Page 83 of A New Year In The Presidential Suite

Finished with unpacking, Lori went into the kitchen for dinner. She checked the refrigerator and saw that Aurelia had left her favorite chicken and rice casserole. At the last minute, she decided to have a glass of wine before eating. Having learned about wine in California, she gazed at the few bottles she kept in the pantry and pulled out a bottle she’d been given for her birthday. It was a pinot noir from Santa Barbara.

She uncorked the bottle, poured some into a glass, and let it air for a minute while she set the table and popped the casserole into the oven to reheat.

Sitting at the table, she took a sip of wine, letting it roll around in her mouth before swallowing, as Griff had shown her. Then she sighed with approval. After having a few more sips, Lori lifted her cell to call Griff to tell him about the wine, and then she put it back on the table.

She jumped when her cell rang. Flo.

“Hey, sis! Sorry, I couldn’t meet you. Eloise is sick with a cold, and I didn’t want to leave her. I’m thinking she’ll be better in a day or two, but I didn’t want to expose you. I know what it's like with your work with kids. You don’t need any germs from us.”

Lori chuckled. “No, I don’t. Tell my godchild I love her and her brother and want her to feel better.”

“I will. But because I’m stuck at home, it doesn’t mean we can’t talk about the trip. How was it? Was that cute guy from the winery website there? Spill, girl.”

“The trip was fabulous,” gushed Lori. “A dream. Now, I have to get settled back into my normal routine. I learned a lot about growing grapes and making wine. It’s fascinating.”

“And the winery itself?”

“It’s beautiful, much larger than I thought. There’s a great group of people working there. They were very eager to show me how things work.”

“And the handsome man whose grandfather owns the winery?” Flo asked.

“He’s as nice as he was at The Beach House Hotel when I first met him,” said Lori.

“Wait a minute! This is the same man?” said Flo. “You never made that clear. In fact, you told us the man you were doing things with was an older man. You even sent us a picture of him. What haven’t you been telling us, little sister?”

“It’s complicated,” said Lori.

“Not really,” Flo said. “It’s about time you fessed up to this whole winery mystery man. If Eloise is better tomorrow, I’m meeting you for coffee. You can tell me all about it then.”

Lori sighed. She was trapped.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

LORI

That night, Lori lay in her bed, grateful to be in familiar surroundings and with her favorite pillow. As she rested there, she could see the interior of the rental cabin clearly in her mind. How could one week have made such a difference in her life?

Her breathing slowed, and tired and stressed from all the trauma that brought her home early, she finally fell asleep.

Sometime later, she awoke and tried to catch her breath and slow her heart rate. The nightmares were back. Sobbing softly, she turned on the bedside lamp and climbed out of bed.

Lori padded into the kitchen and heated water in the tea kettle, hoping hot tea would calm her. She told herself the nightmares weren’t real, that everything was fine, but she had to force herself to think of other things.

After pouring herself a cup of tea, she sat at the kitchen table with a pad and pencil. Following Nick’s death, a therapist had trained her to write down her worst fears and either how to fix them or recognize they weren’t real.

As she began writing down her concerns, she realized that her memories about Nick, twisted as they were in her dreams, posed no real threat. Instead, she had to remember the happy times with him. As she wrote down a few of them, tears stung her eyes. They’d had a special marriage. A marriage that tragically ended.

She moved on to the images of Griff in her dreams, where she tried to save him. As she thought about it, she realized that in reality, he was trying to save her. She wanted to be with him, but she had to be sure that’s what he truly wanted. She was fragile and wouldn’t act without his encouragement. But she couldn’t allow herself to stop believing that what they shared was special.

Unable to resolve anything, exhausted, she got up and headed back to her bedroom to try and sleep. She had a lot to do the next day to prepare for her teaching job.

###

Lori awoke late, feeling as if she hadn’t slept at all. She dragged herself out of bed and got into the shower, hoping to revive herself.

After washing her hair and cleaning up, she dressed in jeans and stood by the washing machine giving a longing look at the overalls she’d used in California. She loved working in the field, tending to the vines. Though it was a tedious job, she’d enjoyed being part of the process of caring for the vines that would produce the grapes that would create lovely Adeline Hills wines.

She tossed the clothes in the washing machine and went to the kitchen to make coffee for herself.