They all walked up the steps and through the main entrance of the château. Two staff members were behind the desk. A woman in her thirties wearing a blue suit welcomed them with the customary bonjour. The younger of the two, in a silk blouse,did the same. A butler came out of what appeared to be the back office and rushed over to handle the luggage. Even with the renovations that had turned the original foyer into a reception area, the integrity of the building remained intact. A sitting area with plush burgundy chairs and a small bar was directly ahead. To the right, the room expanded into an area that looked like a parlor, with several elegant couches and tables. Across from the reception area, steep and narrow stairs led up to the second floor.
They said goodbye to their friends, all agreeing to meet up later for dinner. She followed Stone up the spiral staircase to the second floor. Their room was at the end of a long hallway. Stone used a clunky key that may have been around since the French Revolution to open the door.
She squealed with delight at their plush and colorful room. Windows looked out to a swimming pool and beyond, a hayfield. She opened French doors to a small balcony. Visible in the distance, another castle stuck up from between treetops. Autumn colors of red and orange from clumps of trees were interspersed with soft yellow fields.
Stone joined her. For a moment, she worried his bulk might be too much for the narrow balcony, but the boards didn’t even creak.
“Is it what you dreamed of?” Stone asked.
“It’s perfect.” She ducked under his arm. They stood together, soaking in the scenery. After a few minutes, she glanced up at his broad face. “Have I driven you crazy with my micromanaging this wedding?”
He chuckled. “Not at all.”
“Not even with the custom-made groom and groomsmen outfits?”
“Nah. The boys and I look good.”
She’d had them made by one of the finest tailors in San Francisco—a connection through Lisa’s stylist. Stone was wearing a dark blue suit with a light gray vest. The groomsmen would be in suits made of the same light gray as the groom’s vest. All would have matching dark-blue-and-gray-striped ties and chocolate-colored shoes.
“Everything’s exactly how I wanted it to be. Thank you for being patient with me.” Months of detailed planning had kept her, Lisa, and Pepper’s mother busy.
“Baby, it’s no problem. I’m just glad the time is finally here.” Stone pecked her mouth with his. “Making you my wife is all I care about.”
“It’s so silly, but I cannot wait for you to see my dress. I’m going to feel like a princess.”
“You’re my princess.” He laughed. “And I don’t mean that in a demeaning or chauvinistic way.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I know you don’t. But how about we have a little premarital sex before the big day?”
“You had me at sex.”
4
LISA
The next morning, the empty space in the closet jumped out at Lisa the instant they returned to their room. She and Rafael had come back from a walk around the grounds of the French château, pink-cheeked and energized from the crisp October morning. Feeling as frisky as teenagers, they’d bounded up the skinny, winding stairwell to the second floor. Rafael had used the ancient key to cajole the door open, and they stumbled into the room together, already kissing, ready to put all that fresh autumn air to good use and make the old walls blush.
She’d glanced over Rafael’s shoulder and screamed at the sight of the black hole where the perfect dress for Pepper had hung happily waiting for its beautiful bride.
Rafael clutched his chest. “What is it?”
Just like a man not to notice. “Pepper’s dress is missing.”
Rafael sighed with obvious relief. “I thought you’d seen a dead body.”
“This is worse than a dead body. Not worse, of course, but oh my God, what will Pepper do without a dress? She can’t walk down the aisle in her boyfriend jeans.”
“She probably took it back to their room. Maybe she wanted to try it on.” Rafael could be remarkably and annoyingly calm during jarring situations. Pepper had spent months planning this wedding. Every detail, including the wedding dress, had been thought through with great care. She’d only been planning for this wedding since she was nineteen years old. It took another eleven years to find the groom.
As a little girl, like Lisa, Pepper had been enamored with princesses. The Loire Valley was known for castles. Truth be told, Pepper wanted to be a princess. Getting married in a castle was the next best option.
Lisa was her best friend—her maid of honor—the person who was supposed to make sure everything was perfect. From the time they were students at NYU together, they’d been planning their weddings. They’d discovered the château in a travel magazine. Once a small castle, it was now an inn with an upscale restaurant, a pool, and a view of the horizon so beautiful it made Lisa’s breath catch. This wastheplace, Pepper had decided. The place to marry the one and only Stone Hickman.
Last Christmas, when Lisa married Rafael, Pepper had made sure everything went as planned. Her white wedding in Colorado had been magical. The plan went off without a hitch. A missing wedding dress was not in the plan.
“She would never take that risk,” she said to Rafael. “What if Stone saw it?”
“She might have changed her mind about tradition,” Rafael said. “Or maybe she just wanted to try it on one last time. Bride jitters or something?” He said the last part without much conviction, as if he knew his theories would soon be immediately discounted.
