Crushing

by Kelly Kay

  The buildings are magnificent. They were much further along than we thought. I can’t wait for Josh to see them. If he’s still coming up. He said we’d meet here on Friday, but I haven’t heard from him. I should call, but the ‘Babe’ freaked me the fuck out. I need to distance myself a bit and figure out what to do with him. Or figure out a way to push past my fear and see if he wants to move forward.

  I have to run out to the Longhouse and finish loading the new mini fridge with water and some amenities should someone find their way out to this sanctuary. Sarah actually had a small function out there today with the Salute to the Arts committee. My friend Poppy catered the luncheon for her. I want to get out there before she leaves to say hello.

  It’s in the middle of the woods and feels like another world. There’s still work to be done on the mini-warehouse that will house all the extra ATV parts and crap that currently litters their garage up at the Farmhouse.

  They also want to build out another one to store unsellable palates of wine. The tops and tails of a bottling, for quality assurance they don’t sell the beginning or the end of a run of bottling. They give it away, or the employees buy it at a deep discount. But mostly it’s just to have around. I went into San Francisco for the lighting fixtures and small deco pieces, calling in a few more favors from the designer who redid my offices in New York.

  I arrive at Longhouse, and it looks like I’ve just missed Sarah and company, but Poppy’s is still here.

  “Poppy!” We’re getting closer, but I really like her more every time I see her.

  She hugs me and says, “Elle. I thought you were in New York?”

  “Came back early. How did it go out here?”

  She’s bubbly and bright. Her red hair bouncing with excitement when she speaks. “It’s so good out here. You thought of everything to help a caterer make this place work really well. I’m just wrapping up now. I’ll clean up and get on my way. Have you eaten?”

  “Sadly, yes. But is your restaurant open tonight?”

  “It is. Come by for a drink. I got some wonderful mussels and oysters in today. Not sure what I’m going to do with them yet, but they’ll be delicious.”

  She’s the best chef. She does this kind of high-end comfort food thing I can’t get enough of. I eat there all the time. “Done. I can’t wait. Hey, can you do me a quick favor and stick some of these water bottles I just brought into the fridge? Just to replace what they drank.”

  “Of course. I’ll see you tonight.”

  “Thank you. You’re my favorite person today. I need to book back to the tasting room.”

  I skid Josh’s Jeep into the tasting room parking lot and jump out. My breath leaves my body, and there’s a thrilling cold sensation overtaking me. He’s wiping his brow with his t-shirt that he apparently just removed. This view should come with a warning label. Josh is back. And then I become panic-stricken that I’m in nasty shorts, a dirty LC/W t-shirt, and a crazy high ponytail. I try to fix it before he sees me, but I can’t stop staring at his rippled back.

  Randy, the tasting room manager, looks thrilled with this Josh show as well. He’s in his running shorts. Did he work out? How long has he been here? I’ve been in heavy prep mode for the upcoming Winery event and putting the finishing touches on the outbuildings. I approach them and Randy’s talking.

  “Tell me you’ll be here tomorrow night?”

  “Yes. I’ll be here.” Josh answers.

  “Because she…”

  Randy points to me. Josh’s head whips around, and an enormous fucking smile overtakes his face. I’m instantly light-headed as his eyes rake over every inch of me. I feel them. Randy hates me. Josh does not.

  Randy continues babbling while Josh stares at me, walking towards him. “She sent your parents down to the city to glad-hand at some event. We need family here for our party. Not usurpers.”

  I hear all of this as I walk back past them and into the tasting room. I keep walking, so I don’t mount this man. Fuck. A booming voice that rumbles in my nether regions and instantly soaks my thong calls after me as if he’s simply having a conversation. But he’s mocking me.

  “DON’T WORRY, ELLE WILL BE THERE TO HANDLE ANY AND ALL CONCERNS AND QUESTIONS THAT OUR WINE CLUB MEMBERS MIGHT HAVE. AND SHE’LL BE WEARING A THEMED OUTFIT TOO. TROPICAL THEME, IS IT? LET’S GET LEI’D.”

  Without turning around, I put my middle finger up in the air. Of course, I’ll be at the event. I planned the damn thing. But I’m not quite dressing in theme.

