Summer Villa

Terry Russell is a successful Manhattan-based writer of romance novels. Her stories belie the fact that she doesn't have much of a love life herself, as she focuses on writing and raising her fifteen year old daughter Abby on her own. External stresses have led to Terry having writer's block as she faces an imminent deadline which could jeopardize her publishing deal if not met. Matthew Everston is a successful Manhattan restaurateur, a two-time Iron Chef. He has lost his professional way as he is trying to build his business, he solely becoming the face of the restaurant rather than its creative driving force. Part of that face is being known within the public mindset as the Cupid Chef, for his greater renown as a ladies man. As such, he is largely becoming a parody of himself. A bad review by prominent critic Dominic Barone, most specifically of what is supposed to be Matthew's signature dish, coq au vin, has the potential to kibosh Matthew's expansion plans. Terry and Matthew meet on what ends up being a disastrous and thus truncated blind date set up by Terry's friend and publisher, Matthew's sister Leslie Everston. Because of Terry's writer's block, Leslie offers Terry the use of the Everston family villa in the French countryside for the summer, the villa which Leslie was going to use herself. This offer, which Terry accepts, is outside of her comfort zone, and way outside Abby's wants, Abby who would rather just hang out with her friend Jessica in the city for the summer. That quiet summer retreat ends up not being so as Matthew, without Leslie's knowledge, also shows up and intends to stay at the villa for the summer to recharge his creative juices. Despite Terry and Matthew's animosity based on their blind date experience, Leslie is able to convince them to share the large villa for the summer. Their relationship becomes a cordial enough one as they each focus on their own issues. In addition, they both meet a local where there is a mutual attraction, Terry with talented local chef Jean Luc, and Matthew with Jean Luc's butcher Nadia. However, if each was being honest with themselves and with each other, Terry and Matthew have started to fall for each other, each becoming the other's true muse. The one person who can see what's happening is Abby, who is blossoming in her own right as she finds something else in life besides hanging out with Jessica. The path to a happy ending for Terry, Matthew and Abby as a collective may be predicated on the outcome of an upcoming local cooking contest which Jean Luc has won four years running.