Chapter 23
Rosa
I drop down at the desk and scroll through the numbers saved in my phone. It’s a long shot, but I start with the main office number for Belmonte.
“It’s a great day at Belmonte,” my aunt chirps as she picks up the phone.
“Hi, Aunt Janet,” I say, trying desperately to keep my voice level. “Is Uncle Geno available?”
“He’s a little busy, dear,” she says, the words friendly but her tone definitely not. “I’ll tell him you called.”
“No, wait!” I take a deep breath. “It’s really important that I talk to him right now.”
I can almost picture the pursed-lip expression on her face. “He’s out in the vineyard right now, helping to put up hail nets with the crew. He doesn’t have time for a call.”
They’re probably using Caparelli’s nets, too, I think bitterly, but instead of saying that I ask her for his cell phone number.
She refuses to give it to me. “He won’t answer anyway, Rosa. You know he never answers when he’s in the fields. You’ll just have to wait for him to call you back.”
I mutter something halfway polite and hang up, my head pounding. Uncle Geno never gave me his cell number, insisting that nothing couldn’t wait until he was out of the fields and back at the winery office.
Nothing I had to say, that is. Yet again proof I’ve been on the outside of the family business for years. Well, I have my own family business now. And I can’t let Uncle Geno’s bullshit ruin it.
I scroll through my phone list and stab at another number. It rings three times before the person on the other end picks up.
“Hey, Rosey Posey,” Leo says. “What’s up?”
I ignore my hated nickname and cut right to the chase. “Do you have any extra hail nets at Belmonte?”
Leo pauses for a minute. “Uh, I don’t know. Why?”
“Because there’s only a half dozen in the shed here at Caparelli, and those are unusable.”
“Unusable?” His voice is cautious.
I close my eyes. “Big holes, clean rips down the center, the works.”
He sucks in a breath. “Rosey.”
“Look, I don’t have time for a long discussion about all the ways Caparelli has been sabotaged over the past few weeks. The hailstorm is supposed to hit soon, and our equipment is missing or damaged. So if you or anyone at Belmonte cares even a tiny bit about Nonna’s legacy, it would be awesome if we could get a little goddamn help over here.”
“Of course I care,” Leo shoots back, anger tingeing his voice. “But if you think we have anything to do with?—”
I glance out the window, noting the dark clouds inching closer. “Forget it.” I hang up and stand, needing to do something, anything, to get rid of this dread coursing through my veins.
A serious-enough hailstorm could completely devastate our crops, ruining any chance to have anything left to harvest. And it’s almost on top of us.
I head to the mudroom, tug on my work boots, and pull my hair into a messy ponytail. I tuck work gloves into my pocket and stalk outside, squinting in what’s left of the sun. The shed is closed again and the yard is empty, so I walk around to the front and start up the drive to the vineyard.
Jake and Emi are already there, spreading out a semi-repaired hail net over the vines closest to the road. There’s another one at Jake’s feet, and my heart sinks. Is that all we have?
I hear the rumble of a truck engine and turn, watching as Javi bypasses the parking area at the house altogether and pulls up right next to where Jake and Emi are working. I hurry to catch up.
He’s already out of the cab of the truck and has the lift gate down, pulling himself up into the bed of the truck and sliding netting toward the edge of the bed. “Got the last ten,” he says as he passes the nets to Jake and Emi.
I step forward for my share, letting out a little “oof” as the weight of two nets settles in my arms. I hear Jake snicker and shoot him a mock-glare.
It’s a little thing, but for some reason, the tiny bit of teasing helps me settle. I stack my nets on top of the pile already started at the end of the row and turn to Jake, hands on my hips. “Okay, where do we start?”
He looks at the pile, then up at the long rows of grapevines. He’s thinking what we’re all thinking—not enough nets, not enough time. But that can’t be helped, and at least it’s something.
“Emi and Javi, why don’t you take a few of the nets up to the Cab section, cover as much as you can. Rosa and I will stay down here and see how much we can protect of the Pinot grapes.”
They nod and grab some of the nets, lugging them up the rows to the top right corner of the vineyard. Then they turn around to haul the rest of them into place.
Jake and I take a net and shake it out, stretching until we’re sure nothing’s folded over, that every inch of protection will cover our grapes through the impending storm. We start in opposite rows, lifting the net over the grapevines between us as we walk up the hill.
We’re on our last net when I hear another engine on the road between Caparelli and the hockey player’s fields. I glance down the row to see an unfamiliar truck parking behind Jake’s and four men piling out of the cab.
“Wade! Thank God.” Jake drops his edge of the net and strides down to the drive, sticking out his hand to shake Wade’s, then pulling him in for a bro hug.
