Page 5 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

“The wine cellar’s in a storage room around the other side.”

Gia nodded.

He stopped in front of a set of double doors and searched for the right key. “You know, I’ve only been back since April, and it’s great to be home, but it wasn’t easy to leave it all behind. As much as I love the countryside, I’d forgotten how quiet this place really is. There were always so many people around at the Henderson Estates to talk to. This place is almosttooquiet.” He forced a grin and sighed. “It’s been an adjustment.”

“I’m sure it has.” Gia tilted her head. “You must miss those people.”

What had gotten into him? Why was he opening up to her? She was a perfect stranger and a business associate. Still, it felt good to talk about something other than business. She seemed about his age, and she seemed interested. “I do.” But enough about him. “So have you moved around a lot, too?”

“Yeah, actually I have.” She nodded. “I’m from Minneapolis. Went to school and worked there for a while. I have a couple of sisters there—I’m a middle child—and my parents. Then I took a job in Milwaukee, just to check it out, and now, here I am. I like to try out new places. The world’s a big place—so much to see. So far, Heritage Bay’s been my favorite.” She grinned. “I love the small-town vibe.”

“I totally get that. When did you move here?”

“I actually moved here in April, too, for the job, but I know what you mean about relocating. It’s easier said than done, on a lot of different levels.”

“You’ve got that right.” He nodded. “Oh, hey, so you live over in Heritage Bay?”

She nodded back.

“Great place.”

“It is. I really love it. And it’s fairly close to the office in Anderson Cove.”

The Pederson’s farm was only three miles inland from the beautiful lakefront village of Heritage Bay, located about halfway up the Door County peninsula, overlooking the picturesque waters of upper Green Bay. Anderson Cove was the next village up the coast.

“Then we’re practically neighbors.” He liked the thought of her living nearby. It would be much easier to work out event details if they could meet in person. She was warm and friendly, and it would be nice to talk to someone other than his parents or his employees, even if it were about business.

“So then, you left California when your dad got sick?”

He nodded.

“Did you plan to return to Wisconsin someday, anyway?”

He directed his attention to the thick rustic doors and put the key in the lock. “Okay, I think you might be reading my mind now.” He turned the doorknobs and pushed. “So yeah, my plan all along was to get the experience there and put it all to use here. It was always understood that I’d be taking over the family business at some point.”

Gia nodded.

His younger brother and sister pursued other things in life, and they didn’t live locally, although they’d come to help out while his dad was in the hospital.

The pull of his family’s legacy on the farm was strong. It was his duty to honor it and make sure the business continued to be family-run, and they were already in the red. He had his work cut out for him.

“So yeah, when our trees were hit this spring and then my dad was rushed to the hospital, I knew it was time. I couldn’t leave my mother to deal with it all. I decided to call it quits and leave Sonoma a year or two earlier than planned.”

“Wow, that must’ve been hard.” Gia pushed some hair behind her ear, exposing the smooth, flawless skin of her neck, and he looked away and turned the key in the lock. “I’ll bet your father appreciates it,” she said. “Your mother, too.”

“Yeah, they do. They’re good people.” She was so sweet. Seth let go and stepped inside the room, then turned to Gia in the doorway with a look of apology. He sighed. “I don’t know why I’m laying all of this on you. You didn’t ask to hear about my life—or my problems.”

Gia tilted her head to the side and shot him a guilty look. “Actually, I kind of did.”

He chuckled softly. “Okay. You’ve got me there.”

She nodded.

“It seems like all I’m dealing with these days are paperwork and trees.” He rolled his eyes and sighed.And a long-distance girlfriend who I don’t even miss anymore.Something had to be wrong with him when it came to Stacey. But he wouldn’t tell Gia about that. He’d already unloaded enough about his personal life, and she might think he was being unprofessional.

“I can imagine.” Gia smiled at him and their eyes met for a moment.

Seth forced his gaze away and looked around for the light switch. He lit the room then motioned for her to come in. “Okay, so this is the barrel room.”

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