“Oh.” The woman nodded. “I’m Judith, the houseguest.”
“And I’m Cassie, Judith’s daughter,” a younger woman, who was also blond, said.
“I—uh—I’m looking for the glasses.”
“Glasses?” Judith asked.
“Yes. Wineglasses.”
“Wineglasses?” Judith’s pale brows arched. “Why do you want wineglasses?”
“For the tasting room.” Brynna picked up a large basket on the counter, but it was empty. “Garth said they were here.”
Cassie slapped her forehead. “Oh, yeah, I totally forgot. Gina asked me to do that. I sure hope someone turned the dishwasher on.” She hurried over to what looked like a drawer but turned out to be a dishwasher. She pulled out a glass and closely examined it. “Oh, good. Clean.” She set it on the counter and, as she reached for more, Brynna set it in the basket.
“Cassie, you let Bree do that.She’sthe employee.”
Cassie set two more glasses on the granite countertop. “But I can—”
“No, honey. That’s Bree’s job,” Judith insisted. “That’s what she gets paid for.”
“Yes, of course. I can do this,” Brynna assured them. She didn’t care for the tone in Judith’s voice, wondering why this woman was being so rude. As she carefully unloaded the glasses, neatly nesting them in the basket, Cassie left the kitchen. But Brynna could still feel Judith’s eyes on her, making her uncomfortable.
After the dishwasher drawer was empty, the basket was only about half full. Brynna was about to leave when Judith spoke up.“Don’t you want to check the other drawer too? There might be more glasses in there.”
“Oh, yeah.” Brynna nodded as she slid open the lower drawer, which also had glasses. “You’re right.” She forced a smile as she began to unload it.
“Yes, well, I know this kitchen pretty well. In fact, I should be doing some prep work for dinner right now. So, in the future, please pick up the glasses earlier, Bree. When no one is using this kitchen. That will be much less intrusive and far more efficient for everyone.”
Brynna just nodded, hurrying to fit the last of the glasses in the basket then draping a dish towel over the top. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Thank you.” Judith’s tone was crisp and superior.
As Brynna carried the loaded basket out, she felt a surge of resentment. She didn’t like being regarded as the lowly servant. Although, wasn’t that sort of true? Brynna was just an employee here. Not a houseguest. It was her job to unload the dishwasher. But couldn’t Judith have been a bit more gracious about it?
Still, it wasn’t just Judith’s arrogance that was troubling. The truth was, Brynna felt plain old jealous! She resented Judith’s occupation of Leroy’s home, acting territorial, as if she owned the place. But maybe that was Judith’s intention. And for all Brynna knew, it could be Leroy’s as well.
Leroy was determined to meet up with his new office manager today. With that in mind, he’d taken more time with his morning routine and dressed with a bit more care. And instead of working with his field crew all morning, he played the role of supervisor. Then he’d taken an actual lunch break in the house, something he hadn’t done since Gina’s friends had taken over occupancy of his home. Of course, they’d been surprised to see him. Judith had insisted on making him a big salad. Notwanting to offend her, he hurriedly ate it, even though he’d prefer a tuna sandwich.
Afterward, Leroy went over to the office, casually strolling in with a ready introduction line, but the front part of the office and the manager’s desk were unoccupied. He checked the storeroom and even his office—which, to his relief, were both locked—something he’d taught Sophie to do when she stepped out. Apparently, Bree knew the drill too. But where was she?
He went over to the tasting room to find it was deserted as well. He glanced around the property, then realizing it wasn’t yet one, he concluded she was on her lunch break in the cottage. He considered waiting by her driveway but didn’t want to look like a stalker. Instead, he decided to return to his office and do some real office work for a change.
As soon as he entered the building, he noticed how tidy and orderly everything appeared. That was encouraging. Even his own private space appeared to have been dusted and straightened—and the calendar was on the correct month. Wanting to hear when Bree returned to work, he left his door open and surveyed his desk. His in-basket held several things that probably needed his attention. Nothing particularly urgent, but some items had been there awhile. As he sat down in his squeaky leather chair, he remembered that Sophie had been nagging him to get caught up.No time like the present, he thought as he reached for the first item.
By the time his in-basket was emptied, it was three o’clock, and the office manager still hadn’t showed up. Curious as to where she could be, he went out to look around some more. He could see that the tasting room was open and Garth was handling about a dozen guests, but he didn’t see Bree among them. Leroy even checked the wine cellar, which seemed an unlikely place for her to be. Although he did recall an employee, from several years back, who used to sneak in there to help himself to a bottle of wine. Leroy had quickly terminated him. Sophie had already assuredhim that their new office manager was practically a teetotaler, so there should be no worries there.
The cellar door was locked and when he went inside, it was dark and quiet and peaceful. Leroy breathed in the old smell of wood and wine and dust, an aroma that always took him back to his childhood when he would follow his dad and grandpa around the big oak barrels, watching as the men tested and sampled the wine, listening to them discuss the process—the trade he didn’t realize would someday become his life. Did he resent that it had? No, not at all. He sighed as he slid the door closed and secured the lock. It was a good life. But where was that office manager?
Discouraged, he went into the house, hoping to find Gina to see if she knew anything. He discovered her in the kitchen with Judith, discussing the night’s menu.
“Thereis our mystery man,” Judith declared. “I just told Gina I’d forgotten to ask you if you would join us for dinner tonight. I was worried you planned to go AWOL again.” She laughed.
“The truth is, I’m used to being pretty independent.” He glanced at his daughter for backup. “Gina’s used to that. I come and go, and sometimes I work late. Or I drop in on Sophie and—”
“Well,” Judith interrupted him. “I hope you’ll consider joining us tonight. Gina told me you love Italian cuisine, so I’m making pasta primavera.” She pointed to a large basket of fruits and vegetables. “I found some lovely things at the farmers market this morning.”
“I see.” He nodded with pursed lips, then turned to Gina. “I was wondering if you’d seen our new office manager.”
