Late Harvest

by Yvonne Whittal

  Rhyno followed her all the way to Solitaire in the estate truck as if he didn't trust her to go straight home. Abominable man! When she arrived at the house she changed quickly into an old pair of jeans, a blue and white chequered blouse, and comfortable shoes, then she left the house and walked briskly down to the cellars.

  The winepresses were working fast and furiously to keep up with the amount of grapes being brought in on loaded trailers; white grapes from Solitaire, and the black Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsaut and Pinotage from La Reine. They were all top quality wine cultivars, and the steel fermentation tanks were being filled again before the long process of maturation began.

  Kate took over her father's tasks automatically without Rhyno having to instruct her what to do. While he was at La Reine to supervise the harvesting, she would keep an eye on the cellars and the vineyards on Solitaire. She checked the machinery, rectified a belt that was faulty, and issued a few brief instructions before driving herself down to the vineyards in the dusty estate jeep.

  There was no laughter in the vineyards on the day after Jacques Duval's burial, but the pickers sang while they worked even though the songs had an unmistakable ring of sadness to them. Kate watched them work for a while, marvelling as always at the deftness of their hands as the ripe bunches of grapes were transferred from the vines to their baskets. When a tractor towed away a loaded trailer, an empty trailer arrived on cue. The farm hands knew what they were doing; they had done the same thing year after year, and they worked with a precision and timing which could seldom be faulted.

  'We're going to have a good crop this year, Miss Kate. One of the best,' they assured her, and by 'good crop' they did not mean quantity but quality.

  She drove back to the wine cellars where she knew she would be needed most. It was late afternoon when the last, load of grapes arrived and was tipped into the winepress, but tomorrow, at the first light of day, it would start all over again, and it would go on day after day until all the berries had been harvested.

  'We've made a good start,' Rhyno assured her when he looked in on the wine cellar. 'I think your father would have been pleased.'

  Kate nodded and turned away, too choked suddenly to speak at his reference to her father. She checked that everything was in order, then she, walked out into the fresh air, away from the smell of crushed grapes, and away from Rhyno who seemed to be watching her with a brooding expression on his face that disturbed her.

  Gavin Page arrived at Solitaire that evening after dinner, and Aunt Edwina immediately took herself off to some other part of the house. She had never made a secret of the fact that she did not approve of Kate's friendship with Gavin, and Kate had been only too aware that her father had shared his sister's views, but that did not deter her from seeing Gavin and making up her own mind about him.

  'I'm sorry I couldn't be here yesterday,' Gavin apologised when she led the way into the living-room.

  'It doesn't matter,' she assured him with an unnatural airiness. 'There was nothing you could do anyway.'

  Gavin was only slightly taller than Kate, with dark brown hair, and laughing blue eyes in his angular face, but his eyes were not laughing at that moment as he studied her intently. 'Are you all right?'

  'I'm fine,' she said breezily. 'Just fine.'

  'I missed you.'

  'Oh, Gavin!' she sighed, the tension easing within her, and she went into his arms without waiting for an invitation. 'Hold me, and tell me this is all a bad dream.'

  'Darling, don't upset yourself,' he frowned, tightening his arms about her when he realised that she was crying. 'I can't bear to see you like this.'

  'I'm sorry,' she muttered with a touch of cynicism in her smile as she drew away from him to brush away her tears with the tips of her fingers. 'Rhyno was right—I really should pull myself together.'

  Gavin's mouth tightened. 'Has that man been making life difficult for you?'

  'It's not Rhyno who's making life difficult for me, it's my father.'

  'Your father?' Gavin frowned. 'I don't think I understand.'

  She gestured vaguely with her hands. 'It doesn't matter, and I don't really want to talk about it.'

  'What you need, my darling Kate, is someone to take care of you.'

  'Are you asking me to marry you?' she teased lightly, allowing him to draw her down on to the sofa and into his arms.

  'Why not?' he smiled confidently. 'Together we could make Solitaire the best wine estate in the country, and not just in this area.'

  'Solitaire,' Kate murmured soberly. 'It's funny how everything lately seems to revolve around Solitaire.'

