Chapter Four
Rafe met his brother, Nick, at Billy’s Bar, an institution in Hidden Falls. With the vast number of wineries in the area attracting the summer tourists, Billy’s was the place where the locals met and hung out. Billy was older than dirt and had long since turned the running of the bar over to his son, Joe, who, like his father, knew everyone’s choice in drink with no need to ask.
While Rafe nursed his first beer, Nick was already on his third.
“Angel giving you trouble again?” Rafe asked his brother.
Nick narrowed his eyes and rumbled an unintelligible answer.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
To the horror of the older generation in the family, Nick and his wife had separated. Angelina, or Angel as everyone called her, had moved into her father’s empty home. Empty because her father, Pirro DeVittorio, had recently married Rafe and Nick’s Aunt Vivian, a widow of five years, and lived in her house.
Aunt Vi was their father’s sister, an aunt who Rafe had always felt close to over the years. Together, Aunt Vi and Rafe’s father ran the Spicy Secret, the family business, while Pirro was head of shipping and delivery. Add in Nick as vice president, and the family’s business and personal connections were definitely messier now.
Rafe glanced at his older brother. Nick’s current foul mood went beyond the separation, which was six months old.
Unlike Rafe, who’d gotten out of town and broadened his horizons as well as his beliefs, Nick was still a traditional man who’d expected his wife to stay at home or work in the family spice business only until she had children. But after Angel had a miscarriage, she’d decided she needed something more out of life.
She wanted to open her own business. Nick didn’t agree. Angel went ahead with her plan anyway, and when the arguing became too much, she moved into her father’s house and turned the upstairs rooms into guest rooms. She’d joined the chamber of commerce and now ran a successful bed-and-breakfast. On the surface, it seemed like Nick just couldn’t deal with a businesswoman as his wife, and until he did, Angel wouldn’t budge on reconciliation.
Rafe sensed there was more going on.
“Women know how to make you crazy,” Nick said, finishing the last of his beer.
“I hear you,” Rafe muttered. A woman who wasn’t even his had him tied up in knots.
Sara still occupied his thoughts, day and night. He’d hoped by coming here and getting away from the damned blog and its innuendos, maybe he’d stop wanting a woman he couldn’t have. He’d accomplished part of his goal. He was relaxing and recuperating, feeling stronger every day. But even without the blog, Sara was constantly on his mind.
Nick raised his hand to order another drink.
“Hey. You’ve had enough,” Rafe said, waving away the waitress. “Let’s talk first. Then, if you still want to keep drowning yourself in alcohol, I won’t stop you.”
His brother rolled his eyes. “I hate it when you use that psych degree on me.”
Rafe shook his head. “You don’t need a shrink. You need common sense knocked into your thick skull. It’s the twenty-first century. How’s the caveman attitude working out for you?” He deliberately provoked his brother, hoping for a reaction. For something that would explain why Nick was acting like a Neanderthal and not a smart guy who could compromise with the wife whom he loved.
Nick glanced up, eyes red and bleary. “Hey, smart-ass, did you forget my wife had a miscarriage? It’s not caveman-like to want her to deal with the loss instead of burying her emotions in work.”
Finally. Now Rafe understood. “You never talked about it except to tell me it happened.”
Rafe lived five hours away, and his brother was the least-communicative human being he knew. Which explained why there were missing pieces to this story.
Nick glanced down. “It’s not the easiest thing to talk about. The doctor said she probably would never carry to term. That’s when she started talking about turning her father’s house into a bed-and-breakfast. Then she set about doing it. If she grieved for the loss of the baby, the loss of our dream of having a big family, I never saw it.”
Rafe placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Everyone grieves differently.”
“I know that. But that business stands between us. She’s buried herself in it, and now we’re at a stalemate.” He ran his hands over his hair.
Rafe had seen Angel since he’d been home. She looked healthy and happy except for the pain in her eyes caused by her disintegrating marriage. “She’s handling the responsibility of the business well. The B and B is thriving. Especially with the festival starting in a few days,” Rafe said.
The Hidden Falls Wine Festival, an annual summer event, had started out as a summertime town festival sponsored by a local vineyard and other homegrown businesses, including his family’s. Eventually, larger, national companies got in on the action—a weeklong event featuring up-and-coming local bands, a carnival and booths run by locals. Angel’s B and B was small, but it offered people a down-home place to stay, and this was her first time with a full house courtesy of the festival.
“So you agree with me. She’s overworked, stressed and unable to focus on what’s really important.”
Rafe set his jaw. “Uh, no. She seems to be coping just fine. You, on the other hand, are a miserable, unhappy son of a bitch.”
Nick narrowed his gaze. He curled his hands into fists, clenching them tight on the table. “I can’t believe you’re taking sides.”
