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The battered old desk was both co response gave her a sense of purpose, even though she still felt as if she werewas slow and out of sync Still, she sorted her phone es into tidy piles There weren’t any fro told?

Did it matter? Why did itto her Did she really care if he’d called? Was she that weak and spineless?

Yes, she thought sadly She was

But she was also really, really mad

It wasn’t just that he didn’t love her back She could accept that Feelings existed for reasons no one could explain So Nic not loving her wasn’t anyone’s fault But the man had screith her future He’d played with the one thing she’d loved even longer than hi like a suitable punishot aith it

There was only one proble what they were, she doubted Nic was going to let her have access to her barrels Whichhim back She was trapped, all because she’d trusted Nic

Worst of all, because there was solier than the situation with the wine, she didn’t kno to stop loving hi, but for how long? And when she got over hating hih ten years of separation; ould she be lucky enough to have it end now?

Her grandfather appeared at her open door "You’re here," he said as he entered "Better?"

"So him about her pain would only make him hurt, too, and as the point in that?

He took the seat in front of her desk and pointed to a pad of paper "I want you toyou have at Wild Sea How h fer, aren’t you?"

"I assurandfather sive me your copy of the loan"

"Why?"

"No Marcelli will be beholden to thatreally sweet, Grandpa, and I appreciate that But we’re talking about over a randdaughter The loan will be paid back with interest, and your ill be moved here as soon as possible"

He couldn’t have shocked her more if he’d broken into a chorus of "Oklahoma!"

"Why?" she asked "I’m happy and thrilled beyond words But this isn’t your responsibility I’m the one who messed up Nic will probably just dulared at her "Don’t tempt God to strike you down The wine must be saved"

"I think God’s a little busy with more important matters" She tried to explain "I may not have a choice about the loan Nic will have to be paid back one way or the other, and without Four Sisters, I don’t have a prayer of doing it myself As for my plans…" She looked at hih all of this, but you hate everything I do Why would you want my experiments here?"

"I don’t hate what you do"

She sue about everything The blends, the day to start harvest, the tens, pay raises, if it’s going to rain toave a strangled laugh "You think you’re right about everything That’s one of the reasons I wanted to start my own label I wanted tothat?"

She thought about the long nights and the endless hours of work "Yes Happier than I’ve ever been"

"Then you have succeeded"

"Not exactly the word I would use"

"Not with your winery The success of that will be measured later I mean here With me" He watched her as he spoke "You have passed the test"

Brenna didn’t understand "What are you talking about?"

"I wanted to be sure When you were little, I knew you were the one You loved the vines as much as I did" He tilted his head "By the tirape by taste alone I was so proud You worked hard Always up early, especially during harvest When you were eleven, you were directing the e of the Chardonnay grapes, and she’d felt so grown-up The foremen had patronized her until they realized she knehat she was talking about, and then they’d treated her as someone to be reckoned with

"When you ood man at your side while you worked the land"

"But it didn’t turn out that way," she reminded him "I went away"

He nodded "I waited for you to return, for you to realize where you belonged, but you didn’t Year after year I watched your husband bleed the life out of you until the granddaughter I had been so proud of disappeared Then one day you caed to be here, but because your husband had left you You wanted to co now?"

Understanding clicked in her brain like a light going on "You wanted to ," she whispered

"Yes So I tested you to see if I could drive you away I wanted to ive up Not for anything"

She both understood and resented his "

"I did, but he would never have run things I hoped…" He sighed "An old ht with the winery, he would But he would never have been the one It was always you"