The Offer from Paris
Chapter 18 - The Offer from Paris
The French investors returned.
They had watched Claire rebuild the company through the scandal.
This time, they offered a larger partnership.
The agreement would require Claire to divide her time between California and Paris.
Her board expected immediate acceptance.
Claire asked for a week.
Years earlier, she would have said yes before reading every page.
Work had once been the place where she felt safest.
Now she understood that achievement could also become a hiding place.
She returned to the seaside cottage.
There she met Daniel Mercer, the architect supervising repairs.
Daniel knew nothing about luxury hotels.
He knew Claire only as the woman who argued over window frames and insisted the old porch remain untouched.
They began with coffee.
Then dinner.
Claire told him the truth about her marriage before their third date.
Daniel did not promise never to hurt her.
May you like
He promised never to ask her to ignore what she saw.
It was the most honest romantic promise Claire had ever heard.
