Alexandre's POV
I called my legal team from the restaurant.
Not discreetly — there was no discreet version of this conversation. I stepped outside onto the quai while Claire settled Theo with a second glass of chocolate milk and the serious business of deciding whether the small boat had now overtaken the big one in Gerald's official ranking. Philippe watched me go with the expression of someone who had seen many things happen at his tables and was adding this one to the list.
The call lasted twelve minutes.
My head of legal — Sébastien Marchand, who had been with Laurent Group for nine years and had the specific unflappable quality of a man who had handled every variety of corporate crisis without raising his voice — listened without interrupting. When I finished he was quiet for four
