“So are you still spouse-hunting in Riviera waters, Olivia?” Luc asked.

“I would be if you hadn’t robbed us of our trip!” she replied. “It’s only fair you make up for it now. Who knows? I might meet an exciting playboy with husband potential! But the point is, when your brother finds out I’ve gone on a vacation with you, he’ll give up any idea he had about marriage to me.”

“Why is that?” His voice had taken on a darker tone.

Olivia’s impulsive nature had once again caused her to leap before she looked.

But this was serious business. The most serious of her existence.

It was Luc she loved with every fiber of her being. The longer he didn’t say anything, the more she realized that if she didn’t give him the right answer, she might just lose him forever….

Dear Reader,

I came from a family of five sisters and one brother. The four oldest girls were my parents’ first family. There was a space before my baby sister and baby brother came along.

My mother called the first four her little women, and gave each of us a Madame Alexander doll from the Little Women series based on the famous book by Louisa May Alcott. We may not have been quadruplets, but we were close in age and definitely felt a connection to each other.

In our early twenties, I recall a time when I took the train from Paris, France, where I’d been studying, to meet one of my sisters at the port in Genoa, Italy, where her ship came in from New York. Some of my choicest memories are our glorious adventures as two blond American sisters on vacation along the French and Italian Rivieras, dodging Mediterranean playboys.

When I conceived THE HUSBAND FUND trilogy for Harlequin Romance®, I have no doubt the idea of triplet sisters coming to Europe on a lark to intentionally meet some gorgeous Riviera playboys sprang to life from my own family experiences at home and abroad.

Meet Greer, Olivia and Piper, three characters drawn from my imagination who probably have traits from all four of my wonderful, intelligent, talented sisters in their makeup.

Enjoy!

Rebecca Winters

Book 3: To Marry for Duty, Harlequin Romance #3835

www.rebeccawinters-author.com

To Win His Heart
Rebecca Winters

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ONE

August 2nd

Monza, Italy

“GOOD night, Cesar. I’ve had a spectacular time.”

After the party downstairs with his Formula I racing team, Cesar walked Olivia to her hotel room, but it irritated her when he looped his arms around her neck outside the door.

Since he never drank before a race, she knew for a fact it couldn’t be the effect of alcohol making him amorous all of a sudden.

Twenty-nine-year-old Cesar de Falcon, known as Cesar Villon when he used his paternal grandmother’s maiden name Villon to race, was all flash and excitement, the ultimate charmer, albeit one who was still too obsessed with his career to be taken seriously.

Neither during the night of the Monaco Grand Prix in June, or throughout the last two days in Monza prior to tomorrow’s race had Olivia led him to believe there was anything but friendship between them. There couldn’t be.

She was painfully in love with his elder brother, Lucien de Falcon.

Though that love wasn’t reciprocated, it didn’t matter. With her emotions involved elsewhere, she couldn’t let go with Cesar and kiss him for the sheer fun of being out with one of Europe’s most eligible and sought after playboys. Especially not this particular one.

When she’d come to Europe with her sisters in June, the highlight for Olivia had been to watch the Monaco Grand Prix where the legendary Cesar Villon had taken second place.

It was an absolute fluke that Cesar’s cousin, Max, had ended up marrying Greer, one of Olivia’s sisters, thus throwing their families together under the most unlikely and unexpected circumstances.

Because of her fascination with Formula I racing before meeting Cesar, she’d been thrilled and flattered by the famous driver’s eagerness to show her around. How many times in life did one get a chance to see firsthand what went on behind the scenes of the racing world? Especially with someone as well-known?

“I’ve had an even more wonderful time, ma belle. There’s no reason why it can’t continue now that we’re alone.”

“Yes, there is.” She averted her face in an attempt to prevent him from kissing her. “You have a big race tomorrow and need your beauty sleep.”

“Beauty sleep?” He chuckled before brushing his lips against the side of her cheek. “I intend to get some, but not by myself.” So saying, he trapped her against the door and kissed her.

Cesar was an attractive man, very persuasive, but she broke away before he could deepen the kiss. The look of surprise on his face let her know few women had ever resisted him.

“You’re not going to invite me in?” He gave her that wounded look so typical of Max, her new, all-Italian brother-in-law.

She smiled, needing to handle this with grace and discretion considering the fact that he was now Greer’s cousin-in-law. It wasn’t as if she could risk offending him by her rejection, knowing she would never see him again in this lifetime.

“No, cousin,” she said the word deliberately. “I’m not. I always sleep alone.”

“Always?” He looked shocked to the foundations.

“Always.”

“Not even with Fred?”

The mention of her ex-boyfriend, the one who’d followed Formula I racing on TV and had gotten her interested in the sport in the first place, made her chuckle. “Especially not Fred.”

“But this is unbelievable.”

Olivia burst into laughter. She couldn’t help it. “My sisters and I were taught to wait for marriage.”

“You mean to tell me Greer and Max—”

“Didn’t until their wedding night,” she finished the sentence for him.

Now it was his turn to laugh. “Then she lied to you.”

“No.” Olivia shook her head. “I would stake my life on it.” When she could see he wasn’t convinced she said, “Tell you what. After they’re back from their honeymoon, you can ask Max. He’ll tell you the truth.”

Cesar grinned. “What if you’re wrong?”

“I won’t be.”

“For the sake of argument, let’s assume you are,” he teased. “We’ll make this a bet. If I win—”

“You won’t!” she declared in a note of finality.

He was such a tease, it surprised her when he grasped her upper arms. “The German team thinks they’re going to win the Italian Grand Prix tomorrow, but by the end of the race I will be the one standing at the podium.

“After a race I always spend a week at the family villa in Positano on the Amalfi Coast where I can be alone. This time I’m taking you there with me to celebrate my victory, so be warned.”

No, Cesar, I won’t be going anywhere with you.

The man had an ego that wouldn’t quit. Any other woman would probably jump at the chance to go off alone with him, but Olivia wasn’t one of them.

“You would have to be my husband first.”

He flashed her a disarming smile. “Then I guess we’ll have to pick out a ring while we’re in Positano.”

“You’re full of it, Cesar, but I like you anyway. I’ll be rooting for you tomorrow.” She raised up on tiptoe and kissed his cheek, then eased out of his arms. “Good night and good luck,” she said before escaping to her room for the night.

Though he represented the epitome of most women’s desires, he wasn’t the man who’d dominated Olivia’s every thought after she and her sisters had flown home to New York to get ready for Greer’s wedding.

There was only one man’s kiss she wanted. She’d worked herself up into a breathless state just waiting to see Luc again at the wedding, but he’d shot her down within the first moments of their meeting.

