Chapter Twenty
Hiking up the mountain, Jack followed, weaving in and out of trees, smelling every inch of dirt within his vicinity. Spots were covered in snow, but the main trails were clear, if not a little muddy. It had been a long morning of waking up with Chardonnay in my bed and not wanting to leave the warmth of her body, to restocking firewood, then heading to Ron’s to meet with his new nurse.
The introductions went well, and for the first time in months, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. I needed to get some fresh mountain air and leave all that shit at the bottom as I made my way through the trails I’d been hiking since I was a kid.
The crisp scent of pine mixed with the damp earth eased the tension that had been knotting my nerves far too long. Jack’s tail wagged happily as he darted ahead, kicking up dead leaves and dirt in his wake. His carefree enthusiasm reminded me of simpler times. Back then, these trails had been my escape—a place where I could run wild and free without Ron threatening to knock my teeth out.
I stopped at a familiar clearing, letting myself absorb the stillness. The nurse had seemed nice, but more importantly, she seemed competent. She said all the right things and even got Ron to smile a few times. He mostly mumbled through the introductions, but he never objected. She assured me they were good, and I hoped she was right.
Jack nudged my hand, and I reached down to scratch his ears. “All right, boy, we’ll keep moving.”
With a bark, Jack led the way, and I followed. He’d been adjusting to this new life as much as I had. When we were on babysitting duties, Fanny didn’t give Jack a moment's rest. My poor pup was always on edge, waiting for that damn cat to swat his snout or attack his tail.
It had always been me, Jack, and the distillery, where I had the mornings free to do whatever we pleased. But over the last few months, so much had changed. Balancing Ron’s care, managing the growing popularity of the tasting room, and the endless complications that came with both. The thing with Ron was only supposed to be temporary, but even with the nurse, it didn’t feel temporary at all.
Even now, I was checking my phone, waiting for the other shoe to drop, because it would. It always did. And what if I had kids someday?
The unexpected thought was like a sucker punch to my gut. I braced myself against the hard bark of a tree. I didn’t want kids. Never had. Ron was a horrible father—angry, unpredictable and absent. I would never bring a kid into this world knowing I had ties to that. And yet, the vision popped into my head so effortlessly. A child with Chardonnay’s dark brown eyes and my height, running after Jack, laughing while Chardonnay followed, ready to catch the teetering child.
I ran a hand over my hair, trying to figure out where the hell that thought originated. And though I tried to shove it away and forget it ever appeared, it was like a seed taking root in my mind. Did Char want kids? I’d never asked. Never thought I’d need to. Besides, we just put our swords down.
With her parents officially retiring and everything with Ron, neither of us had the time for kids. Then again, Franc didn’t either, and he found a way to make it work. Gio was the best damn thing that had ever happened to him.
Kids .
The idea was terrifying, making me think of all the ways I could fail, but it also didn’t make me want to shut it down completely. There was some joy there, an inner peace I’d only felt standing at the top of this mountain, looking out over the landscape that made me who I am.
“Jesus.” I tugged on two pieces of my hair, tightening the tie that held it in place. Jack barked ahead, impatient with my inability to keep up. I forced myself to press on, but instead of leaving the thought behind me, I carried it for the rest of the hike.
Finally, back at the truck, feeling lighter and refreshed, I slipped my phone from my pocket and went to place it in its holder when the screen flashed with an incoming call.
Sharon, the nurse, was calling.
I sighed—grateful for the moment of pretending like everything was going to be okay—and answered.
“Hi, Sharon. What’s going on?”
“Nothing at all. I was just about to make Ron some lunch and realized there are no knobs on the oven.”
A slight laugh rumbled in my throat, relief spreading through me like a freight train. “They are in the cabinet above the fridge. We had an incident where he left the burner on and filled the house with propane.”
“Oh!” she exclaimed. “Understood. I’ll put it on to cook, then take it off.”
“I’d appreciate that. Thank you. Anything else?” I asked, before hanging up.
“No, that will do it. Thanks.”
