Just a Kiss: The Single Girls Wine Club (A Wine Country Romance #1) (8 page)

Sarah struggled, trying to force sleep that refused to come. Her internal alarm rang at three thirty a.m. every morning no matter what, and she needed to sleep late today. At six, she lumbered out of bed and crept into the dark kitchen quietly, careful not to wake the house.

She put the kettle on and placed a bag of chamomile tea in a cup. Staying by the stove to catch the teapot before it whistled, she thought about how the plaza looked yesterday. The picnic tables and children’s play area were being scrubbed. Construction trucks with gigantic ladders held technicians who were stringing thousands of sparkly white lights through the trees. Huge spotlights were focused on a few of the stateliest heritage oaks.

She poured hot water into the cup, dawdled to the table, sat down and sipped. When she’d taken a break from the café yesterday to offer the plaza volunteer crews coffee, a lighting technician had chatted with her. He explained the plaza’s star, the magnificent palm tree, would have a special blue filter to wash it in a purple light and that the city had never spent more on any event.

After finishing her tea, sleep finally came. She woke up at four in the afternoon. The Harvest Festival would begin in less than forty-eight hours.

She reached the Vine Café, just after five. Manny would rest now and come in later for a second shift. Sarah flipped on the ovens, assembled her ingredients, grabbed her apron and got down to business. Jamie arrived when she pulled her first sheet pan out of the oven. Under the thick umbrella of butter and sugar aromas, they buzzed in their own little world with the music on low.

“Hey, you’ve got to stop eating the inventory,” Sarah said. Jamie had another one of her moons halfway in his mouth.

The cookies were lined up in batches of fifty, cooling in rows on the counter next to the oven.

Jamie grabbed another from the center row and plopped it between his lips. “Tastes sooo good,” he said. “There is only one thing that would taste better.”

“Taste better?” Sarah motioned to the counter. “Better than these?”

“I don’t know though,” Jamie said, gulping down the cookie, talking with his mouth full. “I can’t be one hundred percent sure because I haven’t tasted it yet.” He suggestively raised his eyebrows and his gaze zoomed in on her. “Give me a taste Sarah.” He licked his lips. “C’mon give me a taste.” He advanced toward her.

“What? Are you insane?” She tried dodging him but gave in when he got closer. She wrapped her arms around his waist and licked the cookie crumbs at the corner of his mouth.

“I’m dyin’ here.” Jamie didn't look like he was playing. “I had another dream about you, Sarah.” He paused, moved closer and then whispered, “It was an ‘awake’ dream…this morning. Now you know what you do to me.”

“You are
so
bad.” Sarah brushed his arms away, embarrassed. The truth was she’d had several of those “awake” dreams about him too. “What are you trying to do to me?” She burrowed her head into his chest.

He enfolded her in his arms and through his jeans she felt what the snuggling and dream reminiscing did to him. They swayed together slowly, making up a dance.

“Fifteen hundred cookies and you,” Sarah said in a sing-song voice. “Fifteen hundred cookies and you.”

Jamie let go of her and stepped away. “Oh, I know all your tricks now Sarah.” He grinned. “Singing to me, rubbing up against me, getting me all hot and bothered.”

Sarah frowned. She liked it so much better in his arms.

“You’re trying to distract me and you’ve got work to do. We’ve got work to do.” Jamie ambled over to the stereo and cranked the volume. “Okay butter crunch, tell me what I can do to help.”

She grinned and pointed to the batches of dough on the counter.

“You got it,” he said.

Jamie tucked his hair into his beanie and washed his hands. He took over one side of the pastry table and Sarah commandeered the other. By two thirty a.m., Sarah and Jamie had finished rolling and cutting fifteen hundred lavender and thyme shortbread cookies into various moon shapes and had baked six hundred.

Manny came in to relieve them and promised to have the nine hundred remaining cookies ready for the Harvest Festival with no problem.

The crisp, middle of the night, fall air added an extra buzz to her high. Now officially off duty, Sarah had a little time to relax before coming back for the festival that night.

Jamie draped an arm around her, protectively escorting her to her car parked near the dark side entrance. “Are you going to be able to sleep?” he asked.

“I think so,” she said, “but it is my first time… I want it to be great.”

“It will be. I came, I helped, I tasted.” Jamie paused. “I kissed. I dreamed… I know.”

She smirked, wondering if Jamie meant what he was saying. He seemed too good to be true. “So I guess I’ll see you when I see you?” she asked.

“What?” Jamie stopped walking and searched her face. “Are you going all formal on me now? Am I going to have to track you down tonight? Search for a woman holding cookie platters on the dance floor?”

“No.” Sarah poked him in the stomach. “I’ll be in my booth, right under the big ‘Vine Café’ sign.”

“I’m not worried butter nugget. I’ll find you…one way or another.”

Sarah pressed the On button of her Prius and seriously contemplated the possibility of it exploding. She wondered if there was any conceivable chance that the currents surging through her could somehow ignite the electric car’s system and blow her to smithereens.

On her drive home to Bella Villa, she couldn’t get over just how much her life had changed in a week. How inane she’d acted thinking she’d never get over, what was his name? Robert? She’d wasted all that time hiding, and doubting that she’d ever love again or could be loved in return. Just as life could turn into shit stew in an instant, it could just as easily flip back the other way to bliss.

She gathered her big black and cream floral bag from her car and let herself into the villa quietly. When she closed the door and snapped the deadbolt into place, she knew Robert would forever stay behind her, locked somewhere far away, in another life, a long time ago.

