Love On The Vine (10 page)

At Sue’s okay, he stalked from the patio toward the dais where the musicians played. The music drifted into silence. He accepted a microphone from the singer. “Good evening, everyone.”

Movement in the room stilled and conversations stopped. All gazes swiveled to his.

“I’d like to thank you all for coming this evening, and for your support in launching my new vintage.”

Smiling faces looked back. Many raised their glasses. The whole effect was of a community embracing him as one of their own. If worry wasn’t roiling around his gut, he might have been delighted.

“Bella St. Clair’s company, Celebrate, organized this wonderful party,” Etienne said, determined Bella would garner more business as a result of his words. “Bella isn’t here yet, but I intend to remedy that. I’m afraid I have to leave you all for a while. Please enjoy the wine, the music, and the company!” He pointed at Sue who stood beside a flower-bedecked column. “Sue will be handling everything until I get back.” Without a backward glance, Etienne walked out of the château, slid into his car, and went to find her.

****

“W
e’re almost there.” Donna turned the van down the road to the vineyard.

Krista and Donna had been trying to soothe Bella’s shattered nerves for the past few miles, so she bit back her sharp response, and thought ‘that’s obvious!’ instead. She’d locked her bag in the back, and in the rush, there hadn’t been an opportunity to pull over and grab it. Krista had proffered her phone, but Etienne’s number was programmed into her own, so the offer was useless.

By now, the party would be in full swing, and he must be wondering where on earth she’d got to. Why hadn’t she thought to alert someone before rushing out in the flower van?

Donna shot her a glance. “Traffic is light, do you want me to pull over?”

Bella bit her lip. “It’s too late now. As you said, we’ll be there in a minute.” She just hoped the guests were enjoying the wine and the music. At the moment, everything else was out of her control.

Donna stared out of the windshield. “Someone’s coming.”

A large dark blue car powered toward them. “It’s Etienne!” Bella’s heart soared. “Flash the lights.”

They pulled over to the side of the road, and the car slowed then stopped.

In a heartbeat, Bella shot from the van.

Etienne flung open the car door and reached her in a couple of steps. “Where were you?”

She heard no anger in his tone, only the desperate desire for her answer. “The caterer’s had a problem. Their van broke down.” Thoughts about voicing suspicions about her father’s action surfaced but she rejected them. She could tell him later, the launch took precedence. She spoke in a rapid-fire rush. “The girls jumped in to help. We have the entrées in the back.”

Etienne’s face altered, worry fading to relief. “You’re okay, then?” He enfolded her in his arms and pulled her close against his chest.

She breathed in his familiar scent and closed her eyes for a moment in pure unadulterated bliss. “I’m fine. Just dirty, stressed out, and exhausted.” She pulled back to look at his face, concern racing through her. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at the launch?” His launch was so important. How he could be here, driving down the road away from the party?

“I came to find you,” he answered simply. “You’re more important.” His mouth lowered, claiming her lips with a sure mastery that melted her bones.

“The food...” she managed when they came up for air.

Etienne released her and strode to Donna’s open window.

Moments later, with a toot of the horn,
Blooms
van overtook them, heading straight for the château.

“What did you say to them?” Donna and Krista’s grinning faces and cheery waves had Bella in a total spin. She leaned against his car with shaking legs, and tried to recover her equilibrium.

“I asked them to go on ahead.” Etienne grasped her hand and brought it to his lips. “I told them we’d be along after I proposed.”

Proposed? A flush started in her cheeks. Bella’s mouth opened and closed without a sound emerging.

Etienne’s hand stroked her face. “Your absence at the launch showed me you mean much more than a house and a vineyard ever could,” he said. “I want you to marry me, Bella.”

The flush heated her throat. Bella had dreamed of the perfect proposal. She’d be wearing an elegant gown and looking fantastic. The venue would be a magical place. Maybe the Grand Canyon, or the top of the Eiffel Tower. Instead, she felt hot and grubby after the day from hell. They stood on a dusty central California road surrounded by flat plains and bare fences. No majestic trees above them, no streams running over rocks.

