Josie
Twenty-four
The week speeds by, as they do this time of year, and when I wake up Thursday morning, I’m still thinking about the bomb I dropped at family dinner last night.
Sera already knew Alex had asked me to go away with him this weekend, because I told her as soon as I got home on Sunday afternoon.
I wanted to give her some time to process and decide.
But the rest of the family knew nothing about it.
One minute we were doing what we’ve done for the last week and a half—speculating about Evie’s will and what happens if she leaves Black Bear to our cousins—and the next, nobody cared about the vineyard anymore.
Suddenly everyone had an opinion. Where are we staying? How long are we going to be gone? Is it serious? Does Alex know how to plan a vacation? Has he booked anything yet?
The questions came so fast I barely had a chance to answer them. By the end of dinner, I’d received enough advice to last a lifetime.
Ryker was the only one who didn’t join the interrogation.
After everyone else had moved on to dessert, he caught my eye across the table. “Just be careful, Josie.”
The warning had surprised me. “What do you mean?”
He’d shrugged. “I’ve never seen Alex serious about anyone. Not once. And from what I know, his ex-wife did a real number on him.” Then his expression softened. “Just protect your heart a little, okay?”
At the time, I’d laughed it off. This morning, I’m not so sure. But the time for thinking is over. Now it’s time to go.
Alex’s driveway is already busy when I pull in. The back of his Volvo stands open as he lifts a suitcase into the cargo space. Zara stands beside the rear passenger door securing Eloise into her booster seat, her quiet instructions steady while the child wriggles against the straps.
I climb out of my truck with my overnight bag in one hand. The moment I close the door, Alex glances over his shoulder and smiles.
“Morning.” He steps toward me as I cross the driveway.
“Morning.” I hand him my bag.
“Do you have your passport?”
“Yep.” I pat the side of my bag. “Right here.”
“I forgot mine once in the flurry of getting to the airport,” he says with a grin. “We ended up on a much later flight.”
“That must have been fun.”
He slots my bag into the cargo space with the others and lowers the hatch. Zara finishes fastening Eloise at the same moment and brushes a strand of hair from the little girl’s face before closing the rear door.
Eloise presses her hands against the window immediately, watching everything with bright curiosity. I wave to her through the glass, and she grins back.
Alex circles the SUV and opens the passenger door for me. “Ready?” he asks.
“I think so.”
A moment later, the engine starts and we ease out of the driveway. Soon Paradise slips past the windows while the town slowly wakes around us.
Eloise leans forward between the seats. “Do you think they’ll give us cookies on the plane?”
“They might,” Zara answers.
“Sometimes they give pretzels,” Eloise says thoughtfully. “But cookies are better.”
“I agree,” I tell her.
Eloise nods seriously before settling back into her seat. “You have to wait until the seatbelt sign turns off before you stand up.”
“That’s right,” Zara says.
“And when we land, everything will look really flat,” Eloise adds. “Dad says we’re going to California, but I won’t see Mickey Mouse on this trip because it’s too far away.”
“Maybe next time.” He looks in the rearview mirror at Eloise.
“Napa probably looks different from anywhere I’ve been,” Eloise announces.
“Maybe,” Zara says. “But there are lots of vineyards, like here.”
“Like Josie’s,” Eloise says with quiet certainty.
Zara smiles. “Exactly like Josie’s.”
Eloise returns to watching the road as Alex guides the SUV toward the highway. The houses thin, and orchards begin to replace them. A few minutes later, the small regional airport building appears ahead of us beside the runway.
We park, gather our things, and head inside.
The transition to the next mode of travel goes smoothly, and the flights pass quickly—Paradise to Vancouver, through US Customs, and then a new plane to San Francisco, followed by a short hop north into Napa.
Eloise spends most of the air travel glued to the window while Zara keeps her entertained, leaving Alex and me a quiet moment I don’t think either of us expected.
By the time we step out of the car at the Meritage Resort and Spa, it’s midafternoon. The California sun beats down, and the endless rows of vineyards make the trip finally feel real. This is happening.
Inside, the lobby is calm and polished without feeling stiff. Alex heads toward the front desk while I linger near the seating area with Zara and Eloise.
Eloise spins slowly in a circle beside the couch. “This place smells fancy.”
Zara looks around the lobby. “That’s the flowers.”
“They smell like the soap Gran buys,” Eloise decides.
At the desk, Alex greets the clerk while she types something into the computer. After a moment, she hands Alex two key cards and speaks to him again. Alex nods before turning back toward us.