You may come off the innocent and have Cesar fooled, Olivia, but I see right through you. You’re nothing more than what you Americans call a “groupie.”

Really…well if I’m a groupie, then that makes you the jealous older brother with what we Americans call a “game” leg. It must be galling to know you wouldn’t be able to climb into Cesar’s race car, let alone drive it!

Her body still bristled from the ugly words they’d thrown at each other. He’d actually had the audacity to call her a groupie!

How dare he liken her to a sycophant, one of a cast of a thousand hopefuls…those grasping, opportunistic women who hung around the track and flung themselves at idols like Cesar who was single, famous and wealthy.

Luc had made her so furious, she’d been glad to take Cesar up on his invitation to watch him race in the Italian Grand Prix. However it had given off the wrong signal to Cesar who now assumed she was his for the taking.

Everything was Luc’s fault. Just thinking about their fiery confrontation outside the chapel caused Olivia’s heart to thud painfully.

If he hadn’t thrown that final insult at her, she wouldn’t have done anything so impulsive.

Unlike his brother, Luc didn’t need or crave the limelight, a fact that made him much more appealing to her. Though she found his aloofness disturbing, she was also fascinated that he didn’t seem to need anyone. He was a man who lit his own fires and moved in an orbit all his own.

According to Cesar, Luc’s energy was tied up in his work as a robotics engineer. She found herself wanting to know everything about him, but Cesar had been strangely silent when it came to details about Luc’s life, whether professional or personal.

The most she’d learned was that seven months earlier he’d almost lost his leg in the same tragic ski tram accident that had killed his cousin Nic’s fiancée.

Olivia already knew from Greer that Luc had never been married.

It certainly wouldn’t have been for lack of opportunity. His serious gray eyes beneath black hair and brows were startlingly beautiful and unexpected when contrasted with the olive complexion of his hard-boned features.

She’d only seen him smile once and thought there couldn’t be another man as gorgeous, not even Cesar. But after their bitter quarrel, Olivia had given up hope of ever witnessing that rare sight again.

She imagined the pain from his injured leg had something to do with his saturnine disposition. However Olivia suspected his morose moods were the result of problems that went deeper than the physical.

Some woman must have gotten to him… Whoever it was, she’d done a good job of ruining him for anyone else.

The Falcon men were tall, dark and dashing in that irresistible Mediterranean way. If it were Luc’s goal, he could be surrounded by stunning beauties all the time. But he obviously had other things on his mind and was too intelligent and self-confident to need constant attention from the opposite sex.

He definitely didn’t want Olivia’s. She’d never been so hurt, and was still suffering from the wounds. Yet the more she pondered it, the more she refused to accept his biting remarks as final. That jaded, aloof, thirty-three-year-old brother of Cesar’s had misjudged her, and she was going to prove it!

Pounding her pillow, she lay her head back down willing sleep to come, afraid it wouldn’t.

“You’re not going to see your brother race in the morning?”

Non, Dieu merci.

“I’m afraid not, maman. The doctor plans to drain my knee day after tomorrow, so I’m taking it easy until then.” Luc was glad to have a legitimate excuse to give his mother. She would pass it on to his father and Cesar.

“Then take care, mon fils. I’ll be by in a few days to see how you are doing.”

“That won’t be necessary. I’ll come to see you.”

If the doctor’s prognosis was correct, Luc’s leg was in the last stage of healing. After seven ghastly months of pure physical hell, the end was in sight. He only wished he could say the same about his mental torment, but no medical procedure could fix that.

“Talk to you soon, maman.” He hung up and sat back in the swivel chair of his private study, staring blindly at the monitor screen.

Normally the math required to do his latest project kept his darkest thoughts at bay, but not tonight. An image of Olivia Duchess in his brother’s bed made the bile rise in his throat.

He reached for his cell phone and punched one of the digits. After three rings his cousin picked up.

“Luc? I was wondering if it might be you.”

“Who else bothers you at this time of night? Were you in bed?”

“No. I’m in my library working on this blasted manuscript.”

“I was just going to ask how it was progressing. Now I won’t.”

Nic had been going through his own personal hell since Nina’s death. On top of his grief that the accident had happened, he was suffering guilt. All because he’d broken his engagement to her an hour before she’d taken that last tram ride up the mountain without him.

Luc would never know if Nic had discovered she’d been unfaithful to his cousin, and that’s why he’d called the wedding off. As close as Luc and Nic were, his cousin had never once hinted that Nina had been seeing another man.

But Luc knew she had.

By chance he’d decided to take one more ski run late that day. When he’d gone outside the lodge to get his skis, he’d witnessed a sight that had torn him apart.

Over in the trees he’d seen a stranger with thick, dark blond hair kissing Nina. She gave him her full cooperation before she broke away and hurried toward the tram with her skis.

Having always loved Nic like a brother, Luc intended to confront her and followed her onto the tram. But before he had a chance to take her aside, tragedy struck, killing her and injuring him.

During the long talks at the hospital while Luc underwent several surgeries, Nic finally admitted that he’d never been in love with Nina the way he should have been. He’d agreed to the engagement because of pressure from his parents, particularly his father, who’d wanted the marriage to take place.

But as Nic explained, once the wedding date was set, he realized he couldn’t marry her.

His confession hadn’t surprised Luc or Max. Nic had never acted like a man madly in love. But since Nic had never breathed a word about Nina’s betrayal, Luc decided his cousin hadn’t known anything about it.

After discussing it with Max, the two of them thought it best Nic be kept in the dark since it wouldn’t have served any purpose. Nina was dead. Why make it any uglier.

In Luc’s mind, whether you were engaged or married, it was adultery if your partner proved to be unfaithful. Luc knew firsthand what it felt like to be betrayed, by his own brother no less. He wouldn’t wish the feeling on his worst enemy, let alone Nic of all people.

Thousands of spectators screamed and jumped around when the announcement came over the loud speaker in four different languages that Cesar Villon, the brilliant Formula I race car driver representing Monaco, had claimed the coveted first place at Monza.

Olivia had come to the stands early to watch the race. Now she was on her feet, clapping and cheering like so many of his other fans.

The two days before his race had been an instructive time for her as she’d watched him go through the testing and qualifying trials prior to the big event that he’d just conquered.

Being the fierce competitor he was, he’d made his own prophecy come true. Hopefully he’d forgotten what he’d said about taking her away afterward. But in case he hadn’t, she decided to leave Monza so she wouldn’t be around for him to collect later in the day, giving him another wrong impression.

Blessed with many gifts, including the fact that he was the younger son of the Duc de Falcon of Monaco, he could be excused for assuming no woman was immune to him. If there were depths to him not yet visible, only time would tell, probably after he was too old to compete anymore.

