It was November 2024, exactly 26 years since he founded his empire of luxury wineries and vineyards, and 23 years since he lost the only woman he had ever truly loved. But that night, sitting alone in the elegant Can Culleretes restaurant in the Gothic Quarter, he had no idea that the past was about to collide with the present in the most unexpected way. The restaurant was one of his favorites when he visited Barcelona for meetings with European distributors.
The soft lighting, the centuries-old stone walls, and the intimate atmosphere reminded him of the family wineries of his youth, before money and success transformed his life into something he sometimes didn’t recognize. He had arrived early for his appointment with a French importer, but the man canceled at the last minute, leaving Gael dining alone at a table for two. At 54, Gael had learned to appreciate solitude.
His graying temples gave him a distinguished air that women found attractive, but he had built such high walls around his heart that few could truly get close. Since Amélia’s de:a:th 23 years ago, he’d had a few relationships, but none had filled the void she’d left. As he cut the sirloin steak he’d ordered, Gael unconsciously turned the wedding band on the ring finger of his right hand.
It was a habit he’d developed over years of stress and loneliness. The ring was a 200-year-old family heirloom, white gold with a flawless Colombian emerald surrounded by small diamonds. It had belonged to his great-grandfather, then his grandfather, then his father, and finally had come down to him.
But most importantly, it had been the ring with which he’d proposed to Amélia. The jewel was unique. His grandfather had told him that only three of these rings existed in the world, crafted by an Italian goldsmith for a Spanish noble family in the 19th century.
One had disappeared during the Civil War, another had been stolen decades earlier, and the third was the one he wore. When Amélia d:ied in that terrible car accident, Gael considered burying the ring with her, but ultimately decided to wear it always, as a way to keep her close to his heart. Life had gone on after the tragedy, but it was never the same.
Gael threw himself into his work like a man possessed, expanding the family wine business into one of the most prestigious wineries in Spain. His Rioja and Ribera del Duero wines were sold in the most exclusive restaurants in Europe. His wineries were visited by celebrities and international magnates, and his personal fortune had increased tenfold in the last two decades.
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