Free The Breakup by Brenda Grate

made Aja reluctant to disappoint her. She needed to make a good impression on her first day.
     
    After rifling through the suitcase for a few minutes, Aja realized she had nothing appropriate for a day in the fields, doing whatever it was they did in… fields. She clutched her head. It was too early to think, let alone come to any sane conclusions. She grabbed her shabbiest pair of jeans, another hopeful purchase in the children’s department. The biggest problem with the jeans was the flat butt. Somehow her ass cheeks ended up riding on her thighs. She looked at every angle in the warped mirror and realized it was a mistake. Now she wouldn’t be able to get that image out of her head all day. She threw on a tank top, pulled her long hair back in a braid and rushed downstairs to the dining room.
     
    By the time Aja had finished eating and getting the hotel staff to make her a lunch, it was nearly time to be at the vineyard. Frantic, she raced her rental car too fast, but figured it just made her more like the locals.  
     
    She hurried to the house and knocked on the door. It opened just as she was in the process of adjusting her left butt cheek to fit more comfortably in her jeans.
     
    Aja raised her eyes in time to meet the haughty look of the man who’d spilled her espresso in her lap. He watched her contortions and quirked an eyebrow. Aja glared at him.
     
    “Who are you?” His voice was like whiskey. Smooth, but with a bite at the end.
     
    She straightened up and tried to look dignified. A difficult task, considering she was eye level with the tuft of hair sprouting out of his shirt. “I’m the new worker.”
     
    “You?” He barked out a laugh and looked her over. “You look like a stiff breeze would blow you away.”
     
    Why does he have to be so damn fluent in English? Aja muttered to herself. He had an accent, but spoke perfect English. Of all the people she had to meet. It dawned on her that he’d opened the door of the main house and he wasn’t acting like a visitor. He was probably the owner of the vineyard and here she was being a smart ass.
     
    Aja stuck her chin in the air and put a smile on her face, hoping it didn’t look as much a grimace as it felt. “Nona hired me yesterday and told me to be here at six. Is there someone who can show me around?”
     
    He looked her over and was silent for a full minute, or at least it felt that way. Aja squirmed under his gaze. His dark blue eyes were gorgeous, but they had a skeptical look that was anything but attractive, especially for the person withering under it. She could feel the heat rising up her neck.
     
    He muttered something about Nona’s “damn interference” and pushed himself off the door frame. “I’ll show you around. Just wait a minute. I’ll be right back.” He disappeared and the door shut in Aja’s face.
     
    Of all the… what a stuck up pig. Aja stood on the porch, completely dismissed, and felt like leaving. Maybe she didn’t need a job after all. The only thing that kept her feet glued to the stone was a determination to show him she could do the work no matter what he thought of her. She was going to pick grapes, or whatever they had to do, like a pro, and he would humbly beg her pardon by the day’s end.
     
    By the time the door opened again, she’d thought up at least fifty good adjectives for Mr. ‘Arrogant’, but Aja had to rearrange her features in a hurry when she saw Nona standing there. She greeted Aja with a smile and an apology.  
     
    “My son doesn’t like me to interfere with the workers now that he’s taken over the winery,” she said in her charming voice.
     
    Aja felt warmth for Nona rush over her. She was her champion.
     
    “So, I’m afraid we won’t be able to take you on after all.”
     
    Aja’s brain rattled the words around for a few seconds then she gasped. “What?”
     
    “He said you’re too small to do the work.” There was regret in her voice.
     
    “Too small? How