Page 58 of Vodka and Violets (The Hamiltons)

“Oh my gosh! Tori DuPont! I didn’t expect to see you again. How are you?”

Tori grinned happily. “I’m just great, thanks.” She turned toward Xander. “And that’s mostly down to this guy. Meet my boyfriend, Xander Jacobs. Xander, this is Rachel; she and her boyfriend, Ian, own and run the wine bar.”

It didn’t take a genius to figure out what was going on. At the mention of the name Ian, Rachel’s expression turned sour again.

“It’s nice to meet you, Xander.”

“You too.” He’d like to be able to order a drink if only to move them all past the awkward moment, but Rachel didn’t seem to have any interest in serving them.

“Oh, sweetie! What’s wrong?” Tori asked.

Rachel gave her a sad shrug. “Ian’s gone. He couldn’t handle it – couldn’t handle the stress. You already know that we were struggling when you were last here – things have only gotten worse. I’m going to have to admit defeat soon and close the place down.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. Do you really have to close down, though? Couldn’t you sell?”

Rachel let out a short, bitter sounding laugh. “There’s nothing to sell. Well, there’s the inventory but that’s about it. We don’t own the building – everything in the Plaza is leased. I’ll maybe get something for the fixtures and fittings, but there’s no actual business to sell. I’m not breaking even anymore – in fact, I haven’t the last couple of months.”

“I’m so sorry. You’re really going to just shut down?”

Rachel nodded. “I don’t have any choice.”

Tori shook her head sadly. “I honestly thought that you’d be able to turn it around.”

“I know you did. And I really appreciated all your advice – you and your sister were so kind and helpful. But things were already bad – maybe someone else could have salvaged the business, but we didn’t know enough in the first place, and I guess we ended up being so busy fighting that we didn’t even try.”

Xander felt bad for the woman, but he couldn’t relate.

“Anyway, sorry. You didn’t come in here to listen to my troubles. You came in for a drink – what can I get you?”

Tori climbed up onto one of the bar stools. “Do you have a bottle of Jacobs Estate X Blend?”

Rachel gave her a wry smile. “I appreciate it, Tori, but you don’t need to go buying one of our most expensive bottles of wine just to help me out.”

“It’s not just to help you out.” She turned and smiled at Xander. “It’s to honor my lovely boyfriend here.”

Rachel gave her a puzzled look, then her eyes grew wide. “Oh my God! You’re Xander Jacobs?”

“That’s me,” he told her with a smile. “And if you have it, I’ll buy a case of the stuff from you.”

“No! You don’t need to do that! That’s one of the most expensive wines we sell. You don’t need to buy a whole case just to help me out – especially not when you no doubt have a cellar full of it at home.”

“That’s the thing, you see, we haven’t been home in a long while, and I’d like to have some in stock.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I’d appreciate it.”

When Rachel disappeared into the back, Tori turned to him and said, “I feel terrible for her.”

“Yeah, me too. But it happens. Most small businesses don’t make it.”

“I know. I know all the statistics, but it still makes me sad. She’s really nice – and Ian seemed nice too. I guess it was just the pressure that made him crack – not that he was an asshole who abandoned her for the hell of it.”

Xander just nodded. In his mind, leaving your woman to face the repercussions of failure alone made any man an asshole.

Rachel reappeared after a few moments. “Sorry, I should have asked, do you want this case delivered to wherever you’re staying? And do you want me to uncork the first bottle that you asked for – are you here for a drink?”

“How about you give me the case and the bottle, and I’ll go and load them in the truck.” He turned to Tori. “That way you ladies can catch up over a glass of whatever you’d like.”

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