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  Gervais shrugged. “We don’t know yet. Nobody’s talking to me. I’m not tied to her in any legal way.”

  Dempsey’s voice lowered till it was something barely audible. He looked squarely into his brother’s eyes. “Do you plan to be there for your child?”

  “Yes.” Gervais didn’t hesitate. “Absolutely.”

  Henri shifted his weight from foot to foot. The three Reynaud men stared at each other, no one daring to utter so much as a syllable for a few moments.

  Dempsey nodded. “Good. You know what? I’m going to get coffee for us. Who knows how long we will be here. ER visits are never short.”

  “Great. Thanks,” Henri said as Dempsey walked back toward the doors. “Is she considering giving the baby up for adoption?”

  “I didn’t bring that up.” Truth be told, he hadn’t even thought of that as a real option. It was his child. He wanted to provide for his child.

  “Did she?” Henri crossed his arms, voice lowered so only they could hear each other.

  “No. I’m not even sure how the royalty part plays into this.” God, what if his power, prestige, money, wasn’t worth jack and she took his child away altogether? “She discussed shared parenting.”

  Henri shrugged. An attempt at nonchalance that fell flat. “I just want you to know that if things change, Fiona and I are willing to raise the baby as our own.”

  Gervais looked over at his brother quickly, thinking of all the miscarriages his brother and sister-in-law had been through, the strain that had put on their marriage. This baby news had to be hitting his normally happy-go-lucky brother hard. “Thank you, my brother. That means a lot to me. But this is my child. Not some mistake. Not just a responsibility. My child.”

  Henri nodded and hooked an arm around his brother’s shoulders. “I look forward to meeting my niece or nephew. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you.” Gervais noticed how Henri’s face became blank. Distant. “Are you and Fiona okay?”

  “Sure, we’re fine,” Henri replied a bit too quickly.

  “We need your total commitment to the season. If you’re having any problems, you can come to me.” And he meant it. He wanted to be there for his brother. For his whole family. They meant everything to him.

  Henri shook his head, looking his brother in the eyes. Offering a smile that refused to light his cheeks or touch his eyes. “No problem.”

  Gervais shook his head, raising an eyebrow at him. “You never were a good liar.”

  Wasn’t that the truth? When they were kids, Henri always cracked under pressure. His eyes would widen when he fibbed.

  “No problems that will distract me from the game. Now stop being the owner of the team and let’s be brothers.”

  Gervais was about to protest, but suddenly the ER waiting room was alive with movement. Dempsey strode back over to them, cups of coffee on a tray. A damn fine balancing act going on.

  And following closely on his heels was a doctor. The same old, frazzle-haired doctor that had been treating Erika. His gut knotted.

  The doctor cleared his throat. “Mr. Reynaud—Gervais Reynaud,” he clarified. The whole town knew the Reynauds, so no doubt the doctor recognized them. “Ms. Mitras is asking for you.”

  All he could do was nod. Deep in his chest, his heart thudded. Afraid. He was afraid of what was wrong with Erika and his child.

  The doctor opened a thick pinewood door to a small exam room and gestured for Gervais to enter.

  In the center of the room, Erika was hooked up to a smattering of machines. Lights flashed from various pieces of equipment. Her blond hair was tied back into a topknot, exposing the angles of her face. Somehow making her seem impossibly beautiful despite the presence of the machines.

  Within moments he was at her side. He wanted to show her he was here. He was committed to their child and would not abandon her. Stroking her hand, he knelt beside her. “You’re okay? The baby’s okay?”

  Her face was pale, but she smiled, her eyes serene. “We are fine. Absolutely fine.”

  “This child is important to me. You are important to me.” She was damn important. He had to make her see that.

  “Because I am the baby’s mother.” The words spilled from her mouth matter-of-factly. As if there was no other reason he’d be here right now.

  “We had a connection before that.”

  A dramatic sigh loosed from her pink lips. “We had an affair.”

  “I called you afterward.” She’d been imprinted on his brain. A woman he could not—would not—forget.

  “You are a gentleman. I appreciate that. In fact, that was part of what drew me to do something so uncharacteristic. But it was only a weekend.”

  “A weekend with lasting consequences.” A weekend that had turned him inside out. Given time, he could make her see that, too.

  “More than we realized,” she said with a shaky laugh.

  “What do you mean?” Head cocking to the side, he tried to discern the cause of the uneasy laughter.

  She gestured to the ultrasound machine next to her. “I am pregnant with twins.”

  Gervais tore his gaze from Erika, focusing on the screen. Sure enough, there were two little beans on the ultrasound. He and Erika were going to have twins.

  Six

  Exhausted, Erika relaxed back into the passenger seat of Gervais’s luxury SUV. The leather seat had the smell of a woodsy cologne, a smell she distinctively recognized as Gervais. It was oddly comforting, a steadying moment in a day that had been anything but stable.

