by Kristy Gibs
After snacking on an assortment of cheese and crackers and different meats, we congregated in the lobby of the castle. Mia and Preston looked happy, I had to admit; despite my dislike for them, they were perfect for each other.
Even though it was close to one, several guests were talking about meeting at the wine bar for a nightcap. The excitement of finally arriving and eating gave them a second wind. When my mom and Connor asked if I was coming, I declined. I was dead on my feet, and I didn’t want to be around anyone anymore.
After hugging me good night, I walked toward the direction the maître D instructed me toward. I hoped it wouldn’t take me too long to find my room; with each step, my eyelids felt heavier and heavier. I strolled down a short hall and came face to face with Jax and Ashton as they walked in. Looking the other way, I tried to pretend I didn’t see them, but Jax saw right through that bull.
“Elle-Belle, I know you saw us!” he yelled.
I stopped mid-step, took a deep breath, and turned to face my brother and Ash. “Hey, Jax.” I avoided looking at Ash or acknowledging him.
“This place is fancy,” Jax said as he took in the castle lobby.
“Only the best for Mia.” I fluttered my eyelashes, and Jax and Ash laughed.
His laugh had me glance over at him for the first time, and when our eyes met, his smile faded; he scanned my face and opened his mouth as if he was about to speak but immediately shut it. I knew he learned what I found out that night. He had said as much in the few messages he left. Considering what I looked like right now, I was mortified. Each time I saw Ash, I was dressed in appropriate attire. I had my contacts in, makeup, and hair done. I was sure he was probably happy now we were over.
“Well, I am exhausted. Good night.” I turned and walked away from my brother and Ash, the ache in my chest growing now that he was here. What a mess this was.
After finding my room, I opened the door, and my jaw dropped. The room was not only gorgeous, but it was also massive. I rushed to the balcony doors, pushing them open and stepping out into the cool air. It was breathtaking. The balcony overlooked the vineyards and beyond. In the daylight, I would be able to see for miles. My fingers itched to grab my sketchpad.
After looking at the stars and maybe making a wish or two, I walked back into the room and locked the door. I looked around the rest of the suite; the bed was king size and in its own room; the bathroom was ginormous with a walk-in shower and a huge, jetted tub. The suite was big enough for two or three people. Thinking that sent a wave of sadness over me. This suite was meant for a couple, not a single woman all alone.
Trying to put the thought of how much better this would be if Ash were here with me, I grabbed a pair of pajamas, my bag of toiletries and walked into the bathroom. As inviting as the tub was, I was so tired I decided to take a quick shower to get the travel gunk off me before I crawled into the bed and passed out. After my shower, I rummaged through my bag to get my charger. It was then I noticed the text message from a little while ago from Ash.
Ashton Wright: Can we talk?
I looked at it for several minutes wanting to reply, but I didn’t. I wasn’t sure what I was feeling, and I was exhausted. I couldn’t avoid him the entire trip, but tonight, I couldn’t think about the what-ifs. After setting an alarm for the next morning, I crawled into the bed and hoped my dreams wouldn’t be filled with thoughts of Ash.
26
Ash
I stared down at the text I sent Ella. She was pissed and hurt, but I didn’t think she would outright avoid me. I had to win her back. As soon as I finally accepted she wasn’t going to respond to me tonight, I put my plan into action. Although late, I headed down to the front desk. There was a twenty-four-hour concierge, and I needed to speak with.
“How can I help you, sir?” She greeted me with a smile as soon as I walked up to her desk.
“I need to plan a romantic evening.”
“Well, you are in the right place.” She opened a drawer and pulled out a pamphlet. “This is a list of all of the amenities we offer, both on the property and off. Look, and if you have any questions, or you don’t see what you are looking for, let me know. I’m sure we can accommodate you.”
“Thanks.” I took the pamphlet and walked over to one of the empty chairs and sat down. Flipping through it, I saw they had an array of different things we could do: wine tastings, cooking classes, spa treatments. They all sounded nice, but I wanted something more. Something different. I walked back over to the concierge and leaned on the counter. “What can you do about setting up a romantic dinner for two in the middle of the vineyard?”
Her smile widened. “I think we can make something work. Why don’t we go have a chat.” She gestured back toward the area I had just come from. She picked up a pad and pen and followed me. “Now, is this for a special occasion? Proposal perhaps?”
Propose to Ella? Imagine if she’d say yes? Although with each passing day, it was becoming clearer and clearer. She was it for me. I needed to win her back before I could think about marriage.
“It’s more of an ‘I’m sorry’ dinner.”
“I see.” Tilting her head, she studied me for a moment before looking down and scribbling in her notepad. “This is what we are going to do.” She described what she thought would be the perfect romantic dinner. I agreed with most of her plans but added a few touches of my own. It was after 2 a.m. when I finally made it up to my room, satisfied that within a few days, Ella would be mine.
Pounding on my door woke me up. I rolled over and saw it was early, way too early to be up after being up so late. I put the pillow over my head and hoped whoever was out there would get the hint and go away. No such luck. After another five minutes of pounding, I finally got up, stalked over to the door, and swung it open.
