Page 114 of Bitter Rival

“Come in.” I usher them inside like I’m the lady of the manor and studiously ignore the warning glance Beckett sends my way.

Gabriella and I hug while the men exchange handshakes.

“I haven’t set foot in this house since I was a boy,” Michael says, his gaze sweeping over the corniced ceilings and the oak staircase.

I’m inordinately proud of the color palette throughout the house—midnight blue, olive green, burnt sienna, and ochre.

Moody and sensual by night. Saturated with sunlight during the day.

“I always thought it was the grandest house in all of California,” he says.

I smile. “So did I. I used to live here too,” I admit. “When I was young.”

Gabriella smiles. “We know you’re Robert’s stepdaughter.”

“You knew all along? That we’re not really a couple?” I blurt out.

“Aren’t you?” She squeezes my hand and gives me a knowing look as we follow Michael and Beckett on a house tour.

I laugh. “No. Not at all. The day we joined you for lunch, we barely tolerated each other.”

Gabriella slips her arm through mine. “Oh, honey, that’s how all the best love stories begin.”

I’m not so sure that going from enemies to fuck buddies with a looming expiration date for this little arrangement makes for an epic love story, but I don’t bother correcting her.

But my first impression of Gabriella still stands. She’s warm and kind and genuine and it’s plain to see that she and Michael adore each other.

Once again, I find myself thinking, I want that.

I want a deep, true love that stands the test of time. I want a real relationship. Not a fling. Not just sex with no strings attached. Even when I agreed to it and boldly claimed that there was no danger of falling in love with Beckett, I knew I was only lying to myself.

I’m already in deep.

It dawns on me that Finn wasn’t my first love. Beckett was. Long before I even knew what love was, I loved him with all my heart.

After a tour of the house and the facilities, we have lunch on the terrace of the winery overlooking the vineyard.

The weather is perfect, the sky blue and cloudless, the air warm and dry but not too hot.

Everyone is being polite, perfectly pleasant so of course, I take the plunge and steer the conversation into dangerous territory.

“There are a lot of rumors swirling around about your feud with Robert. And I guess I just wanted to make sure the vineyard ends up in good hands. Is there any truth to the story that you were involved in cutting the syrah grapevines to the root?”

Next to me, Beckett lets out a heavy sigh and sets down his fork, taking a fortifying sip of wine.

“Michael?” Gabriella raises her brows, prompting Michael. “Care to explain why you sabotaged Robert’s vineyard?”

He clears his throat and tugs at the collar of his navy polo shirt. I’m not sure how I never noticed the resemblance the first time we met but Beckett looks a lot like his uncle. Although Michael’s hair is sprinkled with silver, it’s the same almost-black shade. They both have blue eyes, although Beckett’s are lighter, and have strong Roman noses.

There’s no denying that they’re related.

“Can I blame it on being young and stupid?”

“You can try,” Gabriella says archly.

“I was twenty?—”

“And he smoked too much weed,” Gabriella says.

---