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‘You are. I have to drive. But I’ve done it before, so I’m okay with that.’
Adrenaline was skipping through Holly’s veins. She’d seen wine tastings before on television shows. Sophisticated events, taking place in the most beautiful locations, just like this one she was in now. But just like waterskiing and luxury villas, it wasn’t anything she had ever envisioned for herself.
She was about to thank Evan yet again when a tall woman with dark hair and a magnificent, long, red dress stepped out of the château, waving her hands emphatically.
‘Evan. Welcome. Welcome.’ She bounded across the gravel as if she was in a perfume commercial before kissing Evan on both cheeks. For a second, Holly felt like she should shift back a little and give them some privacy, but the woman didn’t with Evan. Before Holly realised what was happening, the woman had grasped Holly’s face and was planting equally expressive kisses on her cheeks too.
‘And you must be ’Olly, I’m so glad you’re here. Come, come. Edouard is just setting up.’
‘Helene is the owner of the vineyard,’ Evan said, offering Holly an arm. ‘She took it over a few years ago and has done an incredible job. They’ve got awards coming out of their ears.’
Helene threw a scowl over her shoulder.
‘You are exaggerating. We are still very small. But we are getting there.’
Everything about the way Helene moved screamed elegance and sophistication and, as they made their way up the steps, Holly couldn’t help but feel underdressed. She was still wearing the shorts she’d had on in the afternoon when she was reading in the villa, and this didn’t look like the type of place that let people in wearing shorts. It looked like the type of place people came to get married and yet Helene hadn’t stopped her yet.
‘Are you enjoying the villa? The view is beautiful, is it not?’
‘Stunning,’ Holly answered truthfully. ‘I’ve never stayed anywhere like it.’
Still holding Evan’s arm, she stepped into the hallway, where a large, copper chandelier hung from the ceiling, perfectly paired with turquoise wallpaper embellished with gold reliefs of peacock feathers. If Holly had attempted this kind of decoration in her house, it would’ve looked garish, but this was anything but. This was old-time elegance. The smell of wood varnish and red wine were embedded into the very floors of the building, taking her back centuries.
‘I know we ’ave our group tastings in the cellar, but I thought we would stay up ’ere this afternoon. The view is too good to be shut away in the dark, don’t you think?’
Holly turned back to the doorway, still mesmerised by the scenery. Vine-covered hills rolled away from them as the slightest sliver of sea glimmered in the distance. A strange flicker of guilt twinged within her. As much as her mother pretended she had no desire to travel, Holly knew how Wendy would love somewhere like here. Perhaps, if things at the sweet shop went well enough, Holly would bring them on a family trip in a couple of years’ time. Once Hope was older. Assuming her daughter wasn’t spending all her holidays with Ben and Georgia by then. Holly pushed the thought quickly from her mind.
‘Please, take a seat. Edouard will be with you soon. If I’d ’ad a little more warning that you were coming, I would’ve been able to do it myself, but I am afraid I ’ave meetings I cannot miss. Ah-ha, right on time.’
With a nod of her head, she gestured outside, where a four-by-four was parking up on the driveway. Holly stared at the vehicle, fixated, not by the car, but by the driver. Large sunglasses covered his eyes and he wore a baseball cap pulled down low on his head, but there was something familiar about the way he was leaning back and holding the steering wheel, completely at ease. She had known someone who drove just like that back in England, and the thought was enough to tie her stomach into knots.
‘We should let you go,’ Evan said as he kissed Helene’s cheeks and brought Holly back to the moment, although it was hard to ignore the tension that continued to hold fast within her.
She was being ridiculous, she reprimanded herself. Caught up in the grand gestures and lavish lifestyle, that was all. It was no surprise she found herself thinking of Giles; this was the exact type of place she could imagine him spending a weekend or taking his latest woman on a first date. With a quick glance back outside, she discovered the man had turned away from her and was crouching down looking at the wheel of his car in a manner that was distinctly un-Giles-like.
‘’Olly?’ Holly turned back just in time to receive more cheek kisses. ‘It is lovely to meet you. ’Opefully I will get to see more of you soon?’
‘Yes… of course.’
A second later, Helene and her stunning red dress left, leaving Holly alone with Evan, and thoughts of Giles fading rapidly from her mind.
‘She said we’re in here.’ Evan gestured to the room on their left.
‘I think it’s the reading room.’
‘That would make sense.’
The walls were covered with floor-to-ceiling bookcases and the smell of vintage leather was almost as strong as the aroma of wine. Inside the room, a dozen wine glasses had been set out on a small table, next to a long couch, though there was currently no sign of the wine. Or any other people.
‘Is this going to be a group thing?’ Holly said, thinking of all the wine-tasting events she’d seen on television. They had always involved large groups of people, many of whom had arrived as part of a bus tour so that they could drive home safely.
‘Yes,’ Evan said promptly, before a slight smirk spread across his face. ‘A group of two.’
‘You mean it’s just us?’
‘This is the date you promised me, remember? Besides, this way you get to ask lots of questions. And I’m just interested to find out if you babble more or less when you’re drunk.’
‘Hey.’
