“Job isn’t going any better?” Vivien asks.
“No. I’ve really tried, but it’s just not the right fit. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I need something more challenging than fetching coffee and breakfast burritos for a bunch of twenty somethings.”
“Why can’t you believe that?” I take a sip of my tea. While Emily has a fun, carefree side, she’s always struck me as being a hard worker and very capable. Beyond that she has a quick wit and the ability to talk people into doing things they wouldn’t normally do. I’ve always thought her talents weren’t being fully utilized in the positions she’s previously held.
“I’ll take a pot of oolong and a beer.” Emily turns her attention momentarily to the waitress who just approached our table.
“Double fisting tonight, huh?” I tease. We always order tea when we meet for Chinese food, it seems like a necessity.
Emily winks at me. “Don’t get me wrong, I like the people at work, but it’s a very young crowd.” Emily shakes her head and pretends to slap it. “Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with me and why do I sound like a middle-aged woman all of a sudden?”
“You’re getting older, more mature?” Vivien pours more tea into the small porcelain cup in front of her.
“Bite your tongue! I’m not nearly as old as you two.” Emily likes to remind us often that she’s a full two years younger than we are.
“For what it’s worth, Emily, I think fetching breakfast and coffee is fine, but I can see you doing a lot more than that.” I blow on my tea, so it doesn’t scald my tongue.
“Me, too,” Vivien adds.
Emily looks genuinely surprised and I feel a pang of guilt in my gut. We all give each other a bit of a hard time, but it hurts my heart that this is apparently the first time Emily is hearing that we think she’s capable of greater things. I need to do a better job of telling people how great I think they are.
“How’s your job, Jess? Mrs. Bianchi’s completely gone now?” Vivien changes the subject.
“She left a little more than a week ago. It’s going to be a big adjustment not seeing her every day.”
Emily nods in understanding. “How’s your new boss?” She’s been careful not to say too much about Luke since the incident at the hospital instead simply listening and offering support.
“He’s been busy, so I haven’t seen him much. We did have a mini budget meeting last week.” While Luke’s been agreeable and respectful in his new role, I can tell the budget is going to be a continued point of contention between us.
“What happened?” Vivien halts her cup halfway to her mouth.
“Just some arguing about what should be spent this year,” I sigh. “He’s frustrated by the budget.”
“Luke doesn’t strike me as the type of man who likes restrictions.” Vivien twists the corner of her mouth.
“Maybe not, but that’s the point of me staying for the six months, to make sure things transition as smoothly as possible. Sticking to an annual budget is going to help him and the business remain successful.”
“He probably likes that, though.” Emily takes her beer from the waitress. “Even someone like Luke needs one person that will stand up to him.”
I laugh. “I don’t know if he likes it, but he definitely needs it.”
Emily raises a finger. “Hold that thought, I have something to tell you. I’ll have a bowl of the wonton soup and an order of the chicken lettuce wraps.”
“I’ll get that right in, so it comes out at the same time as their food.” The waitress nods toward Vivien and me.
“I can’t believe you ordered soup, its one hundred degrees outside.” Vivien shakes her head.
“You’re both drinking hot tea, same thing. Plus, it’s cold in here.” Emily rubs her arms with her hands. “I hate that about summers here. If you dress for outside, you’re freezing inside in the air conditioning. If you try to dress to be even remotely comfortable indoors, you’ll break a sweat walking from the parking lot into the building.”
“That’s the nice thing about my office, since it’s just Linda and I we set the thermostat up a little bit.” I feel a moment of sadness at the thought that this time next year I’ll be sharing an office with someone new.
“I work in an office which is ninety percent male, so I freeze all summer.” Emily rolls her eyes.
“Jess, you really think you’ll leave after six months?” Vivien wrinkles her nose.
“Yeah, it’s time.” I turn to Emily. “What were you going to tell me?”
“Shit, I almost forgot to tell you again.” Emily clears her throat. “Luke called me.”
I freeze holding a fried green bean mid-air. “What? When?”
“A couple days ago. I was going to call you right away, but it was late and then I sort of forgot.” Emily twists her mouth.
“What did he want?” I pop the bean in my mouth.
“To apologize…about the hospital.” Emily waits for my reaction.
Luke and I haven’t talked again about that day and I have to admit I’m surprised he called Emily. Luke Taylor isn’t always the most apologetic man. “What did he say?”
“He said he completely understands what it looked like, but he wasn’t hiding anything. Said the more he thought about it he realized I was being a good friend. He apologized for putting me in a bad position where I needed to bring it up at that time. He sounded sincere.” She shrugs before taking a sip of her beer.
“Well, that’s…surprising.” I shake my head.
“I thought so.” Emily shrugs. “And I have to say my bullshit meter didn’t go off once during our conversation.”
“Maybe he’s growing up a little?” Vivien suggests.
“Maybe,” I say, thinking about the changes I’ve seen in Luke lately, in particular the increased patience.
