Chapter 1
The sprawling estate of the Renaldo Mansion was spectacular, Dana thought as she drove her car up to the long stone driveway leading up to the gold iron gates.
The orange and brown fall leaves swirled around as the crisp wind blew. The sky was a deep grey blue color. There was always something cozy and warm about fall weather for some reason. Dana didn’t mind it a bit. She was dressed in her warm dark grey leggings, black knee-high leather fall riding boots and a long knitted navy blue sweater that hugged her curves. Casual yet professional enough for a café entrepreneur. She felt so much for at ease than her previous job as a copywriter in a New York office where all the power dressing and designer handbags was the rage. Her wardrobe used to cost a fortune, not to mention expensive lunches in the city and commuting and the maintenance fees on her old condo in the suburbs. Luckily, she’d sold that and after paying off her debts, moved to Berry Cove to help nana’s ailing business.
Yes, Berry Cove was a complete treat. She preferred to listen to the waves of the water lap against the shores and the birds chirping in the air. She preferred to inhale the sweet fragrance of the country life and vanilla scent of freshly baked goods coming out of her late grandma’s café which she now owned and was keeping afloat since nana’s passing. That was so much better than inhaling the congestion of big city traffic and gridlock. The only gridlock in Berry Cove was a group of ducklings crossing the country road while cars patiently waited and drivers smiled at the beauty of nature. Something she never saw in the big, bustling city.
Her blood pressure was certainly not as pumped up as it was in New York. She savored the slower pace like savoring a taste of fresh whipped cream topping on a cupcake. Nice and comforting and sweet and relaxing.
Dana powered down her windows and spoke to a gold-plated speaker box. “It’s Dana. Dana Sweet from Cozy Cupcakes Café.”
“Yes, Miss Dana.” A disembodied voice sounded through the speakers. “We’ve been expecting you.”
There was a loud clicking sound and the iron gates started to slowly open.
Dana quickly closed the car window, feeling a chill from outside. The temperature had dropped significantly during November.
She then drove her car past the open gates up the interlocking red brick paved driveway leading up to the front of the massive mansion. Elegant. Sophisticated. Her eyes took in a view of a very beautiful golf-course right on the estate. How nice to see how the other half lived.
Her eyes couldn’t help but be captivated by the impressive estate. There must be at least an acre of lush garden, which was nicely manicured, and in pristine condition, especially for the windy fall weather. The marble-framed front doors of the mansion overlooked the hourglass pond and fountain in the front.
Wow. Just wow! Dana thought to herself.
Dana had never been to this part of Berry Cove before. It was situated just on the border, a rich area with aristocrats and celebrities who wanted to move away to a quiet scenic estate away from prying eyes of the media.
The Renaldos were hosting an engagement party for patriarch, Tierry Renaldo, a rich oilman from out west, in Alberta, who was marrying a woman way younger than he was. According to sources her name was Goldie but people called her “Gold-dig”, which stood for gold digger, behind her back.
The golf-loving tycoon was pushing eighty and his young bride to be was a forty-year-old unemployed model from California. His grown children couldn’t have been all to thrilled about it, Dana guessed, according to rumors out of the gossip headquarters of Berry Cove, otherwise known as Bea’s Salon.
But still, who’s to judge? As long as he was happy, right?
And Dana was so looking forward to gathering the funds together to start the renovation on the old café, which was housed in an old Victorian townhouse and
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