“It was good to see you, Fallon.” Without waiting for a response, I spin on my heel and head toward the table where my brother sits.
Fallon Vosk was someone I trusted, someone who I thought could be more than a friend. That ship sailed a long time ago, and I’m not about to try and jump aboard.
4
JASON
The wedding goes without a hitch, and now that it’s done, my daughter won’t stop asking about when she can spend more time with Fallon’s daughter. Presley was around all weekend, so the girls spent a lot of time together. I’m thankful she made a friend to hang out with this weekend, since it’s not like she has any cousins her age, but I’m not sure I want to spend more time with Fallon than I have to.
Maybe I’m still holding on to some lingering resentment from thirteen years ago, but she hurt me, more than I’d care to admit.
I roll Lennie and my suitcases into the lobby with her trailing at my side. It was easier to stay at the winery’s hotel last night instead of making the short drive home, especially since I’d been drinking. We finished up the post wedding brunch about an hour ago, and now it’s time to head home.
A voice calls my name from the opposite end of the lobby, and I turn my head toward it. It’s Isaac, the owner of the winery and venue, and Andrew’s best friend. He looksmore than a little hungover this morning, but honestly, everyone does.
As Andrew’s best friend, I’ve known Isaac forever. I’m older than the pair, so while we were in a different age group, I still hung out with them. Isaac was a talented baseball player, so he was on my team my senior year of high school.
Isaac makes his way to me, holding up his hand. “I wanted to run something by you before you left today. Do you have a minute to stop by my office?”
I look down at Lennie. She’s probably exhausted, but I don’t think a few more minutes will hurt. “Sure. Is Lennie okay to come with?”
“Absolutely. We can grab her a coloring page from the front desk on the way there.”
I tell Lennie that we’re going to Isaac’s office quickly, and we follow him, only stopping momentarily to get her a coloring sheet and crayons from behind the front desk. Once in his office, I lean my suitcases against the wall, and sit across from him.
Isaac rubs at his temples. “I’m too hungover to even think about work right now, but I knew I needed to get the ball rolling on this.”
“What isthis?” I ask, my curiosity growing. Isaac sits up a little straighter, putting on the face of the business man I can easily admire.
“I have a proposition for you,” he says. “We would have to look further into the logistics of it all, but do you have any interest in contracting with Meadow Grove Winery? We’d serve your beer, as well as our wine, exclusively at our events. Much like we are contracted with Josie for florals, we want to keep things local, really put some shine on our local businesses.”
My mind whirs with the possibilities. It would mean more work, sure, and I’d probably have to hire someone on for events, or making the beer, but… it could work.
“Shit,” I say, leaning back into my chair, and running my hand over my face and glancing over at Lennie to see if she caught my swear word. I’ve been trying to watch my mouth lately, but sometimes, I forget. “I mean, yeah, there’s a lot of logistics to it, but… I’m definitely interested.”
A wide grin pops up on Isaac’s face. “Fuck yeah.” He grimaces, also looking at my daughter, but she’s lost in her own little world. He holds out a hand, and I give him mine, shaking it firmly.
“I’ll get a meeting set up next week with you and we can go from there.” Isaac drops my hand and rises from his chair.
5
FALLON
Of course, I’m running late on a day I absolutely should not be. Jason recently signed a contract to serve Blue Ox Brewing beer at weddings and events we have here at Meadow Grove. Today, I have a meeting with Isaac, Jason, and a few of Jason’s employees to discuss the work flow for events.
I am a little nervous about seeing him again. He ended our conversation so abruptly at the rehearsal dinner, it felt like he wanted nothing to do with me any further . It stung a bit. I should have put on my big girl panties and apologized for the way I left things in college, but things had changed between us. It’s my fault they did, but still. I was young and immature.
The day of his graduation, I had planned on talking to him again. I was going to find him, and congratulate him, but also apologize for ditching him, for ruining our friendship. That is, until I saw him being fawned over and kissed by a girl, someone with dark brown hair, and stunning features. I knew I couldn’t compare to her, so I let it go. It’snot like I expected him to ask me out or anything, but I wanted my friend back.
I texted Isaac a few minutes ago to let him know I was running late. He’s a very laid back boss, and is always understanding when I’m a few minutes behind, or when Presley has to come hang out in the evenings with me for an event set up. I’m embarrassed though.
The meeting with Jason this morning is basically a meet and greet to go over the details of our agreement and get a taste for how his business works.
I pull my vehicle in the small parking lot in the back of the building, grabbing my purse and thermos of coffee in a rush. I don’t run inside, because I don’t need to be all sweaty and out of breath when I get into the conference room, but I’m definitely glad I had the foresight to wear a pair of flats today rather than heels.
The large reception area is empty this early in the morning. I love the quiet weekdays around here, always remembering them during an event when there’s so many people you can barely make it through the crowd.
I stride through the room, my feet thwacking the ground in my rush. I fling open the door to the hall that leads to the offices, only to crash into a large body. My trusty binder goes flying, paper falling out as it tumbles to the ground. My thermos falls from my hand, landing on the floor in a loudclang.
