David pushed the file toward me and I picked it up flipping it open. My mouth dropped at the first page and David bobbed his head indicating I should keep reading. I do and I’m shocked.
The winery was my inheritance.
Was being the keyword and probably the reason why Andy’s lawyer had been stalling me on the documents.
“They thought I was dead?”
“Your grandfather bankrupted the winery looking for you. Andy worked his ass off and started the brewery so they wouldn’t lose it, but he couldn’t keep hold of it forever.”
I sunk back into the chair, the file on my lap and my chest feeling like someone took a hammer and cracked my ribs.
“How?”
“He’s leased some of the land to make it a working winery again.”
“Callista’s herb garden in the greenhouse.”
“Aye, don’t mention her name around here though.”
“No, I know. Whit and Lia’s thing.” I was stunned. This was why when I showed up they were joking about calling him the mayor. He basically was the town mayor after all those write in votes.
“File is thick, keep going.”
I continue to page through. I find copies of our filed marriage certificate and an unsigned divorce petition. He never went through with it. Bile rises up in my throat, only this time, I’m sick I might lose him for good.
“He’s renting out the house.”
“Family needed a place to go.” David shrugged.
“Says here the land is being sublet for a period of twenty years to another winery.”
“Probably the worst blow because he couldn’t prevent it and had to convince your grandmother to do it or he’d sell it outright.”
“I bet she loved that.” I mumbled imagining her stern Greek face telling Andy no as everything fell down around her.
“The deal created a number of jobs. It’s worked out for the best at the cost of ego. He had to make the brewery work or he’d lose everything.”
“I still don’t understand, if they thought I was dead.”
“My brother is nothing if not tenacious. He hired his own guy to find you and had me to run computer checks. By the way, you might want to pay those library fines.” David winked and heat filled my face embarrassed. Hadn’t I done enough to these people?
“So if I wasn’t dead then what?”
“Your grandmother wrote a clause in the will that if you didn’t come back a year after her passing then everything, debts included would go to your husband.”
“And he never divorced me.”
“No, much to my disappointment.”
“Okay, tough guy, I get it. The truce is over.”
“You really don’t understand, Sierra. He loves you, not past tense, forever tense and whether or not you reciprocate, he’s made his live carrying on.”
“So you mean to tell me no girlfriends, no one night stands, nothing?”
“I’d like to think I’m the one in the family struggling with anger issues, but Andy’s got me beat on pent up emotions despite his boy next door smile.”
“Oh.” Every frantic encounter rushed back at me like a train derailing. My fingers touched my lips as I recalled our last kiss and energy behind it. He’d been a nuclear bomb and the fallout had yet to come.