Million-Dollar Marriage Merger Read Free

through her tears. “What now, David?” she asked in the solitude of her bedroom.
    She was a thirty-one-year-old widow. She never would have believed it. Not when just weeks ago she’d planned on telling David her joyous news…that they were to become parents. She’d had it all planned. She’dsilk-screened T-shirts that said, “I’m the Daddy” and another that said, “I’m the Mommy” and the third tiny T-shirt said, “And I’m the Boss.” She’d planned on giving David the set of them over his favorite dinner.
    She hadn’t gone to the doctor yet, relying solely on the pregnancy test she’d taken. She’d wanted David by her side when they heard the news officially. Now she’d be going to all of her appointments alone, facing an unknown future.
    The only bright spot in all this sadness was the child she carried. She loved her baby with all of her heart and vowed to protect it, doing whatever it took to make a good life for him or her.
    Rena closed the closet door unable to remove and discard David’s clothes as she’d planned. “I’m not ready to let go,” she whispered. She needed David’s things around her, to feel his presence and warmth surround her. It gave her a sense of peace, odd as that might seem.
    “Do you want me to help you with David’s things, Rena?” Solena Melendez’s voice broke into her thoughts. Rena turned to find her friend at the bedroom threshold, a concerned look on her face.
    Rena smiled sadly. Since David’s death, Solena made a point to check up on Rena every morning.
    “Solena, no. But thank you.” Solena and Raymond Melendez worked at Purple Fields—Solena in the wine-tasting room, Raymond overseeing the vineyards. They’d been loyal employees since Rena and David took over the winery after her parents’ deaths.
    “It will take time, Rena.”
    Rena understood that. She’d lost both of her parents. She knew the process of grieving. “I know.”
    “And when it’s time, I will help you.”
    She smiled and wiped away her tears. “I appreciate that.” She reached for Solena, and they embraced. Their relationship had grown over the years, and now Rena thought of Solena and Raymond as more than employees—they were dear friends. Friends whose salaries she may not be able to pay if she didn’t get this bank loan.
    “We have orders today,” Solena said, breaking their embrace. “I’ll make sure they go out on time.”
    “Orders are good,” Rena acknowledged with a nod of her head. Thankfully, Solena reminded her daily that she had a winery to run. Purple Fields was small but well-respected, and they’d been holding their own until a slowing economy and bigger wineries started shoving them out. Smaller vintners weren’t able to compete and sustain the same degree of losses as the more established ones.
    “I have an appointment at the bank today.” Though Rena held out little hope, she had to try. She needed a loan to make her payroll this month and next. She was due a small amount from David’s life insurance policy, and that money would pay for her doctor bills and whatever was left over would go in trust for her child’s future. No one knew about the child she carried as yet, and she’d planned to keep it that way for the time being. She’d not told a soul. Not even Solena.
    “I will pray for good news,” Solena said.
    “So will I,” Rena said.
    Rena lingered a bit after Solena left her room, putting a little makeup on a face that had seen too many tears. With dark circles beneath her eyes, no amount of makeup could hide her despair. Her grief would be evident, yet she had enough pride to want to appear in control of her emotions when she met Mr. Zelinski at the bank. Bankers were wary of desperation. Rena understood that and prepared herself with facts and figures she hoped would prove that Purple Fields was holding its own and worth the risk of a loan.
    Rena walked down the stone hallway and made it to the living room when a knock sounded at