I ended the call and rested against the headrest. Maybe the other shoe wasn’t going to drop. Maybe, for once, the universe would cut me a break.
“Ready to head to the distillery and see Meadow?” I asked Jack, who barked in reply. I’d finally given Meadow a key, so she didn’t have to rely on me to let her in. She hadn’t worked for me for long, but she’d proven herself time and time again. And she’d been a godsend while I’d been called away from the distillery to deal with Ron.
I got onto the main road and immediately came to a crawl. Albert was on his fucking tractor, holding up traffic again. The people who didn’t pass him were most likely tourists and losing their damn minds as Albert switched into a lower gear.
Normally, I’d pass him, but I had about three cars in front of me, so I relied on the next best thing and blared my horn. The old bastard threw up the bird, but when I beeped again, he glanced over his shoulder at me. He eased the tractor toward the shoulder of the road, allowing cars to pass. I pulled up beside the old bastard and rolled down the window.
“You’re going to cause someone to have a damn coronary one day.”
A sly smile curved his lips up into his weathered cheeks. “If they’re in that much of a hurry, then they shouldn’t be on these roads. Slow living is what keeps the heart ticking.”
“Slow living is one thing, but you’re making these tourists rethink their vacation plans.”
“Good. We don’t need their whiney bullshit, anyway.”
“Yes, you do. Their money keeps you in business.”
“Doesn’t mean I have to like them.”
“I suppose not. But next time you want to bring the traffic to a standstill in the middle of the afternoon, can you warn me so I can take a different route?”
“Speaking of which… Shouldn’t you be with Ron?”
“Nurse started today.”
“How’d that go?”
“So far, so good.”
Albert nodded, his Vietnam veteran’s hat dipping down. “Good. Man’s a stubborn pain in the ass and everyone deserves help.”
I’d come to the realization that showing grace even to those who didn’t earn or even deserve it didn’t mean I was a pushover or too good. It just meant I was human and understood life and people were too nuanced to fit into a category of good or bad, deserving or undeserving. We all had our battles, all did things we later regretted, and showing a little grace didn’t cost me a thing… except maybe my pride.
“He does.”
“I’m not talking about him. I’m talking about you. I know it hasn’t been easy. I know he was a terrible father to you.”
I shifted, not expecting the conversation to go this route. Jack nudged my hand as if he knew just how uncomfortable I was. With Albert, it was off-hand comments, grumbles, and some good pokes.
“It takes a real man to step up and do the right thing when most men would have walked away without a second thought. And honestly, none of us would have thought of you any differently.”
A lump formed in my throat, and I swallowed it, forcing it to stay down. “I appreciate that, Albert.”
“The nurse is a step in the right direction, so don’t get so wrapped up in everyone else’s problems that you forget about your own life.”
Chardonnay’s face flashed into my mind, the visions from earlier pushing through to the forefront. I’d lived thirty-nine years, but maybe my life was just starting. “I’ll try not to.”
“Good, now get on your way. You’re wasting my damn time.”
“You’re the one who got all soft on me.”
“I did not, and don’t you go getting too soft, either. The town needs at least one person to call them on their bullshit.”
“You do a fine job of that yourself.”
“Damn right.” He tipped his hat. “Now go do something useful and leave me the hell alone.”
With a laugh, I put my truck in gear and got back on the road. Not even ten minutes later, I was putting my truck in park at the distillery. I opened the door, and Jack jumped out, running straight for the door. He barked as he went, as if he had to announce his presence to the surrounding area. The king was back in his domain.
Meadow opened the door, and Jack immediately flopped at her feet, rolling over, stomach up and ready for all the scratches. Meadow obliged, and I was about to walk in when a car horn grabbed my attention.
My day got even better as Chardonnay turned into the parking lot. Her heeled foot stepped out of the car, and she clicked her way to the trunk.
“What are you doing here?” I asked as she popped her trunk. We hadn’t really discussed what exactly we were doing, but the urge to kiss her was too strong. I leaned in, capturing her lips and sinking into the kiss. At first, her hands slammed into my chest, but within no time, her fingers curled into my shirt, pulling me close.
