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Odette sighed as if she was just informed her dog had died.
“And if you can put an end to the rumor mill, I’d appreciate it.” If we let this thing get wind, there’d be no stopping it. Every little spark needed to be extinguished.
Odette straightened her purse strap on her shoulder. “I’m on it.” She about-faced and headed toward the tasting room with determined strides.
“See you in a bit,” I said to Sherry.
Sherry stood there, mouth agape, staring at me like I grew a second and third head in the last two minutes. I glanced down to make sure my long-lost twin wasn’t emerging from my shoulders.
“You kissed my brother?” she asked disbelief swirling in her light brown eyes.
“I didn’t kiss him. He kissed me.”
“You kissed my brother.” This time it wasn’t a question.
I guess the semantics didn’t matter much. “Yes.”
The confused lines flattened, and her mouth closed, turning into a concerned frown. “Are you okay?” Her hand landed on my arm, squeezing.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t know. Maybe because for whatever god forsaken reason, you’ve been in love with the jackass since you were fifteen. I swear if you want me to hit him, I will. It’s been a long time since I clocked him one.” She pounded her fist into her palm, and I appreciated the enthusiasm.
“I don’t want you to hit him.”
“Are you sure? It’s not like he doesn’t deserve it.”
“He doesn’t,” I said, defending him like I always did. Sherry said I was blinded by my “crush” on him, but I wasn’t. Nero was as good as the rest of the Grasso bunch. He was just a little rough around the edges, was all.
He only kissed me because that woman tried to belittle me. That kiss wasn’t just a kiss. It was showing a woman who thought she was better than me, that she wasn’t. I was just as desirable as her, despite the fact that a tub of coconut oil couldn’t get my ass into her jeans.
I didn’t want to fit into her jeans, though. Mine fit just fine.
Nero knew growing up I had insecurities with my lack of height and abundance of curves. As I got older, I learned to embrace them. Chocolate came in all shapes and sizes, and each one was delicious in its own right, and so was I.
I didn’t blame him for not noticing me. People liked different things, whether it was clothes, food, how they spent their weekends, and none of them were wrong. Just like Nero wasn’t wrong for not being attracted to me. There were plenty of men who were. I just hadn’t found the right one yet. And until then, I would continue to feast my eyes on that sexy bad boy who would always hold a special place in my heart.
Sherry released her fist and sighed. “I really want to hit him.”
“You’ve wanted to hit him every day since you were old enough to hit.” I laughed.
“I know, but it’s been so long since I did.” The last time was twenty-two years ago when Nero was fourteen and we were twelve. He made a joke about some boy to Sherry, and what I believed to be was out of embarrassment, she lashed out and decked him… hard. Poor Nero sported a black eye for two weeks. Sherry a broken pinky.
It was funny she was considered the nice sister. Then again, compared to Chardonnay, everyone was nice.
“While I appreciate your offer, I wouldn’t want you to cause any damage to your hand. You have events to plan.” As Vine Valley Vineyard’s event planner, Sherry’s role was crucial to the business, especially now, as wedding season was in full swing.
“Damn it. I hate when you’re right.”
“I know, but someone has to be the voice of reason.”
“You sure you’re okay?”
“Never better,” I said with a smile I thought was convincing.
Sherry’s eyebrow arched. “If you’re not, you’ll tell me.”
“Always.”