  As the car pulled away from the hospital, she glanced out the window, craning to see the collection of Reynaud brothers who stood at the entrance. Her sisters would swoon over the attractive picture they presented, those powerful, broad-shouldered men. They had all come rushing to the hospital, filled with concerns. And likely, with questions.

  But they had been polite in the lobby after her release. They didn’t press for information—the conversation had been brief. They’d wanted to know if she was okay. And neither Gervais nor Erika had offered any information about twins. That was something that they still had to discuss together. Something she still hadn’t processed.

  But how should she broach this new development in an already emotionally charged day? How in the world could she bring up everything in her whirring mind? Her eyes remained fixed out of the car, even though the scene of the hospital had faded from vision, framed by wrought-iron fences and thick greenery. Now the vibrant pinks and yellows of the old French houses populated her view.

  Glancing at an elaborate wood-carved balcony, she let out an emotional sigh. What had happened today had left her shaken. She’d never passed out like that before, never felt so disoriented in her life. She’d been blessed with good health, and she had pushed her physical endurance to the limit during her military training. Yet this pregnancy was only just beginning and it had already landed her flat on her back. But, thanks to Gervais’s quick action, she and her children—children, plural, oh, God—were safe.

  It was all that mattered. That her children were okay. The twins were fine. Twins. She turned the word over. Was it possible to love them both so much already, even though she’d just learned about them? And yet, she did. In spite of her nerves, in spite of not having a plan figured out. Sure, she was scared about the future, about having to deal with her family...but she was overwhelmed with a deep love for her children already.

  She peered over at the man in the driver’s seat beside her. Perhaps he felt her eyes on him, because soon Gervais’s throat moved in a long swallow. “Twins?” he mused aloud. “Twins.”

  The simple utterance seemed to linger on his tongue and echo through the quiet interior of the luxury vehicle. Not that she could blame him for being overwhelmed by the news. There was a lot to take in. Still, even under Gervais’
s audible processing of the fact that he was about to be a father not to one but two children, she could hear a glow of pride in his tone. A protectiveness that caught her attention.

  Of course, the raw, masculine appeal of his muscular body taking up too much space beside her might have something to do with how thoroughly he held her notice. How easy it would be to simply lean closer. Lean on him. She could almost imagine the feel of his suit jacket beneath her cheek if she laid her head on his shoulder and curled up against his chest.

  She forced herself to focus on the conversation they needed to have instead. On their children.

  “Yes, there are two in there. I even heard the heartbeats.” Her heart fluttered with joy as she remembered the delicate beating of her—their—children. The sound had made her spring to life in a way she didn’t know was possible. She felt bad he’d missed that. They were his children, too, and he’d deserved to have that same feeling of awe. Looking at him sidelong, she said cautiously, “Next time you can come with me if you wish.”

  “I wish.” There was no mistaking the sound of his commitment.

  “Then you should be there.” She couldn’t hold back the smile swelling inside her as she drank in his eyes alight with honest excitement. “It is too early to distinguish the sex, you know.”

  He shrugged, clearly unconcerned. “That doesn’t matter.”

  “It did in my family.” It came out in a whisper, something almost like a secret. And each word hurt.

  He glanced over at her briefly before turning his eyes back to the road as they drove west toward his home. “Be clearer for me.”

  She smoothed the skirt of her dress, wrinkled beyond recognition after being crumpled into a hospital bag during her exam. If only she could smooth over her past as easily. This was knowledge she carried every day. Knowledge that ate at her and had her entire lifetime. “A line of girls was always cause for concern in my home. The monarchy is technically inactive, but even so there is no provision for a female ruler. There are no male heirs. I am afraid...”

  “Oh, no. No way in hell is anyone taking my children away.” His brow furrowed, anger simmering in his eyes, the joyous warmth gone.

  “Our children. These are our children.” She felt all the same protective instincts he did, and she felt them with a mother’s fierce love.

  “And we can’t afford to forget for even a moment how important it is that we work together for the children. If there’s a chance we can have more than a bicoastal parenting relationship, don’t you think it’s worth figuring that out as soon as possible?” The look he gave her was pointed. Sharp.

  But Erika wasn’t about to back down. She hadn’t decided how to handle whatever was between them. And that meant she had to think a bit more. She wouldn’t be rash and impulsive. One of them had to think through their actions.

  “I will let you know when I schedule my doctor visit. I will want to visit the doctor again before returning home.”

  He scowled. “Can we not talk about you leaving? We’re still settling details.”

  “You know I do not live here.” New Orleans was lovely, with its vibrant history, loud colors and live music that seemed to drift up from every street corner. But it was not home. Not that she really knew where home was these days...

  “One day at a time. And today we are dealing with a big change, the reality of two children. I know that happens. I just never expected...” His voice trailed, his words ebbing with emotion.

  “I have twin sisters.” She had always envied them their closeness, like having a built-in best friend from birth. “Twins—how do you say?—walk in my family.”

  “Run in your family. Okay.”

