

“She was the lady I told you about. The one who abandoned James.” She shook her head in wonder. “It’s almost as if everything in my life changed the moment I met her. It’s almost as if—”

“As if what?”

It was all magic. But Yvette was too practical to believe in magic. “It was meant to be.”

Nate drew her close. “I know it was. I hope you’ll meet her again one day. You have the same sense of style. I mean, look at what she’s wearing.”

He didn’t need to point it out. Yvette already saw it. Maggie wore a straw hat, purple dress and familiar lace stockings…

ISBN: 978-1-4268-2301-5

A GENTLEMAN’S OFFER

Copyright © 2008 by Sade Odubiyi

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