Chapter 8 #3
‘I think it’s time for the real tasting event; are you coming?’ Luke asked, but it sounded like he was offering something very different.
His hand engulfed hers, and he pulled her to her feet, her body brushing his as she stood.
Luke leaned down a little, until his mouth was almost pressed against her ear. ‘It’s nice to see you. Great legs by the way.’
Then he took her hand and led her from the room into a whole new world of chaos.
There were people everywhere, and Dan spotted Eliza immediately, dragging her off to introduce her to all his friends.
A waiter passed her a crisp white wine, the notes of which were printed on a luggage tag looped around the stem.
It was so totally charming, and Eliza felt swept up in the romance of it all, even though she had been so quickly separated from Luke.
Dan was so invested in introducing her to everyone, parting the sea of well-dressed wine broker types and farmers.
She met the local mayor, a little lady who apparently grew the juiciest tomatoes in the whole southwest, and then his gaggle of widowers.
She complimented them on their cooking, explaining that Dan had been kind enough to share some of his food, as she’d nearly burned the house down trying to work the Aga, at which point one of them offered to come and show her how to use it.
When they finally reached a table festooned in bunting and laden with cakes, Eliza felt like she was getting her sea legs. Reaching for a rosé on a passing tray, admiring the tasting notes of raspberry and honeydew melon, she took a big gulp and smiled.
‘Time for cake!’ bellowed Dan, gesturing wildly.
‘Well, I see you’re drinking the rosé, so I would recommend the lemon and raspberry loaf.’ A woman appeared behind the stall.
‘Marjorie, you darling joy of a woman, this is Eliza.’ Dan seemed to be a little pink in the cheeks, but then so was she – three glasses of wine on an empty stomach would do that. But then it clicked. Marjorie. The Marjorie?
‘Oh my God, you’re the Marjorie who baked me that Victoria sponge when I arrived! It was the most delicious cake I’ve ever eaten in my life! Honestly, it got me through a pretty tough few days!’
Marjorie blushed prettily and she was just as Eliza had pictured. A lovely big smiley face, rotund as can be, wearing a pair of checked slacks and a burgundy cardigan.
‘Oh, Eliza, that is too kind. It’s so lovely to meet you. Dan’s told me so much about you at our weekly bridge club. I must say you seem to have made quite the impression on Farmington.’ She nudged Dan who was now almost behind the stall himself.
‘Marjorie and I have been friends for years. Ever since um . . .’ Dan looked a little awkward.
Marjorie was slicing off thick chunks of the lemon and raspberry loaf and plating it up on vintage trays. Eliza nearly had to pinch herself, this was one of the classiest wine tastings she’d ever been to, and the most fun, with plaid shirts and shiny loafers all in one setting.
‘Oh, don’t be embarrassed, Dan. He used to know my husband Wilf, but he passed away a few years ago and Dan’s been such a good friend to me.
Really been there through thick and thin, especially when my daughter Felicity flew halfway around the world for guaranteed sunshine.
’ She cracked a smile, and Eliza felt her heart break just a little.
This woman had lost so much and yet, here she was, feeding the county with cakes and cheerful as can be.
‘Dan’s a good friend for sure, I can see that already,’ Eliza said, taking a large mouthful of cake and nearly moaning in pleasure. ‘My God, this is so good. You are incredible, Marjorie. You should honestly open a bakery; tell me you’re getting paid for this!’
Marjorie just laughed and wafted a tea towel at her. ‘Oh, you are ridiculous! No, no, I do it for the joy of it. I’m not sure people would actually pay for it! I’m just glad to make people smile with a tasty treat – we could all use some more sweetness in our lives.’
Suddenly, Eliza felt her gaze magnetically drawn across the room.
Was that— no, it couldn’t be. When the man Eliza was looking at turned, she let out a huge sigh.
Of course it wasn’t him. There is no way Henry would be at something like this.
She knew his philosophy – only the biggest wineries deliver the goods. He was such a knob.
‘Oh, hello, it looks like someone’s caught themselves an admirer,’ joked Dan, as he caught Luke staring at Eliza from across the room.
‘Have you fallen for our eligible bachelor’s charms, Eliza?’ Marjorie asked, when Eliza looked at her quizzically. She carried on, ‘Don’t tell me you’ve resisted him? The man is like an assassin; he can take women down at a glance.’
‘She’s right!’ Dan nodded conspiratorially.
Something about these two made Eliza giddy, and she found herself confiding in them. ‘And what if I have?’
They exchanged glowing looks. ‘Don’t tell me you’ve actually caught the uncatchable Luke Stanley?’
‘Well, I wouldn’t say I’ve got him exactly, Marjorie.’ She stopped herself as she wasn’t sure how much to tell. On the one hand she quite wanted to talk about it and get some advice, on the other hand she knew Dan couldn’t resist a gossip.
Eliza cleared her throat. ‘I mean, it’s hard not to notice his many assets! And we did go for a swim in the river together.’
‘On your own, just the two of you, no one else?’ asked Marjorie suddenly serious.
‘Yup, just me, him and a picnic. And let me tell you, I am no wild swimmer, but even I saw the charm that day.’
‘I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of any other lucky lady getting a private swim with Luke,’ mumbled Dan. ‘And most of the women around here would pay good money for that outing!’
‘Not even Bella?’ asked Eliza tentatively, thinking this was probably her best chance for getting some good gossip on her.
‘Ah,’ said Marjorie, cautiously. ‘You might want to watch out for her.’
‘And Bella and Luke?’ pushed Eliza.
Dan shook his head. ‘Wouldn’t know. Before my time, but ignore her. She’s just trouble because she’s bored—’
‘And what would you know about married women being bored, eh, Daniel?’ Marjorie asked, hands on her generous hips.
‘Oh, I’m in trouble now.’ Dan smirked rolling his eyes at Eliza good-naturedly. ‘That’s my cue to go.’ Giving Marjorie a sloppy kiss on her cheek, he bellowed out at the rest of the boys who were all converging around Jean Pierre, chanting ‘Speech, speech!’
Eliza turned back to Marjorie, a little sad not to get any more information, feeling more and more like there really was something going on. But according to the rebound rules, she wasn’t allowed to care if there was. She certainly wouldn’t tell Nancy that she might be breaking her first rule.
‘Look,’ Marjorie continued with a heightened whisper.
‘We all love Luke round here, he’s an absolute diamond.
Yes, he’s an old scallywag with the ladies, but he means no harm.
I wouldn’t want to see either of you get hurt, so just have some fun!
Heartbreak works both ways.’ And with a wink she was off to serve the rest of Farmington who were rallying around for a taste of her multi-tiered fantasy cakes.
That was quite enough to think about, Eliza pondered, as Jean Pierre took the stage and began thanking them all for coming to celebrate eight years of Farmington wines.
She lifted her last taster of the day from a passing tray, a red with hints of blackcurrant and chocolate – shouldn’t work, but it did – it was smooth, rich and too delicious to pass up.
Listening to the speech, Eliza felt a glow.
She could see Fenella and Ross in the corner, arms looped around each other, happy in their bubbly haze of pre-wedding joy.
Turning to the side she caught Luke’s eye.
He was watching her, leaning against the windows, with eyes so sinful she might as well be naked . . .