And just as he said, as soon as I see a huge mansion looming in front of us, my phone dings again, a message from Alex telling me goodnight. I breathe out a sigh of relief and rather than Alastair driving off, he starts to pull into the driveway that my eyes widen in shock.
“Oh, wow,” I whisper in awe.
The sounds escape my lips before I can help myself. When Alastair talked about his home, he was very humble about it. I know how much a place like this is worth, and I struggle not to let my jaw drop. And not only that, but it’s beyondbeautiful.
“Welcome to my place,” he grins. The house is nested in the mountains, the lights from the city visible down below, and as soon as we park, Alastair jumps down and comes over to open the door for me, giving me his hand and helping me out.
I can see a deck on one side of the house, a huge wooden structure with chairs, a table, and—
“Is that a hot pool?” I gawk, my eyes probably the size of saucer plates.
Am I dreaming?
Alastair chuckles, nodding.
“It is. My bad I didn’t ask you to go pick up some swimwear,” he jokes. “But you’re more than welcome to come back whenever. It’s lovely in winter, especially when it’s snowing. I can’t wait for those days to be back.”
There’s a glint of mischief in his eyes as if he’s daring me to offer to get in regardless of the lack of a swimsuit. My heart flutters at the thought of him potentially hinting at wanting to see me again and I can’t help but chuckle.
And maybe I will do just that because when it comes to challenges and bets, I take them quite seriously.
Maybe. I can’t help but smile at the thought.
“I’d love to see that, not long until we get snow up here.”
“Shouldn’t be.” Alastair opens the door and leads me through the inside, unlocks the double doors to the deck, and points to the bar on the side. “In or out? We can sit by the fire if you’re cold, or we can brave it out outside… I have blankets right here,” he adds pointing to a chest, “in case it’s too cold out.”
“I love the cold, and we can always change our minds and come back in, right?” I suggest. Alastair opens the chest and gives me a blanket, and then he grabs another for himself, guiding me into the deck and onto one of the chairs.
“What would you like to drink?” he offers, cocking his head to the side.
“What do you have on offer?” I reply.
“Oh… don’t get the wrong impression, but probably anything you can think of. My friends and family know that I love both hosting people and trying new things, so they always give me bottles for my birthday and any other circumstance. Wine, bubbles, whiskey, gin, beer, anything,” he lists with his fingers. “Anything else, I probably have somewhere as well if you want. Let me know if any of that works for you.”
“Wine sounds good, I already started with it and it’s not like we can mix much at this age,” I joke. Alastair laughs, and the sound is so lovely that it makes me all warm inside—or maybe that’s the fluffy blanket wrapped around my shoulders.
“Red, white, sweet?” he questions, eyeing me for a moment.
“I’m more of a sweet person, but whatever you want,” I say, dying for him to say sweet.
“I have a lovely Riesling that I think you might like,” he replies, turning around and going behind the bar for a moment before returning with a bottle and two glasses. My mouth instantly waters at just how in tune we are.
He pops them on the table, unscrews the lid, and serves me a glass.
“I’ve been saving this one for a special occasion,” he says. “My brother got it for me a while back, brought it from the south of New Zealand, from a winery he said was like paradise itself. I never got to try it before this.”
I look at the label, a golden Pegasus over a blue circle, and then take a sip. And oh, it’s bliss and heavenly served in a bottle that I can’t even explain in words. It’s fresh, crisp, and has an undertone of citrus that makes my heart sing.
It’s sweet, but not like a late-harvest sweet, more like a lovely sweet, like sunshine in winter. I think I moan at just the flavor while cupping my cheeks, and I might make a funny face because Alastair won’t keep his eyes off me.
“I’m sorry, I think I just died because this has to be heaven,” I reply jokingly, washing the joke down with another sip. “I don’t think I can go back to just about any sort of wine after this because this is delicious.”
“Glad I saved it, then,” he replies. He takes a sip himself and smiles, nodding in agreement. “Oh, wow.”
“Right?” I say, giggling.
We sit there, chatting a bit more, looking up at the stars that are the most amazing thing I’ve seen in such a long time. And eventually, as I get up to stretch my legs and lean over the banister to look out into the mountains, I see it.