Love's Harvest (A Salmon Run Novel Book 1)

by Gwen Overland

  “¡Qué Bueno! That’s great!” Eduardo answered for the two of them as they charged out the door.

  Gayle studied Julia as she followed the children with her eyes. “You like those two, don’t you?”

  Julia smiled. “I find them absolutely delightful!”

  Gayle seated herself at the recently vacated table. “Do you ever wish you and Robert would’ve had a child?”

  Julia pulled out a chair and joined her. “Not while he was alive. Between the winery and my career, the right time never seemed to come up. Then when he became sick, the issue got buried for good. Now that he’s gone? Yes, of course, I’d give anything to have had a child with Robert.”

  Gayle stared at the cookie in her hand, not feeling much like eating it. Her appetite hadn’t been the same since she discovered the issue with James and the deed.

  “You know, James’ll never approve of you coming out here to work for me instead of for him. How will you explain that?”

  Gayle put down the cookie and placed her empty hand on top of Julia’s. “I won’t have to. I asked James for a divorce the morning after I called you, and he packed a bag and left the house. The children are upset, naturally, but honest to God, Julia, I can’t live under the same roof with a man I don’t know anymore.”

  The held-back tears Gayle was so afraid of showing geysered out and flowed down her cheeks. Julia immediately wrapped her arms around the woman. In all the time Gayle had known Julia, she’d never cried, not like this anyway.

  “I feel so stupid. Here I’m getting your shirt all wet and gooey, and it’s you I should be offering my shoulder to.”

  Julia gave a short giggle. “Oh, come on, Gayle. What are friends for if not to ruin their favorite blouse, huh?”

  Gayle straightened in her chair and blew her nose into her table napkin. “I didn’t think you thought of me as your friend anymore, not after the way James and I treated you.”

  “Oh, stop, Gayle. I knew it was only a temporary thing. We’ve been close for too long of a time to let this last year’s difficulties dictate the quality of our friendship. I merely figured you and James had grief issues. You know, each of us deals with sorrow in our own way.”

  Gayle noted her friend’s wet eyes. “And how are you doing?”

  Julia smiled. “Not too bad, considering the winery is struggling, my career is adrift, and my husband is buried just east of the vineyard. Other than those trivial things, pretty darn peachy.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Both women were silent for a moment, and then what started as a snicker or two became a wave of ribald laughter, forcing them to laugh until their sides hurt and the tears to fall once again.

  Julia tore her napkin in half and gave it to Gayle. When they both simultaneously blew their noses, they glanced at each other before their laughter resumed once again. When at last Julia had gotten control of herself, she thought about the possibility of Gayle being a part of the resuscitation process for the winery and felt a glow inside which had been missing for some time.

  “So, about the job, Gayle, I’d love to have you on board, but I must warn you, James has threatened to show up in the morning to throw me out of my home and close the winery for good. Things could get nasty, and I don’t want you here if there’s any chance of you getting hurt.”

  “I want to be here, Julia, when he comes. I want to look directly into his evil face and show him who I am and not who he thinks I ought to be. I want him to know he can’t push me or my friends around merely for his pleasure.”

  Gayle stood up and began to pace. “He won’t hurt me; he’s too afraid I’ll press charges and take him for everything he has in the divorce. He knows I can also keep the children from seeing him if he threatens harm to you or any one of your workers. No, Julia, I need to be here, for it’s finally where I truly belong!”

  Julia was moved by her friend’s loyalty and passion. She was about ready to thank her, when her home phone rang.

  “Julia, it’s Barb again. Sorry to call so late but I wanted to give you a heads up about tomorrow.”

  “Oh, hi Barb,” Julia announced for Gayle’s benefit. “No, it’s not too late. I’m sitting here eating cookies and drinking lemonade with Gayle.”

  The phone line went silent for a moment, then Barbara spoke up. “You’re shitting me!”

  Julia laughed and continued. “I don’t think so. Actually, I decided to hire Gayle to help me out here at the winery. She starts tomorrow.”

  “I hope you’ve told her about the possible events of the day,” Barb said, obviously concerned. Gayle was her friend, too.

  “Yes, Gayle is well aware. So, what’s your news? Why the phone call?”

  It took a few seconds before Barbara could get herself back on track. “Oh, yeah, the phone call. I finally got a copy of the deed from Kaliope. It’s exactly as you thought. The ownership is split in three ways: one third to James, one third to Robert, and one third to you. And legally speaking, because you’re Robert’s wife, his third goes directly to you—no questions asked.”

  “I knew it. I just needed the proof and the legal backing.” Julia felt the tension and stress she’d been holding onto since Monday morning’s meeting finally dissolve. She rolled her head and shoulders to unlock the tightness she felt in her neck and upper back.

  Barbara continued. “Look, Julia, since we don’t know when James’ll show up, I and my deputies will be at the winery by dawn’s light. I’ll bring the deed with me so we can get this handled once and for all.”

  Julia continued to feel a renewed sense of peace come over her as she smiled into the receiver. “I’ll be up with the coffee pot on. I can’t thank you enough, Barb.”

