Love Is Lovelier Read Online Free

have other plans, we have a superb roster of highly-trained nannies. I’ve selected each one with an eye to whether I would trust her with my beloved Daisy Rose.”
    The woman’s eyes grew round. “Oh my. What a wonderful idea! Next year is our fiftieth anniversary. What a splendid celebration that would make!”
    Anne ignored the stab of pain at the thought that she and Remy had only been granted thirty-seven years together, and those had flown past as if they’d been ten. She found her smile again. “Perhaps you’d like to chat with Denise Sinclair. She manages all our events bookings and can tell you about next year’s calendar.”
    “I believe I would. Where would I find her?”
    Anne spotted Luc at the courtyard doors leading into the reception area. “Luc, may I ask your help?”
    The guest’s eyes widened at Luc’s blond good looks. “He’s a heartbreaker, isn’t he?”
    “The ladies do seem to take to him.” Anne smiled. “Mrs. Branson, this is Luc Carter, our concierge. Luc, would you please arrange for Mrs. Branson to meet Denise as soon as possible? She and her family might be interested in having a fiftieth-anniversary celebration at the hotel.”
    “ Enchanté, Mrs. Branson.” Luc bowed over the woman’s hand, and Anne bit her cheek as the guest’s eyes seemed poised to roll back in her head. “I would be delighted to take you to Denise. On the way, would you perhaps like to see our honeymoon suite? It seems to me a location well-suited for a couple celebrating fifty years of love.”
    “Oh, well, my goodness—”
    Luc tucked the woman’s hand into his elbow. “Please. I would be honored.”
    Well done, Anne thought. She nodded to Luc.
    He winked back at her over the woman’s head, then led her away.
    “ Mère .” Charlotte called from behind her. “Good morning.”
    “Good morning, doucette. ” Anne accepted her daughter’s embrace. “How are you today?”
    “Behind already.” She indicated Luc and the guest. “Problem?”
    “Not a bit. After a conversation about her grandchildren, who live too far away from her, I merely suggested that the Hotel Marchand might be an excellent venue for a family reunion. Turns out that Mr. and Mrs. Branson will have their fiftieth anniversary next year, so Luc is taking her to Denise by way of the honeymoon suite.”
    “He’s really good. I thought we’d never find a decent replacement for Alphonse, but Luc couldn’t be more suited if he were a member of the family.”
    “Sometimes it almost feels as if he is.”
    “You’re sad today. Because of the talk of a fiftieth anniversary?”
    Anne shook off her tristesse . “I’m just fine.”
    “You and Papa should have had seventy years. A hundred.”
    Anne swallowed the lump in her throat. “I would have cherished every second.”
    “I wish I thought I—” Charlotte broke off in mid-sentence.
    Her expression completed it, however. At least for a mother who adored her. “You’ll find your one and only, chère .”
    Sorrow chased over her daughter’s lovely features. “I don’t think so, Mama.” Anne had come to associate the use of the Cajun mama, rather than the Creole mère with the presence of strong emotion in her eldest. “You have three daughters who’ve each found the love of their life. That beats the odds these days.”
    Charlotte straightened, squared her shoulders. “And anyway, the next love affair in the Marchand family appears to be taking place in some strange venues, like the pool at dawn or the restaurant for breakfast.”
    “Robert has a big mouth.” Anne was not pleased to feel the need to squirm. “William and I were merely having a friendly breakfast.”
    “He knows you’re back in your quarters here?” She shook her head slightly. “Of course he would. The queen probably dispatched him to return you to the castle where she can keep an eye on you.”
    Anne knew she shouldn’t encourage her children’s private nickname for her mother, Celeste, but