Love Story Next Door!: Cinderella on His Doorstep / Mr Right, Next Door! / Soldier on Her Doorstep

He kept walking until they reached the perimeter of the orchard. Juxtaposed was a forest of briars taller than they were. It reached to the river, filling the entire hillside and around the bend. She’d never seen the likes of such a thing before.

A gasp escaped her lips. “The only thing I can compare this to are the briars that overgrew Sleeping Beauty’s castle, but that was in a storybook.”

He slanted her a mysterious glance. “If you recall, it was a French fairy tale.” He folded his arms. “Behold the Belles Fleurs vineyard.”

“No—”

As she tried to take it all in, her eyes smarted. She turned her head so Alex wouldn’t see how it had affected her. Now she understood why he hadn’t wanted to talk about it.

“This is what happens after eighty years of neglect,” came his gravelly voice.

She shook her head. “When you drive here from Paris and see the rows of gorgeous green vineyards…to think they can look like this…” It was impossible to articulate her horror.

“Oh, Alex—for your family to let all of this die—it’s beyond my comprehension.” She wheeled around to face him. “How did you bear it when you saw this desecration?”

He put down the shears. “Don’t be too sad.” Taking a step toward her he wiped one lone tear from her hot cheek with the pad of his thumb. As their gazes fused, his hands cupped the sides of her face. “Believe it or not this vineyard is alive.”

“But it couldn’t be!”

“I assure you it is. Deep in those trunks are the makings of chenin blanc grapes grown on Belles Fleurs terroir.”

“I—I can’t fathom it.”

“Vines are unusual creatures. They want to climb. They climb and they climb while the birds eat the fruit and drop the seeds where they will. What you’re looking at is a tangled mess of what is probably the best prepared soil along the Layon. Eighty years lying fallow has made it rich. All the vineyard needs is a little work.”

“A little—” she cried.

Chuckling quietly, he removed his hands and reached for the shears again, leaving her dizzy with unassuaged longings. “It would take five years to turn this into a thriving business again. The first year all these trunks would have to be cut down to three feet, like this.”

She watched him in wonder and fascination as he shaped it down to size like Michelangelo bringing a figure out of the marble. He threw the castoff briars to the side. Dana crouched down to examine one of them. She lifted her head. “Then what happens?”

“The next year new canes appear.” He tossed out another vine. Painstaking work. “They have to be treated like newborn babies.”

When she smiled, he smiled back, giving her a heart attack. “You said five years.”

He nodded his dark head. “In the third year you’d see buds. In the fourth, the first new grapes would appear. By the fifth year they’d be worthy of making a good wine.”

“Five years…” He wouldn’t be here in five years. The thought sickened her and she jumped to her feet. “When I asked you why you weren’t concerned about the vineyard, it’s clear why you chose not to answer me until now. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. In this case it’s more like a billion.”

“Vineyards are a business and family concern. Without one, or one that can’t pull together, it doesn’t warrant the effort it takes to make wine.” There was a residue element in his voice, maybe sadness. It brought a lump to her throat.

“No. I can see that…” Her voice trailed. “Does this mean you’re considering leasing the vineyard or even selling it to a prospective vintner?”

“I’m not sure.” They started walking back. She could tell he was eager to get busy in the orchard. It was time to change the subject.

“Alex? You know what a bookworm I am. Would you consider it a horrible invasion of your privacy if I went through some of the boxes in storage, just to see what was in the library? I don’t speak French, but I can read enough to understand titles and that sort of thing.”

“Be my guest.”

Excitement welled inside her. Maybe she’d find some family records or scrapbooks he would enjoy looking at. “You mean it?”

His dark eyes seemed to be searching her very soul. “What do you think?”

“Thank you!” she cried. Without conscious thought she put her hands on his upper arms and raised up on the tips of her sneakers to kiss his jaw. What happened next happened so quickly, she never saw it coming. Alex dropped the shears and crushed her against him, covering her mouth with his own.

She didn’t know who was hungrier. All that mattered was that he was kissing her until she felt pleasure pains run through her body clear to her palms. Though she knew she couldn’t die from rapture, she felt she was on the verge.

When she moaned, he whispered, “My sentiments exactly. Your mouth tastes sweeter than any Anjou wine in existence.”

“Alex—” Her body shook with needs bursting out of control. She circled his neck with her arms in order to get closer and pressed little kisses along his jaw. While Dana couldn’t get enough of him, his hands splayed across her back, drawing her up against his chest where she felt the thud of his heart resound.

“You’re so incredibly beautiful, Dana. Help me stop before I can’t.” His breathing sounded shallow.

She hushed his lips with a kiss. “I don’t want to stop.”

He groaned. “Neither do I, but someone’s coming.”

Thinking that whoever it was was ruining the moment, she had to force herself to leave his arms. Still breathless from their passion, she turned in time to see Saskia in the distance. She walked toward them with purpose.

Of course. Who else.

“Well, hello,” Saskia said on her approach, eyeing Alex in stunned surprise that any man could be that attractive. At thirty years of age, Saskia looked good herself and knew it. She eventually tore her eyes away to stare at Dana. They looked greener than usual. “Aren’t you going to introduce us?”

“Saskia Brusse? Please meet Monsieur Alexandre Martin, the owner of the estate. Alex, Saskia is my father’s girlfriend. She also happens to be one of the actresses in the film.”

“But my part doesn’t come until we’re in Germany which is lucky for me.”

“And what part is that?” Alex asked.

She blinked before staring at Dana. “You mean you haven’t told him?”

Dana refused to be put off by her. “We haven’t discussed the script.”

Alex shook hands with her. “I’m happy to make your acquaintance, Mademoiselle Brusse.”

“Thank you. You know, I was hoping to talk to you this morning. That’s why I drove over here with Jan this early.”

“Why did you want to see me?”

“Didn’t Dana tell you about that, either?”

“I’m afraid we’ve had other matters on our minds. Please enlighten me.”

While Dana willed her heart to stop racing, little red spots tinged Saskia’s cheeks. She didn’t like the way this conversation was going. “Jan told me Dana was staying here at the château. I wondered if I might occupy one of the rooms for the rest of the month, too. While we’re here in France I have a lot of time on my hands and this is such a beautiful place.”

“I’m glad you think so,” Alex said with a smile. “But I don’t allow anyone to live here with me except my staff. Dana is helping me put Belles Fleurs’ library in order. It’s quite a task. Since you’re acquainted with her, then you’re aware she’s an historian like her father. Both are brilliant.”

He picked up the shears. “Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I have to get to work. It was nice meeting you, Mademoiselle Brusse. When the film is out, I’ll look forward to seeing it.”