Resigned, Marc shot Trey a challenging look. Trey shot back one of his own, coated in eat-shit and with a little screw-you at the end for good measure, and then, silently, they agreed to table the discussion until later and took their seats.
“Great,” Gabe said, kicking back in his chair, a big smile forming on his face. He looked to Trey. “Now, why don’t you tell us why you really missed that plane?”
Trey leaned back in his chair and exhaled. “Last month I convinced Monte that the perfect place to announce the partnership was at the Showdown.”
“At the Showdown?” Marc asked. “Why?”
“Because there will be a lot of press, and it could create a lot of hype.” Marc opened his mouth, and Gabe silenced him with a single raised brow. When no one spoke, Trey dropped his head to his hands and mumbled, “And I think Monte is getting cold feet.”
Marc stared in disbelief. “And we’re just hearing about this now?”
“You’re not the only one who has a lot going on,” Trey admitted, and Marc finally understood. This was Trey’s Napa Grand, his chance to prove to the family that he had what it took. Oh, he’d made the DeLucas millions selling their wines into new markets, one hotel and restaurant at a time. But if he closed this deal with Montgomery Distributions, he would accomplish what their father had been trying to do for years.
“Okay,” Marc said, not wanting to fight with his brothers anymore. “Monte is coming, and we don’t need to give him any reason to rethink the deal.”
“Right.”
Gabe was silent for a minute, and then he leaned forward. “Okay, Marc, you aren’t breaking the tie, the Tasting Tribunal will. That puts you out of the limelight because no matter who is chosen, the paper can’t blame you.”
“You do know what you’re saying, right?” Nate said warily. “Putting Mrs. Rose in a position over the DOP is asking for trouble.”
Mrs. Rose was not only the current wine commissioner of St. Helena, and therefore the fifth required member of the Tasting Tribunal, she was also the former DOP president who’d lost her seat over a disagreement when she motioned to reinstate concealed-carry permits for active senior board members. The disagreement had included a junior leaguer who vetoed Mrs. Rose’s motion, followed by Mrs. Rose shoving a gun, which was not concealed or permitted, in said junior’s face.
“Which is why I think you should handle getting the judges to that tiebreaker,” Marc said, liking this plan. Nate’s patience and rational thought process made him the perfect person to handle the tribunal.
“What? No way.”
“Marc’s right,” Gabe said, and Marc felt his chest swell with pride. “You manage ChiChi better than any of us. After the granny mafia, one little old lady should be easy.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Trey cut in before Nate could object. “Without Brock we’ll be at four judges. There could still be a tie.”
“Three judges and a dog,” Nate pointed out.
On cue, Wingman came loping into the office. Leash in mouth, he set his front paws on Marc’s desk. Too distracted to scold him, Marc gave his head a pat—and stopped as everything sank in.
Son of a bitch.
Thoroughly screwed, he closed his eyes and banged his head back again the chair. “What if old man Baudouin picked his dog as a judge not to send a message to his kids, but to make sure the celebrity judge canceled and the Showdown got canceled?”
“How would he know that Brock would be scared off by a dog? Most celebrities would dig that,” Trey said.
“Not a celebrity who, until recently, was using a meat supplier under investigation for cruelty to animals,” Marc said.
“How come we didn’t know this before we asked him to judge?” Gabe said, but Marc noticed that this time the we didn’t imply Marc messing up. The DeLucas were in this together, and it felt good—right, even.
“Because it was never in the papers. He dumped the supplier before it went to press.”
“Then how do you know?” Nate asked.
“Jeff used the same supplier.”
“Oh boy,” Nate said, leaning back and getting comfortable. Everyone in the room knew that this was about a whole lot more than a lost judge.
Marc also settled in for the long haul. He had trusted Jeff, taken his word for too many things, and as a result Marc had let his family down. Now he had to figure out how to give his brothers enough of the story to get a good