Chapter Two Ashley #3
Beckett: I knew you were all upheaving your lives for nothing. Bet she has changed her mind and wants to sell.
Jake: You can be such a dick sometimes.
Chase: Just sometimes? I’m free now.
Declan: Me too.
Beckett: I’m working, but I’ll stop for Gran.
Jake: That’s so gracious of you, big brother. Call coming now.
Positioning my laptop in front of Gran, I place a dining chair next to her so I’m in frame too.
As the connection starts and the guys’ faces start popping up on the screen, I notice the twinkle in Gran’s eye at seeing everyone at once.
“Oh, even Beckett is joining us. Hello, my sweet boys.”
And the rest of us try not to laugh out loud as he looks a little hurt that she thought he wouldn’t.
The first few minutes of the call Gran spends catching up with everyone, like she hasn’t just seen us all together a few weeks ago.
Then Beckett cuts in. “Gran, do you want to let us know what was so important that we had to do this call tonight?”
“Always in a hurry, my little Becks, but yes, yes, let’s get started.” She puts down her crocheting so she can give the call her full attention.
“I figured if we were going to do this, we should hold meetings every few weeks, so we are all on the same page. So, welcome to your first Heatherbrae Vines board meeting, and of course, I’m the chairlady, aka boss lady.”
This time no one can hold back the laughter.
“I still love that you named the vineyard after the town in Scotland you both fell in love in.” I smile as I give her shoulder a little squeeze.
“Even though he isn’t here, I can still hear Gramps calling from the kitchen that he’s the boss around here when you’re not home. It was his favorite joke.”
All of us nod, remembering fondly the way they used to banter with each other. It was one of their love languages.
“Oh, pfft. We all knew that grumpy old man wished he was the boss around here. Which brings me to point number one of this meeting. Now that you have all agreed to come home and help me.”
I look straight into Beckett’s eyes. He hasn’t agreed to do anything yet, but he doesn’t even flinch at my stare or Gran’s words.
“I have a little surprise for you.” She pauses a little and looks at me, then back to the others. “I don’t just want to get the vineyard up and running. We are also going to build a restaurant and small art gallery as part of the vineyard.”
There is a stunned silence, and just as she’s about to continue, Beckett can’t help himself.
“Gran, I love your idea, but that takes a lot of capital investment, and none of you know how to run a business. It will take experts in those fields, staff, and a long time to make it a success. Most new businesses fold within a year. Do we really want to put you in financial hardship at your age?” His stern boardroom voice is booming through the speakers of the laptop.
Although I tend to agree with him, I bite back at his comment.
“So, running my own business for the last ten years obviously doesn’t count, you bast—” I catch my swear word at the last minute, knowing my grandfather would strike me down in this seat for swearing in front of my grandmother. But Beckett has no idea how much his comment stings, especially now.
I know how to run a successful business, and have done for years, until the moment Danika walked out and then the clusterfuck of things that followed brought me to my knees.
But then again, I don’t think anything I have done in my life has lived up to Beckett’s standards of “success,” including Danika.
“You know what I mean, you don’t run a restaurant,” Beckett mumbles, but I know that’s not what he meant.
He works in the big corporate world, and my one-man-show business has never really rated highly in his eyes.
“Plus who’s going to look after the vines while all this building is happening?
It’s not like Gran has the money to keep paying contractors to come in and do it. ”
“We will. Gramps taught us all what to do. We are not useless,” I bite back while Chase and Declan both nod in agreement.
It will be tough because there will be a lot to do in a year, but I’ll be damned if I fail at this.
“Time to turn Heatherbrae into a full functioning winery instead of selling off the grapes. Plus you could always come and help in picking season.” And that’s when I see the same annoyance on his face he gets when he has to be around me.
“Now, Becks, I understand your concern.” Trying to soothe out the discussion, Gran steps in and I can see him cringe at the nickname.
No one is allowed to shorten his name except Gran.
“But just because I’m old, that doesn’t mean I’m stupid.
This is something I’ve wanted to do since we purchased this place.
Your grumpy gramps just flatly refused. And after he struggled to get the vineyard operational so we could make our own wine instead of just selling off the grapes every year, I didn’t push the point.
