Red Wine and Roses

by SJ McCoy

  Piper rolled her eyes. “No. Cameron and I just … well, we’re just getting to know each other. And besides, he’s not a billionaire, he just …” She stopped when she saw the look on Rochelle’s face. “What?”

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah. I like him a lot, and he’s coming back next weekend, but …”

  “I don’t mean that. I mean. You don’t think he’s a billionaire?”

  Piper frowned. “They’re a very rich family, and they run a big wine business, but …” Her voice trailed off. “Billionaires?”

  Rochelle nodded. “Yup.”

  “Oh. Wow.”

  Rochelle touched her arm. “Don’t look like that. It doesn’t make any difference. He’s just got even more money than you thought.”

  Piper shook her head. “It shouldn’t make any difference, should it? But do you know how dumb I feel? Only yesterday I was telling him what it was like growing up in a trailer park. How I learned to fly from a farmer in a crop duster because no way could I afford lessons.”

  “Why does that make you feel dumb?”

  “I don’t know. Because we’re so different.”

  “You’re not different though, are you? You just come from different backgrounds, and since you do, you need to tell each other that stuff so you can understand each other. So, it wasn’t dumb, it was smart.”

  Piper nodded. She knew what Rochelle meant, but still. “I guess so.”

  “Come on. Don’t look like that. You knew he was a rich guy. Why would changing the word millionaire into billionaire make any difference to how you feel?”

  Piper thought about that. “I guess it really shouldn’t, should it?”

  “Nope.”

  “Okay, then I’m going to put it out of my head. And can we get down to work? That’s what I’m supposed to be doing—not gossiping about Cameron.”

  Rochelle smiled. “Of course, but you’re still early for work even if we start now.”

  ~ ~ ~

  “Are you going to tell me about her?”

  Cameron looked up from his desk and tried to play innocent. “About who?”

  Mary Ellen gave him a stern look and sat down opposite him. “I don’t know her name, do I? Because you haven’t told me. And I think I’m insulted and offended.”

  “Why Mary El?” That was the last thing he wanted.

  She laughed. “I’m insulted and offended that you must think I’m stupid.”

  “I don’t, and you know it. You’re one of the smartest people I know.”

  “So why are you treating me like I’m stupid? You’ve been up to Summer Lake for the last three weekends in a row. You come back each time and chat about your brother and his new wife and the wedding and all that good stuff, and you never mention this mystery woman.”

  “Who says there is one?”

  “I do.”

  “And what makes you think that?”

  She laughed. “Do you want a list? Let me see. How many times have I had a dozen red roses delivered in the last three weeks? Umm, none.”

  Cameron dropped his gaze.

  “See, I know what a dozen red roses mean, Cameron. It means thanks for the sex, see you next time.”

  He had to laugh. “Well, damn. I didn’t realize that was what it meant.”

  “Are you denying it?”

  “No. I’m just saying that you’re smart; you put words to something that I couldn’t.”

  “Or perhaps you just didn’t want to?”

  He dropped his gaze again.

  “And how many dinner reservations—of the table for two variety—have you asked me to make in the last three weeks?”

  “None,” he muttered. He knew where she was going, and of course, she was right. He was just trying to think ahead as to what he should tell her about Piper.

  “Exactly. And in case I haven’t made my point clear enough yet, just how many cases of the 2002 Reserve have I shipped to your recent willing partners?”

  He looked up at her from under lowered brows. “None.”

  She folded her arms across her chest. “So, what could be the possible reasons for this cessation of normal activity? I ask myself. Are you perhaps, sick? No, you come into the office every day and appear to be of normal health. Okay. Not that then. What else could it be? You’re not sending out your usual thank yous because you’re not indulging in your usual pastimes. You’re not sick, so what else could be keeping you away from the ladies. My educated guess, based on several years of observation, is that nothing keeps you away from the ladies, if it’s not one, then it’s another. Ah! There it is! There is another. She’s not here. So, she must be at your lake. Yet, you haven’t asked me to send her the customary thank you flowers or wine. In fact, you haven’t so much as mentioned her. So, I have one question.”

