In The Vineyard Ch 03

The doorbell rang at a few minutes after seven on Monday morning. Ana rubbed her eyes, she was feeling some effect from the margaritas last night. When the Stones returned, they were still celebrating. As expected, Chris' father announced his retirement, and that, as of the beginning of next year, Chris would be in charge of the business. There were a few more pitchers of margaritas, then some coffee as Ana prepared to drive home. She didn't arrive home until after midnight.

The bell rang again. Who could be here at this hour on a Monday?. "Greg, if that's you," she muttered, "I'm going to tell you once and for all, to get lost! For good!" She slept in an oversized man's undershirt. She pulled on a pair of cotton flannel plaid pants and slippers, looked in the mirror to make certain her face was clean, and trudged to the door.

"We missed you this weekend." It was Uncle Chester, dressed in work clothes. "It was beautiful! Your dad caught a nice steel eye, and we smoked it on the grill." He handed her a small bundle of aluminum foil. "I brought you back a piece."

"Uncle Chester, what are you doing here at this hour?"

"We're picking grapes. Miles called me last night. He said he lost your number. I tried to call, but no answer. I took the chance that you were just out for the night. And, I thought we could car pool today." It was true that Ana hadn't checked her voicemail. And, she had turned off her cell phone while she was at the Stones last night. It was still off this morning, sitting in the charger. She tried to sound casual.

"So, Miles asked you to call me? I didn't think I was that impressive."

"Oh, no, he said you were a great help! In fact, that's another reason I wanted to talk to you before I saw you there - he asked me a few questions and I'm afraid that he might be getting a little bit too interested in you. I just want to remind you to watch out for him."

"Uncle Chester, I don't think he's as bad as everyone says. Greg and I ran into him on Friday, at Madrid, and he was a nice and polite as possible." Ana was hopeful that Miles hadn't mentioned the encounter of Saturday night.

"Really, he didn't mention that. Hey, kiddo, time to talk on the way. You'd better get ready."

Ana nodded. It seemed that Miles wanted to keep things between them secret. She wondered what his motives were - was he aware of Uncle Chester's concerns, or, were things, as she feared, over before they started. She went back into her bedroom and pulled off her sleep clothes. She called out to Chester. "Can you make a couple of cups of coffee? How cold is it out?"

"Already started the coffee. Its about 50 now, but supposed to be another hot day. You'll need a coat to start with, or at least a flannel shirt, but it'll be upper 60 to 70 by the time we're done. And, there's barely a cloud in the sky."

Ana dressed in jeans and a tee shirt, put on her new work coat and boots. Before she put the clippers in her pocket, she showed them to Uncle Chester.

"I got a blister last time. These have soft handles."

"Those are nice. Miles is going to think you're really serious now."

Ana poured coffee into a travel cup, added some half and half and turned off the coffee maker. Chester's black sport utility vehicle was parked next to her car. "I planned on driving. I hope you don't mind listening to public radio - I feel disconnected after a weekend at the lake. And, I've found that news doesn't really happen on the weekends - lots more happens on Mondays!"

"That's ok. I'm a news junkie, too. I don't listen to much music anymore, usually talk or books on tape." She climbed into the passenger seat.

"You know, I don't admit it to most people, but I even listen to that 'Ask Someone's Mother' program. I know what people say about it, that its just exploitive and a version of voyeurism, but I think that the mother is really right on a lot of the time. Do you ever listen to it?" Chester asked.

"No I don't really listen to it." Ana said. But some of my friends are regulars," she added quickly, so Chester wouldn't feel slighted. "I'll have to try it sometime."

"I'm going to miss it tonight, so if you listen, tell me about it. I'm going over to Howard's to help him work on some wine. He can't lift the five gallon bottles very well."

Chester drove quickly and a little aggressively. Ana was almost relieved when they arrived and parked, and she noted that Chester made much better time than she did. It was just after 8. They were nearly the first to arrive - there was one other vehicle in the parking lot. Ana could see Miles engaged in conversation with Jimmy - apparently he was early, for a change. She paused before getting out - she could have hidden in a crowd, as it was, she would be forced into some conversation, and she didn't know how awkward it would be.