  I hear Josh again. “YOU CAN’T DO THAT TO THE BOSS.”

  I scream back without looking. “YOU’RE NOT MY BOSS!”

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Josh

  I’m grabbing a linen shirt from my car to chase her down when a massive amount of noise takes over the property. Everyone begins to gather. I have been in town exactly five hours. Apparently, that’s too long. There's a helicopter landing on the road that leads up to the Farmhouse. I know exactly who it is and what’s going to happen. I’m about to get a lashing. I’ve left the office, god forbid. Then I ignored the wrong email and a phone call this morning.

  “Everyone, it’s fine. Go back to work. He’s here to talk to me. It’s just a client.”

  Elle has reappeared, and I need to get her away from this guy. There’s no need for them to know each other. She begins to step to me, and I commandingly say, “Elle, go back inside now, please.”

  I have no clue what the hell he’s doing here. I wrapped up a ton of business for him in the past month. He should be more than fine.

  He’s a massive man at six-foot-five with coal dark hair cropped to his head, dark chocolate eyes and biceps that can and routinely do crush walnuts. I stroll towards this man in his ten-thousand-dollar, custom-made suit as the dust from my family’s dirt road kicks up around him. As my worlds collide, I see Elle watching as she heads up to the Cooperage from the tasting room. I wave her off. I don’t want him anywhere near her or my family despite my affection for him.

  “Joshie! Joshie! Joshie!”

  I rush to him with outstretched arms. “Sal! What the hell are you doing here? And you couldn’t be a little more discreet about your arrival, asshole?”

  “Mohamed, mountain. You get that shit, right? First time in ten years you don’t answer a fucking email. And you ignored a call. I came to check out this new set of giant balls you’ve found. I think I can see them in your gym shorts.”

  Fuck him. At least I have on an oxford. I run my hand over my hair to slick it back a bit. It’s shaggy lately, but I haven’t had a chance to get it cut.

  Sal looks at me very directly. “Is there someplace we could talk?”

  “If you’re willing to get on an ATV in that outfit, then yes.”

  “Hell yeah.” He whips off his suit jacket and flings it at the even taller, beefier, and well-armed man standing behind him. Then he hands him his holster and gun. I didn’t know if he carried one or not, but fuck me this is strange. Fortunately, I’ve never seen it. He waves his security off, and I shrug to the gathered crowd.

  On ATVs I get out of our garage, we wind and twist through the old paths that lead to the Longhouse. My friends and I used it as a broken-down fort when we’d play Army growing up. The trails, although overgrown, are the same as in my memory, but the fort is not. Longhouse is now modern and designed with gatherings in mind.

  It takes my breath away. Holy shit, this is amazing. Seventeen-foot floor-to-ceiling glass windows line the sides of the building. It highlights the landscape, and the vaulted ceiling’s exposed beams have been stained a rustic reddish brown. There’s an extremely long and large oak table that spans the building. I hear someone rustling from the back of the building and there’s scattered dishes around the table.

  “Hello!” someone squeaks from the back.

  “It’s Josh. Who’s here?”

  “Ah! Fuck. Me, Josh. You scared me. I’m just cleaning up your mom’s luncheon.”

  “Poppy Gelbert!”
>
  I cross the room quickly. Sal hangs back as he observes me, greeting my old friend. I haven’t seen her in forever. After we hug, she unleashes her long red curls from a green and white flowered headscarf. They cascade down her back and her dark brown eyes narrow as she spies Sal in the corner. She’s about the same height as Elle but without her curves. She’s got a delicate doll appearance to her. But don’t let her sweet and kind exterior fool you, she’s a slow burn. She’ll take teasing, but only to a point, then she lives up to the clique of a redhead temper. She’s also the first one to show up if you need help with anything.

  Her mom, Tina, is one of my Mom’s closest friends. She was eighteen months old when she and her Mom showed up in Sonoma at their family winery. Her father has never come looking for them. She goes by her mother’s maiden name. She discarded her father’s long ago. Both of them did. She became our little sister. She’s the same age as Jims Langerford and Tommi Schroeder. She’s one of my gang from growing up. The chosen cousins, as Elle called them that first night.