Wade shrugs. “Heard you were fucking up Rosa’s fields, thought I’d bail you out.” He laughs and shakes his head. “Kidding. You need nets, we had some extra, so once the guys and I were done with our vines we figured we’d come help you get set up before the hail hits.”
“Shit.” Jake lets out a breath. “You’re a lifesaver, buddy. I’ll even let you get away with your slander and lies. Just this once.”
Wade grins and turns to his crew, telling them to pull their nets out of the back of the truck and then wait for Jake’s directions.
We’ve got four teams working in different parts of the vineyard when I glance down the row to see an unfamiliar man heading across the drive from the edge of Jake’s family’s old vineyard.
I drop my side of the net and walk over to meet him, whoever he is. As I get closer, a few things stand out.
He’s tall. Built. Good looking. And definitely a stranger.
“Can I help you?” I’m doing my best to be friendly, but I really don’t have time for a social visit. We’re working against the clock right now.
“Actually, that’s what I was going to ask.” At my look of confusion, he smiles a little awkwardly. “I’m Jansen Beck—just bought the place across the way.” He hitches his thumb over his shoulder. “My foreman mentioned that it looked like you might be short on hail nets and workers, so I was going to offer you both.”
“Are you kidding?” Jake comes up behind me, pulling his gloves off.
“Jake,” I growl, elbowing him in the side. He lets out a little grunt.
Jansen’s brow furrows. “Excuse me?”
“I was a total dick to you the other day, and you’re still offering to help us out? You’re a better person than I am,” Jake says, holding out his hand to shake Jansen’s. “Thank you for the offer. And sorry about my attitude.”
The man shrugs. “Water under the bridge. I’d probably feel the same way if someone—well, anyway.” He looks between the two of us. “I definitely overbought on hail nets, so I’ll have my crew bring the extras over and help get them set up. We should be over in a few.”
“Thanks so much,” I say, tears pricking at the edges of my eyes. The relief from all this help, offered freely, is swamping me. “I’m Rosa, by the way.”
“Nice to meet you, Rosa.” He nods and jogs back to his vineyard. I glance at Jake, who’s looking pretty damn embarrassed.
“What the hell happened between you two?”
He shakes his head. “Remember I told you I met him the other day? He came over to introduce himself, I was an asshole, and now he’s saving our butts. I owe him a hell of an apology.”
I look at the clouds again, then back at the fields. We’ve probably got half an hour at best before the hail starts. But there are four more men headed across the fields carrying hail nets, and our crew, and Wade’s, and for the first time since I saw the pitiful little stack of damaged nets in the shed, I feel a spark of hope.
Jake directs the new helpers toward another section of the vineyard, where we haven’t managed to begin working yet, and the entire acreage buzzes with activity. When I survey the vines next, there are more netted than not, and I suck in a deep breath. We’re not out of the danger zone yet, but I can see the light on the horizon.
Once more, a truck rumbles up the drive, pulling in behind Wade’s. This time I recognize it, and the tears from earlier threaten to spill over.
Leo, Vittorio, and Gianni climb out of the truck, looking around awkwardly. Finally, V spots me and waves.
I hurry down the row to where they’re standing. “Hey, guys,” I say finally.
“What’s up?”
Vittorio rolls his eyes. “Whatever. C’mere.” He wraps his arms around me in a hug, and I really do start crying.
He steps back, his eyes wide with alarm. “Whoa, what’s with the tears? Knock it off, Rosey!”
I laugh, my voice a little watery, and swipe at my cheeks. “Stronzo,” I mutter, and he laughs so hard I think he’s going to fall over.
“Never thought I’d hear a word like that out of your innocent little mouth,” Vittorio says when he stops laughing. “Nonna would be appalled.”
“Nonna would be thrilled that all of us can recognize at least one thing in Italian, even if it’s just the word for asshole ,” Gianni counters.
I shake my head. “No, seriously, why are you here? Don’t you have to take care of Belmonte’s vines?”
“We’ve got a crew for that.” Gianni’s lips thin. “A very well-staffed crew. They’re fine.”
Leo waves a hand at the back of the truck. “After you called, I checked to see if we had any extra nets. There were—a few.”
Gianni snorts. “More than a few. And most of them probably started out here.”
“G,” Leo says warningly, but Gianni just rolls his eyes.
“What? You know it’s the truth.” He looks at the people working all across the vineyard. “We came to offer our help—and the hail nets—but it looks like you’ve got it all under control.”
“Actually, we could still use the help,” Jake says, coming up behind me. “The hailstorm is likely to hit any minute. So if you’re serious about that, we’d appreciate it. And thanks.”
I nod. “Honestly, this means—everything.” And I mean it. To know they’ve got my back— our backs—despite what Uncle Geno says? Priceless.
But we don’t have time for chatting because the clouds are almost overhead, and the rumble of thunder in the distance startles all of us into action.
