Free Once Tasted: A Silver Creek Novel by Laura Moore

way to calm herself and clear the air between them, she left Roberto and Paul thinning leaves in the vineyard and walked up to the house.
    The truck was back—Thomas had taken it on one of his undisclosed errands, skipping lunch. Entering by the back door, she slipped off her shoes and gulped down a glass of water at the sink. It had grown hotter today.
    She heard his footsteps above her, moving along the upstairs hall in the direction of his bedroom. She opened the fridge and pulled out a pitcher of home-brewed iced tea and poured a tall glass, adding some ice cubes to it.
    Drawing a deep breath, she hurried up the stairs with the tea, her peace offering. She knocked on the half-closed door and peered around it, a determinedly bright smile pinned on her face. “Hi, I thought you might like some tea.”
    Thomas spun around from where he’d been bent over the bed. “Mia,” he said uneasily. “This isn’t a good time—”
    She saw two open suitcases behind him on the bed. Clothes covered the remaining space. “What are the suitcases for?”
    In the short silence that followed, something awful crawled through her. It left her as cold and sweaty as the glass in her hand.
    “I’m going to France.”
    “Oh.” She relaxed. Of course. Thomas loved France and adored tooling through Burgundy. And, really, this was the perfect time for him to leave. He’d come backrefreshed for the harvest. “Well, I’m happy to look after the cellar while you’re away. I promise I won’t break too many pipettes or glasses.”
    “No, Mia.” His voice was gentle. “I’m going to live there. I’m leaving on Tuesday.”
    “How could you not tell me?” It seemed to Mia that she’d been repeating these six words for hours now. She was trying to keep her voice steady. She was failing.
    What if she hadn’t gone upstairs? Would Thomas have waited until he was asking her for a ride to the airport? The muscles in her throat clenched.
    “I didn’t know how,” Thomas answered. “Listen, I understand you’re upset, but what I’m doing isn’t just the best for me—though it is—it’s the best for
you
.”
    She fought the panic. “But, Thomas, we’re a
team—
”
    He shook his head. “You need a chance to come into your own. If I stay here, you’re never going to believe in your abilities as a winemaker. I want to still be alive to enjoy your wines. I want to be able to crow with pride when you begin winning awards. But you know what I also want? A chance to live out the rest of my days with the woman who’s made me remember what it is to love. Would you deny me any of those things?”
    “No, of course not.” She swallowed the lump of pain that was lodged in her throat. “I’m happy you’ve found someone. You deserve it. It’s only—” Didn’t he understand how she felt? “France is so far away.”
    “Well, there’s email and Skype. Pascale and I have gotten very savvy at Skyping. You and I can, too.”
    Skype? Email? As if those things could ever replace her uncle’s presence. Once again, she was losing someone she loved. Her mother. Aunt Ellen. And now Thomas. She hadn’t really thought about her future orwhat would happen if she found someone to love. But Thomas had been a given. A constant. She’d thought that she would care for him as he aged, her way of thanking him for taking her in and raising her like a daughter. But now he was leaving her.…
    “And with Reid advising you—”
    “What?” She scrambled to recall what Thomas had been saying just now. “What does any of this have to do with Reid?” The awful, crawling sensation was back.
    Thomas looked surprised. “As I explained, the Knowleses have invested in the winery. A very sizable stake. It goes without saying they’d like to see a return on their investment. Adele, Daniel, and I have decided Reid is the best person to oversee the business end of the operation.”
    “Reid? No.” She shook her head. “I don’t need, I don’t
want
—”