Love Is Lovelier Read Online Free Page A

they were all adults.
    And the name was apt.
    “She’s not the only one who watches me a little too closely for my taste,” Anne said with an arched eyebrow, glad to turn the topic from William.
    “If we didn’t, you’d be back at work full-time—don’t try to deny it.”
    “I am simply lending a hand. It’s not meant to take away from the superb job you’re doing as general manager.”
    The temper that Charlotte seldom let free was simmering now. “Mama, you had a heart attack only four months ago, and it’s been a struggle from day one to get you to take it easy.”
    Anne drew herself up to accentuate the inch in height she had on her eldest. “My doctor has given me a clean bill of health. I’m probably in the best shape I’ve ever been in my life, and I’ll thank you—”
    Charlotte burst out laughing.
    Anne frowned. “I don’t find the subject amusing.”
    Charlotte grinned wider. “The queen herself couldn’t have given me a more elegant go-to-hell look. You have that down-your-nose, off-with-her-head expression down pat.”
    Anne’s stiff shoulders relaxed a fraction. She placed one hand on her daughter’s arm. “Honey, I appreciate that you care—”
    “But back off, right?”
    Anne smiled. “I wouldn’t have said it that way.”
    “Of course not. You’re the most elegant woman in New Orleans. The Times-Picayune got that right.” The merriment vanished from Charlotte’s face. “Mama, I couldn’t bear to lose you, too. Please.” Her forehead furrowed. “Let William take you somewhere for a few days.”
    Anne blinked. “You don’t approve of William. You must really be worried about me to suggest such a thing.”
    “It’s not that I don’t approve, only that—”
    Anne stroked Charlotte’s arm. “I know. You adored your papa. Sweetheart, William isn’t…” She didn’t finish the thought. She didn’t know what William was to her.
    Charlotte took her hand and squeezed. “It’s not my business if he’s special to you. Unless—” Her voice dropped. “If he hurts you, he’ll answer to me.”
    Anne embraced her daughter. “There’s nothing serious between us, so I won’t be hurt. And you have plenty else on your mind, anyway.”
    Charlotte’s frame was tight with the tension that seldom left her.
    “Has something new happened since the booking mix-up?”
    Charlotte rolled her eyes. “How did you find out about that?”
    “I have my ways. Answer me.”
    “Not exactly.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “I received another call from Richard Corbin.”
    “Did he raise his offer again?”
    “No. Instead, he issued an ultimatum. He says that their offer will only be good for another week.”
    “What? Cochon . He has some nerve—”
    Charlotte smiled at Anne’s muttered oath. “I agree.
    I repeated that we aren’t looking to sell, but—”
    “But what?”
    “Maybe we can’t recover. We might be foolish to keep putting him off. I don’t know how much harder any of us can work, and I’m waiting for the next disaster. It’s beginning to feel like a campaign against us.”
    Precisely Anne’s thoughts, though she hadn’t wanted to voice them. “We’ll do fine.” She knew she was whistling her way past the graveyard, but she refused to give up. She’d fought too hard, and now her daughters were fighting for her. “We’re Marchands. The Hotel Marchand is us, honey. Part of our blood and bone. We won’t let what your father built be taken from us.”
    “Your contribution was just as critical. If only we had that money that Papa…”
    Anne refused to think about the inexplicable disappearance of funds right before Remy died. “But we don’t,” she said firmly. “Remy and I built this place with far fewer resources. Working together, his girls and I will keep his dream alive.”
    Her valiant daughter nodded and straightened into almost military posture. “Damn right we will.”
    “Je t’aime,” she told her daughter.
    “I love you, too, Mama,”