  'Kate?'

  'Oh, there's La Reine too, we mustn't forget that,' she added bitterly.

  'Darling, what's the matter?'

  'Do you know what solitaire means?' she asked him, despair lurking in her eyes and in the slight smile curving her mouth. 'It means solitary, lonely, and God knows I've never felt more lonely and lost in all my life.'

  'Don't say that, Kate,' he ordered, rubbing his cheek against her forehead. 'I'm here with you, aren't I?'

  'I'm sorry, Gavin. I'm not actually pleasant company this evening.'

  His arms tightened about her. 'Darling, I know this isn't the time to talk about it, but you will marry me, won't you?'

  Kate would have given anything to be able to say 'yes' at that moment, but she dared not. If she married Gavin she would lose Solitaire, and a horrible little voice asked her whether Gavin was worthy of such a sacrifice.

  'Let's not think of marriage yet, Gavin,' she said hastily, shutting her mind to the disturbing thoughts racing through it. 'Let's simply go on enjoying each other's company for a little while longer.'

  Gavin did not look altogether happy, but he nodded agreeably, and moved a little away from her to light a . cigarette. 'Meet me in town for lunch tomorrow?'

  'I'm afraid I can't,' she said, watching him blow a cloud of smoke towards the beamed ceiling. 'I'm helping with the harvest, and we'll be busy most of the day.'

  'I don't see why you should help when you have a manager to see to things,' Gavin scowled.

  'There's La Reine as well as Solitaire, Gavin, and keeping an eye on two farms is more than one person can cope with during the harvest season,' she reluctantly defended Rhyno.

  'You can afford to take on an extra man, so why don't you get someone to help?' Gavin argued, but she shook her head firmly.

  'That's out of the question at the moment.'

  'But—'

  'Please, Gavin,' she interrupted tiredly, 'could we talk about something else?'

  He stared down at the cigarette smouldering between his fingers with a faintly dissatisfied expression on his face, then he raised his glance and sighed resignedly. 'If you can't have lunch with me tomorrow, then what about having dinner with me tomorrow evening?'

  'I'd like that,' she said, brushing a long, silky strand of hair away from her face, and Gavin leaned forward at once to kiss her on her smiling lips.

  Kate steered the conversation away from herself after that, and questioned Gavin about his work at the winery in Stellenbosch. He needed very little encouragement in that direction, and her interest in winemaking made her a knowledgeable listener. It helped to talk about something else, and for the next hour she could almost shed her problems.

  When Gavin eventually drove away from Solitaire, the stark reality of Kate's situation returned with a vengeance to the surface of her mind, and she went to bed feeling depressed. The future lay like a dense jungle ahead of her. There was only one path through it, but she refused to take it and, with a stubbornness she had inherited from her father, she clung to that decision.

  She was up at dawn the following morning, and was snatching a quick breakfast in the kitchen when Rhyno arrived. She heard him talking to Aunt Edwina in the hall and, hoping to avoid him, she swallowed down the remainder of her coffee and darted out the back way.

  The jeep was not where she had parked it the night before, and she was looking abou
t for it a little wildly when she saw Rhyno striding purposefully towards her.

  'Good morning,' he said abruptly with a faint gleam of mockery in his eyes as if he was well aware of the fact that she had tried to avoid him. 'I'll give you a lift down to the cellars.'

  'That's not necessary,' she told him coldly. 'The jeep is here somewhere.'

  'The jeep was needed on La Reine, and I had it collected earlier this morning.'

  'How dare you take it without consulting me first?' she demanded, rounding on him furiously.

  'The jeep is not your private property, Kate. It belongs to the estate, and it's used where it's needed most.'

  He was right, damn him, and right that minute she hated him for it, but she was not given the opportunity to say more. Strong fingers were gripping her arm firmly, and she was steered unceremoniously towards the truck parked a little distance away.