“I’m telling it like it is, which nobody else in the family is willing to do. They’re all too busy hovering over Angel, reminding her you’re waiting for her to fail and come home.” Rafe drew a deep breath. “What’s really eating at you? Because until you figure it out, nothing’s ever going to get better.”
Nick didn’t answer. He merely raised his hand for another beer.
Rafe was finished nursing his and ready to go home. Nobody could help Nick except Nick.
Rising from his seat, Rafe pulled money from his pocket and dumped it onto the table. “See you at dinner at Mom’s tomorrow night?”
“I’ll be there.”
“Angel going?” Maybe there’d be a chance for the two of them to talk.
“Nope. She says it’s time we start acting like we’re separated. She’s not coming to family gatherings unless it’s for her immediate family—like her father or Aunt Vi. My family doesn’t count.” He stared into his empty glass.
“Come on. Let me take you home,” Rafe offered.
Nick shook his head. “I’ll be fine. It’s not like I’m driving. I’ll walk home after this last beer.”
Rafe shrugged. “See you tomorrow night.”
Sara knew driving five hours in a car would be tough even if she stopped every sixty minutes to stretch her legs. She just hadn’t known how tough. Her leg was cramped, her knee aching by the time she arrived in Hidden Falls, near dinnertime. As she pulled off the exit, she saw a billboard advertising the Hidden Falls Wine Festival coming up this week. She hoped that wouldn’t impact her finding a place to stay until she located and spoke to Rafe.
As if divine providence was at work, the next sign advertised Angel’s Bed-and-Breakfast.
“Pretty name,” Sara mused. And if the accommodations were as heavenly, she’d soon be resting her knee.
She followed subsequent signs until she pulled into the gravel drive leading to a Victorian house painted in a robin’s egg–blue with white trim.
So far so good.
Leaving her suitcase in the trunk, she limped up the path to the front porch. Although she’d begun walking better, the drive had stiffened her muscles.
She rang the bell, and in no time the door opened, and an attractive, raven-haired woman greeted her with a welcoming smile. “Can I help you?”
Sara nodded. “I saw your sign off the highway and was hoping you had an available room.”
“You can stay for two nights,” the woman said. “But after that, I’m booked. The Wine Festival is starting, and we’ve been fully booked for months.”
“Two nights works fine.”
She’d come here hoping she could stay with Rafe anyway. On the off chance someone discovered where she’d gone, he’d be right there as backup. But she’d be safe here at Angel’s for a short time. She felt certain nobody had followed her out of the city. She had been extremely careful, taking a long detour around Manhattan, stopping for errands, doubling back, making sure nobody was on her tail.
She’d rest her knee, and by the time Angel needed the room, she’d know whether Rafe minded having a visitor or if she had to make alternate arrangements.
“Okay, then, come on in. I’m Angel Mancuso, and I’m the owner. Chief cook, maid, and companion, when you want one. And if you’d rather be alone, I can accommodate that, too. Do you need help getting your bags from the car?”
Sara barely heard her spiel. She was stuck on the woman’s last name. “Did you say you’re Angel Mancuso?”
“Yes. Why?” Curiosity etched her features.
It couldn’t be a coincidence. “I’m here to visit a friend. Rafe Mancuso?”
The other woman’s eyes widened in recognition. “Rafe is my brother-in-law!” Angel said. “I’d say it’s a small world, but around here everyone knows everyone and is potentially related somehow.” Angel laughed. “So, do you know Rafe from the city?”
Sara nodded. “We used to be partners.”
Angel studied her, her eyes narrowing. “Actually, you look familiar.”
“I can’t imagine why. I’ve never been here before.”
The other woman paused in thought. “I know!” Angel snapped her fingers. “You’re the one Rafe was with the night he was injured! My mother-in-law showed me the articles from the hostage crisis. You’re prettier in person.”
“Thank you. Those department-issued pictures aren’t very glamorous,” she said, laughing.
“The whole family appreciates how you took such good care of Rafe, staying by his side and all.”
A heated flush rose to her face. “We used to be partners. He would have done the same for me.” She turned away, taking in her surroundings. Paintings adorned the walls; an area rug covered the hardwood floor in the entryway.
“So, do you and your husband live here?” Sara swept her arm, gesturing at the lovely house.
The light in Angel’s eyes flickered and dimmed. “No. I’m afraid we’re separated,” she said, obvious pain in the admission.
“I’m sorry.” Something about Angel inspired an easy rapport, and Sara reached out, touching the other woman’s shoulder in comfort.
“Thank you. Why don’t you come on in and get settled?” Angel asked.
Sara nodded. “First I need to get my bag from the car.”
A few minutes later, bag in hand, she followed Angel upstairs to a floral-wallpapered bedroom. Fresh flowers filled a small vase on the dresser, and an antique lamp sat on the nightstand.