The waitress drops off Emily’s soup giving me the opportunity to change the subject. “You’re both coming to Amelia’s party this weekend, right?”
“Yep, I even found a unicorn bathing suit to wear.” Emily wiggles excitedly in her seat.
“Wow, you’re really dedicated to this theme.” Vivien laughs.
“I’m dedicated to my friends.” Emily winks at me, reminding me that I’m really lucky to have these ladies in my life.
“Thank you so much for spending the morning with me.” Nicolette begins to organize her papers that are now strewn across my desk, a result of our training for the last three hours.
“No problem. I know we covered a lot in a short amount of time, so please don’t hesitate to ask me to revisit any of this later. Once you have more context, it will make a lot more sense.”
“I will.” Nicolette places the stack of papers in her folder. “Do you have lunch plans today?”
“I don’t.”
“Want to join me, then?”
I hesitate a moment before answering. “Sure. Can you give me a couple of minutes to answer a few quick emails?”
“Yep, I’ll meet you out front in twenty?”
“Perfect.”
Fifteen minutes later, I step out onto the tasting room porch where Nicolette is already waiting.
“I’ll drive,” she announces once she sees me. “Are you good with Thai food? I’ve been wanting to try Tasty Thai,” she asks as I follow her to her car.
“That’s over on Winchester isn’t it?” If we’re going over to the other side of town, lunch is going to take longer than I was planning.
“Luke won’t mind if we take a little longer.” She presses the button on her key fob and the lights flash on the black BMW a few cars away from us.
I round the side of the vehicle and open the passenger door. I notice immediately how clean her car is inside and out. Mine probably has leftover snacks from Amelia’s soccer game last weekend still in the backseat.
On the d
rive to the restaurant I find out that Nicolette has two sisters back home in Santa Barbara, she’s allergic to dogs and cats, and she’s learning to speak Italian via some online courses. She dominates the conversation, but I don’t mind, not ready to share too much about myself until I know her better.
We arrive and are quickly seated, beating the lunch rush.
Our waiter takes our drink order right away and we remain quiet while examining the menu. A few minutes later, he returns with our iced teas.
“Are you ready to order?” the middle-aged man asks.
“Yes, I’m going to have the pad thai,” Nicolette leads, while I scan through the rest of the menu in order to make a quick decision.
“And for you, ma’am?”
“Can I please have the yellow curry?”
Nicolette smirks.
“Great.” The waiter says leaving us to resume our small talk.
I look at her after he steps away.
“Sorry, just a personal thing of mine.” She shakes her head as she puts her napkin on her lap.
“What is?” I tilt my head to one side.
“I find it interesting when people ask if they can have something at a restaurant, like the waiter is going to say, ‘no, you can’t have that today.’”
I don’t like that she’s managed to make me feel embarrassed by my politeness. “Just a habit, I suppose.”
“Oh, of course. I totally get it. I just try to imagine a man asking permission to order what he wants. I mean, would Luke ever ask if it was okay to order anything?”
No, he wouldn’t.
Nicolette puts her hand up to her chest. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just notice these things, how it’s socially acceptable for a man to behave in certain ways, but not a woman.”
“I understand what you’re saying.” I still don’t like the way she’s made me feel, but I do get her point.
“I suppose that’s why I try to be very direct. You know what it’s like to work in the male dominated wine industry.”
“Sort of a ‘if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em’ mentality?” I ask.
“Exactly, if you want men to respect you in this industry you have to learn to play by their rules.” She nods like we’re agreeing on something.
I don’t agree with Nicolette, but this is too heavy of a debate for a first lunch, so I change the subject. “What made you want to move down this way?”
“I suppose I’ve always been somewhat of an adventure seeker. I spent my junior year of high school in France and after that I’ve had a yearning to see as much of the world as I can.”
“You went to school back East right?” I overheard her mention missing her college stomping grounds when Monica mentioned traveling to New York to see Chad’s family.
“NYU. I love New York. There’s always something going on. We’d spend free weekends and breaks driving to different states and experiencing as much of that coast as we could.”
“What a great experience that must have been. Did you stay there long after you graduated?”
“No, after graduation I traveled through Europe for almost a year before moving back to California. I was offered a job at a winery and I’ve been in Napa ever since.”
“I would think Napa would be a little too slow paced for you after all that.”
“Anywhere can be exciting if you want it to be.” Nicolette shoots me a naughty smile before taking a drink of her tea. “I had a good time in that valley, but I’m definitely ready for a new challenge. What about you, Jessica? Have you had the opportunity to travel much?”
“I haven’t. I grew up in the San Diego area but settled in Temecula with my ex-husband while he was completing dental school.”
“Wife of a doctor, huh? Impressive.”
I can think of a lot of things I’m proud of, marrying a man I was in love with who also happened to be interested in dentistry isn’t one of them. “It’s not nearly as glamourous as it sounds.”