Etienne stood before her, instead of falling to one knee like a prince in a fairytale. He held no ring in a blue velvet box.

She didn’t need one.

The look of forever in his eyes was enough. Her throat burned. She threaded fingers through his hair, and pulled his mouth down to hers. “Yes,” she breathed against his lips.

Once again, the St. Clair Durand vineyard was a partnership.

H
ere’s the first chapter of another of my ‘sweet’ romances, Under the Hood, which is book 1 of a three book series. Book 1 and 2 are out now, and book 3 is due summer 2014. This book and the Under the Hood Series are rated ‘sweet’ but all my other books are rated ‘spicy.’

Chapter One

Some things you do for others and some things just for yourself.

Alice Starr smoothed down her pink silk teddy before slipping into her jeans. She loved the smooth slide of silk across her body. The sensuous fabric made her feel beautiful, even when her uniform was smeared with grease.

No one had to know.

When she’d left the family business three months ago to start a new venture, they’d tried hard to talk her out of it. “Running a garage is hard work,” her father had warned, with decades of experience on his side. And her brothers had told her she didn’t have anything to prove.

But when the opportunity to buy into an equal partnership with two of her best friends had come up, she would have been crazy not to go for it. There was no garage out there that provided the service
Under the Hood
had to offer. Starting fresh in a new town, far away from New York had its attractions, too. Here, no one knew her history. Her friends back home were supportive, but she was sick to death of being pitied, of the unsettled feeling that filled her chest every time she got together with friends and hoped she wouldn’t bump into Joel and his new squeeze.

She pulled on a thin, black jersey sweater, then stepped into her navy overalls. Thick socks and steel-toed boots next, and she was ready to face the day. She snagged the keys to her pickup off the table and pushed open the door. There was a full day of repairs ahead and she needed to get on the road. The sky was bright with early morning sun, but a chill lingered in the spring air, so she strode quickly around the side of the building to the parking lot, half-wondering, full-on hoping that the racing green MG would be there. She’d barely had a chance to look it over when she pulled in late last night, and with exhaustion and the need for a late dinner hastening her steps, had only stroked a hand over its hood, which gleamed in the moonlight.

It must belong to Mark Jameson
.

Mrs. White, the widow in 1B, told her all about him the other day. She had leaned close and whispered, “Mark is a lovely young man,” as if he had ears like a bat and might somehow hear. “He’s a blond too, but not as light as you, dear. The Jamesons are one of Meadowsweet’s oldest families, and Mark is the...” She counted off on her fingers. “...third child. I reckon he must be about thirty now.” She crossed her arms atop her generous bosom and smiled as though imparting valuable information. “He’s a definite catch.”

A mental image of a fat haddock hanging from a line had instantly flashed through Alice’s mind, and she’d smothered her smile with a cough.

Why on earth she thought I’d be interested...

Rounding the corner, Alice stopped dead. The MG sat exactly where it had been last night. A man was bent over, peering into the engine beneath the raised hood. It was rare to find a British classic in her little piece of Virginia. Rarer still to find a man wearing a sharp suit and dark, shiny, what must be Italian, shoes.

This must be the haddock
. Slowly, Alice walked closer. “Hi.”

“What—” He jerked, banging his head on the hood, then straightened, showcasing an awesome pair of broad shoulders. His dark blond hair was businessman short, his white shirt accessorized with a red tie.

Hazel eyes gazed into hers, and Alice’s heart raced.

He grinned and rubbed the top of his head. “I didn’t hear you.”

His deep tenor set a flurry of tingles racing up her spine. She flushed with warmth, despite the weather. He was as far from a fish as you could get. And in that suit? Maybe he was a shark. Alice stepped forward and peered into the engine. “Car trouble?”

He hesitated, and then his gaze dropped to the image on her breast. “Are you...”