“This is beautiful,” Sara said, running her hand over the lemon-colored comforter on a four-poster bed.
“Relax and enjoy.”
“I intend to! I desperately need a nap,” Sara said. “And can I bother you for an ice pack or a bag of ice?” She pointed to her knee, over which she now wore a lighter brace than the original one given to her in the emergency room.
“Of course!” The other woman turned to go.
“Angel?”
“Yes?” She braced her hand on the door frame and turned back around.
Sara swallowed hard. “Can you possibly tell me where to find Rafe? I tried to reach him to let him know I was coming, but I couldn’t get through to his cell. I’d like to stop by after dinner.”
Angel smiled. “Of course. I’ll write down the address where you can find him, along with directions.”
“Great. I’d appreciate it.”
“So, dinner is at six. I hope you like fried chicken and mashed potatoes.”
Sara’s mouth watered at the thought. “Perfect.”
“Okay, then. I’ll be right back with the ice.” She stepped out, leaving Sara alone.
She collapsed onto the comfortable bed. A light lemony scent permeated the room, and she relaxed, allowing her body to absorb the softness surrounding her, feeling calmer and safer than she had in New York City.
Rafe’s parents still lived in the house he’d grown up in. Except for some updates and renovations, everything remained the same. Until the family descended. Then the noise level and chaos exceeded anything he remembered or could tolerate. Rafe was thirty-one and ready to settle down, while his sisters were married and lived within half a mile of their parents and each other, as did Nick. With the exception of Nick, they all had children. To most people, the sheer numbers would be confusing. To Rafe, it was normal.
His oldest sister, Joanne, had six years on him and always acted like his mother. She had a thirteen-year-old daughter and two rambunctious ten-year-old twin sons who currently wrestled in the den. Nick came next, then Rafe. Carol was three years younger than Rafe and had gotten an early start on her family. She had three adorable kids that Rafe called the Steps due to their ever-increasing height, girls ages two, four and six. Andrea was the most spoiled and self-centered, but she was learning how to give, thanks to her new baby boy.
And they all loved their fun-loving, single Uncle Rafe. He managed to maintain that status by living in the city, visiting when he could and not allowing himself to be overwhelmed by family all the time.
When the noise level in the living room reached epidemic proportions, Rafe escaped onto the front-porch swing for some peace. The summer air was hot and humid, but at least the noise dimmed. He had only a few quiet minutes when his thirteen-year-old niece, Toni, joined him.
An adorable kid with light brown hair, her mother’s serious eyes and a mini-adult personality, she immediately started talking.
“Hey, Uncle Rafe.” She began kicking her feet back and forth beneath her.
“Hey, kid. Noise too much for you in there, too?” He pointed inside toward his parents’ living room.
She nodded. “But I also wanted to talk to you alone.”
“Shoot,” he told her, gesturing with his hands.
“Okay.” She drew a deep breath. “You’re a guy, right?”
“Last time I looked,” he joked.
She didn’t laugh.
Rafe glanced at her. Her hair hung straight over her shoulders, and an intense expression, much like his sister Joanne’s, had settled on her face.
Okay, this was important.
“What’s up?” he asked her.
“What do I have to do to get a boy to notice me?” She didn’t meet his gaze, merely focused on her swaying feet.
Rafe was in over his head here. He didn’t have kids. Didn’t know how to give relationship advice to a teenage girl. But she obviously wanted a guy’s perspective and couldn’t talk to her father about boys unless she wanted him to lock her up until she was eighteen.
That left Rafe, her single uncle, to do the job. “Want to know what I think?”
She nodded, and this time she watched him carefully.
The pressure of getting it right settled on his shoulders. “I think any guy who doesn’t already notice you has rocks in his head and isn’t worth your time.”
She blushed. “You have to say that. You’re my uncle.”
“True. But I’m saying it because it’s a fact. You’re special.” He resisted the urge to reach out and ruffle her hair like she was a little kid. “So, maybe this boy has noticed you, but he’s too shy to talk to you?”
She shrugged. “Maybe. He’s new around here, and he goes to the same camp as me. The girls play the guys in softball, and he’s really good!”
The obvious solution dawned on him. “Ask him to help you hit.”
“But I don’t need help.” She rolled her eyes like he was a dunce. “I’m already the best hitter on the team!”
Rafe bit the inside of his cheek to keep from grinning. “Ask him for help anyway. Guys like to feel needed. Maybe then you can get to know each other.”
She paused for a minute, seriously thinking about his suggestion. “Okay, good idea!” she exclaimed at last. “Hey, who’s that coming up the walk?” She pointed toward the street.
He exhaled in relief. Subject obviously closed. A new attraction had captured her attention.