“Hi,” she said, a smile tilting her lips as she drew away.
“Hi. What’s going on?”
She bent into her trunk and retrieved a large storage bin, resting it on the rear bumper. Her hand landed on the red top. “I just finished helping Sherry decorate the tasting room, and we had all these decorations left over. I wanted to see if you could make use of them.”
“I don’t decorate for Christmas.”
“I know, but I thought maybe you’d want to this year.”
“He wants to.” Meadow ran up to us and took the bin.
“I guess we do,” I said, wondering when I stopped making the decisions around here.
Chardonnay smiled. “Perfect!”
“Come on, Jack,” Meadow said. “Let’s see what we have in here.” Meadow hurried into the building with Jack at her feet.
“My dog abandoned me.”
Chardonnay chuckled, not even bothering to try to hide it. “Can you blame him? Christmas decorations are way more exciting than standing out here with Mr. Grinch.”
I snaked my hand around her, leaning against her car and tugging her into me. “Mr. Grinch. I’ll remember that tonight.” I dipped, kissing the place on her neck that made her squirm.
“I can’t wait.”
My lips paused their trail and pulled back. My eyes met hers as disappointment settled through me. “I have the town hall meeting tonight.”
“Right. I can go with you.”
“You got booted from the last one. I’m pretty sure your picture is on the wall by the entrance.”
“It’s not my fault Steve can’t take a little constructive criticism.” She shrugged, her grin unapologetic. “He really thought no one would question his ridiculous plan to turn Vine Valley into the Big Foot Capital of the country. And it is definitely not my fault Albert nearly choked on his cake when I asked if that meant I had to change the name of our Vineyard to Big Yeti Vineyards. Craig knew the Heimlich. Everything was fine. Albert needs to take smaller bites, and Steve needs to be realistic.”
“He did have it coming.”
“See! Even you were on my side.”
I shook my head, unable to hide my smile. “I wasn’t on your side. I just knew there was no way in hell he was going to win that argument.”
Her lips curved up, mischief dancing in her eyes. “You’ve always known when to choose your battles.”
“I’ve just known when to stay out of yours. But seriously, for the town’s sake, maybe sitting this one out won’t be a bad thing. You kind of have a reputation.”
“I don’t know when honesty became a crime.”
“Your honesty tends to turn into chaos, and I’ve had about enough chaos this month. So why don’t you go to my place, get a fire going, strip down to the new set of La Perla I have waiting for you on my bed, and I’ll meet you there when it’s over.”
Her eyes widened, and her lips parted. “You bought me a new set of La Perla?”
I shifted and tugged at the sleeves of my Carhartt. “I told you I would.”
“I didn’t think you actually would.”
“Don’t make a big deal of it. I ripped them. I replaced them.”
“Did you get the same ones?”
“How the hell am I supposed to know?”
“You bought them.”
“I bought red.”
“The cherry or the scarlet?”
“I don’t know. Red.”
“Like the ones you ripped, or a different shade?”
“Red.” I shrugged. “They reminded me of you.”
Her lip quirked, a playful smirk creeping in. “Because of vampires?”
My eyebrows drew together. “What? No, because you’re fiery, fierce, and you look good in red.”
Her teeth slid over her bottom lip. “Do I now?”
I nudged her nose with mine, angling her mouth for me to take it. “Like the devil you are.”
A low, sexy laugh slipped from her parted lips. She slid her hands just above my chest, resting one on my heart. “Careful, Brady. Flattery might get you lucky tonight.”
I smirked, my lips hovering near hers. “That’s the goal.”
Unable to resist any longer, I kissed her, slow and deliberate, giving her something to look forward to. I drew back. Her cheeks flushed, eyes sparkling with unsatisfied desire.
“Don’t be out too late. I’ll be waiting.”
It took everything I had not to jump in the car with her and accompany her to my place, forgetting all my responsibilities.
I kissed her one last time, shut her door and headed into the distillery, thinking of Albert’s advice. I wasn’t going to forget my life. Not when Chardonnay was finally in it.