Page 28 of Pop and Pour

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“For a Grado, anything, sweetie.”

By the time I’d made my way back to the estate, it was beginning to come alive. I headed to the Barn first. Unlike the wide-open space and vaulted ceilings in the Cellar, the 1931 Wine Barn was a more intimate space. Decorated to emulate a Tuscan converted barn, it pulled in more rustic-looking elements that our mother and Min worked meticulously to curate. Requiring fewer staff than the Cellar, it also boasted a courtyard in the back that was one of the most beautiful at night, even without the lake view. White bulb lights crisscrossing a shrub-enclosed area made it our second most rented spot for engagements and wedding pictures.

As usual, my sister sat behind the tasting room counter. At the moment, she was jotting down some notes in her planner. She had an office but never used it.

“Special delivery,” I said, plopping the box on the counter.

“I’ll pass today, but leave some for the others,” she said.

Min was the only person I knew who still used a physical planner. With so many stickers and colors, I had no idea how she could actually make heads or tails of it.

“I peeked at some of the applications for Jena’s job,” she said. “Nothing stands out.”

“Agreed. So are you packed yet?”

At least Min had the grace to look guilty for abandoning us. “Partially. At least Marco is coming back tomorrow.”

Our brother had been pushing hard to have a brewery on-site for years, and when we transitioned ownership, we agreed the time was right. He was currently in Long Island visiting a brewery that a friend of his started a few years ago.

“More importantly, I have some pretty disturbing news,” I started but was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Since we were an hour and a half from opening, I assumed it was one of the workers. And I was right. But not just any worker.

Brooke.

The look she gave me when I’d handed her the keys to her cottage still haunted me. If jerking off every night knowing she was just a three-minute sprint away could be considered “haunted.” Tormented might be the right word.

“Sorry,” she said, pausing. “Thayle said I should shadow over here today. But I can come back.”

“Come on in,” Min said. To me, she whispered, “Why do you look like someone just shoved a stick up your ass?”

I didn’t qualify that with an answer.

“Cos was just about to tell me some pretty disturbing news. Nothing pairs better with bad news than donuts from Devine Bakery and some coffee.” Min gestured to the pot behind the counter. “Help yourself.”

She did just that without sparing me a backward glance. I couldn’t say the same as I snuck a quick peek. With a white Grado Valley tee, canvas sneakers and a side braid, she should not have looked so fucking hot.

But she did.

“Earth to Cos,” Min whispered.

I gave my sister a dirty look, but she ignored it.

“So about that earth-shattering bad news?” Min asked.

I considered buttoning up, for Brooke’s sake. But it wasn’t like she could use the information against us in some way. Pretending she wasn’t standing next to Min now peering into the box of baked goods, I relayed Dorothy’s information.

“How the hell does she knoweverything?”

“Who is Dorothy?” Brooke asked.

“Dorothy is sort of Kitchi Falls’s adopted grandmother. The bakery has been in her husband’s family for generations. Since she retired, you can pretty much find her there six days a week.”

“She didn’t always work there?”

“Nope. Dorothy was an elementary school teacher. She always said she didn’t want to work with her husband. Even now they usually take separate shifts. Which I get. I like my siblings and all.” Min nodded to me—“well, most of them.”

“Thanks,” I said.

“But if we were all working in the same building, I’d have killed someone by now.”


Tags: Bella Michaels Romance