He rubbed his chin, trying to think. “How about this—I’ll give you this summer to prove yourself. But you need to understand the bar’s going to be set high. I’ll treat you like a real employee. You won’t be running to the lake with your friends when it’s hot. You can’t take off for a concert weekend or shopping trip whenever you please.”
She pursed her lips. “I can live with that.”
He frowned. “You sure? You’re still a kid. Don’t you want to enjoy it?”
“You were a kid, too, when you took over for your dad.”
“Yeah, but times were different then.”
She crossed her arms. “Different how?”
“Well, computers ... technology ... we didn’t have all that to deal with. We still did everything the old-fashioned way.”
“Which is exactly why you need me. I know computers. And I can do things like social networking. I can build and maintain awebsite for us. Do you know we’re one of the only vineyards in the county—maybe the world—without a website?”
“So I hear.” He shrugged. “But our uniqueness is that we’re still just an old-world winery. We don’t host big fancy weddings or tasting parties. We don’t have a B and B or—”
“But maybe we should, Dad.”
He groaned. “You sound like your aunt.”
“Well, maybe Aunt Sherry’s right. Damico’s is only half the size of our vineyard, but they seem to be doing better than us.”
He frowned. His brother-in-law’s socially driven business plan might be fine for them, but it wasn’t what Leroy wanted for Sorrentino’s.
“Even Grandma’s been bragging about how many events they have scheduled for this summer. She says we’re missing out.”
“I guess that’s my choice.” He leaned down to pat Babe’s head. “Good girl.”
“Even if it’s the wrong choice?” She scowled at him as he stood.
He scowled back. “If you’re so impressed with how they’re running Damico’s, why not go work for them?”
“I’d rather go to school than work for Aunt Sherry,” she protested. “You know she drives me nuts. And my spoiled cousins are even worse.”
He concealed his amusement. His baby sister drove him nuts too. But she was family. Still, he was thankful that his mother had chosen to live with Sherry instead of him. His mother left primarily because she hadn’t gotten along with Leroy’s late wife, Marcie. Ironic considering she had set him up with Marcie in the first place. But that was all water under the bridge now.
“So, tell me, Gina. What’s your general philosophy for running a vineyard? If we’re going to partner like you’re suggesting, it might be important to make sure we’re like-minded. You know I don’t want to do things like Damico’s—or most of the vineyards around here—so what do you think?” He studied her closely. Did she know this was a test?
“Well, I think our vineyard has room for improvement.” Her expression was slightly defiant, her chin stubbornly tilted upward.
“Such as?” He grew defensive. Was she criticizing him?
“Naturally, I’m not talking about what you manage, Dad. That probably doesn’t need improvement.”
He softened. “So what kind of improvements would you bring to the table?”
“Well, among other things, I think we should have on-site tastings. We’d offer flights and case discounts to visitors. That would introduce new vintages, as well as help with sales.”
He couldn’t help but feel impressed. Gina was doing her homework. “Maybe so. But to have tastings, you’d need a special room,” he pointed out.
“What about the barn? We don’t use it for much of anything besides storage. And most of the stuff in there is just old junk from the family. Anything of value could be moved up to the loft, and the rest could be used to furnish a tasting room. I mean, it would be rustic, but that would be pretty cool.”
“And you honestly think you could manage to organize all that?”
“Can I?” Her eyes lit up. “You mean, you’ll let me?”
“I’ll still expect your help in the vineyard.”