To her relief, Miles acted as if nothing had occurred between last Thursday and today. He said "Hi," pleasantly enough, and went back to his conversation with Jimmy. From the traces Ana overheard, Miles and Jimmy were discussing Jack Formby's health. She remembered what Greg said - that Miles would likely be forced out once old Mr. Formby passed on.

Others started to arrive, alone or in pairs. Before long, about 15 men had assembled, and unlike before, Ana was no longer the only female, Howard's wife Margaret also came. She appeared close to Howard's age, and she shared his active appearance, although she admitted that neither of them were comfortable moving the full glass five gallon jugs that were used to age small quantities of wine. They were thankful for Chester's offer of help that evening. Margaret went out of her way to be kind to Ana, and Ana was grateful - it kept her from wondering what Miles was thinking.

The group grabbed clippers from the shed and started toward the vines. When Ana didn't stop, Miles yelled to her. "Hey, didn't you forget something?"

Ana pulled the clippers from her pocket and waved them toward him.

"Look at this," Miles said to the group in general. "Second time here, and she's a professional!" Ana looked back, but Miles wasn't mocking her, he returned her stare with a look of admiration.

Miles was relieved when Ana showed up with Chester that morning. He made a point of asking about her when he called. He tried to get Chester to talk about Ana - he asked about her parents, and tried to work in some questions about her relationship with Greg. Chester didn't offer much, and Miles had dropped the subject, instead emphasizing how much help it had been to have Ana there. Now, if he could only get her alone for a minute, and try to explain. Or apologize. Or something. He couldn't get her out of his mind. He could kick himself for letting her get out of the car and leave the other night. Why hadn't he stop her?

Ana caught Miles eyes on her a couple of times, but she tried to ignore it. What was his game, she wondered? He had asked Chester to bring her here, but he wasn't going out of his way to be friendly. She thought of trying to find an opportunity to talk to him again, alone, but she didn't know what she would say. At least this will be a day of good exercise, she thought as she went toward the vines with the others.

Ana picked as fast as she could. They were picking various red French hybrid grapes. Uncle Chester said that he had brought a bottle of last year's Chambourcin, one of the grapes they were picking. It was also one of Chester's favorite grapes for winemaking.

When they finally broke for lunch, at one twenty five, Ana excused herself. She walked around the corner of the building, took her cell phone out of her pocket, and called Veronica.

"Stone residence." Veronica answered on the third ring.

"Hey, Vern. I'm picking grapes again."

"With mysterious Miles???"

"Yes, but he's being sort of aloof. But not mean, or anything like. But not exactly friendly either. Anyway, I called to tell you I won't be home at 3. Better make it 4:30."

Ana had agreed before leaving last night to a 'girls get together' at her place today. Veronica was going to come, and promised to bring Mary Pringle, another former work mate who had left the company long before the closure. Mary had gone back to school to complete her education degree, and was in her first year of teaching high school English. Mary was also a confirmed single. She dated frequently, and usually had a steady, but refused to consider marriage. She continually said she was 'too young.' She was a few years younger than Vern and Ana, not quite 30.

"Well, Mary said she wouldn't make it until at least 4 anyway. School's out at 2:40, then she does a quick work out. So, 4:30, no prob. Don't give up kid! Oh, and give mysterious Miles a kiss for me!" Before Ana could respond, Veronica had hung up. Ana turned off her cell phone, and started back toward the picking group, already beginning their lunch. On the way, she saw Miles and Jimmy, heading back the other way, towards the door of his living area, she assumed. Jimmy waved, but this time Miles barely looked her way. He had tried to catch Ana as soon as the picking was done, but as he got close to her, he overheard her tell Chester she had go do something. Miles bet himself she had gone off to call Greg. Sure, enough, there she was she was holding her cell phone.

"She sure is cute," Jimmy said.

"Un huh," replied Miles.

"Whats with you? You're moody today."

"Just thinking about the grapes."

"I bet. Hey, I thought you were going to make a move over the weekend. What happened?"

Miles looked at him. "Honestly, nothing. It was a bad idea. And, I knew it. There's nothing I can offer to someone like that."

"Other than the charming, and, I might add, quite attractive, Miles Delong."

Miles looked at him narrowly. "You're not my type."

"Its OK, my interests lie elsewhere."

