Not a Flower - A Novel

Chapter 3

Grace woke up disoriented. Yawning, she wondered where she was. The tantalizing scent of hot coffee filled her nostrils.

"We're here, sleeping beauty." Adrian's now familiar drawl made Grace blink quickly and sit up.

He was sitting with one arm loosely arranged on the steering wheel. His free hand held out a steaming cup of coffee in her direction. The sun was just setting, turning the sky glorious shades of purple, orange, and pink.

"Castle La Mer?" She asked, her voice a bit raspy from sleep. "I'm sorry I slept the whole way here. You should have woken me to take a turn driving."

"No big deal. I like driving." He shrugged, gazing at the colorful sunset in the horizon.

"Thank you." Taking the offered cup of coffee, she sipped it gratefully as she looked around.

They were parked on a scenic overlook. The perfect place to view what had to be the most beautiful sunset in the world. She watched as seagulls flew over the indigo depths of the Atlantic Ocean. But even as she admired her surrounding, a feeling close to panic was rising in her.

Soon she was going to see Duval. And he didn't even know she was coming.

Taking a deep drink of the coffee and ignoring the fact that the liquid was still boiling hot, Grace gave herself a silent but stern lecture.

Just walk in, smile, and tell him that you were able to get the time off to come down after all.

Grace nodded, taking a deep breath. That was the ticket. Just take it one step at a time. Be the friend that he saw her as. Once the two weeks were over, she'd go home and move on with life. That was the plan.

She sighed, knowing it was a rather poor plan but she had no other option at this point.

"Are you all right?" Adrian asked.

She gave him a weak smile and lied. "I'm great."

He stared at her silently. She hoped that he wasn't as observant as she was afraid he was. Those blue eyes appraised her trembling hands, her hectic cheeks and her dark eyes—then looked away.

"We'll go when you're ready. La Mer is only another few miles away."

"Okay." She said numbly. She kept drinking her coffee, hoping she could find her courage at the bottom of the cup.

Grace was grateful when Adrian told her that he needed to stretch his legs before driving on. He shut the door quietly behind him and made exaggerated twisting motions as he walked away from the car.

She took the time to flip down the mirror and apply fresh lip balm. After combing her hair quickly and straightening her clothes, she felt much better. More ready to face Duval.

"Thank you." She told Adrian when he came back. His was a look of guileless surprise.

"For what?" He knew full well that he had been giving her time to ready herself.

Instead of answering him, Grace said instead. "I haven't been there since before my sister's death. It's a bit—it feels strange."

"I understand. I haven't been back for a much longer time than that myself." Adrian said, his expression cooling.

Surprised, she asked, "Why?"

He shook his head and gave a non-committal half smile.

"Long story. Boring too. Come on, let's get going."

About twenty minutes later, they reached the long paved driveway leading up to Castle La Mer. An intricately wrought steel gate blocked the way.