Nicolette raises an eyebrow. “Then you managed to nab San Francisco’s hottest, most notoriously single bachelor.”
My eyes widen a little, taken aback by her comment.
“Yes, I know about you and Luke and, well, everyone knows about Luke and his reputation. I have lots of friends in the city and in social circles of a certain age group, he was talked of often.” Luke’s big reputation has a way of rearing its head even when we’re not together. “I’m assuming you know I asked him out when you all were in Napa.”
I’m not used to her forwardness and it’s admittedly jarring. “He mentioned it.”
Nicolette laughs. “I hope you won’t hold it against me. I was just curious what all the fuss was about. Obviously, I didn’t know you two had something going on at that point.”
“Obviously,” I respond simply. She doesn’t strike me as the kind of woman that it would have made any difference to.
“You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but I have to ask. Does he live up to the hype?” Nicolette has a gleam in her eye. I’m not sure if she’s more interested in the details of Luke’s reputation or in watching me squirm.
“Luke is our boss. I’m not going to discuss anything about him or our past relationship at work.” I would under no circumstances tell this woman anything about Luke, but this is the most polite answer I can come up with on the spot.
Thankfully my message is received enough for Nicolette to at least pretend to be apologetic. I get the distinct impression this woman is never truly sorry for anything she says or does.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to strike a nerve. I’ve seen you at work and assumed you were both completely over each other.” She stresses the word completely.
“It’s complicated.” A simplification, but I’m not going to give her any of the details she’s hungry for.
“I’m sure it is.” I recognize Nicolette’s tone as the one I use with Amelia when I’m trying to let her pacify her need to be heard. “I didn’t realize you still have feelings for him, you hide it well at the winery. It must be difficult working so closely with him, day in and day out.”
I’m not interested in analyzing my unresolved feelings about Luke with this stranger. “It can be, but we share a common goal of ensuring the success of the winery.”
“Of course.” Nicolette smiles and something about it bothers me.
“Here you go, ladies. The pad thai and the yellow curry.” The waiter sets down our respective dishes. “Can I get you anything else?”
“We’re good,” Nicolette answers sweetly, and he walks away. “I won’t bring up your personal relationship with Luke again.”
“It’s not relevant, we’ve been able to maintain a good working relationship.”
“Gotcha.” Nicolette pauses to take a bite of her food. “Speaking of Luke, he’s a hard read for me. In order for me to be successful in my position I need to be able to interact with him well. What do you consider the most difficult part about working with him?”
I use the fact that I just took a mouthful of food to buy me some time and choose my words carefully. “Luke is very driven, but really fair and intelligent. I’m sure you’ll enjoy working with him.”
“Well, that was a very politically correct answer,” Nicolette scoffs. “Despite legend, I’m sure he’s not perfect. I’m sure you must butt heads over something?”
I sigh and think of what I can say. I don’t want to say anything I wouldn’t say to his face and I certainly need to keep my comments professional. “Luke is very opinionated and can be a bit stubborn when he believes he’s right. Having said that, he has great business insight and is often correct. The area we sometimes disagree on is the budget. We simply have different roles, different philosophies. As a controller, I’m required to be more conservative with spending. Luke subscribes more to the adage of you have to spend m
oney to make money.”
“And he doesn’t respect your opinion?” Nicolette raises one eyebrow over her fork.
“I wouldn’t say that. It’s difficult sometimes, but we can usually work out a compromise.”
“And if you can’t?”
“Well, he’s the owner, so ultimately I concede to what he wants to do. I consider it my job to convince him my position is correct, but he has the final say.”
Nicolette give me one last catlike smile as she takes another bite of her noodles.
Chapter 15
“Linda, want to go grab some lunch?” I send off what I hope is the final email to Monica regarding ordering supplies for this year’s harvest event. She’s been emailing me all morning with additional questions about last year’s expenses.
“I’m sorry, I have to go find shoes for the wedding. I’m running out of time.” Linda will be gone all next week to go help her daughter with final preparations.
“All right. I’m craving Mexican food.”
“Great, now I’m going to be thinking about tacos for the rest of the day.”
I laugh. “Sorry.” Linda’s mission to trim up for the wedding has led to me dropping a few pounds as well, but a diet of smoothies and salads can only be sustained for so long.
I grab my purse and log off my computer. “I have a meeting with Luke and Nicolette at one, so I won’t be gone long. I’ll just pick something up and bring it back. You want me to bring you something?” I say once I reach Linda’s desk.
“No, I’m good. I tried my dress on last night and it fits perfectly. Tacos are not going to help me maintain that.”
“You look great.” I think back to the feelings I had right before my wedding with Grant. “Chloe is going to be a beautiful bride.”
“She is.” Linda beams. “Oh my gosh. She called me the other day so excited. For a moment I got hopeful she was going to tell me she was pregnant.” Linda pauses and pulls a face. “No. She was ecstatic she found the perfect outfit for the dog to wear.”
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