Page 47 of Her Forbidden Bargain

Sheri ached to hear his words, but they mirrored what she already knew. Tristan had told her himself that he couldn’t love anymore. That he’d had his once in a lifetime. It was just her bad luck that she had found her forever-love in him.

“I know all that. I thought I could love him enough for both of us. But that was silly, and now we’re both moving on.”

“I’m not sure that you haven’t changed him, Sheri. He’s a different man today than he was at Christos’s wedding, and that’s thanks to you.”

“I doubt that. I’m not the type of woman who can change a man’s life.”

Gui sat down on the corner of her desk. “Yes, you are. Don’t give up on him yet. Will you give him one more chance?”

She shook her head. She couldn’t bear the pain of losing him again.

The phone rang, but it was after hours so she let it go to voice mail. “Why do you care?”

“Because Tristan is one of my dearest friends and you’ve made him happier in the last few weeks than I’ve seen him in years.”

She was afraid to believe him. But at the same time, she knew Gui wouldn’t lie to her. “I’m afraid to take another chance on him. I just made up my mind that he wasn’t going to stay with me.”

“You strike me as a fighter, Sheri. Someone who wouldn’t let the chance of a lifetime slip away.”

She looked up at Gui and realized that he was right. She was letting go of Tristan too easily. She loved the man, and that wasn’t going to change. Shouldn’t she keep fighting for him?

Sheri’s absence was palpable to Tristan as the day drew on. Blanche and Rene had a lot of questions about her, and the more he talked with his siblings about her, the more he realized how much he cared for her.

When they got back to his place, he waited for Sheri to come and greet them but she must still be at the office, hiding from him. He felt the emptiness in a new way. Echoing around him.

Gui had been shocked by how he looked. When Tristan had mentioned that the engagement was definitely off, Gui had left in disgust to run an errand. And Tristan realized that his plan to make Sheri his fake fiancée hadn’t been well thought out. He’d never considered how he’d feel when she left his life.

Blanche had nothing but good things to say about Sheri and Tristan found himself laughing at the stories she told about shopping with the woman he’d been trying to keep out of his heart for the last few weeks. As he pictured her in his mind, he realized he hadn’t done a very good job of it.

He loved her. How could he not have realized what he was feeling for her? The only excuse he had was that it was different than the sweet and gentle love he’d had for his Cecile. With Sheri the love was bigger than he was, passionate. And that’s what had him running scared.

Dammit, she had been right when she’d called him a coward. He had been running from her, because he’d been afraid to risk being hurt again.

Realizing that, he knew he had to make things right for her. Had to find a way to win her back before she had to face his friends and family tomorrow night at the engagement gala. He wanted it to be a real celebration, otherwise what was the point?

He called the office, but Sheri’s phone went to voice mail. He hung up without leaving a message. He had no idea when she was going to show up, or even where she was. But he did know she’d come to the restaurant for dinner. Because she always kept her word.

And that was another reason he loved her. She wasn’t fickle or shallow. She couldn’t tell a lie to him. Her love would never leave him, or let him feel betrayed.

He knew he needed to do something to show Sheri that he was serious about her and that he wasn’t running away any longer. And he knew it would take more than the hour he had until he was supposed to start meeting his friends and family at Del Posto. He went and found his mother.

“Maman?”

“Oui, Tristan.”

“I need your help.”

“With?”

“I’ve hurt the woman I love and I need to make a big gesture to make it up to her, but we have reservations at a restaurant across town.”

“How can I help, mon fils?”

“Be my hostess while I take care of a few details here. And when Sheri arrives, keep her there.”

“Where will you be?”

“Taking care of details,” he said, kissing his mother on the forehead.