Half Italian, half Monegasque, Cesar’s movie star looks made him the supreme favorite with the crowd. Filled with the matchless optimism of a man who knows he’s number one, he’d arranged for Olivia to sit near the podium. But she didn’t try to reach him after the ceremony was over. Even if she’d wanted to, it would have been a physical impossibility.

Not only was he basking in the adulation of thousands of screaming fans while he drank champagne and pressed his lips to the winner’s cup—at least a dozen gorgeous female admirers were now crowding him, hanging on his arm, lifting their mouths for his kiss which he passed around with obvious relish.

Naturally the spectacle provided hundreds of photo ops for the many international journalists covering the race. By tomorrow morning pictures of him embracing one beauty after another would grace the front page of a thousand newspapers and magazine covers.

For Olivia, the whole scene was a huge turnoff. Her sense of distaste for such a lifestyle deepened as she watched the women battling for position, hoping to be the one he took home for the night. Little did they know that last night Olivia had been his target.

Scenes like the one going on in front of her right now happened to Cesar before and after every race. Women would continue to swarm around him like bees, and he would respond for as long as racing fever was in his blood.

Olivia recognized that any woman unfortunate enough to fall in love with an international sports celebrity would have to put up with a mistress more merciless than any flesh-and-blood female.

While she stood there staring blindly in Cesar’s direction, the idea that had taken root in her mind last night had turned into a fully fledged plan. She couldn’t leave the grandstand fast enough to put it into action.

Without hesitation she worked her way through the crowds to reach the cue of taxis outside the race track. “The Accademia Hotel,” she told the driver.

“Si, signorina.”

Once back in her room, she would phone her sister Piper, who was already in Genoa, Italy, on business.

Some mockups of their calendars in Italian were ready for them to examine. If they thought the finished products looked good, she’d run off a bunch for Signore Tozetti to distribute in the Parma region. Provided they sold well, it could mean a lot more orders down the road.

Olivia was supposed to be there to help make the decision before they flew home to New York together. But she’d changed her mind about leaving Europe just yet, and she trusted Piper’s judgment completely.

Her sister wouldn’t approve of Olivia’s plan to go after Luc. Neither would Greer. Luckily she wasn’t around to quash Olivia’s idea. Thanks to Maximilliano di Varano, the love of Greer’s life, Greer was on her honeymoon.

It had taken a very special man to break up the Duchess triplets, three blond sisters who caused a minor sensation at birth and bore a strong resemblance to each other without being identical.

Max had taken one look at Greer with her amethyst eyes, and the dedicated bachelor had fallen so hard, Olivia knew he would never recover.

Since their nuptials four days ago in the private chapel of the Varano family palace in Parma, the two lovers had been honeymooning at an intimate hide-away somewhere in Greece.

The look of desire and adoration in Max’s eyes after kissing his bride at the altar revealed to the whole world how he felt about Greer. There was no telling how long he planned to keep her to himself, but Olivia had a hunch it would be at least a month before she and Piper heard from their sister. Long enough for Olivia to follow through with her daring scheme…

With Greer married off, Olivia’s world had changed. She was feeling a heady new sense of freedom both physical and psychological. She figured Piper was enjoying the freedom, too. Without Greer around to tell them how to think and what they were going to do next, Olivia could finally be master of her own destiny.

It wasn’t that she didn’t love Greer. On the contrary, she adored her. Still, it was a relief not to have to face her and hear her say, I told you it would be a mistake to go off with Cesar. If you do that, then you’re the kind of stupid, naive, dumb blond he seduces after every race.

Despite the fact that Luc’s antipathy toward Olivia had made her do it, heat filled Olivia’s cheeks to realize that once Greer had left on her honeymoon, Olivia had gone off and done the exact, stupid thing Greer had warned her not to do.

In fact it was Greer who’d told Olivia she wasn’t in love with Fred. Olivia had already figured that out after meeting Luc, but she’d gone on dating Fred for the six weeks prior to Greer’s wedding in an effort to forget Luc and prove that Greer’s power over her wasn’t absolute.

Unfortunately she’d paid for it in the end when she’d been forced to tell Fred that it was really over. She’d been very unfair to him by leading him on, and was still smarting from the pain she’d caused him. One piercing glance from Greer with that “I told you so, now you’ve really done it” look, hadn’t helped matters.

What really miffed Olivia was the fact that even though Max had claimed Greer for his wife and taken her away, Olivia was still battling her sister’s powerful influence over her. She could just imagine Greer’s reaction if she knew what Olivia was planning now.

You’re what? Are you insane? Didn’t we all learn a very important lesson the first time around?

“Signorina?” the driver called over his shoulder. They’d arrived at the hotel. She’d been so immersed in her new strategy, she hadn’t even noticed!

After paying him a bundle of Euros she didn’t even bother to count, she got out of the taxi and rushed inside, anxious to set things in motion.

Once she’d confirmed tickets on a flight to Nice leaving in two hours, she phoned Piper at her hotel in Genoa.

After relating the spectacular news that Cesar had won the Italian Grand Prix, Olivia told Piper what she was intending to do.

“You’re what?” Her sister sounded suspiciously like Greer just then, which didn’t help matters.

“I’m going back to Monaco to force Luc to make my trip good. It’s payback time.”

“Say that again?”

“You heard me,” Olivia answered defiantly. “We were cheated out of our first trip to Europe because Max and his cousins thought we were jewel thieves and they ruined everything!

“By the time the whole business got straightened out, our vacation had to be aborted because Max wanted to be alone with Greer on the Piccione. Luc owes me ten days on that boat!”

“It’s Fabio Moretti’s boat! August is still high season. Some other tourists have probably chartered it. Don’t forget it’s the Moretti’s livelihood.”

“I’m sure Luc will be able to work something out with Fabio. We paid three thousand dollars each for a trip along the Riviera that never happened!”

“Technically you’re right, Olivia. But in return we acquired Max, the dream brother-in-law who has treated us like the Duchess of Parma herself while we stayed at his family’s royal palace. That beats any vacation I can think of.

“Besides, what are you complaining about? Your dream came true when Cesar whisked you off to Monza for the last three days. I thought you were crazy about him. At least that’s what you told Fred.”

Conscience made Olivia bite her lip. “I had to tell Fred something that would help him retain his pride. If I’d been truthful and said I couldn’t picture him as my husband, it would have hurt him a lot more.”

“Okay… I can buy that, but what about Cesar?”

“He’s a friend. Even if he weren’t, he’s spoken for.”

“By whom?”

