As if no time had passed, Livvie parked her rental car on the side of the road. This time, she’d chosen a black car, after mourning Drake for the last six weeks. She got out of the car, holding the door for emotional support, and gazed up at the castle that awaited her. Unlike the last time, she wasn’t showing up as a lucky raffle winner, although, at the time, she’d felt anything but lucky. It was funny how life worked. Many times throughout her life, the universe brought her opportunities and situations she dreaded and had resented, but they had ended up being the best thing for her. Like what happened with Liam. Finally, she understood.
Today she wasn’t a lucky raffle winner. Today she was a woman fighting to be with a man she could envision spending her life with. However realistic that was, she didn’t know, but thanks to Veronica, Livvie was here to find out. At first, she thought Veronica would discourage her fight, but not only had she been encouraging, she’d thought of a brilliant plan to make it happen. Which was why Livvie was back in Napa six weeks later. Veronica had made it very clear that it took a man six to eight weeks to truly miss a woman. After that time, he would either realize she was the love of his life, or she would realize there was nothing left between them other than one blissful, beautiful week and two nights together. She’d also listened to Stephan and had used the six weeks to work on herself.
Taking a deep breath, Livvie got back into her car and made the left to take her up to Morganthal Winery. The drive felt surreal. While her heart was beating like mad, a feeling of numbness washed over her. She wasn’t surprised. Numbing out her life was a survival tool she used when she felt scared.
And unlike last time, when she passed the security guard in front of his castle, she waved, and he let her pass without having her stop.
Her numbness dissolved the moment she pulled up before Drake’s castle. Her heart beat louder. There it was, standing strong and proud, like the owner. She hoped the proud part wouldn’t get in her way.
She didn’t stop in front of the castle. Instead, she drove a little farther and then made the first right, which took her to one of Drake’s guest cottages. Veronica had insisted Livvie stay in the castle, but she’d refused. She was courageous by coming here without his knowledge, but she didn’t have enough courage to stay in his home. If it was up to her, she would stay at a nearby hotel, but Veronica wouldn’t allow that. She had hired Livvie to write her memoirs, so Livvie didn’t have a lot of room to argue. Plus, Veronica was paying Livvie. She would have written Veronica’s memoirs for free, but Veronica said she’d always wanted to have them done, but she couldn’t write. And Livvie was spending her savings quickly. She really needed the money. She charged Veronica enough to pay her bills and added in a little extra for food. Veronica agreed, although she had wanted to pay Livvie a lot more. In the end, they’d both settled on her staying in one of Drake’s guest cottages. It would have felt too awkward if she stayed in his castle.
Maybe she shouldn’t have involved Drake’s mom at all, but she hadn’t been able to think of any other way. She only hoped she wasn’t making everything worse.
The road narrowed as soon as the guest cottages came into view. Veronica had warned her to be careful driving on it. The road became so narrow Livvie was lucky there was enough room for her rented SUV. But as she got a glimpse of the first cottage she smiled to herself. Between the narrow road and the fairytale-like cottages everything seemed so enchanting.
A white picket fence surrounded each little, white, thatched-roofed cottage. A cobblestone path led to the front door. She felt as if she was in Ireland. Between his castle, the cottages, the mountains, and the vineyard, this was the most beautiful place on Earth. And even though she’d stayed here for one week, she had only gotten a glimpse of these cottages from afar. She had never gotten this close to this area of the vineyard.
Veronica had told her to drive to the end of the road, and she would be staying at the last house on the right. Number 6. On the side of her house was a small driveway. When Livvie saw the cottage, tears welled up in her eyes, and she started to cry. It was so perfect. So what she needed. Since there was no cottage next to it, Drake’s vines were leaning against it. All she could see from the side of the house was his gorgeous vineyard. This was the perfect writer’s retreat.
Although she could barely see through her tears, she parked in the driveway and then grabbed her luggage from the trunk. As she rolled her luggage to the house, she noticed there were window boxes filled with different colored flowers. And then she stopped walking and stared. She hoped this would be her home for at least a few weeks, and if she was lucky, a month. Knowing Drake was nearby, she already felt safe and protected. As long as he didn’t hate her, everything would be okay. And even if he did hate her, she would deal with it.
She opened the gate, walked through, and then her breath caught in her throat. The view from her cottage overlooked everything—the mountains, the vineyard, and Drake’s castle. If she looked closely enough, she’d find his bedroom windows. Her heart felt as if it was melting.
Livvie found the key under the mat, exactly where Veronica said it would be. When she opened the door, she stood still. She had entered into a small, breathtaking living room. The wall opposite from her was all grey stone. And there was a spiral staircase protruding from the ceiling, which she felt would lead her to heaven. The terracotta floor and wood beam ceiling gave the cottage a homier feel. The couch was white with pink, purple, and green floral throw pillows. There was an area rug with a floral print that matched the pillows. And the wooden coffee table matched the wood in the ceiling. A fireplace sat perfectly inside the stone wall, and on the right was an enormous bay window, which overlooked lush greenery—Drake’s vineyard to the left and the mountains that seemed to go on forever. But it wasn’t the majestic feel of the mountains that held her gaze captive. It was the intimidating castle that loomed over her cottage.
Taking a much-needed deep breath, Livvie closed the wooden door and leaned against it. If she had her way, she would climb the spiral staircase and hopefully find a bed, where she could escape her problems and remain in her fairy tale. So that was exactly what she did.
She climbed the spiral staircase carefully. At the top she found a room the same size as the living room, except instead of a stone wall, there was one full wall of windows. In front of the clear-glass wall was a king-sized bed with a fluffy white comforter and a wooden headboard. Without thinking twice, Livvie lay down on the bed, but before she closed her eyes she looked out the window and once again saw the ominous castle that seemed to be watching every move she made. The feeling didn’t scare her or make her feel uncomfortable. Instead, surprisingly, she felt at peace. She had no idea what the future held, but for the first time since she had left Morganthal Winery all those weeks ago, she felt as if she was home.