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“The crew comes through with a chain and a tractor and rips them out of the ground. Then everything gets burned.”
“Harsh.”
“It’s a necessity. This part of the vineyard needs a hard reset, if we’re going to build something healthy.”
“Seems to be a theme around here.”
Rowan sidestepped and gestured to the vine beside them. “Daylight’s burning. You take this one.”
Within the hour, together they’d done thirty vines, and she was sweaty under her clothing, even though the air was chilly enough to vaporize her breath. She noticed how Harrison caught his bottom lip in his teeth when he concentrated, andhow the gloves pulled tight across his knuckles as he squeezed the pruners. She noticed the little grunt he made each time he stood up from trimming low canes, and how he hummed while he worked.
She noticed how good it felt having him there, sharing labor. Sharing space.
They came together at the end of the row. From where they stood, they had a view of Lake Vesper, a long lake bordered by a forest of hemlock, white pine, and sugar maple. The shoreline was sparsely dotted with a few docks and cabins. A crescent of ice and mist covered the shallows nearest them, and a solitary blue heron glided low over the water at the deeper end.
“How many left?” Harrison meshed his fingers together and bent them backward to stretch.
Rowan chuckled and removed her hat. Damp curls clung to her forehead and cheekbones, and the air felt like heaven on her heated skin. “About seven hundred.”
“Oh, fuck.” He hung his head.
“I told you, you don’t have to help.”
“I know I don’t.”
“Go back. Get a hot shower and some of Duncan’s shitty coffee. You can blame it on me. Tell Nate I fired you for insubordination.”
“Do you notwantme out here, Rowan?”
“I do want you. Out here.” She wanted him other places, too.
He paused. Then, he gestured to her forehead. “You’re steaming.”
She drew off a glove and swept back clammy flyaways. “This feels like the first time I’ve been warm in weeks.”
Harrison frowned. “What?”
Rowan waved a dismissive hand. “I haven’t really gotten the hang of banking coals in the woodstove yet. Hot water in the shower doesn’t last very long either.”
His frown deepened and he shuffled closer to her. “Duncan should do something about that.”
“It’s fine. Let’s take a break.”
Leaves crunched under them as they sat down. Rowan hugged her knees to her chest. Harrison stretched his legs, crossed his ankles, and leaned back on his hands, long and lean as a marsh reed.
“The flannel suits you, by the way,” she said after a few minutes of quiet. “I’m trying to imagine you in scrubs. Do they make flannel scrubs?”
He gave her an odd look, his mouth twitching. “Ah, they do. They call them pajamas.”
They laughed together.
“What are you really doing here, Harrison?”
“Why won’t you call me Harry?”
“I’m the only one allowed to answer questions with a question. Answer me.”
“I’m helping you in the vineyard.”