“By the entire female population of Europe!”

“Yeah, well Greer already told you that.”

Olivia ground her teeth. “Greer doesn’t know everything.”

“Yes, she does.”

“She didn’t know we talked Daddy into setting up that phony Husband Fund that brought us to Europe in the first place.”

After a moment of quiet, “That’s true. It’s probably the only secret we ever kept from her.”

“Yup. And it worked!” A satisfied smile broke out on Olivia’s face. “We finally got her married off. Now we can do what we want, and I want to go on the vacation that never happened. Don’t you?”

“Maybe one day. At the moment we’ve got a calendar business to run.”

“Has Signore Tozzeti decided if he wants to take us on as a client?”

“Not yet. He says there are a few other people in his company he needs to talk to, but they’re on vacation, so he won’t be able to get back to us for a while.”

“Great.”

“That’s why we’ve got to go home and see about enlarging the market there. Otherwise we’re not going to be able to pay the rent. We need to do it now!”

“You sound just like Greer!”

Greer was the oldest triplet by a matter of minutes. Yet Olivia, who’d been born last with Piper in the middle, had always been dominated by Greer, their natural born leader.

Over the years she had made the decisions about everything, whether Olivia or Piper liked them or not. For the first time ever, Olivia could do what she wanted without having to hear Greer’s opinion.

“With Greer gone, someone needs to talk sense into you. What’s the real reason you want to stay? You and Luc looked like mortal enemies after the wedding ceremony, so I don’t understand why you would dare confront him again—oh, no—tell me it isn’t true.”

“What?”

“Tell me you haven’t fallen for Luc de Falcon—”

Her cheeks turned to flame.

“Olivia? You can’t!”

“What do you mean, I can’t?”

“Because you just can’t, that’s all.”

“Why?”

“Think of Greer.”

“That’s all I’ve ever done. We’ve had to do everything her way because she always took charge. Now she’s married, I want to think about moi for a change.”

“Then you need to think again because Luc is Max’s first cousin.”

“So?”

“So, Greer married Max, and Luc has become her family, too. You can’t horn in!”

“Excuse me?”

“Look, Olivia. She’s found her heart’s desire in Max. This is her world, her turf. We need to leave well enough alone.”

“It’s a free country,” she retorted.

“No, it’s not, and you know exactly what I mean.” Olivia did know, but she didn’t like Piper reminding her. “Greer needs time to make a new life with Max. He married a triplet, and don’t think he isn’t worried about it!

“At the wedding feast he didn’t make that crack about the three of us being joined at the hip, heart and brain for nothing. We have to help Greer cut the apron strings, which means we need to back off and give our sister her space.”

“Luc lives in Monaco, not Colorno, Italy.”

“That’s not the point. The cousins are super close. Besides, it just wouldn’t work for you to get involved with Luc, even if he were interested, which he…isn’t.”

The slight hesitation before the last word set off alarm bells inside Olivia. “How do you know?”

“Because…I just do.”

“What do you know that I don’t?” she fired.

“More than you want to hear.”

She blinked. “How come?”

“Because it might hurt you.”

Hurt? “You mean you’re not going to tell me?”

“No. I promised someone I wouldn’t,” Piper’s voice trailed.

“I see.” She slid off the side of the bed and stood up. “Well in that case I plan to proceed as if you hadn’t warned me. With a little hard work I’ll make him change his mind.”

“You’ll be playing with fire.”

“Then that’s my problem isn’t it.”

“Don’t snap at me, Olivia. I know you’re feeling as lost without Greer as I am. You simply don’t want to admit it.”

She tossed her head back. “I admit it feels strange to be two-thirds of a whole. In time I trust we’ll both get over it.”

“Until we do, please come home with me.”

“Not yet, Piper.”

“Listen to me. You don’t mess with a man like Luc. In more ways than one he’s a different breed from anyone you’ve ever known. Besides, and this is probably the most important point, he has the distinction of being the only male who never fell under your spell. You can’t win them all, Olivia. Trust me on this.”

“Are you through, Greer?”

“That wasn’t very nice,” Piper came back in a quiet voice.

Olivia clutched the phone tighter. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m tired of people telling me what to do.”

“Translated you mean, Greer and me.”

Since the answer was obvious, Olivia didn’t say anything.

“Whatever happened to all for one, and one for all?”

“There’s no more all.” She prided herself on keeping a steady voice.

“You and I have each other. I don’t want to see you in any more pain. It’s been hard enough on us to lose Daddy.”

At the mention of their father who’d died in April, Olivia’s eyes smarted. “I don’t intend to stay in pain. My plan is foolproof.”

There was a long, resigned silence. “What is it exactly you’re intending to do?”

“Get him to propose, at which time I will say yes.”

“Not that again! Luc already knows about the Husband Fund scheme, so it won’t work on him.”

“Yes, it will. He thinks I’m interested in Cesar, so he’ll jump at the chance to save his brother from a fate worse than death by taking me on Fabio’s boat. While we’re basking in the sun, I’ll find ways to thaw out his heart until he’s unable to resist me. By the time we dock at Vernazza, he’ll have proposed.”

“You’ll never break him down, Olivia.”

She clutched the phone tighter. “Want to bet?”

After a pause, “I don’t bet when I already know the outcome. I repeat. You’ll live to regret this.” Piper’s voice sounded like Greer’s at her most prophetic. “Come home with me and we’ll find you a nice American guy to date.”

“After Fred, no thank you.”

“Not like Fred. Europe doesn’t have the monopoly on exciting men.”

“Sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself!”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’ve already met the man I want for my husband, Piper. There’s no talking me out of it.”

“You think he’s hurt you now…you just wait!”

Olivia refused to let the secret Piper was withholding about Luc get to her. “We’ll see.”

“It’s your funeral, but whatever happens, call me tomorrow. I have to know where you are and where I can reach you or I won’t have any peace. I should be in Kingston by noon at the latest.”

“I promise to phone,” Olivia vowed. “Have a safe flight. I’m glad Tom will be there to meet you. Be sure he takes a look around the apartment for you first.”

“Don’t worry about me.”

Now Olivia was doing what she’d accused Piper of doing—telling her what to do. Running her life. “Okay, I won’t. Talk to you later. Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

After Olivia hung up, she sat down to write a letter to Cesar. She needed to couch her words carefully.

“Dear cousin-in-law,” she began. Once she’d explained that her heart belonged to another, she thanked him profusely for the wonderful time he’d shown her, thanked him for his kindness and generosity and praised him for his latest win.

“May all your wins in the coming years be as successful. I remain your friend and greatest fan from the U.S. Olivia Duchess.”

