cursed under his breath. He didn’t need this right now. “Okay,” he said, stuffing the note in his pocket. “Thanks. I’ll take care of it.”
Now he had three things to deal with, the note he tucked away being the least of his worries. At least he knew now how to save Purple Fields, but after reading Vine by Vine, Tony wasn’t sure how he could repair the damage he’d done to Rena.
The promise he made to David far from his mind, Tony wanted to save his hasty marriage for more selfish reasons. He couldn’t deny that reliving the past in these last few hours made him realize how much Rena had once meant to him.
He got in his car and drove off, speeding out of town, needing the rush of adrenaline to ward off his emotions and plaguing thoughts that he was falling in love with Rena again.
Tony entered the house, and a pleasing aroma led him straight to the kitchen. He found Rena standing at the stove top stirring the meal, her hair beautifully messy and her face pink from puffs of steam rising up. She didn’t acknowledge his presence initially until he wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her against him. He kissed her throat, breathing in her citrus scent. “Looking good.”
“It’s just stew.”
“I meant you,” Tony said, stealing another quick kiss. Coming home to this domestic scene, something grabbed his insides and twisted when he saw her. “You’re beautiful behind the stove. I want to come home to you every night.”
She frowned and moved slightly away. “Don’t say those things.”
“Why?” he asked softly. “Because I’ve said them before and now you don’t believe me?”
Rena kept stirring the stew. “You’re astute.”
“And you’re being stubborn.”
She shrugged, moving away from the stove to grab two plates from the cabinet. Tony took out cutlery from a drawer and set two glasses on the table.
So now they were resorting to name-calling? This certainly wasn’t the scene Tony pictured in his mind when he first entered the house.
“Did you find out anything from Joe?” Rena asked.
“Yeah, I did. But let’s eat first.”
“Whenever someone says that to me, I know the news is not good.”
“There’s bad news and there’s good news. I think we should eat first before discussing it.”
Rena brought the dishes to the stove top and filled their plates, adding two biscuits to Tony’s plate. She served him and sat down to eat. Her long hair fell forward as she nibbled on her food. She wore jeans and a soft baby-blue knit blouse that brought out the vivid color of her eyes. She hardly looked pregnant, except for a hint of added roundness to her belly.
Sweeping emotions stirred in his gut. He wanted to protect Rena. He wanted to possess her. He wanted to make love to her until all the pain and anger disappeared from her life. So much had happened to her in her short thirty-one years from losing her mother and father, to losing David, but it had all started with him. And Tony determined it would all end with him as well.
After the meal, Rena started cleaning up. Tony rose and then took her hand. “Leave this. We’ll take care of it later. We need to talk.”
She nodded and followed him into the living room. Oak beams, a stone fireplace stacked with logs and two comfortable sofas lent to the warmth of the room. Tony waited for her to sit, then took a place next to her.
They sat in silence for a minute, then Tony began. “What I have to say isn’t easy. Joe and I went through the records and have proof now of how my father manipulated sales in the region.”
“You mean, my father was right? Santo set out to destroy us?”
Tony winced and drew a breath. “I can’t sugarcoat it, Rena. My father undercut Purple Fields, even at a loss to his own company to drive you out of business. Joe’s guess is that it wasn’t personal. He’d been doing the same to other small businesses for years.”
Rena closed her eyes, absorbing the information. “My father knew. He didn’t have proof. His customers wouldn’t talk about it, except to say that they’d found better deals elsewhere. They’d praised our wine over and over but wouldn’t buy it.”
“My father probably strong-armed them into silence,” Tony said.
Rena opened her eyes and stared at him. He couldn’t tell what was going on in her head, but he suspected it wasn’t good.
She rose from her seat and