“Me too.” Jan pointed to the forms still in Brynna’s hand. “Do you need to fill those out?”
“Yes, but—no, I meanno.”
“What are you so afraid of?” Jan locked eyes with her. “What are you running from, Brynna?”
“I—I don’t know.” Brynna felt strangely close to tears now. “It’s just that I don’t belong here. I never should’ve let Sophie think I’d take that job. I just want to go.”
“You shouldn’t be fighting this,” Mike challenged her. “It’s like I said before—it’s kismet. Remember, I told you how God works in mysterious ways.”
Brynna sighed. “But I can’t do this. I just want to go. Please—”
“Is that the daughter over there?” Jan nodded toward the house, and Brynna turned in time to see Sophie strolling toward them. Happily waving, she was completely oblivious to Brynna’s distressed demeanor. She had no idea who she’d just hired or what her father might think if he knew. Hopefully he never would.
Brynna smiled weakly as she waved to Sophie, but her stomach felt like she’d ingested cement. She tried to come up with anexplanation that wouldn’t be too upsetting, but before she could say a word, Jan and Mike cheerfully introduced themselves to Sophie. The two took turns complimenting Sophie on the vineyard and winery and her husband’s great hosting skills in the tasting room. Clearly, Brynna’s friends would be of no help in this matter. So much for the Three Musketeers’ motto of “all for one and one for all.” Jan and Mike were their own team of two with their own agenda. TheirLooking for Leroygame had been seriously annoying, but finding him would be much, much worse.
Leroy knew he should love his baby sister—because she was his baby sister. And he did love Sherry, but sometimes he didn’t like her very much. Like today. He’d been trying to bite his tongue as she rambled on and on about her high expectations for their mother’s “surprise” eighty-fifth birthday party. Expectations that seemed to mostly involve his efforts ... and bank account ... and property.
“Do we really need two hundred guests?” he asked her.
“They’re all Mom’s friends and fellow vintners,” Sherry protested. “I’ve already told a lot of them we’re doing this. I can’t uninvite them, Leroy.”
“But when you asked me to host, I assumed it would be an intimate gathering of friends and family.” It felt like the tenth time he’d said this today. “Maybe you should just host it here.”
“But Sorrentino’s has special meaning to Mom.” Sherry had a slightly sly expression on her face. “After all, that’s where she married Dad and had her children.”
“I know that, but there’s the burn to deal with, and the house and yard are a little neglected. I’m not sure I can get it together in time.”
“Are you saying you feel overwhelmed?” Sherry leaned forward with arched brows and a bit too much interest.
“I’m saying I’m already stretched thin and we’ve got a lot going on at Sorrentino’s right now.”
“Sophie told me about Gina’simprovements. I thought you were too strapped to improve anything, Leroy. And that burned section, I assume you’re just letting it go for now.” Sherry’s eyes narrowed slightly, making him wonder if this was really about him hosting the party, or if it was Tony’s way to pressure him into selling. Sherry’s husband just wouldn’t give up on his attempts to purchase Sorrentino’s—like they were having a “fire sale” after the burn damage. Was Tony behind this nonsense with Sherry today?
“I have a crew working on the burn area,” Leroy said calmly. “It’s not as bad as I originally thought. Thanks to our wet winter, about half of the roots appear to be alive. And, as for our so-called improvements, Gina’s tasting room is pretty much a bare-bones operation. It didn’t cost much.”
“And what about the Sorrentino anniversary celebration Garth told me about? That can’t be cheap.”
“Gina claims it’ll be great advertising. She’s certain we’ll make up what we spend in increased sales, and she might be right. We’re already filling more orders than last year around this time.”
“Yes, I noticed your fancy new website. It looks expensive.” Sherry studied him closely.
“The website was pretty much free, Sherry. Gina made it.” He masked his growing irritation, now convinced Sherry’s “party-planning meeting” was more about Tony’s desire to own Sorrentino’s than Mom’s big birthday bash. Well, whatever!
Sherry’s brows arched. “Impressive. Maybe I should get Gina to update our website.”
“Gina’s pretty busy these days.” He ran his fingers through his hair, wishing for a quick end to this conversation. “We all are.” He decided to just bite the bullet. “Okay, Sherry, I’ll host the birthday party at Sorrentino’s. No problem.”
“You will?” Her expression suggested this wasn’t the answer she wanted. “Are you sure?”
He nodded firmly. “Yep. I’m positive. Gina’s new tasting roomcan hold a lot of folks, and the weather should be good enough to be outside anyway. We’ll set up a tent if necessary.”
“But if you don’t want to—”
“No, Iwantto do this.” He stood up to signal this was over. “After all, it’s for our mom. She deserves a good party. And Sorrentino’s is the perfect venue. Like you said—that’s where she married Dad and raised her children. It’s a special place for her.”
“Yes, I know that’s true, but—”
“Don’t worry. Everything will be just fine. Gina’s full of ideas and energy. She’ll probably get the place looking great in no time.” He picked up his straw cowboy hat, hiding a satisfied grin from his slightly manipulative sister. Sure, it was going to be a lot of work to host this crazy birthday party, but it was almost worth it to see Sherry squirm like this. She’d probably wanted to host the whole thing herself right from the beginning!
