“You’ve made that quite clear.” My eyes flick to the desk. “Now, how about we talk about what really matters? Have you found any investors yet?”
The stack of unopened mail in the corner draws my attention: thick envelopes, some stamped with red lettering that screams overdue.
A glance passes between them, and my stomach coils.
“What was that? What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing.” Mom clears her throat, a dead giveaway she’s lying. “We have a few interested parties. We’re just…weighing the pros and cons, that’s all.”
My eyes narrow. “And will they let you keep the majority of the shares?”
She peers at the floor. “We hope so.”
I know if they want to keep the doors open, they won’t have much choice. But I’ll be damned if I allow them to be taken advantage of.
Dad shrugs like it’s nothing. “We’ll figure it out, sweetheart. We always do.”
The words are meant to be reassuring, but they hit like a stone in my chest.
We talk for a while, pretending everything’s fine. Mom fussing over whether I’m eating enough again. Dad telling some ridiculous story about a raccoon that broke into the fermentation room last week. For a few minutes, it’s almost normal. Almost.
But when Mom’s gaze drifts to the window, the shadow returns to her face.
“I wish I could do something to help,” I tell them, but my job definitely doesn’t come with a huge paycheck.
Dad reaches for my hand, squeezing gently. “You help just by being here.”
Mom’s smile softens, but there’s mischief in her eyes. “Or maybe by finding a handsome man with deep pockets. A defense attorney would do nicely. He can buy the place, and you can run it together.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “Not in a million years.”
“Never say never,” she teases, rising from her chair.
“You’re lucky I love you, Ma.”
She wraps her arms around me, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “And I you, tesoro. Everything I do is for you.”
“I know.”
My parents have no one but me. Mom always said her family never approved of her marrying Dad, mostly because his father wasn’t Italian. That’s where our last name comes from. They disowned her after that, and Dad didn’t have much family to begin with. His parents died when he was young, and he was an only child.
If there was a way to fix their financial problems, I’d do it in an instant, even if it cost me everything.
CHAPTER SEVEN
ALEKSEI
As she walksout of the main building of the vineyard, she’s still wearing that fake smile for her parents’ sake as she says goodbye.
It slips the second she’s out of their line of sight. By the time she hits the path toward the parking lot, her shoulders are rigid, her steps clipped. That small hand grips the strap of her purse like she’s holding herself together with it.
The cameras her parents installed catch everything: the breeze tugging strands of hair across her cheek, the moment she pauses halfway to the car and looks back at the rows of vines like she’s saying goodbye. Like she knows this chapter’s closing.
And she doesn’t even realize who’s already writing the next one.
I know all about her parents’ troubles, even better than she does. Past-due invoices, the bank calling each week, the money they owe that loan shark who will kill them all if they don’t pay. I’ve made it my business to know everything.
The second she blinks too fast and lifts her chin, something locks up in my chest.