Pleased with her message, she sealed it in the envelope and took it downstairs to leave with the concierge.

“I don’t know when Monsieur Villon will come back to the hotel to check out, but as soon as he does, will you make certain he gets this?”

“Si, signorina.”

“Grazie.”

After paying her bill, she carried her suitcase outside to the limo. The hotel provided transportation to the airport. Hopefully she was leaving soon enough to avoid the mass of tourists who probably wouldn’t jam the terminal until tomorrow after a night of nonstop partying.

Once she reached Nice, she would take a taxi to the Falcon Villa in Monaco and surprise Luc. If her plan was going to work, it was imperative she catch him off guard. Forewarned and he might disappear on her. She couldn’t let that happen.

CHAPTER TWO

“PLEASE wait for me.”

The chauffeur de taxi nodded while Olivia approached the front door of the villa. It was seven-thirty on a hot August evening. She could still feel the heat rising from the street.

A maid answered. She recognized Olivia from her previous visit in June. When Olivia asked if she could see Luc, the other woman explained he didn’t live there with his parents, yet Olivia distinctly remembered Luc claiming that he did!

Cross because it had been a deliberate ploy on his part to keep his private life private, she was forced to ask the maid where to find him. She learned he had his own home, the Mas de Falcon. Olivia wasn’t familiar with the word.

The maid wrote down the address for her. Olivia thanked her, then gave it to the taxi driver. He nodded and they took off once more, heading for the region above the city.

In a few minutes they drove down a private road that opened up into a charming courtyard filled with pots of flowers. There she discovered an exquisite pale pink, two-story villa with light blue shutters at all the windows. Apparently this was the back of the house.

Like an eagle’s eyrie, the mas sat perched on a hill overlooking Monaco-Ville. The view would be magnificent.

In front of the garage at the side of the house were two vehicles: a truck that had to be several years old, and a black sports car. Hopefully that meant Luc was home, but she wouldn’t know until she rang the doorbell.

Assuming he employed staff who could call another taxi for her in case he wasn’t there, she paid the driver, then waved him off.

Determined as she’d ever been in her life, she walked up to the back entrance with her suitcase. “Be home, Luc.”

With her heart pounding out of rhythm, she pushed the buzzer and waited. When there was no answer, she rang again.

On the third try, she heard noise like someone swearing. Shivering a little, she was glad she didn’t understand French.

Then the door opened to reveal Luc himself, dressed in low-slung cutoff jeans and nothing else. Though she could see scarring on the shin bone of his leg beneath the knee, he looked so blatantly male with the dusting of black hair on his well cut chest and physique, she couldn’t think or talk.

In that dizzying moment, she didn’t notice that his mouth had formed a white line of anger. Not until her eyes wandered helplessly up his hard-muscled body to his striking face.

“What in the hell are you doing here?” Despite the anger in that low, grating voice, she loved his French accent when he spoke English.

“What are you doing answering the door without your cane?” Olivia fired back. She wasn’t about to be intimidated by him. “You don’t have to prove how macho you are in front of people, especially me. We’re family now,” she added just to irritate him.

His hands went to his hips, a gesture that emphasized his total masculinity. “Is that your unsubtle way of telling me you and Cesar ran off and got married after the race?”

She laughed. “Wouldn’t you hate it if I said yes, thereby proving that I’m the ultimate groupie who was out for everything I could get from your brother, and did!”

His silvery eyes had narrowed to slits. “Why are you here?”

“What?” Her expressive brows lifted in question. “Not even a ‘won’t you come in and make yourself comfortable’?”

“You’re not an invited guest.”

“Not even when we’re related through marriage?”

He stiffened. “Whatever it is you have to say, make it fast. I’m in a hurry.”

“Is that why you were cursing on your way to the door?” she taunted him with relish. “If you don’t have the time to be civil to me right now, I’ll be happy to wait.”

If looks could kill… “Then you’ll have a long one because I’m on my way out and don’t know when I’ll be back.”

“That’s no problem. I’ll go with you and keep you company. As you can see, I brought my suitcase with me so I’m ready to travel.”

He rubbed his chest in a motion he probably wasn’t aware of. The fact that his first cousin Max was married to her sister was undoubtedly the only reason he hadn’t slammed the door in her face yet.

“What’s this all about?” Talk about a forbidding tone—

Standing her ground she said, “The trip my sisters and I never went on of course! The trip you and your cousins ruined for us. The trip that cost us over twenty thousand dollars after the bills we incurred by being forced to buy new bikes to try to get away from you.

“Shall I count the ways you destroyed the dream?” Her fingers started to tick everything off. “First, Max had us detained by the police in Genoa the second we got off the plane, then he stalked us while we walked around Portofino.

“After that, he inveigled you and Nic to take over as the crew aboard the Piccione. At that point the three of you sabotaged our itinerary, stole the family pendants our parents gave us on our sixteenth birthday, threw us in jail, prevented us from boarding a plane home and then forced us to show up at your family’s villa to help draw out the real jewel thief.

“The thief you didn’t catch by the way!” she mocked. “All this because you thought we’d stolen an identical pendant from the palace, which we didn’t!”

Her fists went to her waist, drawing his piercing gaze to the curves beneath the leaf green cotton dress molding her body. “You were totally unfair to us, and now I’m here to collect. Since Max is on his honeymoon, and Nic left for London after the wedding, that leaves you to pay up.

“You owe me, Luc! So I’ve arrived to inform you that you’re taking me for a ten-day trip on the Piccione before I go back to New York.”

He shifted his weight, a sign his leg was probably bothering him. “You make a compelling case, but I don’t buy any of it. Why don’t you try telling me the truth for a change. What’s the real reason you’ve come to my home on a Sunday night, uninvited? Where’s Cesar?”

“I haven’t a clue. Well, that’s not exactly true. The last time I saw him, he was at the winner’s podium kissing one beautiful groupie after another, having the time of his life.”

For just a moment she thought she saw a shadow cross over his face, but maybe it was a light plane passing overhead, hiding the rays of a setting sun for a moment. Then he smirked. “What’s the matter? Couldn’t you take the competition?”

“That question doesn’t deserve an answer. The truth is, I had other things on my mind. Remember the Husband Fund?”

“What about it?” he practically snapped.

“I’m afraid I may have hooked the wrong playboy without meaning to, and I need an out.”

“Which playboy would that be? There’ve been so many.” His insulting remark was meant to sting. Well, she would sting him back!

“Cesar,” she admitted.

Luc eyed her with disdain. “I don’t see him anywhere around. Now you’ll have to excuse me.” He started to close the door.

“Last night he said something about buying me an engagement ring after the race.”

