Page 33 of Twin Babies For The Grump

“So strange. I do believe that when Seth was ill, you had his wife come and get him from the office,” says Edward, sliding back into the driver’s seat. He places the glittering shawl on the passenger seat beside him and gives me a pointed look. “I certainly never drove anyone home from Bale Enterprises.”

“Just go get her taken care of,” I say, with a shake of the head. “I don’t need you to hassle me.” Or keep her waiting.

“Someone needs to do it,” says Edward. “Or you will never see past your blinders. Take them off and think about something other than work.”

He pulls the door shut and drives slowly up to the winery to pick up Tess. He gets out and opens the passenger door for her; I can see them talking, but it’s too far away to hear what they’re discussing.

I know that Edward’s not going to throw me under the bus. The man was a comfort when I moved away from my own family. And I know that he’s going to get Tess home safe, too.

After the car pulls out, I head back to the winery in search of the clipboard that Blanc had taken off with. When Adela shows up, I’ll make her finish taking inventory.

It needs to be done, and Tess doesn’t need to be worrying about it.

Chapter Fourteen

Tess

Threedayslater,I’mstill sick.

Owen has put down a strict don’t come in until you’ve stopped puking order, so even though I’m normally hyper-resistant to going to the doctor’s, I make an appointment for it.

I’m almost done getting ready when something comes on the news.

It’s the interview between the reporter and Macy. I freeze.

“We’re here at Delia Winery to check in with one of the hottest contestants in Napa Valley. Anyone that’s involved in the wine business knows that Thomas Bale made waves with his winery, consistently turning out some of the best batches of seasonal wine that the valley has seen in years,” says the reporter, a woman that the bottom banner on the screen identifies as Lacie Kite. “Right now, we’ve got the pleasure of speaking with one of the winery’s star employees. Go on and introduce yourself, please.”

“I’m Macy Dean,” she says. “And we’re so glad to have you here!”

Macy stands there on that screen like she’s supposed to be there. She never had any intention of trying to buy me time. She had seen the cameras and recognized it as an opportunity to have a few minutes of fame.

I’m so angry at her, I can’t even finish watching it. I turn off the TV, snatch up my purse, and all but storm my way out to the car.

I spend the whole drive to the doctor’s fuming about it, except for the ten-minute window that I spend puking in a gas station toilet, and then most of the time that I’m in the waiting room, too.

It seems like Thomas’s death has caused a lot of turbulence in a once calm and peaceful workplace.

I find myself constantly bouncing back and forth between thinking that Owen needs to take a chill pill and relax around the more casual, family-centered atmosphere of the winery, and thinking that it wouldn’t kill a few of our employees to actually act like they know how to behave at work.

Grapefest is a big enough deal that even once I get shuttled off into a room, I pull out my phone and spend the time that I’m waiting for the doctor scrolling through social media, checking out the updated posts about the festival, and trying to get a better reading on the general public opinion of the event and of Delia Winery.

The doctor does eventually come in, and it’s by and large business as usual. I tell him what’s been going on and he listens attentively before asking me, “And could there be a chance that you’re pregnant?”

The question catches me off guard. “What?”

“Could you be pregnant?” he repeats. “What you’re describing sounds less like an illness and more like a case of morning sickness to me.”

It feels like a rug has just been wrenched out from underneath me. The paper draped over the bench crinkles when I shift, sticking to my thighs. “Morning sickness.”

I must have gone three shades paler, because the doctor just nods and suggests, “I’m going to have a nurse come in with a cup for you. Why don’t we run a test, and see? Just to rule it out.”

I nod, mute, and when the nurse comes in, she passes me over a little plastic container. Bubbly, she says, “The bathroom is right down the hall! There’s a little cubby just above the sink that you can put the cup in.”

“Right.” I follow the directions to a T, spending the entire time feeling as though I’m trying to move through muddy waters. The thought of getting pregnant had never crossed my mind—but of course, that’s an option.

Hell, it should have been something that I thought about way back in San Francisco when I first hooked up with Owen! Could that have been when it happened? I swallow hard, hurrying through the motions, unsure whether I’m hoping it comes back positive or negative.

I’ve always wanted to start a family. But at the same time, being the girl that the boss knocked up when there are cameras everywhere around just … feels like it would be bad. Not just for the winery, but for Owen.

---