The Vineyard at Painted Moon

by Susan Mallery

  “Let me guess,” he said, looking from the picture to her. “You wandered around the old tasting room, as well.”

  “Of course I did.”

  An hour later, she’d gone through all her material. The last folder she handed him was about sales to China.

  “Not my area of expertise,” she admitted. “So these are just random thoughts. It’s a huge market. There are already wine tours for Chinese tourists in California and Oregon. Why not do that here? There are plenty of wineries to tour, and if Painted Moon initiates the idea, you can be one of the star attractions.”

  “I’ve been thinking the same thing myself,” he said, taking the folder. “You’ve done your research.”

  “I think you’re in a unique position to grow over the next few years. I know how Mackenzie works, so having great wines is a given. I have retail experience from my time at Bel Après and I’ve learned a lot about the business simply by osmosis. I’d like to put those skills to use here.”

  He looked at her, his expression just as unreadable as it had been for the entire interview. But instead of being scared by that, she felt good. She’d worked hard and it showed. She’d studied Painted Moon and she’d had suggestions that were specific to them. Something she should have done the first time around, but at least she’d learned from her mistakes.

  “I do the hiring here,” he said, “but not without running the senior positions by Mackenzie.”

  Senior positions? Her heart fluttered in a very happy way. “Of course.”

  “Give me a few days to take all this in and I’ll get back to you.”

  “Thank you.”

  She rose and they shook hands. Stephanie managed to get all the way to her car before pride made her pump her fist in the air. She’d done it. She’d worked hard and she’d had a great interview. That wasn’t a guarantee of a job, but at least she knew she had it in herself. Whatever happened, she could tell herself she’d done everything right and that made today a very good day.

  * * *

  Mackenzie stood in the doorway to what would be the baby’s room and stared at the furniture pushed together at one end. At some point, she was going to have to figure out what she wanted to do in here. The walls needed painting and she needed a rug for the hardwood floors, along with curtains for the windows.

  Based on the books she was reading, she was going to need a bunch of supplies before the baby was born. Diapers and stuff. Clothes maybe. Sheets. She wasn’t sure about toys. Newborns mostly ate and slept, so she could wait on those. It was a lot to think about, and realizing that made her uncomfortable, which was why she tried not to think about the postpregnancy part of her life. At some point she was going to have to ask Stephanie and Four to talk her through the baby-prep thing, just not today.

  She glanced at her watch and knew she had to get moving. She’d come home to shower and change after a day of walking the vineyards. But they had a meeting with a Chinese wine distributor at three and professional dress was required.

  She’d chosen the least baggy pair of black maternity pants she could find and a floaty, sleeveless top. In honor of the meeting, she’d put on a little makeup and had replaced her work boots with cute flats.

  Knowing she couldn’t distract herself any longer, she went downstairs, then drove the short distance to the offices. She saw an unfamiliar rental car parked in front and realized their potential clients had arrived early.

  “What happened to just being punctual?” She hurried to the conference room.

  Bruno was there, along with three men Mackenzie had never seen before. Bruno saw her first. She mouthed a quick “Sorry” before turning to their guests.

  “Hello, everyone.”

  All three men looked at her. Mackenzie gave a broad smile as she approached.

  “I was out in the vineyards. Now that we’re finished with harvest, I’m thinking about what changes I want to make. I know I could do that from my office, but I find it easier to think about the vines when I’m out among them.”

  For a second, no one said anything. Mackenzie had just enough time to wonder if she’d somehow put her foot in her mouth when the three men rushed toward her.

  The tallest of the visitors reached for her hand. “Mackenzie Dienes. An honor. Your reputation precedes you.”

  The other two also praised her abilities, speaking in amazing English.

  Mackenzie shook hands with them all, trying to put names with faces and willing herself not to say anything stupid. Around her grapes, she was absolutely in charge. It was the whole doing a business deal with people that she found intimidating.

  Bruno saved her by taking charge of the meeting.

  “Gentlemen,” he said, directing them to the table. “Let me show you what we’ve been working on.”

  He passed around different label options. The three men spoke in Chinese before Mr. Lin pointed to the simple dark blue label with a plain font reading Painted Moon Presents.

  “Next time we’ll have your name on the wine,” he said, looking at Mackenzie. “That will bring us top dollar.”

  Mackenzie smiled rather than speak. She didn’t want to inadvertently make a commitment.

  Once the labels were chosen, they went into the barrel room. Earlier Mackenzie had set up a tasting with a few wines from the library and the equipment necessary to taste directly from the barrel. She had a pad of paper and a pen, so she could keep track of their thoughts on the various options.

  Mackenzie had already tasted everything, careful to spit the samples once she’d determined what she thought about them. For this tasting, she would talk about the wines without drinking. She and Bruno had decided that spitting in front of prospective clients wasn’t a selling strategy.

  “There are three wines from the Painted Moon library that I think are special enough for you to consider,” she began. “All three are blends, combining the very best of what the vineyard had to offer that year. The wines are smooth, ready to drink and, if you bought the entire inventory, would be exclusive to you.”