She’d purposely slipped in that last tidbit before he could shut her out completely. Olivia was a hundred percent sure Cesar had been joking, but Luc didn’t know that.

“I left Monza as soon as it was over and came straight here.”

To her satisfaction she didn’t hear the click that would have severed all contact. The door opened wider again. A stillness had stolen over Luc.

“He asked you to marry him?” his voice grated with incredulity.

Her instincts had been right. The idea of her becoming Luc’s sister-in-law was so repugnant to him, he was caught in a vise.

“Isn’t that what an engagement ring means? Or is your younger brother in the habit of promising one to every groupie he fancies without any intention of delivering…”

He raked a hand through his vibrant black hair, a gesture that indicated the news had disturbed him. Good. She hoped his concern to protect his brother from a predator like herself was great enough to agree to her plan.

“What kind of game are you playing with him?” came the voice of ice.

“Game?” She feigned innocence. “I admit it was exciting to be wined and dined by him for a little while. Fred got me interested in Formula I racing and I followed Cesar’s success for a long time before we ever met.

“Meeting your brother was a great thrill. He’s a wonderful man, and he’s done everything to show me a fantastic time, but—”

“But all along it’s been dull, boring Fred you wanted, and now you’re afraid to tell Cesar?” She felt his question like the tip of a whip against her skin.

“No,” she came back, intrigued to discover he’d remembered an offhand comment she’d made about Fred in his hearing. “I ended it with Fred before I flew here for Greer’s wedding.”

“How many dead bodies are lying around in that colorful past of yours?” he muttered in an acerbic tone. The wounds were growing.

“My past is none of your business, but Cesar is.”

A nerve ticked at the corner of his sensual mouth. “Go on!”

“Well…Cesar knows I’m not seeing Fred anymore. So he’s not going to believe there’s another man in my life, and he would be right. But that’s not what I told him in the note I left for him at the hotel in Monza.”

“That was like waving a red flag,” Luc drawled with contempt.

“I thought I was being polite,” Olivia asserted. “After the race I went back to the Accademia in a taxi and dashed off a letter before checking out. It was a combination goodbye–thank you note.

“I left it with the concierge to give to him when he came in. In it I explained that my heart belonged to another, but I wished him success in the future. Since Cesar is aware that other person isn’t Fred, I’m afraid I’ve painted myself into a corner, and now I need help.”

Lines marred his features. “You should have thought of that before you went to bed with him.”

“The Duchess girls don’t sleep around!”

“That’s an interesting fairy tale.”

She bridled. “Cesar said the same thing, so I told him to ask Max when he gets back from his honeymoon if he doesn’t believe me. Theirs was a white wedding. Why do you think they got married so fast?”

He folded his arms. “Why are you digressing? If I’m to be of assistance to you, you have to tell me exactly how far things have progressed between you two. The truth this time.”

“You won’t believe me if I tell you, so why should I bother.”

“You’re still avoiding answering my question,” Luc reminded her testily. “I can assure I’m not asking out of a prurient desire to know the intimate details, just the facts. But if you don’t want my help after all…” He was a breath away from shutting the door on her.

She had to tamp down her euphoria. Obviously the thought of his brother marrying her disgusted him enough to listen.

“After the way you spoke to me at the wedding, do you honestly think I would darken your doorstep if I didn’t?” she challenged.

A war was waging inside him. She knew it by the tautness of his Gallic features. “I repeat. How far did you go to accomplish what no other groupie has managed to do?” he persisted.

“I didn’t have to do anything. He’s the one who kissed me outside my hotel room before I told him I had to go in.”

“And you expect me to believe he did all the work?”

Her brows knit together. “Why do you have to know that?”

“So you did respond,” he muttered, “which means he’ll believe you were being a provocative tease.”

She gave him a vexed look. “I couldn’t help but respond a little bit. Your brother’s the stuff a woman’s dreams are made of. But the truth is, I have no interest in being his wife. For one thing, he won’t make a good husband until his racing days are over. I’ve a feeling that day won’t come for years yet.”

“So you’re still spouse hunting in Riviera waters?”

“I would be if you and your cousins hadn’t robbed us of our trip! It’s only fair you make up for it now. Who knows? I might meet an exciting playboy with husband potential while I’m waterskiing or exploring some island.

“The point is, when Cesar finds out I’ve gone on a vacation with you, he’ll give up any idea he had about marriage to me.”

“Why is that?” His voice had taken on a darker tone.

“You don’t know?”

His face closed up. “I wouldn’t have asked otherwise.”

“Since the first time I met Cesar, I’ve discovered you’re the only man in the world who intimidates him. You’re kind of like Greer incarnate.” Luc’s black brows furrowed. “You know—the oldest one in the family. The one who rules by divine right?”

“No, I didn’t know.” He looked like thunder.

“Well you wouldn’t! You don’t have to. You were just born in charge. The one who knows everything, even if you don’t!” She paused to catch her breath.

“Anyway, Cesar will think you must be the man who stole my heart after I came to the Riviera the first time. He wouldn’t dare come after me knowing I was under your protection, so to speak.”

Like the day she and her sisters dove off the Piccione into the warm blue water of the Mediterranean to get away from Luc and his cousins, Olivia’s impulsive nature had once again caused her to leap before she looked.

But this was serious business. The most serious of her existence.

It was Luc she loved with every fiber of her being. The longer he didn’t say anything, the more she realized that if he didn’t give her the right answer, she would be in permanent mourning.

His eyes looked dark in the fading light. “Nothing’s sacred to a woman like you, is it.” A woman like me? “Haven’t you realized by now you can’t play at life without paying too great a price?”

Those words were meant to debilitate her. They reminded her of Piper’s warning on the phone earlier in the day that Luc could hurt her if she let him.

She struggled for breath. “My parents raised my sisters and me to believe fairy tales do come true. I can’t help it if they were divinely happy and everything worked out for them.

“You have to admit the Husband Fund they set up managed to get Greer and Max together. I’ve never seen a more besotted couple.”

“You’re straying from the point again. It’s a bad tendency of yours.”

“No stronger than your tendency to ridicule everything,” she fired back. “Can you think of a better way to put your brother off so he gets the message without causing damage? He is Greer’s cousin-in-law through marriage. So are you of course.

“I don’t want to be the one responsible for some kind of rift in our families before they’ve even come home from their honeymoon.”

“You should have thought of that before you leaped into Cesar’s Ferrari.”

“You would have leaped too if you’d never been in one before. How many people will ever get the opportunity to drive in such a car with a world-class Formula I race car pro like your brother? It’s an experience not to be missed. But I’m forgetting this is a sensitive issue for you since you can’t drive.”