“Vineyard suite,” he says, holding up the keys as he approaches. “Apparently I’m trying to impress you.”
We move to the elevators, and Eloise leans against Zara as the doors close softly. “Do you think we can see grapes from the window?”
“Maybe,” Zara says. “You can check when we get upstairs.”
The elevator opens onto a quiet hallway, and Alex leads us toward one end. He swipes one of the keys and pushes the door open. Eloise immediately steps inside.
“Whoa,” she says.
The suite opens into a quiet living area with wide windows and a low sofa. Eloise stops in the middle of the room, turning slowly. “Dad,” she says, “this couch is huge.”
“It is,” Alex agrees.
Her attention suddenly locks on the door on the far wall. Zara follows her line of sight. “That’s our room,” Zara tells her.
“Really?”
Alex unlocks the door and pushes it open. Zara steps through with Eloise and the bags, and the door closes again behind them.
Alex turns back toward me. “That’s their room,” he says.
“That’s what I hear,” I answer.
He glances once more at the door before walking farther into the suite. I follow more, taking in the details of the space. A small dining table sits near the windows, and a hallway leads to the bedroom beyond.
Alex pauses near the glass doors at the far end of the living area. “You’ll want to see this,” he says.
He slides the door open and steps onto the balcony. I join him a moment later, leaning against the railing while the afternoon sun warms the stone beneath my hands.
Alex gestures toward the valley below. “Welcome to Napa.”
Vineyards roll out across the ground in long, orderly rows. The spacing is tighter than ours in Paradise, the trellises running lower to hold the heat of the valley floor. It’s beautiful in a deliberate, cultivated way—nothing like the stubborn hillside vines at home.
“It’s lovely,” I say, looking back toward him. “Sometimes I wish I could live here. Just pick up Black Bear and drop it right here.”
Alex nods, though his attention seems to drift toward the adjoining door again.
“Go check on them,” I urge.
“I’ll just make sure they’re settled,” he answers.
He steps back inside and crosses toward the connecting door, knocking lightly before opening it halfway.
Eloise’s voice drifts into the suite immediately.
I watch from the patio.
“Zara says these beds are just for us,” Eloise announces proudly.
“That’s right. There’s one for each of you. You’re a Tasmanian devil in bed. She’ll sleep better without your feet in her face.”
“I don’t do that,” Eloise says with sixteen-year-old attitude.
Zara laughs. “If they aren’t in my face, they’re in my side.”
“I did that when I was little,” Eloise explains. “I don’t do that anymore.”
“Well, just in case, Zara gets her own bed,” Alex says.
Zara looks up from the bag she’s unpacking. “We’re good in here,” she tells him.
“Have everything you need?” he asks.
“Yes.”
Eloise climbs onto the edge of the bed and stands on it, testing the coils. “Dad, the window is really big.”
“Don’t jump on the bed,” he says automatically.
“I’m not jumping,” she insists. “I’m just trying to see how the bounce is.”
Zara smiles faintly. “She’s excited.”
Alex nods. “Dinner downstairs still work for you?”
“That works,” Zara says. “I’ll get her cleaned up. But I thought we might go check out the pool first.”
Eloise looks toward the doorway. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”
“Great idea,” Alex says. “Let Zara get you unpacked, and then we can go to the pool.”
“Okay.”
I watch Elosie jump excitedly on the bed.
Alex talks her down, relocating her to the floor, and then closes the door gently. The suite falls quiet again, and he rejoins me on the patio.
“Well?” he asks.
“It’s still beautiful,” I confirm, looking toward the vineyards.
“Come on!” We hear Eloise call a minute later. “Let’s go.”
Within minutes, we’re all back downstairs.
Zara and Eloise are splashing in the shallow end while Alex stands nearby in the water, letting her show him how far she can kick.
I take a moment to wander the quiet paths around the Meritage, enjoying the warm air, the rows of vines stretching toward the hills, and the slow pace of the place.
By the time I circle back toward the pool again, Eloise’s laugh is echoing across the courtyard, and Alex looks more relaxed than I’ve seen him in weeks. I select a lounge chair and close my eyes for just a bit.
Listening to Eloise shriek with laughter, I realize that the weight of Evie’s house, the funeral, and the endless worry about what is coming next is sitting a little lighter on my chest. This time away is already working exactly as intended.
A while later we head upstairs to change, the relaxed afternoon giving way to the promise of dinner. I’m not sure what Alex and I are doing, but even if we get hot dogs, I won’t care.