Under A Harvest Moon Read Free Page B

game. Phillip wanted you to come here."
    "Well, I'm here." She turned to face him, her hands on her hips, looking like a woman ready to do battle. "But he can't force me to learn the business. I'm not interested in staying, but I will sell to you if you can put together financing. After all, the place really belongs to you, doesn't it?"
    Before he could reply, she pivoted away. She bolted down the porch steps. Nico watched her until she disappeared from view.
    He waited for elation to fill him. Danielle was going to sell. It's what he wanted, what he'd hoped for, yet he didn't feel like celebrating. She'd seemed proud and stubborn, but underneath he suspected she was broken and afraid. What had happened to her since she'd left the vineyard?
    He gave himself a mental shake. Why did he care? Right now, she was a means to an end. He never should have asked her about Phillip. He didn't want to alienate her, and Phillip was obviously a sore subject.
    No, he needed Danielle on his side. It would be in his best interest to keep her happy during the next ninety days. One wrong move on his part and she might sell to Germaine Cellars. The bigger winery could outbid him, but he was the sentimental favorite. Selling to him ensured that the long-time employees would have jobs, and that Lola could stay on at Whitney House. He'd let Danielle know these things and more.
    He prayed he could untangle his finances from his ex-wife's before Danielle put the vineyard up for sale. Whitney Vineyards was his home, and he wasn't about to let Danielle sell it out from under him.

Chapter Two
     
    The combination of the silence and the strange surroundings pulled Danielle from a fitful sleep. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. Eight a.m. Her eyes wide open now, her mind clicked on, her thoughts going to Nico and their talk last night.
    He was stronger, more in control than the boy she remembered. Her experiences with him the year they'd both lived at the vineyard had been limited. The times she'd actually spoken with him he'd been aloof and distant. She remembered he'd been a handful that year, getting into trouble -- nothing major -- things like speeding tickets, sneaking out with girls, getting into fights. Sun Grove was a small town and they'd attended the local high school with Danielle in tenth grade and Nico a senior.
    She'd been so in love with him, unrequited puppy love. He'd been her first crush and her first kiss. Did he remember that kiss? She'd wanted to comfort him after his parents' funeral.
    Her fingers drifted to her mouth, as if it were only yesterday. She'd melted against Nico, hugging him, wanting to ease his sorrow. His pain had echoed her own, the ache unbearable. She remembered everything from the way he'd shifted his head, to the anguished look on his face just before he'd captured her lips in a kiss. As an adult, she understood the kiss was an act of desperation on Nico's part. He'd been grieving. In her own naïve way, she'd taken advantage of him.
    With a groan, Danielle threw back the covers and got up. Cool air blew from the air conditioner. She shivered. She didn't want to think about the past, about what made Nico tick. He'd been an angry teenager when he'd arrived in Sun Grove, but last night he'd seemed different. He'd grown up and so had she. She had to find a way to get along with him while she was here. After that, she could leave and never look back. She could open a little book store/coffee house, a small business that would feed her and Kaiden. All she wanted was peace.
    Until then, she'd try and stay out of Nico's way. He was right about one thing; she knew next to nothing about grapes or wine. When her father had begun planting the vines, her thoughts hadn't been on the land or the fruit; her mind had been on school and boys.
    Danielle quickly showered then dressed in khaki pants and a simple white blouse, hoping she looked professional enough for her meeting with the employees. Before she made it to the