And what an attraction it was. Sara slowly made her way up the cobblestone path leading to the porch. He’d been so distracted by his talk with Toni, he hadn’t heard the car pull up. But he noticed it parked on the street now.
He couldn’t have been more surprised to see her. If Toni hadn’t noticed her first, Rafe would have thought he was dreaming. He was relieved to see the crutches were gone and her limp was obvious but not terrible. She was a vision. She wore white jeans and a ruffled tank top. Her long hair flowed loose, softly around her shoulders. Once again, he was struck by the stark contrast between the uniformed partner he’d known at work and the woman she was outside the job—and his body’s immediate reaction to her.
She waved at him with a hesitant smile, obviously unsure of her reception, which was ridiculous. He might be shocked, but he wasn’t disappointed. In fact, adrenaline pumped through him, filling him with anticipation and sheer delight.
“Who’s that?” Toni asked.
“A friend of mine from New York,” he said, just as Sara reached them. “Sara Rios, this is my niece, Toni. Toni, this is my friend Sara.”
He heard the question in his voice. Why was she here?
“Hi!” Toni said.
“Nice to meet you.” Sara treated the girl to a warm smile.
“Hey, why don’t you go inside and tell Grandma to set an extra plate at the table for company?” Rafe suggested to his niece.
He wanted to get Sara alone.
Toni nodded, turned and headed inside.
Before Rafe could speak, Toni’s voice traveled back to him, loud and clear over the usual din. “Nana, Uncle Rafe has a girlfriend coming to dinner!”
Amused despite himself, Rafe shook his head. “She’s thirteen,” he said, figuring that explained it all.
Sara grinned. “She’s cute.”
“She has her moments. And there are seven more kids inside,” he said by way of warning.
If Sara was going to survive his family, she needed to know what she was in for.
“I’m really sorry to show up uninvited. Angel said I’d find you here.” She nibbled on her bottom lip. “I ate, so there’s no reason to worry about putting out an extra setting. In fact, I should go. We’ll talk later.” Obviously embarrassed and rethinking her visit, she turned to walk away.
Rafe reached out to stop her. She hadn’t driven over five hours to get here just to leave now. “Wait. My mother would love to see you again.” In fact, Mariana Mancuso had found many excuses to ask about the pretty girl who’d slept in the chair while he was in the hospital.
Rafe had found just as many excuses to avoid answering. But that didn’t mean he’d forgotten what Sara had done for him, or what those actions indicated about her feelings for him. Then there was the lingering curiosity about what would happen if they took things further and tested this thing that had been simmering between them since their days as partners.
Now she was here.
“Are you sure?” Sara asked hesitantly. “It sounds like there’s an army of people inside.”
“That about covers it,” he agreed with an exaggerated shudder. “You’d be a welcome reminder of my life in New York. So stay.”
“Okay. I just wish Angel had mentioned I’d be intruding or interrupting a family gathering.”
He placed his hand on her bare shoulder, the warm skin singeing his fingertips. “You’re not doing either. Angel knows another person is always welcome. Mom likes to say she cooks in the bathtub. In other words, there’s enough for an army. But first, tell me. What brings you to this corner of the world?”
She raised her beautiful gaze to meet his. “Actually, you do.”
Before he could reply, the front door swung open wide. “Toni said you have company. I came out to meet our guest,” his mother, Mariana Mancuso, said as she joined them, her timing impeccable as ever.
“Hello, Mrs. Mancuso,” Sara said. “It’s nice to see you again.”
“Sara! This is a pleasant surprise!” His mother stepped down onto the porch and pulled Sara into an embrace.
Sara’s eyes opened wide as she hugged his overly affectionate mother, but she quickly relaxed and readily returned the gesture.
“I’m so sorry to show up uninvited.”
“Nonsense! You’re always welcome here! And that hug just showed me you’re too skinny, so come in, meet the rest of the family and eat!”
Rafe glanced at the cleavage peeking from the top of Sara’s shirt, now askew thanks to his mother’s big bear hug, and thought her curves were just about perfect.
“We weren’t finished talking,” he told his mother. “I’ll bring Sara inside in a minute.” First, he wanted to know why she’d come to see him.
What she wanted.
Whether or not she wanted him. The thought, once lodged in his brain, wouldn’t go away. She was wrong for him on every level except the one that mattered most. He desired this woman like crazy. He wanted to know what would happen if they indulged the banked desire and took what they both wanted.
But he didn’t get the chance.
His mother ignored his request to go inside alone. Keeping an arm around Sara’s shoulder, she steered her into the house, where the entire clan had gathered by the front door, eager to meet Uncle Rafe’s girlfriend.
Thanks to Toni, the designation was sure to stick.
Whether it was true or not.