His eyes glittered dangerously.

“The sooner you phone Fabio Moretti and tell him I’m ready to go on my trip now, the trip you stole from me, the sooner we can leave Monaco where Cesar won’t be able to find me.”

Luc gave a careless shrug of his broad shoulders. “I’m afraid a trip for me is out of the question. I’m due at the hospital in the morning for a procedure on my knee. For the next week I’ll have to stay off it except to do some exercises and water therapy.”

“Perfect!” she blurted excitedly. “The Piccione is pure luxury. You can recuperate on it at your leisure while I enjoy myself. The first mate also acts as steward, so he can wait on you. Call Fabio right now! Tell him I want the same itinerary Greer planned for us before.”

“He’ll be booked solid for August,” Luc declared as if the final word had been spoken. But Olivia wasn’t about to let him wriggle out of this.

“Even if he is, there are accommodations for six guests aboard the catamaran. Probably not all the bedrooms are taken. If you don’t want to phone him and arrange it, I will. He knows you owe me, and he won’t turn me down.” After a slight pause, “Even if Cesar wanted to come after me, he wouldn’t relish being confined with a boatload of tourists in such close quarters.”

She’d thrown out that last salvo for leverage, but nothing seemed to be working. Just when she thought they’d reached gridlock, he surprised her by wheeling around to reach for his cane lying in the middle of the foyer. He must have tripped on it answering the door, which would account for his cursing earlier.

Though he didn’t ask her to follow him, she assumed he wouldn’t have left the door open if he’d expected her to remain on the porch.

Consumed by curiosity to see his home, she trailed after him with her suitcase, noticing his limp was barely noticeable anymore. The minute she stepped over the threshold, she was enchanted.

This was real French country with a mix of period furniture. The authentic kind of fabulous treasures belonging to a man with a royal heritage.

Alcoves, beamed ceilings, inlaid parquet floors, hand-carved furniture, flowers in copper pots, wrought iron fixtures, books, paintings. Sheer elegance that could only be created and enjoyed by someone of Luc’s aristocratic status.

Once again Olivia was reminded that Luc’s father was a duc, and his mother a Varano who was one of the direct descendents of the House of Parma-Bourbon in Italy.

Greer was now married to Max, the son of the Duc of Parma-Bourbon. After their honeymoon, she would be living with her husband in Colorno, a town near Parma, in an Italian villa so fantastic, words failed Olivia.

They failed her now. She looked around in wonder as they passed through to a study off the entrance hall where a stairway of hand-painted Provence tiles rose in a graceful curve to the second floor.

Surely Luc employed staff to keep the villa in such perfect condition, but she could see no sign of them right now.

After being in the hot sun most of the day, his house felt blessedly cool to Olivia. Since he was ignoring her, she entered his inner sanctum without being asked, and sank down in one of two fat Louis XV chairs upholstered in a fabric with the Falcon crest.

Luc moved around his huge oak desk with an ancient porcelain clock placed on top. What a striking contrast to see the master of this small palace of a villa dressed in nothing more than a pair of well-worn cutoffs.

Still standing, he reached for the house phone. Before long she heard him say, “Ciao, Fabio.” The next thing she knew he was speaking fluent Italian.

The multilingual Varano cousins were close as brothers and exceptional men in their own right. More than ever Olivia was determined to get Luc to fall in love with her. She was so crazy about him she would do whatever it took.

Olivia wasn’t under any delusion that Luc wanted to be with her. On the contrary. The fact that he was trying to arrange a trip with Fabio only proved he would do anything to save Cesar from her clutches.

The situation couldn’t be working out better.

Please make it happen, Fabio.

“I wish I could accommodate you, Luc, but the boat is fully chartered for August. There’s one bedroom left for you if you were to join us in Monterosso on Tuesday. Signorina Duchess could use it until Saturday. You could have my berth in the crew’s quarters and I could sleep on deck.”

“You’re a good friend, Fabio, but I would never ask such a favor of you.”

While they were talking, Luc kept his eye on Olivia, wondering what in the devil she was really up to. He’d learned not to trust one word that came out of that treacherously beautiful mouth of hers. However he didn’t believe that even she would lie about Cesar’s intention to give her an engagement ring.

Life hadn’t been the same since the Duchess triplets had exploded into Luc’s world with the force of a colliding meteor. They’d done the unexpected at every turn, driving him and his cousins crazy.

But because Cesar had entered into this latest equation, Luc had been hesitant to shut the door on her half an hour ago and leave her to her own cunning devices.

“I wish I could help you,” Fabio murmured, “but the other charter companies in the Cinq Terre region are as busy as I am. If I had more time, and you didn’t need a luxury craft, I could probably arrange something for you.”

A luxury craft…

Luc’s thoughts shot ahead. “What about your friend, Giovanni? Does he still have that old sailboat?”

“Of course, but it needs a paint and has no sail at the moment.”

That was even better. “Would he let me use it? I’ll pay him what the Duchess triplets paid you.”

“You mean just to putt around Vernazza’s bay while you do a little fishing? You must be joking! Twelve thousand dollars is more money than he makes in five months at the trattoria in Vernazza.

“He’ll be overjoyed to let you borrow it for as long as you want, but I seriously doubt Signorina Duchess will step foot on it. She paid for a luxury boat to take her as far as the Spanish Riviera, and she expects a crew to wait on her.”

A diabolical smile broke the corners of Luc’s mouth. When she found out she was the designated crew who had to do all the work, that spoiled, mercenary, scheming female would leave Vernazza on the first train out of there.

If Cesar wanted her so much, he’d have to go after her. As for Luc, she’d be out of his life forever. By tomorrow afternoon, he’d be liberated. In a week he’d be able to drive a car again, and life would get back to normal as he knew it before the advent of the Duchess sisters.

It didn’t matter that his skiing days were over. The alpine sport he’d enjoyed from childhood was now a thing of the past. But because of modern medical science, he’d be able to walk again without the assistance of a cane. When the week was up, he’d celebrate by burning it.

“Luc? Are you still there?”

“Forgive me, Fabio. I was distracted for a moment. To answer your question, Signorina Duchess won’t have a choice if she wants to get in a Mediterranean trip before she flies back to New York. If you’ll give me Giovanni’s phone number, I’ll call him and see if he’s willing to let me use it starting tomorrow. I know this is short notice.”

“No problem. I’ll take care of everything, Luc. You can consider it a fait accompli. The Gabbiano will be waiting for you at the Vernazza dock.”

“Excellent. Grazie, Fabio. Ciao.” Mademoiselle Olivier was in for the surprise of her life!

The second he hung up, his gaze locked with a pair of flame-blue eyes.