  “It’s part of my job as sheriff, Julia, as much as it’s my obligation to you as your friend. You’re sure hiring Gayle is a good idea?”

  “Absolutely!” Julia answered looking back at her sister-in-law. “We’ll both be here when you arrive in the morning. Good night, Barb. Thanks for all!”

  “Good night, Julia. Pray everything tomorrow goes without a hitch.”

  “I will.”

  Gayle was the first to speak. “Barbara doesn’t think I should work here, does she?”

  Julia smiled. “I think she was simply surprised is all. We’re all friends, remember?”

  “Yes, and I promise to stand by you tomorrow, no matter what!”

  After Gayle and Julia said their goodbyes, Julia locked her front door, hoping to get some much-needed sleep before the four a.m. alarm went off in the morning, but she wasn’t counting on it. Whatever was to happen tomorrow would change the course of not only her life, but the life of the winery and all those who worked for it, including Gayle.

  As she prepared for bed, Julia thought about Eduardo and Felicia and how much they were growing on her. She thought about Mariela and Rafael and their dedication to her and the winery. Mostly, though, she thought about Diego and how she felt whenever he was near.

  She couldn’t help but notice how empty she felt when he wasn’t around, and how comforted and alive she felt when he was in her presence. She prayed God would forgive her for having such feelings so soon after Robert’s death, but she couldn’t help it. The pull on her heart felt a great deal like love. At least, that was what she guessed, for it’d been some time since she’d experienced anything like what she was experiencing now.

  ~ ~ ~

  The night had cooled down. Diego opened the miniscule window in the back of his tiny bedroom and enjoyed the light breeze which had come up as soon as the sun set. Physically, Diego was exhausted, but emotionally he was a ball of nerves.

  Never before in his life had he encountered this conflagration of feelings—anxiety, loneliness, anger, love. Well, maybe not love exactly, but something more like respect, loyalty, and, all right, desire. He had t
o admit it. He was falling in love.

  Yet these feelings for Julia were new to him. Yes, he’d been in love before or what he thought was love, but this time was different. Not a second went by without him having some thought or another about the Señora—where she was, what she was doing, if she was thinking of him as well.

  Every inch of Diego’s body vibrated with the anticipation of holding the Señora again, to feel her lips against his, and to allow his hands and mouth to explore her body. Julia’s beauty wasn’t merely physical. She had a soft and caring heart, not only for the winery, but for his people as well. He only hoped she felt the same about him.

  Wearing only his boxers, Diego lay bare-chested on the top of his bedding, yearning for sleep. Yet, every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was James and whoever he brought with him inflicting their brand of pain on Julia and those who worked at the winery.

  The rage he kept buried during the day surfaced in all its fury in the silence of the night. He wanted to strike back, hard, but knew if he did, things would more than likely escalate beyond a point of safety. He absolutely refused to be responsible for a single person getting hurt. This feeling of rage, he was all too familiar with. When he learned his best friend Jorge had convinced his fiancée Paulina to leave Diego and marry him instead, it took everything Diego had not to cross the border back into Mexico and kill Jorge.

  He’d felt betrayed, ridiculed, and even angry at God. Now as he lay in his bed, he realized perhaps he wasn’t as in love with Paulina as he’d earlier thought. He certainly didn’t have the same feeling for her as he now had for Julia.

  Diego was smart enough to know it’d take nothing short of a miracle for him and Julia to become a couple, especially since it’d not even been a week since Señor Robert had been interred. Besides, who was he to think a woman of Julia’s class and distinction would fall for a displaced immigrant like himself.

  He fisted the bed sheet in anguish. On the surface, it all appeared so hopeless. Yet, something deep within him told Diego to remain patient, to keep his attention on the health of the winery, and most of all to believe in the power of love.

  Chapter 8

  The next morning Julia woke with a start. She glared at the clock. 3:47. She had only slept five hours, if that. There was little or no reason for her to stay in bed, given what the morning threatened.

  She swung her legs off the mattress and immediately felt the cool night air slam into her body. “From her toes to her nose” as Robert used to say.

  In the distance, she could hear the braying of a lone donkey, probably the hinny from the neighboring ranch on the other side of the road adjacent to the vineyard. Funny how she had never paid attention to that sound before. Yet, this morning all of Julia’s senses were on high alert.

  Quickly, Julia got dressed and turned on the coffeepot as promised. She didn’t think she could eat anything for her stomach still felt as if in a knot. To put on a CD also felt like too much of a good thing, so no food and no music.

  One thing she was certain of. This day wasn’t going to be met without at least two cups of coffee. All right, maybe the whole pot. Whatever was needed to put her in the zone, and in the zone was exactly where Julia seriously needed to be if she was to hang on to her home and the business of the winery.

  She’d barely finished fixing her hair when she heard a rumble of tires and flying gravel.

  “What in the world?” she asked an empty house. She raced to the front door and peeked out the peep hole, expecting the noise to belong to James and whoever else he talked into assisting him. Instead, screeching to a halt in front of her house was a humongous white school bus.

  As the dust cleared, she recognized the words emblazoned on its side. RIVERSIDE LUTHERAN CHURCH, Salmon Run, Washington. The passenger door immediately flew open, and there sat Gayle at the steering wheel, grinning from ear to ear.

