the nick of time, so she hadn’t been forced to hurt Tommy by telling him she wanted out of the deal?
She looked at her sister. Mad looked back, a sweet, tender expression replacing her usual blunt, take-no-prisoners one.
“Thank you,” she whispered as the truth of it finally sank in. More excited by the second, she threw her arms around her sister, then reached across the table and dragged Tommy into a group hug. “Thank you both!”
They squeezed for a moment, until Tommy said, “Okay, now get out of here and let me make googly eyes at my wife-to-be. I’ll bet some paparazzi asshole followed us from the hotel and is taking pictures from across the street.”
Madison concurred. Tossing her a set of keys, she said, “My rental car’s at the curb. Mr. Hollywood will get me back to the hotel safely.” She reached up and touched Candace’s cheek. “Go claim your man.”
That was the best suggestion Candace had heard all night. And she immediately stood up and strode out of the restaurant, determined to do just that.
She didn’t waste time going back to the hotel, knowing Oliver wouldn’t have gone there. She would bet money he had called a cab and paid a fortune for it to take him back to Sonoma. That’s where she headed, hoping her instincts were right.
During the entire forty-minute drive, she clutched the steering wheel, tense and anxious, trying to find the words to make things right, wondering how he would react when he saw her. She had so much she wanted to tell him, so many things to explain, secrets to share, wishes and dreams to whisper. She just hoped he didn’t slam the door in her face when she showed up at his cottage.
Arriving at the estate, which was dark and silent, she drove up the long, windy driveway, glad Madison’s rental car was a hybrid with a very quiet engine. She didn’t want to give Oliver too much warning so that he could put his defenses too firmly in place.
She parked in front of the house, slipped from the car and hurried to the cottage. Reaching for the knob, she thought twice, knowing if this was the beginning of the rest of their lives, she needed to start on the right foot.
She knocked.
This wouldn’t be about coercion, letting herself in, seducing him—although she hoped she’d get that chance later. She wanted him to let her in, to give her a chance.
Just one chance to win him.
A light flipped on and she released the breath she’d been holding. She’d guessed correctly.
The door slowly opened, and he saw her there. His eyes widened a tiny bit, but his mouth remained set in a firm line. No smile tugged at it, no welcoming glimmer of happiness. He merely waited. Watching, assessing. But she’d bet the wheels were churning away in his mind as he tried to figure out what she was doing at his door.
“May I come in?”
Stepping out of the way, he gestured for her to enter, still not speaking.
“I thought I’d find you here.”
He finally spoke. “Why did you come?”
“To claim you.”
That surprised a flinch out of him. “Huh?”
Though she desperately wanted to slide her arms around his neck and pull him down for a warm kiss that would do a better job of explaining why she was here, she knew she had to give him the gift he’d given her earlier—utter and complete honesty.
“I love you, Oliver.”
He nodded slowly. “You said that earlier.”
“Yes. But I didn’t say that I want to be with you, for as long as you’ll have me. I want to stay here and build a life with you. To help you figure out what you want to do with your life.”
He looked stunned.
“Maybe you’ll want to go back into law, or maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll want to stay here and help Grandpa turn this into a premiere winery. You can grow grapes, I can draw costumes and we’ll drink wine and live.”
He stepped closer, not reaching for her, but looking more hopeful by the second. “What about your engagement?”
“It’s over.”
His relief was visible. Because she’d known he hadn’t wanted her doing anything purely for his sake, she explained the whole story, telling him about her sister’s plans to stay in L.A., which, frankly, made her very happy on many levels.
“But you didn’t ask her to?”
“No, I swear. I was just about to tell Tommy we needed to find another solution because I couldn’t give you up. But