  She blinked at him, filing away the turn of English phrasing that brought a funny image to her mind of twins sprinting through her family tree. This was all happening so fast, she’d never stopped to consider the possibility of twins. There was so much to figure out still. “My oldest sister also has twin girls. I should have considered this possibility but I have been so overwhelmed since I realized I was expecting.”

  “Thank you for coming to tell me so soon.” He covered her hand on the center console. “I appreciate that you didn’t delay.”

  “You are the father. You deserve to know that.” Erika lifted her chin up, tilting her head to the side to get a better look at him. He was a good man. She knew that much.

  “We’re going to make this work.” He lifted her hand and kissed the back, then the inside of her wrist over her rapidly beating pulse.

  The press of his mouth to her skin was warm and arousing, stirring memories of their weekend together. The air crackled between them now as it had then. Her emotions were already in turmoil after the scare at the game. She ached to move closer, to feel his arms around her. To have those lips on her body again. Everywhere. Arousing her to such heights her head spun at the thought. How quickly she could simply lose herself in what he could make her feel.

  But doing so would take away any chance of objectivity. And now she had twice the reason to tread carefully into the future.

  * * *

  The silver stain of moonlight washed over the lake. The water was restless. Frothy. Uneasy. A lot like the restlessness inside Gervais. But he had to pull it together in order to make this phone call.

  He thumbed through his phone, finding his father in his contact list. How long had it been since they’d spoken? Months, no doubt. The bright screen blared at him.

  He knew he had to call him about Erika’s pregnancy. Theo was in Paris for the week with his latest girlfriend. Which was, in some ways, fortunate. This way, Gervais had gotten to talk to Erika privately before his father had a chance at royally screwing the dynamic up.

  But it also meant he had to make this call. Which was something he never looked forward to doing. Years of neglect and dysfunction had their way of clinging to their current relationship. Another lesson of how not to treat children brought to you by Theo Reynaud. Dear old dad loved football and his family, but not as much as romancing women.

  Before he could think better of it, Gervais pressed Send on the screen. Feeling the pinch of nerves, he poured himself a glass of bourbon from the pool-deck bar, staring at where a few kids messed around with a stand-up paddleboard. Beyond them, the lights of gambling boats winked in the distance and even farther behind those he could see the bridge that spanned the lake.

  Gervais wasn’t sure why he felt the need to talk to his dad other than doing him the courtesy of making sure he didn’t hear via the grapevine. Discretion wasn’t Theo’s strong suit. But if Gervais spun the news just right, maybe he could keep a lid on it a bit longer. Erika would appreciate that.

  And tonight making Erika relaxed and happy felt like the first priority on a quickly shifting list in his life. But knowing that she carried his children had brought things into sharp focus for him today.

  “Hello, son.” His father’s graveled voice shot through the receiver, yanking him from his thoughts.

  Might as well cut to the chase.

  “Dad, you’re going to be a grandfather.”

  “About damn time. Damn shame Henri is still carrying a grudge and didn’t tell me himself. The divorce was a long time ago.”

  In the background of the call, the sound of violin music and muted chatter combined with the clink of glasses. The sounds of a bar scene.

  Gervais ignored the mention of his parents’ dysfunctional marriage. “Henri and Fiona aren’t expecting. I’m the one about to make you a gramps.”

  News about the twins could wait. One step at a time. He was still reeling from that news himself.

  “With who? You didn’t knock up some groupie looking for a big payoff from the family?” His voice crackled through the phone from across the Atlantic.

  “Dad, that’s your gig. Not mine.” And just like that, he was on
the defensive. Gervais was not his father. He would never be like his father. And the fact that his father thought he had that in his nature sent him reeling.

  “No need to be disrespectful.” Bells chimed in the background of the call, an unmistakable sound of a slot machine in payoff mode.

  So much for keeping the subject of his parents’ divorce off the table. “You destroyed your marriage with your affairs. You ignored your own sons for years. I lost respect for you a long time ago.”

  “Then why are you here now telling me about this baby?”

  Gervais closed his eyes, blotting out the lights from the distant boats on the lake, listening to the sound of the water. With his spare hand, he pressed on his eyes, inhaling deeply. Exhaling hard, he opened his eyes, resolve renewed.

  “Because this news is going to go viral soon and I want to make sure you understand I will not tolerate any inappropriate or hurtful comments to the mother of my child.” That was something he absolutely would not allow. From anyone. Least of all his father. He would protect Erika from that.

  “Understood. And who might this woman be?” An air of interest infused his words.

  “Erika Mitras.” He sat down, inspecting his ice cubes as he waited for his father to make some sort of off-color remark.

  “Mitras? From that royal family full of girls? Well, hell, son. It’s tough to find someone not out for our money, but kudos to you. You found a woman who doesn’t need a damn thing from you.”

  The words cut him, even though, for once, his father hadn’t meant any harm by them. Erika had said as much about not needing Gervais’s help. But he wanted to be there for his children. For her. Seeing those two tiny lives on that monitor today had blown him away.