Blush - Jamie Brenner Page 0,92

that she didn’t already know. She wasn’t sure what she was searching for out in the field today.

“Mateo,” she said, “I’m going to ask my father to earmark some of the reds for rosé. I don’t know if he’ll listen to me, but I’m going to try. I asked you once before, but now I need to know even more urgently: Is there anything else you would recommend?”

“There’s a more efficient way to do the netting,” Mateo said.

Putting protective netting around the grapes was a labor-intensive process that took weeks. Once the fruit hit a certain sugar level, it attracted predators. The vineyard was on a major migratory path for songbirds. Leah had seen blocks of starlings descend, and it was biblical. One year, her parents lost an entire Cabernet Franc crop to deer. Vivian had recounted seeing a wild turkey swallow an entire grape cluster, gulping it down like a pelican.

“Oh? What is it?”

“Instead of covering the entire tree and needing to be installed every August and then removed for harvest, there’s a perennial netting that only covers the fruit. We wouldn’t have to remove it. You just undo the ties and pull it down and it doesn’t bother anything and you can hedge the crop—you can do anything.”

“Why hasn’t my father switched to this yet?” She glanced at Asher.

“It’s too expensive,” Asher said.

“Well, the initial investment is expensive,” Mateo said. “But in the long run you save a lot of time and money. It’s becoming industry standard.”

“I hate to be the naysayer here, but are the two of you forgetting that this is all moot—the winery is selling. The buyer is here this week. Leah, don’t get his hopes up”—Asher nodded toward Mateo—“and don’t act like there’s something I should be doing that I’m not. It’s over.”

With that, he trudged off toward the house. Leah turned back to Mateo, who looked impatient.

“Is that what you think, too?” she said.

Mateo began to speak, then stopped. He looked around at the vineyard.

“Leah, my concern is my father. I have to take care of him, and if that means accepting what’s going on and moving forward, that’s what I have to do. I know this is hard on you and your mom. But I’m afraid your brother’s right. It’s over.”

Forty-two

In early August, wet conditions were the enemy of the grapes. And so, when the drops began to fall in the early afternoon, swelling into a full-blown downpour by dinnertime, Leonard’s mood was a storm of its own.

“These grapes are the baron’s problem now,” Vivian said, trying to get him out of his funk. “The rain doesn’t matter.”

“It’s Hollander Estates’ final vintage. It matters to me,” he said.

Vivian had asked Peternelle to serve dinner indoors, at the oak dining table that seated thirty. The grandeur of the dining room gave her comfort. Above their heads, a three-tiered, nineteenth-century English openwork chandelier. The side console table was inspired by a George III design from the 1700s. With the curtains drawn, they could perhaps forget the weather. A little togetherness would help brighten everyone’s mood. She’d asked Peternelle to use her favorite dressage horse–themed custom china, as well as the Georgian silver. An extra place had been set by mistake; Asher said Bridget wasn’t coming. That was a first, and Vivian didn’t hide her surprise.

“She’s in the city. Visiting friends,” he said. But something about the obviously forced lightness of his tone made her wonder if there was more to the story. Were they not getting along? There had been a time when that would have given her relief. Now she took no pleasure in the thought.

Sadie was the first to arrive, wearing olive green cargo pants and a white V-neck T-shirt. Her curls were tucked behind her ears, her face free of makeup. She looked very young and more than a little melancholy. She chose the seat next to Vivian and kissed her on the cheek.

“Hi, Gran. You look nice.”

Vivian had made an effort to dress in a way that might bring some cheer; she wore a short-sleeve Chanel dress, pink knit cotton with white piping.

“I can’t believe how the weather turned,” Leah said. “I was out in the field this morning and it was so beautiful.”

The curtains were drawn, but the sound of rain pelting the windows echoed through the room. “Let’s not talk about the rain,” Vivian said. “Your father is in a foul mood because of it.”

Leonard walked into the room practically vibrating with tension. Peternelle uncorked a bottle of