  Poppy calls across the room in her feminine lilting voice, “Who’s the giant brooding in the corner? Hey, broody! You hungry? I know this one always is.”

  I rub my hands together and say, “Seriously, you have extra?”

  Sal approaches, and I do introductions. “Poppy Gelbert, this is Salvatore Pietro. He’s a client of mine from Santa Barbara. I’ve known Poppy since we were both in diapers running through the vines. She’s a chef who owns a cafe in town.”

  “It’s hardly a cafe. I mostly cater. There’s a smattering of tables and a tiny bar.”

  “Come on, Pop. The food’s awesome.”

  “That I’ll give you. I cook a hell of a ziti if you’re interested?”

  Sal takes her hand and holds it with both of his. His usually hard features soften when he looks at her. He literally towers over her. He’s only two years older than I am, but I always feel as if he looks more adult somehow.

  Poppy looks flattered as he approaches her. They’re quite the contrasting couple to look at. Not that Poppy would ever go for a guy like Sal. All her boyfriends have been of the insurance salesman variety and most of them with glasses and sweater vests. Where she’s light and lithe, he’s hulking, and with his deep Mediterranean coloring, they look like polar opposites of each other.

  And then he pulls her delicate hand to his lips and kisses. “Well, I’m completely charmed. And you say there’s ziti too. This day just got fucking perfect. Will you join us?”

  Poppy blushes a bit. What the fuck? Don’t blush at the almost ex-mobster. Don’t do that, Poppy. I have enough on my plate; I don’t need to keep Poppy safe from this man as well.

  She says, “I need to get back to the shop, but let me grab you some stuff. I was just loading the dishwasher.”

  “Dishwasher. Jesus, Mom did a good job out here.”

  “You know full well who thought of the dishwasher. She kind of thinks of everything.” I know she means Elle. Of course, she knows Elle.

  “So, you’ve met her?”

  “She’s coming by for a glass tonight. I like her a lot. We’ve become friends. And thank God you fixed that colossal screw up with her clients. I was about to go full Tina on your ass.” I roll my eyes. Tina, Poppy’s Mom is not one to be trifled with. She’s the one who put all the teacher’s in their place, kept the gang of us in line and always gets a refund for bad customer service. She’s a fierce single Mom. She and Poppy are thick as thieves. She dishes up our lunch. She continues speaking, “Here you go. I have to run. Josh, are you here for the thing this weekend?”

  I say, “Yes. You coming by?”

  Poppy smiles and answers, “After I close up, for sure. I think almost all of us will be here.”

  “Jesus, really?” I can’t imagine seeing all of my group of friends at once. I’ve been out of it for so long.

  She pops her head back into the main room from the little alcove in the back. “You’re usually the missing piece, but yeah, the stars seem to be aligned. Except Baxter, I think he’s in DC this week.” She turns to Sal. “It was nice to meet you.”

  Sal takes a big bite. “This is as good as I know a red sauce can be. And damn, tiny woman, you can cook.”

  Poppy kind of stumbles over her words, “Thanks, giant man. You know it’s just... I don’t know tomatoes and…” She’s juggling chafing dishes and a platter. Sal jumps up and takes them from her.

  Sal speaks, “It’s delicious. And it’s a delight to meet you. Can I put these in your car?”

  Poppy says brightly, “Thanks.”

  Sal exits, and she crosses to me and squeezes me again. “There’s everything you need in the back. My girl’s got Sonoma lifestyle on lock. Go back and see for yourself.”

  “You’re that friendly with Elle?”

  “I adore her. She comes in a couple times a week to eat or hang out.” I had no idea she was friends with anyone from my past. I wander back to the little kitchen area and start opening cabinets. There’s a subzero fridge and a dishwasher.

  “I mean there’s even salami and cheese in the freezer should you want to put out an instant cheese plate. And there are gorgeous ceramic plates, platters, and mugs.”

