- Book 1 in The Evermount Springs series -
When her mother unexpectedly passes away, Eloise Somerset leaves behind her job as a small-time baker, apartment, and city girl lifestyle to return to her mother's hometown. The town her mother always talke...
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The next morning Eloise was still rattled by her father's sudden appearance. She even skipped out on shopping with my sister, claiming she had a headache. But I knew it was because of her father. I wanted to hurt him for making Eloise feel this way. She didn't deserve a father like him.
"Are you sure you are okay to go out today?" I asked Eloise as we sat on the couch. We were waiting for my sister, Lexi to pick her up for their shopping spree. "Yes. I'll be okay, don't worry. It will be a nice distraction." She gave me a small smile. I laid my hand on her knee.
As I drew circles on her knee with my thumb we heard a knock at the door. "I'll get it." I said to Eloise as I stood up. I wanted to open it just in case it was her father.
I opened the door and was met with a much-needed familiar face. "Hey, Lexi." I greeted my sister. I opened the door wider letting her in. "Hey, Drew." Lexi hugged me. She stepped back and her eyes landed on Eloise. She took a seat next to her on the couch.
"You okay?" She asked softly. "Yes, I will be." She smiled at Lexi. Her smile seemed a bit strained which made my heart break. Lexi engulfed her in a hug. "Now I think it's about time we get going. I saw these super cute boots that just screamed my name." She said as she grabbed Eloise's hand. "See you later." Lexi yelled as she walked out of the house dragging Eloise with her.
If there was one thing Lexi was good at it was finding distractions. My smile dropped a bit. Lexi had thrown herself into opening her own coffee shop after her best friend broke her heart and abruptly left town. If she wasn't working on her coffee shop she was doing other things to keep herself busy. He really left a number on her, but to this day she has never told any of us what happened between them.
***
Even though Eloise took the day off didn't mean that I had the day off. One of the perks of being the boss was that I could come and go to work as I liked. So I showed up at work a bit later than usual.
As I walked into the winery I saw Kipp pushing in a load of boxes. Kipp was one of my youngest workers at the winery. He may only be 22 but he is one of my most hardworking and trustworthy workers.
"New batch?" I asked him as a way of greeting. "Yeah, it just came in." Kipp replied. His brows were furrowed as he stared at me. "Something wrong?" I asked him.
He had a conflicted look on his face as if he wasn't sure if he should open his mouth. "You're late." He blurted. Oh that was what it was then. "Yeah, I spent the morning with Eloise." I replied and walked to my office before he could say something. I didn't need the whole town in my and Eloise's business. They'd drive us crazy.
A pile of paperwork awaited me on my desk as I stepped into my office. I suppose that's what I get for leaving the paperwork for another day. The white papers were in stark contrast to the dark brown interior of my office. One thing I didn't like about running a winery was the paperwork, but I suppose it's part of the job.