  Bruno handed her a bottle. Mackenzie expertly cut through the foil, then pulled out the cork. After pouring the liquid into five glasses, Mackenzie passed them out. She held up her glass.

  “Let’s start with the color. This one is a beautiful deep purple color. It looks as luscious as it drinks.” She swirled the wine in the glass. “You can see there’s a high alcohol content.”

  She inhaled the scent of the wine and smiled. “Very fruit forward, which I believe is your preference. You can smell the freshness, the health of the grapes, plus a hint of spice and chocolate that’s unique to our area.”

  Everyone else sniffed their glasses. Their guests smiled, then looked at her.

  “Now we taste?” Mr. Meng asked.

  She laughed. “Now we taste.”

  * * *

  “How did you get the restaurant to deliver?” Mackenzie asked Bruno as she pulled out to-go boxes on her dining room table.

  “They just made the food. I had someone else bring it here.”

  Her stomach rumbled as the delicious smells tempted her. After a long afternoon of entertaining their Chinese visitors, she was starving.

  She’d already set out a wineglass for him. She had her lovely carafe of water to chug. Yum. But rather than think about what she couldn’t have, she looked at the bounty spread out in front of her. Mushroom ravioli with a brown butter sauce, two different salads, a pork tenderloin and summer squash pancakes with feta.

  “I love Whitehouse-Crawford,” she said. “Rhys and I went there maybe once a month for dinner. Good food, a fun atmosphere. We preferred it off-season, but even dining with the tourists was fun.”

  “I enjoy their food, as well.”

  She looked at Bruno. “Should I not mention Rhys when I talk about my old life?”

  “Why? He’s a part of who you are. Yo
u’re still friends.”

  “We are,” she said automatically, although she wasn’t sure that was actually true. They hadn’t spoken since she’d told him she was pregnant. Their only contact had been through her lawyer, setting up a meeting to discuss a proposed parenting plan.

  “Are you happy with how the meeting went?” she asked.

  Bruno smiled as he served her ravioli. “I ordered this for us for dinner, didn’t I? It’s a celebration meal.”

  “You ordered this before the meeting. Our visitors only left a half hour ago.”

  His dark eyes brightened with amusement. “You’re right. I ordered the dinner a couple of days ago. I had a feeling we were going to have something to party about. And if the meeting had gone badly, we would have used the food to get over our disappointment.”

  Instead they would be toasting the very large order Mr. Hsia and his coworkers had placed. They’d taken the entire inventory of all three of the library wines Mackenzie had suggested, along with a thousand cases of wine still in the barrel.

  “We’re going to have to make some decisions about the Chinese market,” Bruno said. “They’ll want to buy for as long as we want to sell to them. How much of what we harvest do we want to commit to the overseas market?”

  “I don’t know how to answer that. I did research a few years ago, but when I tried to talk about China as a potential market, Barbara was never interested. I know there’s a huge profit margin.”

  “We could expand capacity by buying grapes from other vineyards.”

  Mackenzie stared at him, hoping she didn’t look as horrified as she felt. “Grapes over which I don’t have any control?”

  He smiled. “I thought that would be your answer. If we want to keep selling into the Chinese market, then we might have to buy more land.”

  “That I could get behind.”

  “Stephanie is going to be disappointed about our meeting today.”

  Mackenzie looked at him. “I’m so confused. Why would she care?”

  “Because she had big plans for the library wines. They’re taking the oldest three years of inventory, which still leaves her with three to work with.” He picked up his wineglass. “She came to see me last week. About a job.”

  “What? Why didn’t I know about this? She never said a word. What happened? Are you hiring her?”

  Emotions piled on top of one another. How could her best friend not have said anything to her about the job interview? Yet even as she asked the question, she knew the answer. Stephanie wanted to earn her place.

  “She blew me away,” Bruno admitted. “She understood the problems we’re facing and had a lot of solutions. She has great ideas for the tasting room and retail space. She also came up with a unique plan to sell the library wines. A plan that will have to be modified now that we’ve sold three years of them out from under her.”

  “Does that mean you want to hire her?”

  He smiled. “I do, if you have no objection.”

  “None at all. I like working with her. She’s local, she knows the business and she’s very creative.”

  “Then I’ll call her in the morning and make her an offer.”

  “This day is getting better and better.”

  She ate a few of the ravioli and tried not to moan at the delicious flavor. The pork was just as good.

  “There’s going to be a ton of leftovers,” she said. “You should take it home.”

  “You keep it. I want you to have food in the house.”

  “I have plenty.”

  “Still, it would make me feel better. I worry about you getting enough to eat.”

  Which was sweet, but unnecessary. “I’m pregnant, not infirm.”

  “I believe the phrase is ‘in a delicate condition.’”

  “Not in this century.”

  “When I care about someone, I worry. It’s a thing. Deal with it.”