“Morning. Did I wake you?” Jax asked as he pushed his way past me and walked about my room, sticking his head into the bathroom and the balcony.
“Um… what are you doing?”
“Just making sure you’re alone.” Whistling like he didn’t have a care in the world, he took a seat on the couch, satisfied I was, in fact, alone.
I continued to watch my friend in disbelief. Did he honestly think I would have another woman in my room when he knew all I wanted to do was win his sister back?
“What?” I stood dumbfounded.
“Are you serious?”
He shrugged and stood up. “Just making sure. Come on, get ready. Breakfast is soon.”
Shaking my head, I walked to my suitcase and grabbed a dark pair of jeans and a polo before closing myself in the bathroom. I took a quick shower, something I wish I had done the night before, but I was so exhausted all I managed to do was strip down to my boxers and fall into the king-sized bed. After trying to tame my wild hair as best I could, I dressed and walked back out into the sitting area of the room. Jax was still there.
“There are some cool things planned today. Sounds kind of fun.” He was reading over a piece of paper.
“Planned?” He handed me the paper, and I glanced over it. It was an itinerary for the week. I narrowed in on the night I planned dinner for Ella and me. Looks like we would be skipping the planned activities for the night. I hoped she didn’t mind, but part of me knew she probably hated the fact Mia planned out each day. Before our fallout, she told me she was planning to take a day or two to visit family, and she wanted to get some drawing in if she could. Looking over this, it didn’t look like there was any room until after the wedding to do either.
“Come on, let’s go,” Jax said, and I followed him out the door to see what waited for us.
27
Ella
Not only did I have to suffer through their wedding, but they planned out almost every hour of every day we were here. It consisted mostly of group activities. First on the list for today was a welcome breakfast that I was going to be late to.
Well, here goes nothing. Time for this circus to begin.
I stepped out onto my balcony t
o check the weather. Normally, October in Italy was around seventy degrees, but today, it was unusually warm. After taking in the gorgeous view, I went back into the room and rummaged through my large suitcase. I pulled out a navy blue halter jumpsuit. I had no idea how to pack for this vacation, but seeing as the day activities consisted of breakfast, an afternoon hot air balloon ride over the Crete Senesi, and ended with a wine and oil tasting, I figured this would be appropriate. It was comfortable but still dressy enough. Glancing over the itinerary one more time, I noted everything did sound amazing and something I would normally want to do. I wasn’t thrilled at who I would be doing it with. At least I will have Jax, I thought.
I made it down the breakfast twenty minutes late. As I walked through the crowded dining room, I scanned the attendees. My parents sat with Mia, Preston, and his parents. A group of Mia’s friends, a.k.a. the mean girls, were at another table with their significant others. There were a few empty seats at a table of complete strangers, one at my mom's table, and a few at the table Jax and Ash sat at.
Although I didn’t want to be near Ash, it was the lesser of all evils. Knowing I should try and make the best of the situation, I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and walked up to the table with a smile on my face.
“Hey Elle-Belle,” my brother greeted me.
“Hey, mind if I take a seat?” I asked, although I knew the answer before he even responded.
“Seriously?” he said and rolled his eyes. I took a seat, and a waiter immediately rushed over.
“Can I get you something to drink, bella?” The young man smiled down at me. He had to be about my age; he was very handsome, and his Italian accent was panty-melting or would be if my mind wasn’t constantly stuck on the man across from me.
“Umm...” I looked around the room and saw a few people with mimosas. “Can I get a mimosa and coffee, please?” I smiled at him, and he walked off. I looked down at the menu, trying to decide on what I wanted.
“Ella?” I looked up to Ash.
“Hello,” I said and looked back down at the menu. Moments later, the waiter returned with my drinks.
“Sei bellissima.”
“Grazie.”
“Are you ready to order?”
“Yes, can I have the crepes, please?”
“Certo.” The waiter winked at me and walked off into the back of the room. The man was probably married, but Italian men always brought on the charm. The clearing of a throat pulled me back to reality. I looked over to my brother and Ash. Jax was smirking, and Ash looked pissed.
“I think he likes you,” Jax added. He was poking the bear because as soon as he said it, Ashton got up and walked out of breakfast.
“You’re evil,” I said to Jax.
“Serves him right with what he did to you.” My face fell. “He likes you, Elle. A lot...”
I shrugged. Did it even matter anymore?
“You do what you gotta do. I don’t want to get involved, but he has been unusually miserable these last few weeks. Once he got the real story, that made it even worse,” he added.
Although his misery should have made me happy, it just made it worse. We were both miserable.
My food came, and Jax and I fell into talking about the castle and laughed at the itinerary. Halfway through my food, my mom stopped by to say good morning, and Mia rolled her eyes. Preston just looked uncomfortable. When breakfast was over, we all made our way outside to where the shuttle waited to take us to the hot air balloon ride.
Ash stood outside, sunglasses on, looking down at something on his phone. Seeing him still sent butterflies swirling in my stomach. Trying to ignore them, I focused on watching everyone file into the shuttle until it was my turn. I took the seat next to Jax while Ash sat across from us. The ride to the field where the balloons were was short.