  “Lay it on me.”

  Mary Ellen grinned and leaned forward on his desk. “Is she special?”

  Cameron couldn’t help it. He grinned back as he nodded. “Yeah. I think she is.”

  “Eeee!” Mary Ellen rubbed her hands together gleefully. “Oh, Cam. That’s awesome! Tell me all about her?”

  He laughed. “Right now?”

  She nodded. “Yes. You, horrible man. You made me wait this long. You made me pry it out of you. You must tell me everything, right this minute.”

  “Okay.” He checked the clock on the wall. “Let’s go and get some lunch, and I’ll tell you all about her. Will you do me a favor when we get back, though?”

  “What’s that?”

  “Send her a dozen red roses.” It hadn’t occurred to him till Mary Ellen mentioned it, but he hadn’t sent Piper flowers or wine or anything at all. That wasn’t like him. He wanted her to feel special.

  Mary Ellen grinned. “Do you have her address?”

  “No, but she’s staying at the resort at Summer Lake.”

  Mary Ellen waggled her eyebrows. “And you know her room number, right?”

  He laughed. “Come on. Let’s get some lunch.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Piper had dinner in the bar at the resort on Monday evening. It had been a long day in the office with Rochelle. Piper wasn’t cut out for admin work. She never had been. She preferred to be doing—out flying—rather than sitting staring at a computer, but it was her goal to become a valuable part of the team at the airport. She was prepared to do whatever it took, and Rochelle was a great teacher, with seemingly limitless patience!

  “Hello, it’s good to see you out and about.”

  Piper smiled when Laura’s Aunt Chris, took a seat beside her at the bar. “You, too. How are you?”

  “I’m doing wonderfully, thank you.”

  “I’m glad to hear it. Are you meeting Jack and Dan?”

  Chris laughed. “No. I brought myself out for dinner.”

  “Good for you.” Piper liked Chris; she was an inspiration. She’d been by herself ever since Piper could remember, and she’d raised her boys and lived a full life. Now she seemed to be making the most of her independence—no matter how hard Jack tried to keep an eye on her.

  “Do you mind if I join you?”

  “I’m sorry, but I’ve just eaten. I’m about to head home.”

  “No problem. I bet you’re tired; are they working you hard at the airport?”

  Piper smiled. “It’s great. I love it, but today was an admin day, and my brain is fried.”

  Chris laughed. “You head on home then. Put your feet up. Did you rent a place?”

  “No, not yet. For now, home is just a room here. But I am going to start looking after work tomorrow.”

  “Good luck with that. There seem to be a few nice places up for rent at the moment.”

  “Thanks.” Piper was keen to find a place. She wanted to get settled then Summer Lake would really start to feel like home. Any other evening, she would have stayed and hung out with Chris while she ate, but she was hoping that Cameron would call her soon. He’d said he would. She shook her head as she ra
n up the stairs in the lodge. She shouldn’t be hanging out by the phone waiting for a guy to call. That wasn’t the right way to start her new life. She should be out making friends. She let herself into her room and stopped when she saw them. Wow! A dozen red roses were sitting in a vase on the dresser. Her heart hammered in her chest, and she went to them and looked for the card.

  She found it and tore it open. They were from Cameron. Just as she’d hoped. It wasn’t as if there was anyone else who might send her flowers.

  Thanks for a great weekend.

  See you Friday.

  Cameron

  Xxx

  She couldn’t wipe the big silly smile off her face. He sent her roses! No one had ever done that. She hugged the card to her chest. This was awesome.

  Her phone rang, and she dug it out of her purse. It was him.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey. It’s me. Did you get the flowers?”

  “Yes, thank you! They’re beautiful. That was so sweet of you.”

  “I’m glad you like them. How was your day?”

  “It was good. Not my favorite kind because I was in the office and not in the air, but it was good. I think I’m going to love it there.”