"With a certain hairy wine host, I assume." That Jimmy and Brandon were not just friends was common knowledge around the winery. In fact, Miles reflected, it was a wonder that there had never been a Miles and Jimmy rumour, to go along with the other rumors. Jimmy's sexual preferences were nothing like secret, although Brandon was more secretive. And, Jack Formby was

outspoken on the subject of anything he considered abnormal. He seemed to take Todd's infidelities in stride, while having little tolerance for Brandon, despite the fact that Brandon was more likely to forge long term, monogamous relationships. Miles thought this a shame - as far as Miles was concerned, people were people, and as long as they did their job, he didn't care what they did with their personal lives.

"Do me a favor," Miles said. "Please don't ride me about Ms. Palmer."

"I'm sorry if I hit a nerve. Mr. Delong, I prescribe some aggressive treatment. Let me see, how does my calendar look." He thought for a minute. "Lets say this Thursday. You provide the place, and the cards, and I'll provide the rest of the poker party. I'll even get a stripper, if you want. A girl, I mean."

Miles frowned and shook his head at the suggestion.

"No, no stripper."

"OK, just us guys. I can guarantee that you'll feel like shit the next day, but we'll erase any longings for a certain red head. Fair?"

Miles shook his outstretched hand. "You've got a deal. I'll even get some food together. As long as you do the prep work, master chef!"

Ana returned for the lunch gathering and tasted a fair assortment of wines. Miles and Jimmy joined the crowd a few minutes later, carrying a couple of bottles each. Chester's Chambourcin he'd brought for the lunch was a fine wine, although the bottle Miles brought forth from the same vintage was slightly superior. The comparison sparked some discussion between the men, and Chester ended up writing down some notes based on Miles' suggestions

Ana kept an eye on her watch. She and Chester stayed to help with most of the crushing and de stemming, but, at 3, with about ten lugs left, they departed. Miles and Jimmy were between them doing most of the work, they seemed to be enjoying the physical work.

In contrast to the white wine, Chester took his ten gallon's worth in crushed grapes. He had two food grade plastic trash cans to hold the grapes.

He would add yeast, and complete the fermentation at home. When it came time to press the red grapes, anywhere from 7 to 30 days later, depending on temperature and preference, Chester would either get a friend to come over with a small press, or rent one from a wine making supply store. Then they were transfer the freshly pressed wine into glass five gallon jugs, known as 'carboys.' With Jimmy's help, Chester sat the two cans in the rear of his vehicle, covering the tops with plastic trash bags to prevent any splashing.

. Miles didn't seem to notice when walked away, although he waved as they drove by. Ana was thankful that Chester didn't speak too much on the way home - he realized that they were in time to hear the first hour of "Ask Someone's Mother," and he listened intently. Ana listened too, but it seemed like most of the advice handed out was common sense. A mother whose child's grades had gone down was advised to seek out a tutor; a teenage girl was advised to break up with her boyfriend who was pressuring her to have sex, and a grieving widow was given some directions to find a support group.

It was about 4 when they reached Ana's place. Ana thanked Chester, then rushed inside for a quick shower. She put on some loose slacks and a long button front blouse. She tied her still wet hair into a ponytail, and applied minimal makeup - blusher, powder and mascara. The doorbell rang promptly at 4:30 and Veronica and Mary were there.

Mary had long been one of Ana's favorite people. She was constantly laughing or finding things to laugh about. She had a youthful appearance, barely looking older than a student herself, and often dressed casually, favoring earth toned baggy slacks and loose tee shirts. She wore her naturally blond hair in tight curls that bounced as she spoke. It was hard to be around Mary and not be in a good mood. It was Veronica's wise suggestion that they get together with Mary after seeing Ana's mood the day before. She had arranged to leave Alicia with her grandmother, and Chris was working late. Mary had a few papers to grade that night, but she said she could stay for a while to catch up on girl talk.

Ana had decided earlier against more margaritas. She instead had a few bottles of French sparkling wine, and she'd taken a large bag of jumbo shrimp out of the freezer and placed it in the refrigerator last night. She rinsed the shrimp and arranged them around a bowl and placed them on her kitchen table. She also sliced an avacado and spooned out two types of cocktail sauce - regular and extra hot. Mary came bearing a loaf of fresh bread from her bread machine ("I set the time so it would be done right after school.") and Veronica brought a nice piece of Stilton cheese and a bowl of mixed olives.