“Well?” she prodded. “What did Signore Moretti have to say?”

“He told me to tell you that for the Duchess of Kingston, he would move heaven and earth to accommodate you.”

“I knew Fabio would pull through! But the next time you talk to him, tell him I like heaven and earth right where they are. All I’m asking is to go on the vacation Daddy paid for.”

Ah yes. The famous Husband Fund. Who could forget? It proved that truth was stranger than fiction.

According to Max, the Duchess sisters had come to Europe the first time around on the money their father had willed to them, money he called the “Husband Fund.” They could only use it to try to snag a husband.

Absurd and ridiculous as the plan had sounded, it had worked. Greer Duchess was now Signora di Varano, with Max her blissful groom.

Both Luc and Nic had been stunned by the way their cousin had run to his own wedding with such eagerness. In fact he’d gotten engaged to Greer four days after meeting her, which had to be some kind of record.

Luc studied her for a moment. “It seems you’re going to get your wish. The boat will be ready for us tomorrow.”

“But you said you have to go to the hospital in the morning. Won’t you need a day of rest first?”

What was she playing at now, feigning concern. “I thought the main point of this exercise was to remove you from Cesar’s grasp as soon as possible.”

“Well of course it is, but not at the expense of your leg.”

“I had no idea you cared.”

From their first meeting, Olivia had seemed to take particular delight in mocking him over anything to do with his injury. Her last taunt about his not being able to get in Cesar’s race car, let alone drive it, still rankled. Being prohibited from driving for the last seven months had served as its own prison.

“Of course I care,” she blurted. “You are a human being, even if you don’t display the normal set of emotions. Cesar told me you were into robotics engineering. How very apropos.”

“I’m glad we understand each other.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “Why?”

“You’re going to have to fetch and carry for me.”

“The Piccione is a luxury boat. The crew will help you. I’ll be too busy swimming.”

“You mean fishing for men.”

“That’s right. I understand from Cesar that the Prince of Monaco is scuba diving off the coast of Ischia at the moment. His mother was an American. We would have a lot in common. I’m going to tell the captain to set sail for Ischia as soon as we leave port.”

“You do that.”

“I will!” She tossed her head before wandering over to the window to look out at the view. The gesture brought attention to her cap of gleaming gold curls which was a new hairstyle for her. Over six weeks ago when they’d first met, she’d been wearing it longer.

Short like this, it brought out the classic mold of her facial features. Her eyes looked larger than ever.

Luc found himself looking forward to tomorrow when she discovered that she and the steward were one in the same person.

It was hard to believe that only an hour ago Luc had assumed his younger brother had already whisked her off to the Amalfi Coast where the family had a small villa above Positano. It sat high on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean, one of Cesar’s favorite haunts to take his flavor of the month.

When Luc thought of Olivia standing near the altar in some filmy white bridesmaid concoction where she’d caught the golden light from the stained glass windows pouring into the chapel, the image of luscious, succulent golden peaches in rich crème came to mind.

Definitely an enticing taste treat. Cesar could be forgiven for not being able to take his eyes off her during the ceremony.

Since Luc had been the one to introduce her to his brother, he shouldn’t have been surprised she would take one look at Cesar and go after him with a vengeance. The ultimate playboy with a title. Just what she’d come to Europe for.

Watching a laughing Olivia drive away from the Varano estate in the Ferrari with Cesar after the wedding was a case in point.

Now she was pretending to run away from his brother, but it was a ploy to sink her hooks deeper until he was caught. Unfortunately she’d come to the wrong man for help. No way was Luc going to allow a treacherous opportunist like Olivia Duchess to succeed at her game, even if she and Cesar deserved each other…

Suddenly she wheeled around. “I don’t suppose there’ll be a real French chef on board this time.”

Luc pretended to look in his desk drawer for something. “Fabio employs various locals. I didn’t think to ask him which one. You should have taken advantage of my cooking when you had the chance.”

“Give me a break. I found out it was your parents’ chef who prepared the food before it was brought aboard the Piccione.”

He darted her a quick glance. “I concede to that happening on one occasion because I was otherwise occupied.”

“You mean you and your cousins were too busy playing undercover cop. How come you haven’t found your thief yet?”

“Give us a little more time and we will.”

Earlier in the day Nic had called Luc, asking him to fly to England. The police had stumbled across a new lead in the case of the family’s missing jewelry collection from the Colorno palace in Italy. One of the pieces had turned up at an auction in London. Nic wanted to discuss the new development with him.

Luc had been forced to turn him down because of his hospital visit in the morning, but after his week of recuperation was up, he promised to join Nic in Marbella, Spain, where he lived and they’d discuss new ideas to track down the culprits.

The disappointment in his cousin’s voice was understandable. Luc suspected his cousin was looking for an excuse to get together because, like Luc, he was feeling deserted now that the wedding was over. Their cousin Max, who’d been a best friend and brother to them, was now a married man.

“Luc? In case you hadn’t noticed, your phone’s ringing. From the sound of it, they’re not going to hang up. I would imagine it’s Cesar looking for me.

“The maid at your parents’ house had to give me your address and probably told him I was here. Maybe I should answer it. That way he’ll believe you’re the man I was referring to in my note. What do you think?”

Luc didn’t have to think. She obviously had Cesar eating out of her hand. “Be my guest.”

CHAPTER THREE

FULL of confidence, Olivia took the receiver Luc handed to her and said hello. When there was no answer she said hello again, a little louder this time. If it was Cesar on the other end, no doubt he was debating whether to hang up or not.

Suddenly a familiar female voice came over the wires. “Olivia Duchess!”

Oh, no. It was Greer!

“I didn’t want to believe what Piper told me,” her sister started in without preamble. “What in heaven’s name are you doing at Luc’s house, let alone answering his phone? I can’t believe you actually followed through with this outrageous plan of yours!”

Olivia spun around so her back faced Luc. She couldn’t fathom that her sister was calling all the way from Greece when she was supposed to be in Max’s arms right now. Greer could ruin everything!

Think fast, Olivia. “Are you still in Monza?”

“Monza— Oh, I get it. Luc’s standing right there next to you. Piper told me about this crazy scheme of yours and begged me to stop you, but I can see it’s already too late.”

“I’m afraid it is.”

“Listen to me—there’s something you need to know about Luc. I was hoping I would never have to tell you, but after Piper’s emergency phone call, I’ve decided it’s necessary.”

“There’s nothing else to be said. Please under-45 stand. Besides this isn’t the time with Luc going into the hospital first thing in the morning for surgery on his leg. It’s time for bed right now and he needs a good night’s sleep.”

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