  Kate stole a glance at his profile when she was seated beside him in the cab of the sturdy truck, and his beak-like nose with the stern mouth and unrelenting jaw made her realise once again that his sunbronzed features could have been carved out of granite. He was not a man one would associate with any tender, passionate feelings, and yet he was constantly in the company of Barbara Owen who owned one of those exclusive boutiques in Stellenbosch. Were they lovers? Kate blushed at the thought and looked away, shutting her mind to it. It was none of her business, after all, what kind of relationship Rhyno had with this woman.

  'I'll pick you up again at twelve,' Rhyno said when he dropped her off at the cellars, and before she could reply he was driving away with the rugged tyres of the truck kicking up a cloud of dust.

  When the tractor pulling the first loaded trailer came up the track towards the cellars, Kate gave Lenny the signal to start the machines, and his brown face glowed with that expectancy and excitement which one experienced only at this time of the year. Lenny had seen many summers come and go on Solitaire, but each year, he had told her once, was a new adventure. When the winepress ceased its function at the end of the harvest one was left to wonder whether this year's vintage would be a good one. Would it live up to Solitaire's usual gold medal standards, or would it receive a lower rating? There was always that element of surprise; that something to work for and look forward to, and when your year's labour was rewarded with success it stirred up a fire in your veins which no wine could put there. Lenny was good at describing things, Kate recalled now as she worked alongside him. He had said that once the excitement of wine-making was in your blood, there was nothing on this earth that could rid you of it, and Kate knew this to be true.

  Helping with the harvest possessed its own kind of therapy, Kate soon discovered. There was little time to think, and even less time to brood, but when Rhyno picked her up at twelve, as he had promised, it brought everything sharply into focus once more. She could never marry this cold, heartless man; not even if he went down on his knees and begged her to!

  She had lunch with Aunt Edwina in the small dining-room directly off the kitchen. She ate sparsely, not wanting to return to work on a full stomach, and declined the cup of tea her aunt offered her, settling instead for a glass of iced water.

  'I've invited Rhyno to have dinner with us this evening,' Aunt Edwina made her surprise announcement while she calmly added milk and sugar to her tea.

  'I'm afraid the two of you will be dining alone,' Kate informed her at once. 'I'm dining out with Gavin this evening.'

  'You could have told me sooner,' her aunt complained, and Kate shrugged carelessly.

  'I could have, I suppose, but it slipped my mind.'

  'Well, it's too late to retract my invitation, so I can only hope Rhyno won't object to an old woman's company at dinner.'

  'I'm sure the two of you will have a lot to talk about,' Kate smiled cynically, glad now that she had accepted Gavin's invitation.

  'And what's that supposed to mean?' Aunt Edwina demanded, her reproving glance sweeping over Kate.

  'You've always liked him, haven't you?'

  'I was fond of him when he was a little boy, and I find him utterly charming as a man.'

  'Charming!' Kate snorted, almost choking on a mouthful of water. 'There's nothing charming about Rhyno van der Bijl. He's an arrogant, self-opinionated and boorish individual who possesses about as much refinement as that cheap, obnoxious wine some of the workers like to drink.'

  'Kate!' Aunt Edwina gasped admonishingly, her glance darting beyond her niece. 'You should guard your tongue!'

  'It pays sometimes to know exactly what other people think of you, Aunt Edwina,' Rhyno spoke almost directly behind Kate, making her jump, and she swung round on her chair to glare up at him.

  'You know what they say about people who listen at keyholes,' she said bitingly.

  'They seldom hear good of themselves, I know,' he nodded, his disparaging glance sliding over her in a way that fanned the fire of her anger and resentment. 'If you're not too refined to soil those lily-white hands of yours, then I suggest we get back to work,' he ordered harshly.

  Flames of fury leapt in Kate's eyes. 'Just who do you think you're speaking to?'

  'I'm speaking to you, Kate Duval, now get off that butt of yours and let's get some work done.'

  She reacted instinctively, her fingers tightening on her glass, and the next instant its contents were running in little rivulets down his tanned face and dripping on to his blue shirt.

  'Kate!' Aunt Edwina's disapproving voice sliced through the electrifying silence in the room. 'What on earth has got into you!'

  'Could I please have your table napkin, Aunt Edwina?' Rhyno asked without taking his eyes off Kate, who sat staring up at him with a mixture of defiance and horror in her blue eyes.