  His tone was so casual, she knew she would be foolish to read anything into his words, but she couldn’t help wondering about the “when I care about someone” part. What did that mean? Get a grip! She sent the instruction to her brain. She was not going to get weird about her relationship with Bruno. He was the best thing to ever happen to her and he was a genuinely nice man. Nothing more. Although she had to admit, she kind of liked the idea of Bruno caring about her.

  “How are you settling into condo life?” she asked.

  “It’s fine. The neighbors are quiet. When the business is running more smoothly, I’m going to take up golf again.”

  “You play golf?”

  “Yes. I like it.”

  “Why? The sport has never made sense to me.”

  He laughed. “What about a Sunday afternoon watching football?”

  “Oh, I like that.”

  “Football makes sense but golf doesn’t?”

  “Of course. I like team sports. There’s lots of action. Plus the food is great.”

  “Football has food?” His voice was teasing.

  “Of course. People eat all kinds of things watching football that they would never eat in real life.”

  “They also drink beer.”

  “I’m okay with that. Not every event has to be wine-centric.”

  He laughed. “You continue to surprise me.”

  “Only good surprises, though, right?”

  “Only good ones. How are you feeling about the baby these days?”

  The change in subject surprised her. “I’m slightly more accepting. Just before our meeting today, I was thinking I need to paint the baby’s room.”

  “You’re not painting it yourself. I’ll do it.”

  Her eyes widened as she took in his elegant suit. “You know how to paint?”

  “Yes. You can’t breathe in the fumes.” He pulled out his phone and typed something. “Once you pick out the color, I’ll prime and paint the room while you’re at the office. We’ll keep the door closed until the space airs out.”

  “That’s kind of bossy of you.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “I believe what you meant to say was thank you.”

  She smiled. “Thank you.”

  “Have you thought about colors? And themes for decorations?”

  “You’re not supposed to know all that.”

  “I’ve been reading and looking online. You should find out the sex of the baby in the next few weeks. Unless you don’t want to know.”

  “I want them to tell me. I think knowing will help me feel that the baby is real.” She shook her head. “I know it’s real, but it’s still, I don’t know, complicated.”

  “You have time to figure it out.”

  She nodded because saying she would never be ready sounded weak and sad.

  Their conversation returned to the wine business.

  “There’s a rumor that Bel Après is bringing in a couple of guys from Northern California for your position,” he said.

  Mackenzie flinched. “Really? They couldn’t get anyone local? Although maybe that’s a better idea. Fresh eyes and all that.” Not that she wanted to picture anyone dealing with her grapes. What if they did it wrong?

  “What are you thinking?” Bruno asked.

  “That letting go is hard.”

  “Regrets?”

  She looked at him. “None. This is an amazing opportunity and I’m grateful to be a part of what we’re building.”

  “Me, too.”

  About nine thirty, she walked him to the door. He insisted she keep the leftovers.

  “Have them for breakfast,” he told her. “I know you’re hating your protein drink.”

  “It’s disgusting. I can’t believe people drink those on purpose.”

  Bruno stared into her eyes. “Still missing Rhys?”

  “What? No.” She shook her head. “There’s nothing
to miss. I’m even letting go of the lifestyle, although I will admit the meal service was fantastic. There’s nothing like coming home and finding a home-cooked meal in the refrigerator.”

  “We could make that happen here.”

  She laughed. “I keep forgetting how you love to solve a problem. And while I appreciate the offer, no thank you. I’m going to take care of my meals the way regular people do. With a little planning and a pressure cooker.”

  “If you’re sure.”

  “I am.”

  He gave her a brief hug. “Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  She smiled at him. “Yes, you will.”

  thirty

  Stephanie listened intently as Bruno detailed the offer. She made notes, asked questions and was fairly sure she’d said all the right things, including a very calm, “I would be delighted to accept your offer.” But when she hung up the phone, she spun in her kitchen and let out a little scream.

  She had a job! A really good one that paid well, offered benefits. She came to a stop and waited for the room to settle back in place before glancing at her notes to make sure she was remembering correctly.

  She would be in charge of the retail space and the tasting room. Bruno was going to be hiring someone to handle digital content and the PR aspect of the business but hoped she would be available to consult on those topics, as well. Oh, and she would be managing the people who worked for her!

  She spun again, laughing out loud, and she held her arms wide. She’d done it! She’d—

  She came to a stop and opened her eyes. “I have to call Mackenzie.” Because she wasn’t sure what her friend knew or even if she was upset about not being told what was happening.

  She reached for her phone, but before she could dial, she heard a knock at the front door, then a familiar voice calling, “It’s me.”

  Stephanie ran to the front of the house and met Mackenzie in the hallway. They stared at each other for a second before rushing into a big hug with them both jumping up and down.

  “I have a new job!” Stephanie shouted.

  “I know. I drove over when Bruno called, and I was waiting for him to say you’d accepted.” Mackenzie grinned. “We’re going to be working together. I’m so excited. This makes me so happy.”