  I pick up a mug and smile. My mother made them at the Community Center in their pottery studio. They’re so cool and completely her style with her little hand drawn butterfly on the bottom. She used to draw it on my sack lunch bags “Okay, Pop. Thanks for the food. I’ll see you this weekend.” I kiss her on her cheek, and she leaves. I open a Syrah, putting a couple of glasses on the table.

  Sal rejoins me and sits back down, swirls and sips. “That is some damn good vino.”

  “I already know that. What I don’t know is why you’re here, my friend.” I sip the wine. It is fucking good.

  “Joshua LaChappelle, we’ve been through some shit, haven’t we?”

  “We have. And it’s Whittier.”

  “You know I got your back, right?” Sal shoves more food into his mouth. It must take a truckload of pasta to keep him that bulked up and muscled.

  I don’t know where he’s going with this. “I do. But I also know we’ve always been straight with each other.”

  “It’s one of the things I like best about you, Josh. Do you know you’re probably my only friend who has zero ties to the families or the neighborhoods? And the only person outside of that collective that I trust.”

  I laugh at the realization. All my trusted friends come from winery families so I know what he means. I have people who think they’re my friends in Santa Barbara, but I don’t really trust them. It’s odd how parallel our worlds can be.

  I say to him, “You might be that for me as well, sir. Sal, you might come back for Poppy’s ziti, but you didn’t come here for that. So why the hell are you here?”

  “Because you’re here. Joshua. I emailed. I called, and then I flew up and went to your office and you were gone. I don’t trust easily. This should not be news. I can’t and won’t work with your associates. I know you got issues here. And I looked into the sale.”

  “You can’t purchase us. For many reasons.”

  “I know. I remember everything you tell me. I know the rules. No liquor, no firearms, no tobacco, no dispensaries, nothing that would draw attention. But why aren’t you brokering this sale and then getting the hell out of here?”

  “Because my parents wanted me to stay out of it. So I’m here to kind of…”

  “To babysit the blonde.” I swallow hard. Don’t fuck with Elle.

  “What blonde?”

  “I make it a point to know everything about everything. She’s a shrewd little act you’re coveting. Parker & Co. is on track to crack eleven million gross this year. She’s no joke. And your dick likes her.”

  I don’t like that he knows anything about her. Also, I didn’t realize she was that good. I suspected but didn’t know the hard figure. “You let me worry about my cock.”

  Sal leans forward. “It’s your balls I want t
o discuss. Not calling me back. She gave you those or you just borrowed hers?”

  “Trust me. She’s of no concern to me, so remove her from your radar.”

  “Don’t ever play poker, Whittier. You need to drop the idea of her. She’s a shark that will swallow you whole. You need to get back to Santa Barbara where you belong.”

  I adjust my chair. This is a new level of relationship for us. “I was planning on backing off from the business in the lead up to the sale, just after harvest. It’s only for a couple of months.”

  “Bullshit. It’s the end of June. You’re going to stay in this fucking cowtown until October?”

  I scramble because I think a threat might be on the way. “I’ll work from here. I won’t ignore you again. I’ve just gotten caught up...”

  “Swept up in this family business? I know the feeling.” He puts down his silverware and sips his wine. He gestures to me with the glass, and I fill it a little more. “Joshua, when you get bogged down with family and women, you lose focus, and you’ll get burned. You get burned, and I get fucking screwed. And I don’t get screwed unless it’s by that sweet little gingersnap that was here earlier.”

  “Don’t you even joke about Poppy like that.”

  “I’m just saying I like her. I’m not going near her. No worries. I’m too busy for personal pursuits, and you should be too.”

  “It’s not like that. Elle and I are nothing. She’s not my type, she just irks me.”

  “Those are the dangerous ones. I need your focus, go fuck a nobody. You’re backed up. And you need to leave Noelle alone.”

  Her name sounds like acid coming out of his mouth. “My dick is fine, thanks. Worry about your own.”

  Another lie. My cock does need to be serviced. It needs to be buried in Elle’s sweet pussy or mouth soon. I want all of her. Shit. I need to fuck Elle soon. I haven’t been with anyone in months.

  “My cock is fine. I don’t do attachments so no one gets hurt.”

  “Never a girlfriend?” I ask realizing I’ve never heard him talk about a particular woman.”