Wanted: one master winemaker
Indigo Blue is starting over, again. Following the death of her husband, sheâs rebuilding her life around her only inheritanceâa California winery. Thereâs just one problem: she doesnât know a thing about wine. Enter brooding vintner Danovan DiCarlo.
Eager to put his own painful past behind him, Danovan is the perfect partner. And not just in business. As they work side by side, Indigo can feel more than the vineyard coming back to life. Falling for Danovan is a scary prospect. But how do you say no when you find love twice in a blue moon?
âWhatâs wrong, Danovan?â She sounded as confused as he felt. âIs it me?â
âItâs not you. Us working together and...being together messes with my head sometimes.â He ran a hand through his hair.
Mixing business and pleasure had destroyed his last life.
âLook, I want you,â he said. âBut Iâve also asked you to put a lot of faith in me with the winery. I donât ever want you to think that I used thisââ he waved a hand, indicating them both ââused us, to influence your decision.â
She tilted her head. âI canât decide if youâre sweet or the most egotistical man Iâve ever met.â
Yeah, join the club. He had never felt so conflicted and unsure of himself. âYou are in my blood, Indigo Blue.â
He ran a finger down her throat, to where the first button of her blouse halted his progress.
Dear Reader,
Since Widowâs Grove is surrounded by wineries, one of the books in the series just had to take place on one, right? Except the only thing I know for sure about wine is how to consume it! I enjoyed the research for Indigoâs story and hope you enjoy visiting The Tippling Widow.
If youâre ever in the area, stop by and sample the cabernetâitâs fabulous.
Oh, and watch for the cameo appearances of the characters from the first two books in the series!
The next book? I had readers ask what happened to Bear, the big scary guy from The Reasons to Stay, so the next in the series will be his story.
Stay tuned, ideas are still growing...
Laura Drake
PS I enjoy hearing from readers. You can contact me and sign up for my newsletter through my website, lauradrakebooks.com.
LAURA DRAKE is a RITA® Award-winning author of romance and womenâs fiction. Sheâs a city girl who never grew out of her tomboy ways, or a serious cowboy crush. Lauraâs realized her dream of becoming a Texan and is working on her accent. In the remaining waking hours, sheâs a wife, grandmother and motorcycle chick. She currently writes for Harlequin Superromance. Find her online at lauradrakebooks.com and on Twitter, @PBRWriter.
To my Alpha Dog, who, no matter how fast I pedal, is waving from the top of the next hill, cheering me on.
And telling me to hurry up.
Thanks for always waiting, Babe.
Acknowledgments
Iâm not much different than Indigo; I may know a cab from a zin, but not much more.
A huge thanks to Jeff Wiens of Wiens Family Cellars, who offered to answer this authorâs every ignorant question...and even helped on plot points! His family winery in Temecula, California, was my template for The Tippling Widow.
If youâre ever in the area, check out their wonderful wines! Tell Jeff I said, âHey.â
www.WiensCellars.com
Contents
Cover
Back Cover Text
Introduction
Dear Reader
Title Page
About the Author
Dedication
Acknowledgments
The Hollywood Informer
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Epilogue
Extract
Copyright
The Hollywood Informer
Hollywood was rocked last week by the death of our beloved Harry Stone. Undoubtedly one of the most influential personalities in the history of film, Harry was Hollywoodâs best-known director and one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world. Weâll miss him not only for his sparkling genre-bending movies, but for his iconic bigger-than-life personality.
But apparently Harryâs not done rocking the town.
In our EXCLUSIVE interview inside, Harryâs daughter and reality show superstar, Brenda Stone, reveals the juicy details of Harryâs will! And guess whoâs not in it? Harryâs four-decades-junior wife, Indigo Blue. Apparently the opportunistic âmasseuse to the starsâ will have to hit the road with her massage table, because she got nada.
The Informer is gratified to see that sometimes, even in this town, Karma works. Blue dug for gold and came up with rocks. We sincerely hope this is the last time we have to mention her name within these pages. Like Townshend wrote, âLetâs forget you, better still.â