We were going to be split up.
As we got out of the van, Preston stood in front of the group.
“We have four balloons.” He pulled out a piece of paper. “Balloon One,” he rattled off a bunch of the mean girls. Balloon two was the parents and some of their relatives; balloon three was a few other friends and Mia and Preston. “Which leaves the last balloon to be Ella, Jax, Ash, and the remaining girls.”
Great. I would have much rather been with my parents.
We all split into our little groups, and the pilots gave us a brief lesson on what to expect, what we had to do in case of an emergency and information on our flight path. Internally, I came to terms with the fact that Ash and I would be doing a lot of the activities together over the next week. Despite what went on a few weeks ago, we were adults and could act like them.
“Alright, ladies and gentlemen, let's get going.” With the help of a few of the guys, our pilot had the balloon inflated. One by one, we all piled into the basket. Jax was on one side and Ash on the other. Right as we took off, on reaction, I grabbed Ash’s arm. He looked down at my hand, grasping on to him for dear life, and I quickly pulled away. He frowned but moved a bit closer, and I felt his arm snake behind me. He wasn’t touching me, but the gesture in itself was enough. I wasn’t normally a nervous flyer, but I had never done this before.
I took out my phone and started videoing to send this to Lucy. I looked over at Jax, who had a smile on his face, but he would be having an even better time if Lucy was with us. I turned the camera around to video the three of us. I gestured to both men to lean in, and although he hesitated, Ash did. He was so close to me I could smell his cologne.
“Hi, Lu! We wish you were here with us! We love you!” We all smiled and waved before I turned the camera back toward the landscape. We were so high up and could see for miles. I thought the view from my balcony was breathtaking; this was a thousand times better. The other balloons were off in the distance, and I hoped everyone else was enjoying this as much as I was. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Our pilot talked about the landscape below us and the history. It was so fascinating. I took a ton of pictures, thinking I may paint one of them someday. I hadn’t picked up a brush since returning from Europe. Not only did I not have the time, but I lacked inspiration. Being up here, a flood of ideas filled my head.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Ash whispered in my ear.
My entire body filled with goosebumps. “It is.”
He gently reached out and squeezed my shoulder but immediately dropped his arm back.
The entire ride only lasted a little over an hour. When we were safely back on the ground, we all walked over to a little tent set up with snacks and drinks. I grabbed a bottle of water and a packet of cookies and walked out. I needed a minute. Being up there with Ash so close had me nearly losing my mind. I never wanted to kiss someone and punch them at the same time.
"Gabriella.”
I froze before turning around and facing Ashton, who followed me outside.
“Hi.” My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest.
“Look...” He ran his hands through his hair, searching for the right words. In the short time I had known him, I had never seen him looked so conflicted. Before he could get another word out, Mia came out, announcing it was time to go.
“Come on, everyone, we don’t want to be late for the wine and oil tasting.”
I walked away and toward the shuttle. He and I should talk, needed to talk, but I didn’t want it to be around everyone. I settled in my seat, Jax once again next to me, and Ash across from us. The entire ride, Ash kept his pleading eyes on me while I tried to avoid them.
We returned to the castle and were given a quick reprieve to freshen up before we had to meet back for the wine tasting. I hurried back to my room, wondering if Ash was going to try and follow me to talk, but to my disappointment, he didn’t.
When I went back down to the room the tasting was being held, a rush of jealousy coursed through me when I spotted Ash laughing with one of Mia’s friends. Her single friend, to be exact. I had half a mind to stomp over there and tell her to get lost that he was mine but,
he wasn’t. The pain of realizing he could very well spend the rest of this vacation with her left me hurt and confused.
Jax walked in, and I saw him look over at Ash and then toward me. “If you keep pushing him away, you’re going to push him right into someone else, Elle-Belle. You are hurt, I understand that, but sometimes, we have to learn to forgive.”
I continued to look at Ash and the woman; she was beautiful, someone I could picture him being with. What was I doing? I loved him regardless of what happened, and yet I still was avoiding him.
I walked in with my brother, and we took two open seats. Ash looked at the empty seat next to Mia’s friend and then the one near me. We locked eyes, and I’m not sure what he saw when he looked at me, but he came and sat next to me. The knot in my stomach loosened just a bit. This is a good sign, I thought. I turned toward him and smiled at him, and I saw relief wash over him.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” the sommelier called everyone to attention, forcing Ash and me to break eye contact. “Welcome. This afternoon, we will be sampling four of our most popular wines. With each wine, you will be given a sample of one of our olive oils along with a cheese and honey pairing.” Several waiters walked in with charcuterie boards and started distributing them to each of us. Each board held four dipping bowls filled with oils, several pieces of bread, an array of cheese and honey. My mouth salivated just looking at it.
“Now, to make this fun,” he continued and held up a thin piece of fabric. “You will all be doing this blindfolded; we will need to pair everyone up, its best to do two, but three will work too.” The blonde Ash was talking to immediately looked his way and waved.