“Uncle Louis?” He’d always been around Darois House when they were kids. He’d been a nice man who always took the time to throw a ball with the kids. He would take them out for ice cream from time to time.

“I don’t call him ‘uncle’ anymore,” Rene murmured. “I stopped when I started working at the company. My father and Louis were in the same fraternity in college. Louis introduced my mother and father. She and Louis were childhood friends in Dallas. Their families ran in the same circles. Louis had a falling out with his family. That’s why he came here to work for my dad, but he kept up with my mother. At some point my dad and Louis went to Dallas and had dinner with my mother, and they were married six weeks later.”

“Louis never married?”

“No.” Rene sighed. “I wondered over the years if he wasn’t in love with my mother. He lights up when she walks into a room, like he’s delighted to see her. He’s often said she’s the loveliest woman in the world.”

“Does he still see her?”

“Yes, he comes around every few weeks and takes her out to dinner.”

That was such a sweet thing to do, and she wondered if Louis was going to finally make his move. The idea of the poor man longing for something he couldn’t have for years made her heart ache. “How would you feel if they got together?”

That stopped him in his tracks. “Why would they do that?”

Had he not thought about this? “They’re old, Rene. They’re not dead. Humans need companionship. They need love and affection, too.”

Rene turned and sat up. “She’s recently come off a round of cancer treatments. I don’t think she needs to start dating. Certainly not at her age.”

She frowned at him. “She’s not even seventy years old. She could have another twenty years.”

“Which is precisely why I hope to give her a couple of grandkids to love.”

It was such a good thing he’d put on that condom. She suddenly didn’t feel so comfortable being naked in front of him. The moment before, it had seemed normal and natural, but now his words brought doubt creeping back in. She reached for the sheet. “I should go take a shower.”

He sighed. “I did not marry you just to have children.”

“No, you married me because I can save your company and your house, too. A house you claim you only want because it’s your mother’s.” He had the weight of the world, but it seemed like he wouldn’t even consider shifting an ounce of it.