After washing up and getting into her pajamas, she wanted to fall asleep right away but couldn’t. Listening to the fan whirring above, she wondered how this new chapter would end. Jamie needed to leave soon to start filming. Even if he wanted to hide in her kitchen, looking hot as hell in his beanie, legally he couldn’t because he was under contract. She dreaded thinking about her boring old life without him in it when her real world would reappear the instant he disappeared.

It wasn’t a matter of
if
he left, but when. She couldn't envision a scenario where the relationship would work. They were too different. He had a movie to film. She owned a café. He was a heartthrob. She was a baker. Exhausted from not finding a solution, her brain train changed tracks and transported her to a much happier time and place, an hour ago in the kitchen when Jamie pressed against her with kisses. Beaming, she rolled over and slept.

The second Jamie’s head hit the pillow, he thought of Sarah and broke into a huge grin. He’d stumbled blindly into a sensual wonderland with a woman so different from anyone he’d dated in Hollywood, he didn’t know what to think. Just thinking about her made him restless. He slipped out of bed and tried not to cause any of the stairs to creak while making his way to the kitchen. He snatched a chunk of lemon pound cake, poured a tall glass of milk and settled into the family room sofa. It felt so good to be home.

He took a bite of the moist cake and washed it down with the milk. In the three years since his disastrous affair with director Clarissa Thomas, Jamie had worked to heal his heart. He’d listened to his brothers, taken their advice, and tried putting Clarissa’s greediness and callous cruelty behind him. He knew that she was the one with the problem. She’d seduced him and lied, using his box office success to boost her career. His only problem came from trusting her and believing her when she said she loved him.

Now he wondered what he ever saw in her. He wouldn't call Clarissa beautiful. Attractive maybe, but only in a well maintained way. Her face had all the emotions of a tightly clipped hedge. Combustive smiles, laugh lines, and tears had been foreign to her, and he'd made do. Jamie’s family never warmed to her even after he told them he loved her. He could’ve sworn he’d found true love. He looked out the window and took another bite of cake.

After they’d split, he’d dated, although most were only quickie liaisons lasting two weeks to a month at the max. He tried finding “normal” women outside the film industry, but no one had clicked…until Sarah.

He popped the last bite of cake into his mouth and moved to the sink. Rinsing his glass, he wondered what the odds were that he would meet someone like her, in Sonoma, twenty minutes away from his childhood home in Napa, just when he had to leave. He’d waited three years to find the right role for his comeback.

After making his way upstairs to his room, and getting into bed, he avoided thinking about where things would go with Sarah. He didn’t consider how or if it would end, only the taste of her mouth and her luminous smile lighting his world.

Slumping at the massive pine table, Sarah tried not to slurp her bowl of Cocoa Puffs and one percent milk. Juliet hadn’t bothered taking off her eye mask and shuffled to the table holding her breakfast drink with it dangling around her neck. Danica had awoken earlier to prep for an interview at Larson Family Vineyards and the clack, clack, clack of her three-inch heels resounded off the hardwood floors as she whizzed past them to the fridge. Lulu was still sleeping.

“What’s the plan today Sarah?” Juliet scrutinized her green smoothie. “You really can’t taste the spinach.”

Sarah put her spoon down. “The plan is for us to meet back here at five, at the latest.”

“Excellent,” Danica said. “Maybe I’ll have time for a nap. It’s going to be a long night.” She marched to the table holding her yogurt cup and sat down. “Yes, indeedy, I have big, big, plans for a certain Santino brother.”

“You’ll be hanging around Michael Santino’s table as much as possible, I’m sure,” Sarah said.

“If he wants me to, but not for too long Sarah. You’re my priority. Only if there is any spare time, will I flit and shimmy by the Santino Winery booth. Hey, Jamie will be there tonight.” Danica winked. “Off duty.”

Sarah inspected her cereal bowl, hoping to prevent the girls from seeing any reaction to Jamie’s name.

Danica must’ve noticed something because she stopped talking and stared Sarah down. Juliet turned from her smoothie and raised her eyebrows.

Sarah shook her head and blurted, “Yes, we’ve kissed.”

“What?” Danica shrieked in a pitch that should’ve shattered their coffee mugs.

Sarah put her hands over her mouth so she wouldn’t spit out her cereal. She chewed, and then swallowed before uncovering her mouth to say, “Shush, you’ll wake Lulu.”

“I knew it! I just knew they’d end up together!” Juliet said.

The room went silent, and Sarah felt Danica and Juliet’s piercing beams. She knew they wanted more information and ignored them. Nonchalantly gazing at the Westwood kitchen clock, she dipped her spoon into her Cocoa Puffs and slowly relished another bite.

“Tell me!” Danica gave in first.

“I will.” Sarah got up from the table. “When we get ready tonight.” She took her bowl to the sink and rinsed it.

Danica raced over to the sink and shut the water off. “No way are you getting away with that.” She grabbed Sarah’s waist. “Juliet, help me here,” she half giggled-half commanded.

Juliet jumped from her chair and joined Danica, and they both cornered Sarah, tickling her. “Out with it!” Juliet said and went in under her arms.

“Jeez, you guys are nuts,” Sarah said. “Okay, okay, I give!”

Juliet and Danica stopped and waited.

“So, which kiss do you want to hear about first?” Sarah asked with a straight face.

After Juliet and Danica had finally given Sarah’s dress their approval, she hurried out the door first. The others promised to meet her at the plaza and bring Lulu by at seven when the festival officially started.