We work in teams of two, trudging up and down the rows of vines, placing the nets as quickly and carefully as we can. We want the vines protected without carelessness snapping off sections. There are just a couple of rows still uncovered when the hailstorm hits, sharp pellets of ice pummeling us as we redouble our efforts.
The hail is coming down hard as we finish, and I pull the back of my jacket up over my head. “Come down to the house!” I shout over the storm, gesturing at the big white building at the bottom of the drive. Wade and his crew pile into their truck and my cousins in theirs, while Jake offers Jansen and his employees a ride down the hill in his. I climb into the bed of Leo’s truck with Emi and Javi, and we laugh in relief as the hail drums down on us. The weather is brutal, but the crops are protected.
At the house, I hop out of the truck bed and open the front door, not caring if people track water or mud into the place. Right now, all we want is someplace out of the storm.
Inside, I troop upstairs to the linen closet and haul out every towel on the shelves, bringing them down to the ridiculously large group gathered inside. Emi and Javi take them from me and pass them around while I hustle to the kitchen. It was a warm day until the storm hit, but we’re all soaked to the bone, and a hot beverage sounds like heaven right about now. So I put on the kettle for hot water and start up the coffee maker.
“What can I do?”
I jump, startled by Jake’s voice in my ear, and turn around. “Uh, maybe some snacks? I wasn’t really prepared for a party.”
His smile is lazy, a little amused. “Good thing you keep enough food around here to feed an army,” he says.
And the thing is he’s not wrong. But that’s because he’s here. Before Jake barreled his way into my vineyard and my home, the shelves would have been embarrassingly bare.
One more thing to thank Jake Wright for, I guess.
We pile up platters with cheese and crackers, fruit and veggies with fresh dip. Emi comes in and carries out a tray of mugs, while Javi follows with tea bags, packets of cocoa mix, and the full coffee pot. We put stuff down on the low coffee table and the desk in the office and, ridiculously, a box full of books I hadn’t gotten around to emptying yet. Everyone digs in and keeps chatting in groups of two and three and four, Wade and Vittorio asking Javi about his plans after graduation and Leo showing Emi a new Brix measurer he bought this season that he apparently swears by.
After a minute or two, Jake walks over to where Gianni is lightheartedly grilling Jansen about some hockey game from a year or so ago. He holds his hand out to Jansen, who takes it with a tilt to his head. “Like I said earlier, I was a real jerk to you the other day. I’m sorry, for what it’s worth. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”
Jansen shrugs. “It is what it is. I’m just glad we were able to help out.” He gestures at his crew, sitting on the lower steps of the stairway to the second floor. “I’ve got a great team, which is mostly down to the fantastic crew your parents hired and trained over the years. So I owe you thanks as well. Or at least your family.”
Jake nods. “I’m glad to hear it. Take Flight was something special.”
For a moment, Jansen is quiet. “I hope it can be something special again someday as well.”
Wade walks over then, wrapping an arm around Jake’s shoulder. “And hey, now that Jake has signed on with Rosa and her sisters, we’ve got a Wright running a winery in Oak Creek Canyon again anyway.”
“Oh, he’s not staying,” I blurt out before I can think better of it. My cheeks flame as every head in the room turns to look at me. Including Jake’s.
Vittorio raises an eyebrow but doesn’t say anything. Leo’s eyes narrow. Wade just looks confused.
And Jake? I can’t interpret Jake’s expression to save my life.
“She’s right,” he finally says, breaking the tension in the room. “I’m just pitching in until Allegra and Bianca get back to Caparelli.”
“Where are you headed after?” Wade takes a long sip of his coffee. “Italy again?”
Jake shrugs. “Not sure yet. I’ve got an offer to help set up a new winery in Washington state, near the Canadian border. But I haven’t landed on anything.”
And even though I’ve been preparing for this since the day he started, it still breaks my heart a little to hear that it’s really going to happen.
“That’s too bad,” Jansen says slowly. “I would have loved to pick your brain sometime.”
“Sorry to disappoint.” Jake pours himself some more coffee and turns to Leo with a smile. “So tell me about this new Brix measurer. Is it really worth buying a new one?”
The conversations start flowing again, and I flit around the corners of the room, clearing away plates, freshening up mugs, switching out for wineglasses as the storm rages outside. The house is full and lively again, with people I’ve known and loved forever and people I’ve barely met. My heart is full, too, but it aches at the knowledge that as lovely as this is, it’s just temporary. My cousins will go back to Uncle Geno and Belmonte, and Wade will take his crew back to his family vineyard. Jansen and his workers will return across the road, and Emi and Javi will finish out their internships before the new semester starts.
And Jake? He’s just confirmed that he’ll be gone, too. The house will be empty again.
And so will my heart.