He was only checking out
Under The Hood’s
logo, but her body responded to his gaze as if he’d reached out and stroked her.

She swallowed. “A mechanic, yes. Your lucky day.”
And mine.

“I’m Mark Jameson. You must have just moved in?”

“Yes. I’m Alice,” she murmured. “I live in 3B.”

“Just below me, then. This really is my lucky day.” His smile hinted at a double meaning. His gaze travelled down her body, making her acutely aware of every inch of the silk hidden beneath her overalls. She imagined his hands gliding along her teddy, blazing the same trail.

She turned abruptly and braced herself on the frame of the car, forcing herself to look at the engine. She had to find a way to control her reaction to this man. He stepped closer and placed his hand near hers.

Strong hands.

“I’m pretty sure it’s the battery. If you have jumper cables, I’d be grateful.”

Jumper cables? Alice’s body was sparking with so much electricity that if their fingers touched the engine would start without them. She rubbed her hands on her overall-clad thighs. “No problem.” She smiled, reached into her pocket for her keys, and strode to her pickup. Okay, so Mrs. White had called it. Her new neighbor was not only totally gorgeous, but he needed her help.
And who could resist a hero in distress?

***

S
o this was his mysterious new neighbor.

3B had been empty for a while. When he’d made it back last night after a few days away finalizing the pre-nup for a new client in New York, Mark had noticed the light on from the street outside and the battered pickup next to his parking space.

He took advantage of the fact that she was busy searching her truck for jumper cables to check her out without being noticed.
Alice
. The name suited her. Long, platinum-blond hair pulled up in a ponytail looked natural—her skin was Nordic pale too, and the eyes he’d caught a glimpse of were ice blue, like aquamarines. She barely came up to his shoulder, and even the ugly overalls weren’t able to totally hide the hint of curves he’d noticed when checking out the image of a woman holding the spanner on her uniform.

Mark frowned. He really shouldn’t be noticing his new neighbor that way. If she was a mechanic, she probably had men hitting on her all day. Besides, he wasn’t in the market for a new relationship. Extricating people from ill-judged romantic follies all day had taught him to be cautious where attraction was concerned.

He pushed back his shirtsleeve and looked at his watch. Luckily, he’d left himself plenty of time to make the meeting at his client’s office, and if a dead battery was all that was wrong with the MG, he’d be on his way quickly.

His gaze lingered on Alice for a long moment as she popped the hood and then grabbed red and black leads, attached one set to her battery terminals, and handed the others to him.

Her hand brushed his, and a jolt of electricity raced up his arm.

Mark stared.
What on earth?

Alice looked pointedly at the engine as he stood still, fixed to the spot by the unexpected reaction to her touch.

Then her eyes softened. A small, sympathetic smile tilted the corners of her lips upward. She stepped close, and took the leads from his unresisting fingers. “This one goes here,” she said, fastening the clip in place, “and this one goes here.”

Mark nodded, still stunned. She thought he was so clueless about engines he didn’t even know how to attach jumper cables.

“Now, I’ll just start my truck and you’ll soon be on your way.” She walked to her pickup and swung inside.

Mark opened the car and slid into its polished interior. He should have said something. Should have confessed that there was absolutely nothing he didn’t know about cars—he’d been taking engines apart his whole life. He’d inherited the MG from his grandfather and had it shipped over from England. Maintaining the little classic car took plenty of man-hours, and he was discerning about who he let tinker with the engine. His sisters called him a control freak where the car was concerned. And they were right.

He turned the key and the engine roared to life. Through his windshield he saw her give him the thumbs up, and before he’d climbed out, she had the cables off and stowed.

“Got to run—have a good day!” She hopped into the pickup and sped out of the lot.

Mark stood there, staring after her. She’d liked helping him. He’d seen warmth in her eyes as she took the cables from his fingers. His mouth curved into a smile.

Being rescued is fun.

––––––––

U
nder the Hood is available to purchase now!

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