  'Yes, of course,' Aunt Edwina replied hastily, placing the square of white damask in his outstretched hand.

  'Dry my face,' he instructed in a clipped voice, almost thrusting the table napkin in Kate's face.

  'Dry it yourself!' she snapped defiantly, but she regretted it the next instant when his fingers snaked about her wrist, and she was jerked up out of her chair to stand so close to him that she could almost feel the disturbing heat of his body through her clothes.

  'You will dry my face, or I'll put you across my knee and give you the spanking you deserve.'

  'You wouldn't dare!' she hissed, throwing back her head so that her hair fell like a pale, silken cloud down her slim back.

  'Don't tempt me, Kate,' he warned softly, and there was something in those dark eyes burning down into hers that warned her not to drive him too far in this respect.

  'Give me that thing,' she snapped furiously, conscious of Aunt Edwina's silent, disapproving appraisal as she snatched the table napkin from his hand and dried his chiselled features. He watched her intently while she repaired the damage she had caused and, unnerved, she flung the napkin on to the table when she was finished. 'Satisfied?' she asked coldly.

  'For the moment, yes,' he informed her with equal coldness, his fingers still biting into her tender flesh about her wrist. 'Now, let's get back to work.'

  Helpless fury raged through Kate, but she gritted her teeth and remained silent as he literally dragged her out of the house. She would still get the opportunity to speak her mind, and then she would tell him exactly what she thought of him!

  The hours passed swiftly, and when Kate arrived home late that afternoon, she bathed and washed the dust out of her hair. She dressed with care that evening, selecting a rose-coloured silk evening dress which made her look and feel good, and her efforts were rewarded when she was seated opposite Gavin in the quiet little restaurant where he had taken her so often before.

  Across the candlelit table Gavin's blue gaze rested on her appreciatively. 'You look lovely this evening, Kate.'

  'Thank you,' she smiled. 'My morale needs a bit of a boost, I must say.'

  'I didn't say that merely to boost your morale,' he assured her at once, clasping her hand across the table. 'I meant it,' he added, 'and I only w
ish you were wearing my ring.'

  Kate eyed him a little warily. 'Don't get serious, Gavin.'

  'I want to marry you, Kate.' His fingers tightened about hers when she would have drawn her hand away. 'We've known each other long enough, and now is the time that you need a man out there at Solitaire to help you keep things in order.'

  'Rhyno is there,' she replied cautiously.

  'But he's only the estate manager, Kate,' Gavin protested. 'You own the estate now, and I can't see Rhyno van der Bijl taking orders from a woman.'

  'I don't own Solitaire, Gavin,' she said, bitterness rising sharply within her. 'Not yet anyway.'

  He gestured impatiently. 'I realise that there's still the legal side of it to be seen to, but you were your father's sole heir, so you can justifiably say that the estate belongs to you.'

  'It will take time before I can say that,' she smiled wryly.

  'A few months, I agree,' he shrugged off her statement.

  'A year, or perhaps a little less than a month,' she corrected him thoughtfully.

  Gavin studied her intently for a moment, then he laughed shortly. 'I'm afraid you've lost me.'

  'May I have a little more wine?' she asked, pushing her glass across the table towards him.

  'Certainly,' he smiled, releasing her hand and filling up her glass, but that eager light in his eyes died swiftly when his glance met hers again. 'What's troubling you, Kate?'

  'You are,' she replied honestly, taking a sip of her wine and comparing the quality subconsciously with Solitaire's. 'I want to forget about Solitaire, and the problems my father has left behind for me to deal with, but you insist on dragging it into the conversation.'

  'If there are problems, then surely I could help you sort them out?' he offered eagerly.

  'I'm afraid you can't.' Her eyes clouded. 'I'm the only one who could sort out the mess I'm in at the moment, but when I'm with you I would very much like to forget about everything, and simply relax.'

  'Very well, I accept that, but—' He smiled, but his smile was no longer as confident as before. 'If there's ever anything I could assist you with, you will let me know, won't you? After all, I do have an interest in you, and therefore in Solitaire, not so?'