  “Good. I’m happy for you.”

  “How about you?” She realized as she asked that she knew nothing about what he did. She knew he was the CEO of a huge company, but she didn’t know what that meant—how he spent his days. “How was your day?”

  “It was good. Busy as always.”

  “What do you do?”

  He laughed. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean what do you all day. I know you make wine and distribute it, but what do you actually do?”

  “I do all kinds of stuff. I meet with buyers, I oversee production, I make decisions about the harvest. A million and one things, really.”

  “And what did you do today?” It was important to her to have some idea, to be able to picture him in his world, even though she’d probably never see it—or perhaps because of that.

  “Hmm. This morning I had to go through a bunch of reports, quarterly projections for the distribution chain. Then I had lunch with my assistant, and then I spent the afternoon in a meeting with the sales and marketing guys about expanding our network of tasting rooms.”

  “Wow.”

  He laughed. “Yeah, it was a busy day, but I had trouble concentrating on it all.”

  She smiled. “And why was that?”

  “Because I kept thinking about you, and what you might be doing. And looking forward to calling you.”

  “Aww, you’re too sweet.”

  He laughed. “That’s not something I normally get called, but since it’s you, I’ll take it as a compliment.”

  “Good. That’s how I meant it.”

  “I think this week is going to be a long one.”

  “Are you very busy?”

  “No more than usual. I just can’t wait to get back there.”

  She grinned. She hadn’t known how this conversation might go, she’d been a little concerned that it would be stilted and awkward, but he seemed keen to chat, and he wasn’t shy about looking forward to seeing her again. “I can’t wait for you to get here. What do you want to do?”

  “Whatever you like. We can take a boat out again or go four-wheeling or whatever you feel like. I think we should cram in as much as possible. Make the most of the time we have.”

  Piper frowned. Did that mean this weekend would be it?

  “You’ve gone quiet on me.”

  “Sorry. I didn’t realize you wanted an answer to that.”

  He chuckled. “I didn’t. I just think I know you well enough to know that you took that wrong.”

  How did he know?

  “All I meant was since we only get the weekend and not the rest of the week, we should make the most of the two days we have.”

  “Oh, okay.”

  “Do you think at some point you’re going to relax and accept that I’m not just looking for a quickie and a goodbye?”

  She laughed. “Sorry. I’ll try.” She didn’t want to be a constant downer. This was supposed to be fun. “I hope you are still looking for a quickie, though?”

  He laughed. “Err, yeah.”

  “Good, me too. Do you know when you’re coming?”

  “Yeah. I talked to Gene about it last night. He’s flying some of the execs back from Sacramento on Friday afternoon, but he’ll be able to bring me up there after that. I should be there by seven.”

  “Do you want me to pick you up at the airport?”

  “That’d be great.”

  “Okay. I’ll do that.”

  “Do you want to have dinner at the resort?”

  She’d already thought about that. She knew that it’d be busy and they’d no doubt run into a whole bunch of people if they ate there. “Maybe. I’ll figure something out.”

  “Do you think you might have a place by then?”

  “I’m looking, but I doubt I’ll have anything that soon. I’ve heard about another couple of places to eat, so I thought I’d check them out before Friday, see if I can take you somewhere different.”

  “Great, it’d be good to check out somewhere new.”

  “I’ll let you know what I discover.”

  “Or you can just surprise me. I’ll do whatever you say.”

  She laughed. “Ooh, that sounds like it could be fun.”

  He laughed with her. “It does, doesn’t it?”

  “Yes, and I think I’ll leave you on that note.”

  “You need to go?” He sounded disappointed.

  “Yes. I’ve got a lot to do.”

  “Okay. Talk soon?”

  “I’d like that.”

  “Me too.”

  “Bye then.”

  “Bye.” Piper hung up and sat down on the bed. Why had she said she had to go? She didn’t need to; she could have talked to him all night if she wanted to. She still didn’t feel comfortable, though. He was right. She needed to relax and start believing that he was calling because he wanted to talk to her—why else would he?

