Page 64 of Sweet Escape

“For a while it wasn’t an option for it to go to Dad, though, right? Because he wasn’t here.”

After my dad graduated from high school, he left the family behind and moved away with my mom—his high school sweetheart. Together they created a new life in San Francisco away from the responsibilities of the vineyard and small-town Rosewood. Based on everything I’ve ever heard, that’s what he always wanted. To leave. To find something different.

But when I was seven and my mom died, he returned and slipped back into the role he’d left behind. The one he never wanted.

Sarah exhales heavily. “Yeah, and during that time, all those years your dad was away,mydad refused to discuss the future of the vineyard. Just ... adamantly refused. Would redirect the conversation if your grandmother or I brought it up at all.”

“I guess Dad gets his stubborn attitude honestly, huh?”

She laughs. “That he does.”

“And if I asked you if you wanted to be in charge of the vineyardnow?”

We come to a stop where the path splits, and Sarah looks at me warily.

“If I said I’d pass over the reins to you, instead of having them come to me ... If I said you should have always been the one in charge, what would you say?”

I’ve thought this over a few times in the past months, but it’s been an ever-present, looming idea in the back of my mind since my father made his announcement a few days ago. How much easier it would be to not have to deal with it. To pass the responsibility over to someone who will do it right.

I know Sarah would do it right. She loves this work. She loves everything about Hawthorne Vines. And she has a smart, level mind.

And I don’t doubt that my grandfather should have looked to Sarah as the next person to oversee the business. As much as I loved him, and as smart as he could be, he was blinded by the same thing that blinds my father: pride, and the mentality of “that’s how it’s always been done.”

Sarah has acquiesced to that in the past, because the men around her have dictated it that way. But I see the excitement she has when we decide to do something new, when change is around the corner.

So it wouldn’t be far-fetched to believe that she could be a great leader for this company. For our family. For the next generation of Hawthorne Vines.

“Oh, sweetie,” she says, reaching out and squeezing me gently on the shoulder, a mixture of appreciation and sadness in her eyes. “I love you for that. I do. But those days are behind me.”

I shake my head. “That’s not true.”

“It is, Memphis. I’m nearing sixty, honey. And even though I have a lot of life left in these bones, the days of me running a business are long gone.”

My shoulders fall, the disappointment of her words hitting me.

She loops her arm into mine and gives me a tug, getting us to continue walking where the path veers to the right.

“There was a time when I would have jumped at that kind of offer. When I would have had all the energy and optimism that you need when you’re taking over and leading a company in a new direction. But now, it’s your turn. You and Micah and Murphy. It’s a chance for you to champion this vineyard and see what you can do with it.”

Sarah rests her head against my shoulder as we walk, and I don’t doubt for a second the motherly affection she has for me.

“But I keep feeling like I’m doing the wrong things,” I finally tell her, the fear I’ve been holding on to finally tipping over the top and spilling out. “What if I run this place into the ground?”

“I’ve been watching you handle the problems you’ve faced, and I don’t doubt for a second that you’re making the right choices.” She stops us. “And you wanna know why I think that?”

I blink at her, waiting for her next words like a little kid, desperate for her approval.

“Because you’re smart, Memphis. You’re smart, and you’re intentional, and you’re doing what you think is best, and that is all we can ever do.”

I think over my conversation with my aunt late into the evening, reconciling what she said with the things I know to be true.

Even though part of me regrets that she feels it’s past her time to head the company, her answer also settled something in my soul. For years, I’ve wondered about how she feels when it comes to the family business and what role she has played in its longevity. And while I’m sad that there was a time when she wanted that opportunity and didn’t take it, there is a pride inside me knowing that she believes in me and what I can do.

But not just me.

Me and Micah and Murphy.

When I was a kid, sitting on the ATV and following Dad and Grandpa around the vineyard, I felt like part of a team. Like we were all in it together.

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