Page 20 of Always a Bridesmaid

“How about you? What was life like for little Elle Vaughn?” he asked.

She almost blurted out unconventional, then remembered he wasn’t asking about Jane. “Your typical Manhattan upbringing, I guess. I went to private school in the city, then NYU for college,always staying close to my family,” she said, keeping it brief and surface.

“Why were you in Texas?”

Oh boy, that was a good question. One she didn’t have an Elle answer for. Good thing for Elle, Jane knew how to spin a tale.

“Work trip. I was meeting with a new supplier, if you can believe it. Fashion and Texas are kind of an oxymoron, but there you have it.”

“What do you do for a living?” he asked.

“Is this twenty questions?”

“You seem to know a lot about me, it only seems fair,” he said, as though this was a normal back and forth for him. Asking without the need to answer for himself.

“Is this how it goes for you? You get to do all the asking?”

“Usually people already know a lot coming into the conversation. A simple Google search and,bam, you know all about me.”

“Well, I haven’t googled you and that sounds like you would make an incredibly boring first date.”

A smirk started in his eyes and tugged at his lips. “Depends on where the date ends.”

Jane rolled her eyes, but inside a kaleidoscope of butterflies took flight low in her belly. “Does that line usually work?”

A single lift of the brow told her he didn’t have trouble keeping his bed warm.

“You know what I do, so it’s only fair I know at least that much about you,” he said.

Jane couldn’t argue with fair. “Fine. I work in marketing for an upscale fashion company out of New York,” she recited. “I love my job. I get to blend two of my passions, social media and fashion. Happy?”

He looked at her clutch which was lying haphazardly on the floorboard. “For a person who loves social media, I haven’t seen you on your phone once.”

Jane opened her mouth and closed it. Somewhere between the cologne-drenched air and big dick energy she’d let things slip.Think!And just like that, she spun a little white lie. “This week is about your sister, like I said. I work hard, but when I take time off, especially for something this important, I like to really unplug.”

Her answer, which was more Jane than Elle, and completely unrehearsed, seemed to surprise him.

The game was finally on, and the point went to Jane.

“What does it mean?”Jane asked as they pulled into a gravel circular driveway and past a sign that readChâteau de la Lune.

“Castle of the Moon,” Henry said. “The main vineyard is in France, but Louis bought this property a few years back when he married his wife, Emma, and turned it into a tasting room. His brother runs the vineyard in France.”

“It’s stunning,” Jane said, taking in the impressive repurposed castle.

It spanned three floors and went the entire length of the pond. With ivy growing up the sides of the rustic stone walls, it looked like an estate straight out of a Jane Austen novel. The grounds were meticulously manicured and overflowing with bursts of foliage and color. The second story had a massive balcony that overlooked the grounds, including several botanical gardens. On the bottom floor sat wrought iron tables and chairs with canary-yellow umbrellas, which were scattered around a wraparound veranda.

Nearly every seat was taken with guests enjoying an afternoon tasting of wine and local cheeses. But as Henry’s car roared to a stop, all eyes turned to his one-of-a-kind car.

“Well, I guess you know how to make an entrance,” she said, and Henry groaned.

“I was hoping to be a little more inconspicuous, but this engine is a bit of a peacock.”

“You’re blaming the engine?”

“Says the woman wearing a dress made to scramble a man’s mind.” He leaned over. “Did you wear it for me, love?”

This was why she wanted to change!

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