But I never gave up on my dream or his, and now it’s my time to live it, for however long I still have on this earth. ”
My heart aches a little hearing that she has had to wait until he passed to do something she wanted. Knowing Gramps, though, he would’ve given Gran the world, so there must’ve been a reason.
“Gran, we are obviously very grateful for the gift you and Gramps are trying to give us, but I just want you to know we would be here doing this regardless. It’s not in any way conditional on our inheritance.
It’s important you know we don’t expect anything from you.
We all want you here for a lot longer yet.
” I place my hand on hers and give it a loving squeeze as all the others agree with what I said.
“Oh shush, it’s already done, so let’s move on.
And just so you know, there was one thing your grandfather was good at, and that was accumulating money.
He left me with a nice tidy nest egg. So, the capital you talk about, Beckett, I think I’ve got that covered.
I just need people to do the work, and I’m looking right at them.
Four big strong men. Because the first step is to get building.
” She beams, reaching across and patting me on the knee.
“And aren’t I lucky that I have the best builder around living in my house right now. ”
“Thanks, Gran.” It wouldn’t matter if I were shit at my job, she would still be my biggest cheerleader. There is something about the love of your grandparents that gives you a warm, soul-deep hug. “But there’s a lot of background work that’s needed, construction plans, building permits, etcetera.”
“Which you can sort out, and don’t you worry about the building permits. Mayor Johnson will look after me, I’m sure,” she declares with a cheeky smile on her face.
“Gran, you aren’t going to pay off a public official to get your way?” Chase laughs.
“No, of course not, but he does love my cupcakes.” She’s looking at us all with the face of a saint and I can’t help but remember what the guy at the gas station said, how she may as well be the mayor of Abbey Falls. Obviously Gran gets what she wants around here.
“Oh, fantastic, we’re going to bribe the mayor with cupcakes! This is just getting better and better,” Beckett mutters under his breath, but the microphone picks it up just loudly enough.
I shoot him a glare. How are we brothers?
“I just have one question to ask you, Gran,” Declan, who’s always the calmest of us all, asks. “Is this what you truly want us to do for you, to bring your dream to life?”
And in that moment, as his words float around the room, I see Beckett roll his eyes, while Chase leans forward a little closer to the screen.
Gran takes a long, deep breath, sits up in her chair a little taller, and replies with just one word. “Yes.” She clasps her hands together in her lap like her mind is made up. “I’ll provide food, living quarters, and all the building materials required. All you boys need to bring is the muscle.”
“Then that’s what we will do,” Declan declares. “We will build your restaurant and gallery at the same time as the cellar for the vineyard. Right, guys?”
“Absolutely.” Chase smiles in agreement.
Leaning over, I kiss her on the cheek and pull her sideways into a hug.
“We will make it happen. Just give me time to get the barn livable, and then by the time the boys get here, we can start your project.” And that’s when I hear the tiniest little hitch in her breathing and notice a stray tear in her eye.
We owe so much to our grandparents, and I let the opportunity to repay Gramps slip through my fingers. I’m not about to do the same with Gran.
“Okay, I have to get back to work but keep me posted.” Beckett’s gruff voice brings my attention back to the screen.
“That’s okay, sweetie, we will call you for the next meeting. Make sure you eat something. You looked too skinny when you were here.” Gran blows him a kiss, and the rest of us swallow our laughter.
Beckett spends every morning in the gym working out, and he’s solid and toned within an inch of his life. So being told he looks skinny would have just topped off his frustration.
While Gran is saying her goodbyes to everyone, I send a quick message to Declan and Chase to tell them I will call shortly after Gran is tucked up in bed.
There is plenty to discuss, including my brother.
After talking to the guys, my head is full of checklists, the required supplies, and figuring out a schedule to get the barn ready for Declan and Chase. But as I finally fall into bed, the vision and voice of my sassy new neighbor keeps interrupting:
“Oh, I’m the head of the committee, and it’s my job to scare off the trash that comes into town.”
She might think she means it, but her flushed cheeks and the feel of her pebbled nipples against my chest told me a whole different story.
While I don’t have time for anything other than working, especially after the bombshell Gran dropped tonight, it doesn’t stop me from wanting to know more about the intriguing little farm girl next door.