  ~ ~ ~

  Cameron paced his office on Friday afternoon, waiting for a call to say that Gene was back and ready to take him to Summer Lake.

  Mary Ellen popped her head around his office door. “Do you want to make yourself useful while you’re still here?”

  He frowned at her. “No.”

  She laughed. “Okay, grouch. Forget I asked.”

  “Sorry, Gene was supposed to be back half an hour ago, and I’m waiting to leave. I don’t want to get started on anything and then have to go. What did you want?”

  “It’s okay. I don’t need anything, I was just trying to distract you while you wait.”

  He gave her a hard stare. “Is that true?”

  “Kind of. I’m tearing my hair out over the seating plan for next weekend. I wanted to see if you can find a way to keep Larissa away from Mel without putting either of them anywhere near Natasha. It’s your cat fight.”

  Cameron made a face. He’d forgotten all about the dinner next weekend. “Can we uninvite them all? That’d make life easier.”

  Mary Ellen shook her head. “No, we cannot, and before you even suggest it, you can’t uninvite yourself either.”

  He gave her a rueful smile. He’d love to skip it, but he knew that wasn’t an option. It was a fundraiser dinner he hosted every year for the children’s wing at the hospital. “Are you sure?”

  “Yup. There’s no getting out of it. Not even for your new lady.” She raised her eyebrows. “Are you bringing her?”

  Cameron blew out a sigh. He’d like to. He hadn’t planned to, but only because he’d forgotten about the whole thing and was planning to go to see her. “I don’t know.”

  “I don’t blame you. I don’t think throwing her to the wolves would be the best way to introduce her to your world.”

  Cameron nodded. Mary Ellen wasn’t the only one who’d noticed that he wasn’t entertainin
g the ladies like he normally did. That and his disappearing every weekend had the grapevine humming with rumors that he had a new girlfriend. He wasn’t sure he wanted to subject Piper to that. If he brought her to the dinner, she’d be faced with meeting everyone at once. Larissa and Mel would no doubt interrogate her. But if he didn’t invite her, then he wouldn’t get to see her next weekend.

  “You’ll figure it out.” Mary Ellen gave him an encouraging smile.

  His phone rang, and he picked it up. “Gene sent a message for you that he should be refueled and ready to go in fifteen, Mr. Hamilton.”

  “Thanks.”

  Mary Ellen grinned at him. “I take it your chariot awaits?”

  He nodded.

  “Have a great weekend, and forget about all this. You go enjoy yourself.”

  “Thanks, Mary El. What does your weekend hold?”

  She smiled. “I’m going shopping with Chelsea.”

  “Cool. Have fun.” He hesitated. “Have I been so preoccupied that I’m missing something?”

  Mary Ellen shook her head. “Nothing that won’t wait until Monday. But when you get back, you might want to check in with your little sister. She’s okay, but I’m sure she’d love to catch up with you.”

  Cameron frowned. “Should I call her now?”

  “No. I don’t think you need to. I’ll let you know if you do.”

  “Thanks, Mary El.” He gave her a hug. She was so much more than an assistant. She was part of the glue that held his life and the business together. Whatever was going on with Chelsea, he trusted Mary Ellen’s judgment that it wasn’t anything urgent. But he should check in with her soon.

  When he left the office, he didn’t have far to go to get to the plane. The Hamilton-Groves office building was housed on his parents’ estate—next to a private runway. The runway ran east west. At one end was the corporate hangar, which the execs and visitors used when they flew in and out. At the other was the private hangar, which housed the family’s jet. On occasions like this, when Gene was pulling double duty—flying the execs around then taking off again on Cameron’s personal travel, Cameron always went to meet him wherever he was. He liked Gene. He’d been with the family a long time—hell, he felt more like family than an employee.

  Cameron didn’t even bother to move his car. He left it in the lot outside the office and walked over to the hangar.