Page 42 of Broken Princess
The road down to the resort was lined with fir trees. Beyond those, vineyards stretched for at least a mile in either direction. In the distance, the rolling hills were a patchwork of green and brown with the occasional white dusting of snow.
“Here we are,” Dad said, slowing the car as we pulled into the main part of the estate.
With a name like Lilith Hall, I expected to see a huge gray Victorian manor looming ahead of us. Instead, it was a stout two-story Mediterranean-inspired building with cream-colored stucco walls, small terraces, a dark red tiled roof, and arched windows with wrought iron grilles and decorative keystones.
A huge courtyard stood on one side, and several cobblestone paths led away from that toward a lush garden. Behind that, there were several more sweeping vineyards, and beyond those were miles of dark forest stretching into the distance.
“Hm,” Dad said, peering around. “That arch near the garden would make a decent photo background, wouldn’t it?”
“Yeah, sure,” I said, absentmindedly scratching my jaw. “Let’s go in.”
We stopped in the winery’s main tasting room first. A large Christmas tree with flashing fairy lights stood on one side, and the spicy scent of mulled wine hung in the air. Crowds of tourists hung around the sample tables in the middle of the room, laughing and chattering, and on the far side of the space, several harried-looking staff members served well-heeled patrons at a polished oak bar.
“I’m going to talk to her and see what she can tell me about the history of this place,” I told Dad, motioning to a nearby employee in a crisp white shirt and black pants. “Why don’t you go and check out that arch you were looking at earlier?”
His eyes narrowed slightly. “If you wanted to be left alone to flirt with the waitress, you could’ve just asked,” he grumbled before striding off to the other side of the room.
I headed over to the girl and grabbed a brochure from the table in front of her. “Hello, sir,” she said with a polite smile. “Would you like to try a cup of our mulled wine? It’s made with a traditional Swiss recipe.”
“No thanks,” I said, stashing the brochure in my pocket. “I’m just looking around for now.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh! I just realized who you are. You’re that guy who’s engaged to the president’s daughter, aren’t you?”
“Yup.”
“Wow. Is she here?”
Yeah, probably.
“No, I’m just visiting with my father,” I replied. “We’re thinking of having the wedding here, so we drove up to check it out.”
“How nice! If you don’t mind me asking, what made you consider us?”
“My mother’s family owns the place. The Hales.”
Her eyes widened even further. “Oh, wow. I had no idea you were related to them. I guess I need to be on my best behavior.”
I smiled. “Don’t worry, I’m not judging you at all. Feel free to be brutally honest about everything.”
“Okay,” she said with a little giggle, cheeks flushing. “I’m Gemma, by the way.”
“Good to meet you, Gemma.” I turned and glanced around the busy room before looking back at her. “It’s pretty busy, huh? I assumed you’d be dead in winter.”
She shook her head. “No, we actually do quite well in the colder seasons. There’s not as much outside work to do, obviously, because the grapevines go dormant, but there’s still plenty to do inside. We also host a lot of events during the winter, especially during the festive season. Like our New Year’s Eve bash.”
“I assume there’s an event today, judging by all the people here.”
“No, the days leading up to Christmas are usually quieter than this. Today is actually weirdly busy,” she said, nose wrinkling as she looked around at the throngs of guests. “If you’re planning on staying the night, you better book fast, because I’m pretty sure there’s only one suite left in the resort.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
She lowered her voice and leaned forward. “You won’t believe who my colleague checked in earlier.”
“Who?”
“The Keshari Crown Prince and his entourage. Can you imagine that? A prince, right here at the winery.” She let out a dreamy sigh. “I can’t believe how popular we’ve gotten.”
“Yeah, that’s pretty impressive.”