  “Good morning, Julia!” she sang out as she set the emergency brake. “I hope I didn’t wake you, but an idea came to me last night and I knew you’d approve,” she said as she hopped down from her station.

  Initially, Julia was speechless, but then the absurdity of the entire event struck her funny, and she began to laugh. “Gayle, what’s all this? I can’t believe you drove that thing all the way out here by yourself. Are you nuts?”

  Gayle grabbed Julia with her strong hands and drew her into an embrace. “This is a bus, silly. And, yes, I probably am nuts.” The two women then rocked back and forth in each other’s arms.

  At that moment Diego came running up the hill, looking as though he’d only seconds ago woken up. “Señora Julia, what’s going on? Are you all right?”

  As he continued to peruse the vehicle positioned in front of him, both women turned in his direction and burst out in laughter for a second time. Diego raised an eyebrow and felt the corner of his mouth turn up.

  “No, offense Señora Gayle, but are you loco? Bringing an empty church bus here onto the property? And on a day like this?”

  As soon as the two women heard the word loco, they lost it yet again. “I’m sorry for laughing, Diego, but if you’d seen your face when you came charging up the hill, you’d be in tears too.”

  Julia finally calmed down and turned back to Gayle. “So why did you bring the bus? I mean, other than the obvious reason—you are loco!”

  Gayle wiped her eyes on her shirt sleeve. “Well, like I said, I had this wonderful idea last night, so I ran it by Pastor Knudson and he said, ‘by all means, take the bus!’”

  Julia waited for her goofy-faced sister-in-law to continue but soon realized Gayle needed a nudge. “And?”

  Gayle noticeably sobered as she continued. “I thought given we don’t know what kind of danger we may face today, I thought I’d round up all the children and bring them for a day’s activities and fun at the church. Sort of like a makeshift Vacation Bible School, if you know what I mean. That way the children will be safe and sound, and their parents won’t need to worry about them getting hurt. Then after things cool down, I’ll bring them back home again. What do you say?”

  Again, Julia was stunned by Gayle’s generosity of spirit. It was Diego who spoke first. After taking a second, he finally said, “I think you Lutherans are a crafty bunch! Almost as crafty as us Catholics!”

  Gayle warmly smiled at Diego. “You’re probably right. Except this little Lutheran lady has a bus and you don’t!”

  Diego threw back his head and laughed out loud. Julia thought for a moment she’d never seen a more dashing man—two sexy dimples, perfectly shaped white teeth, and sparkling black eyes. Diego was an exquisite combination of both his Mexican heritage and indigenous background.

  “Well, Señoras, let me find Mariela. If anyone can gather together a small group of half-awake children, it’s her.”

  He put his straw hat back on the top of his head and made his way down the hill. The women watched him until he disappeared. Gayle turned once again to Julia.

  “You’re very lucky to have this man in your life, Julia,” she said softly so as not for him to hear,

  Julia felt her cheeks redden. “Yes, he’s been an excellent orchard manager and liaison between me and the workers.”

  Gayle snickered. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

  “What are you talking about?” Julia stared at the ground and rolled a tiny rock around with her toe. Gayle then took her by the shoulders and stared her straight in the eyes.

  “He likes you, Julia. I mean, he really likes you, and it’s okay to like him back, you know.”

  Julia felt suddenly embarrassed that her hidden thoughts and feelings were so evident. “It’s only that I feel it’s been too soon since Robert’s death for me to look for someone else, and yet I’m inexorably drawn to this quiet man.”

  “Oh, pish-posh! What do you care wha
t others think? He obviously cares about the winery, and he cares about you. Besides, you’re old enough to make your own decisions for your life. And, in my opinion, he’s a good one!”

  Julia reached for Gayle’s embrace. “Thanks, Gayle. I’ve been facing all this business with Robert and the winery alone for so long, I’ve forgotten how important it is to have good friends.”

  Gayle put her palms on either side of Julia’s face. “I know I have some things to make up to you for, but I’m still your friend, Julia. And I promise I’ll remain so for the rest of our lives.”

  At that moment Mariela and Rafael were seen leading a small group of children including their own up the hill and toward the bus. “Señora,” Mariela called. “I have all the children here except for two, Joaquin Lopez’s grand babies, Mateo and Sofia. Diego will bring them up shortly.”

  “Thank you, Mariela. I’m not sure you’ve met my sister-in-law, Gayle Reynolds? Gayle, Mariela and her husband Rafael Pasqual.” Julia introduced the couple to the woman who in a matter of minutes would drive their children away, at least for the better part of the day.

  Mariela took a step toward Gayle. “Señora Reynolds, Rafa and I wish to thank you for thinking of us and our children. We don’t want anyone to get hurt either, especially our sons and daughters. After all, they’re innocent and only here because of us, their parents.”

  Gayle marched forward and took Mariela’s hand in hers. “It’s my pleasure. I want you to know I do not approve of what my husband’s doing, and I never will. I promise you, all of your children will be well cared for, and I’ll make sure we’ll all have a great deal of fun.”

  “Gracias Señora.”

  “Gayle, please.”