“No worries. I’ve only been here a few days. I wanted to come by and say hi.”

“Great. I’m glad you did. Here, you want to taste this with me?”

“Sure.” I nodded. “What is it?”

“It’s my version of a dry rosé made with Grenache, Syrah, and Cinsault. Kind of like a French rosé.” He handed me a glass of the pink liquid.

I took a sip. “Wow, it’s really good.” Here was my chance to impress him. “It’s very fruit forward, raspberries on the nose. But I like the acidity. Makes it feel dry even with the fruitiness.”

Ryan smiled. “Pretty good for an amateur. I’m getting all that plus a little bit of plum, tiny bit of sweet pepper.”

Sweet pepper? Like red bell pepper? I definitely didn’t get that, but I wasn’t about to tell him. “Oh, yeah, now that you mention it…”

“This will be ready for bottling come fall.” Ryan looked around. “So what have you been up to since you’ve been here?”

“Not a lot. Marj showed me around the city. But until I get my bar results, which won’t happen for a few weeks or so, I can’t get a job practicing law.”

“Just relax, then. We’ve got all kinds of stuff to do around here. You won’t be bored.”

“It’s not being bored I’m worried about. I like to be earning something, and…I was wondering if maybe you could use some help around here. I love wine, and I’d love to learn more about it.”

“Well, we get the busiest around harvest time and bottling time. Both of those happen around the same time in the fall. Bottling goes into the winter sometimes. So there’s not a lot to do around here right now, but I suppose you could always help Marion in the office if you don’t mind busy work.”

“I don’t mind busy work at all. I’ve been doing clerical stuff for my dad for years. I’d love it, but if you don’t need the help…”

His eyes brightened. “Actually, I think Marion would appreciate it very much. And also”—he stroked his chin—“I think I could use you in the tasting room. If you’re truly interested in wine, I could give you a little guidance, and you could run tastings.”

My mouth dropped open. “Really? I would love that.”

“The pay’s not much. Not for someone who’s waiting for a job as a lawyer. Fifteen bucks an hour. But I could probably get you twenty to thirty hours a week between helping Marion and helping in the tasting room.”

“Hey, the pay is great. I’ve been working since I was sixteen, and I just hate not to be earning something. I really appreciate the fact that you guys are letting me stay here, but I don’t want to be a total sponge.”

“Are you kidding me? Marjorie has been so excited to have you. And we have room and plenty of everything to go around. But I understand how you feel, and I actually really could use your help.”

“This is so awesome, Ryan. Thank you so much.”

He grinned. He resembled Talon quite a bit, except his nose was still perfect. Obviously, it hadn’t been broken. Is this what Talon would look like when he smiled? I had never seen Talon smile. Not really. What would it take to get a true smile out of him?

“Let’s go back to the office. We’ll fill out some paperwork, and I’ll introduce you to Marion.”

“We’ve already met. I asked her where to find you.”

“Great. Let’s take a walk.”

As we walked, I itched to bring up Talon. How exactly did one bring him up in conversation? Hey, what’s going on with your brother?

When we got back to the office, Ryan filled Marion in, and she set about rooting out the tax forms I had to sign.

Once everything was in order, Ryan said, “The tasting room is just behind the office. Let me show you. People visit the winery a lot during the summer, and we offer free tastings of our current releases.”

The tasting room was basically just a conference table with a buffet on one end that held lots of wineglasses. A bar sat along the far wall.

“The wines are back here.” Ryan pointed to a refrigerated wine cabinet. “You just open four or five bottles of our current releases and pour. Simple enough. Answer questions about the wine if the people have any. I’ll have you sit in on a few that I do and that Mike does. He’s my second-in-command around here, although he’s off for a week on vacation right now.”

“This is awesome, Ryan. I’m so excited.”

“You’ll find it’s not as glamorous as you think. But I enjoy it.”

“Are you kidding? You’re an artist.”

“Well, I’ve won a few awards in my day.” He grinned again.

I sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Now or never. “Ryan, could I ask you question?”

“Sure. Go ahead.”

I bit my lip. “I was wondering about your brother. Talon. He seems… I don’t know.”

“Have you had a run-in with him?”

Well, yeah. He kissed me twice in the middle of the night. “No, no, nothing like that. He’s the one who picked me up at the airport a few days ago. He was just so…”

“A little off?”

I nodded. “Yes, that’s it exactly.”

Ryan blew out a breath. “You know he was in Iraq for a while.”

“Yeah, I know. I figured that’s what it was.”

“Well…there were things before then, even. But it’s Talon’s story to tell, not mine. If he’s bothering you, just ignore him.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. He’s not bothering me. I just would like to know more about him.”

“He’s pretty much a closed book.”

“I figured as much.” That armor I had sensed the first time I met him—so apparent, although invisible. I could feel it, as if it were a living, breathing entity enclosing him.

“Don’t let him get to you,” Ryan said. “He’s been through a lot. Just hang out with Marjorie, and starting tomorrow, you can hang out here with Marion and me and the rest of us. When did you say you get your bar results?”

“It could be as soon as a few weeks to a month. Or it could be longer. I frantically check the website every day to see if it’s been updated.”