Ana opened the first bottle, and they toasted one another.

"So, what about this guy?" Mary asked. She was spreading the Stilton on her freshly made whole wheat bread. She topped it with a shrimp and bit into it. Veronica was fiddling with Ana's stereo. She moved the radio tuner, and turned the volume up.

"I found it," she said.

The wine was already going to Ana's head. The heat, she told herself, and working outside. Plus tasting the wine at lunch. "What did you find?" she asked Veronica. "Didn't she tell you about it?" Vern asked Mary.

Mary laughed. "That's why we're here. We're the 'rescue Ana before she does something stupid' group."

"Shhhhh," said Veronica. Somebody's mother was giving sage advice on the radio. "Ok. I finally have a reason to call."

Ana looked to see if she was serious. "Oooh, no. Not from my phone. They must have caller Id."

"Use my cell," said Mary.

"Wait a minute. No one is calling into some local radio show from my home," said Ana. "Here, have another glass of bubbly." Her friends obediently held out their glasses. Ana poured herself another, and took a piece of bread.

"I don't know why you won't go for this. Vern and I talked about this, and we think you should ask your mysterious man out yourself." Mary said.

"You've got to be kidding. One - I may be liberated, or whatever they call that nowadays, but I am not in the habit of asking men out on dates. Two - I don't think he would say yes, if I did ask. And, three - well, I'll come up with three later." Ana downed the second glass of sparkling wine and poured the rest of the bottle into her glass. She went back to the refrigerator for another, grabbing and biting into a shrimp as she went.

"You see," Veronica said, "That's why we need to call. Because we knew that you'd never listen to us. But if a real live radio personality tells you to ask this man out, what will you do?"

Ana came back to them, holding a towel and an unopened bottles of blanc de blancs. "How do you know that this radio person is for real? And, who really knows if she is someone's mother?"

Mary laughed. "Vern, she's got us there. I always assumed that she was some middle aged cross dressing man, or something."

Veronica took the newly opened bottle from Ana and poured a glass. She walked determinedly to the telephone, mounted on the kitchen wall. She punched in several numbers, hung up, and dialed again. "Yes," she said. She cupped her hand on the received. "I got through," she said to the others. "I got..." she moved her hand down. "Yes. Well, my friend has the problem, not me. Uh huh. Its this man, and she's afraid to ask him for a date.....Yes, she's right here... Uh, Francine. ..Yeah, I can do that." She covered the telephone receiver again. "Ana, they must speak with you. They said that they can't talk to a friend. That it doesn't work on the radio. And, we're coming up. Oh, and you're called Francine. I knew you wouldn't want to use your name." Someones' Mother was just advising a young female in the matter of kissing on a first date (As long as no tongue is involved, she said it would be ok), and the radio station went to commercials. Veronica held the phone out, and Ana shook her head. "Come on, Ana," she said. "I really got through." Ana stayed put and drained her glass. She poured another.

"Please," said Veronica. Mary was beside Ana, patting her on the back.

"Oh, ok," Ana said. "But, you guys owe me for this." She stepped up and took the phone. Veronica turned the radio down.

"They have a delay. We should listen in the other room."

"You guys can't dessert me," Ana pleaded. But, the two went into her bedroom. I can just hang up the phone, Ana thought. But, even Uncle Chester likes this program. Then she had a disturbing thought - what if Uncle Chester was listening? No, wait. He said he wouldn't be. What if Miles himself was listening? But, she couldn't picture Miles sitting in his living room, listening to a radio advice columnist.

A voice came on the phone. "Francine, is that right?"

"Yes, this is she."

"Hi, Francine. I'm Claudette. I do the pre screening. I have written down that you like a man and you're afraid to ask him out. Are you married?"

"Of course not," Ana said, shocked.

"Sorry. I have a standard list of questions so we can prepare Someone's mother. How old are you?"

"Can I say thirty something?"

"That's fine. We just need to identify the minors who call. Let's see, no problems with children, I assume. Can you summarize the situation for me?"

Ana tried to tell Claudette something without using any specifics. She ended up describing Miles as a friend of a friend, and simply said that she'd hurt his feelings on their first date and didn't know how to ask for another chance. As she spoke the words, she was really embarrassed. She was nearly ready to say, ' never mind' when Claudette said " OK Francine, you're on."