I stood in front of four small bungalows, one of which I assumed was R.J.’s office, the others more offices or staff buildings. From my vantage point I could tell there was much more to the property that I couldn’t see. Surrounding the cluster of buildings, in every direction, were grapevines. They formed an endless ocean of identical rows, fading over the horizon. I couldn’t see where the vines stopped; they repeated endlessly. The structures around me stood out against their uniformity, like little islands.
My phone buzzed once. I tapped the iMessage button and read:
Stephen: I have a late work meeting. I’ll call you in the morning, sweetie.
I didn’t respond. He hadn’t asked how my trip went, what Napa was like, or if I was even alive at all. It was just more of Stephen’s rhetoric, the obligatory text, the obligatory “sweetie.” They were just words—there were never any feelings or experiences to match those words. There was nothing to justify what we were doing. I closed my messages and realized it was ten after five. I was late. Just then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I jerked and turned quickly.
“Sorry I startled you. I’m Susan, the general manager here. You must be Kate?”
She looked to be in her fifties. She was on the plump side with a perfectly manicured and completely gray bob. She had on a black suit and white shirt and a pair of narrow, black-framed glasses.
“Yes, I’m here for the interview with R.J. Sorry I’m late, I had some car trouble. Jamie had to give me a ride up the hill.”
She straightened and squared her shoulders. “Did he now?”
“Is that a problem?”
“Well, I had sent Jamie on an errand but I guess it’s not unlike him to get sidetracked.” She looked me up and down very slowly. What the hell is that supposed to mean?
“Oh?”
“It’s nothing.”
“I actually hit Jamie’s truck with my car.” She suddenly looked very concerned. “He’s okay and he’s running your errand. I just don’t want him to get in trouble if he gets back late.”
Her expression turned warm and then she chuckled. “Jamie’s not in any trouble, sweetheart.” She put her arm around my shoulder and pulled me toward the door. We left my suitcase lying on the porch. Susan leaned in and said quietly, “Come on, I’ll introduce you to the big boss.”
We walked through one small room with a desk and then headed toward an open doorway. I looked in to find R.J. leaning back in his chair, already sizing me up.
“R.J., this is Kate Corbin. Kate, this is R.J.”
Susan immediately left the room. I approached him with my hand out but he didn’t get up. He leaned forward over his desk, shook my hand, and sat back very quickly, making me instantly uncomfortable.
Regardless, I chose to speak confidently. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“I expected a blonde,” he said with a smirk.
His comment stunned me. I was motionless. “Oh yeah, why is that?”
“I’ve just always associated the name Kate with blondes.”
I supposed there was a very general resemblance between R.J. and the twelve-year-old boy I saw in the photograph the night before: white male with brownish hair and lighter eyes. Adult R.J. had no standout features at all. His braces were gone but so was his smile, which probably answered the mystery of why he was such a recluse—he clearly had poor social skills. He wore a really boring blue suit with a pin-striped shirt and tie. His big, nerdy-chic glasses and poor style choices made sense for a computer wiz who probably spent more time alone with gadgets than with other living, breathing people.
“I guess you’ve never heard of Kate Middleton or Katie Holmes?”
“Oh, you’re quick.”
“You’re inappropriate.”
He stood up immediately, clapped his hands once, and announced, “Well I guess that wraps things up, Kate.”
“No, I’m sorry.” I plopped down in the chair across from him. I was blowing it and knew I had to recover. “I apologize. You just threw me off. I didn’t expect any comments about my hair color.”
He sat down but still scrutinized me with his eyes. “Let’s get on with it, then. You were late. I only have an hour and I still have to take you to the tasting room.”
I fumbled with my things and pulled out a recorder. He stood up immediately.
“No. No recording devices and no pictures. Just notes. I was told Jerry was aware of this.”
“I’m sorry, I just don’t want to misquote you.”
“Then don’t screw up your notes.”
Geez, this guy goes from inappropriate ass to stick-up-his-ass in two seconds.
Susan walked in and announced, “The tasting room is ready for you whenever you want to head over there.”
“I haven’t answered a single question yet.” He wore a smug grin. She shook her head and walked out. I couldn’t tell for sure if her gesture was directed toward me or R.J., but my guess would be the latter.
“Let’s get started, shall we?”
He leaned forward, resting his face on his propped-up hands. “Shoot, Kate. We don’t have all night unless you want to take this interview back to my room.”
“No, thank you.” What was this guy’s problem? “So, I heard you spent some time in Africa building schools. Can you tell me a little bit about that?”
“I was told you were only going to ask questions about the winery, but if you must know, it’s true. I have an organization that builds schools in Africa.”
I glanced at his smooth, delicate hands with his perfectly manicured fingernails.
“So you weren’t actually building the schools yourself, with your own hands?”
“Let’s get to the winery questions, Kate.” He smiled and arched his eyebrows.
“Right. Tell me about the winery. I’d like to know how you turned this place around and learn about your methods of production.”
“Well, I put a pretty penny into this place, I’ll tell you that. I think it’s also about how you handle your employees, letting them know who’s boss, you know?” I unintentionally snickered. “Do you disagree with that?”
“No . . . I guess I’m not surprised. And your method for production?”
“I don’t know much about that. I let Guillermo handle that. I think it’s pretty standard, though. He had worked for the previous owners since the eighties.”
“So Susan is the general manager and Guillermo runs the wine production and distribution.”
“That’s right.”
“What does Jamie do?”
He cocked his head to the side, “So you met Jamie?”
“Yes.”
“What was he doing?”
“He was running an errand. He had some barrels he had cleaned in the back of his truck.”
“Jamie does a little bit of everything around here. He works in the vineyard and also does maintenance. He sometimes works in the B and B and store when the need arises.”
Interesting. A man who knows how to use his hands.
“What sets R. J. Lawson apart as a winery resort and wine producer?”