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“Sorry, I thought we were just coming to dinner. No one told us it was a party.”
Her mom giggled and gave Grant a look Chelsea couldn’t decipher. “It’s just a little get-together. That’s all. Come on through and get a drink.”
“Where’s Dad? I want to get those papers signed before I can relax and have a drink.” She smiled at Grant. “Then I think it’ll have to be champagne.”
He laughed. “Absolutely.”
To her surprise, her mom giggled. “It’ll be champagne all around, I’m sure. Your father’s in his office with Smoke. You should go and take care of that and then come straight back out.”
Chelsea set out toward the office, then realized Grant wasn’t with her. She looked back to see him still with her mom who was eagerly telling him something or other. “Can I have him, Mom?”
Her mom looked guilty. “Sorry, of course, darling. I’ll talk to you later, Grant.”
“What did she want?”
Grant shrugged. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he, too, looked guilty. “I don’t know.”
“Sorry, she’s a sweetie. She’s probably just trying to make you feel welcome.”
He smiled. “Yeah. That was it.”
The door to the office was open, and her dad greeted them with a smile. “Come on in. Let’s get this taken care of, then we can …”
“What?” asked Chelsea. “What are we going to do next? What’s more important than this?” She was a little irritated. This was a big moment for her, and everyone else seemed more concerned with enjoying the party.
Smoke laughed. “Chill out, little sis. The whole party is for you. Once the papers are signed, we can get on with celebrating.”
Chelsea would have been reassured if she hadn’t caught Smoke winking at Grant as he spoke. Did they think she was being unreasonable? She hoped not. She just wanted them to understand how important this was to her.
Grant squeezed her hand. He understood. “It’s okay. This is a big moment. Enjoy it.”
“Thanks.”
Her dad nodded. “It is a big moment. It’s as important to me as it is to you, buttercup. I want you to know how proud I am of you.”
“Aww, thanks, Dad.” That was all it took for her to forget all her irritation. That was what this was about. She was about to embark on her own adventure; she was about to leave him out of her business going forward, but she desperately wanted him to be proud of her.
He smiled and tapped on the papers on his desk. “Let’s do it.”
She sat down and signed form after form. By the time she was done, half her Hamilton-Groves shares belonged to Smoke. She owed him a lot of money, in the form of a loan—with very generous terms. And, most importantly of all, Zosca belonged to her.
She smiled around at the three of them. “It’s done.” She got to her feet, and her dad wrapped her in a hug. “Fly well, my little hummingbird.”
She laughed. “I will.”
Smoke hugged her next. “You’re going to do great, Chels. I’m proud of you, too.”
Grant kissed her cheek.
“And so, it begins,” she said with a smile.
He laughed. “Oh, you have no idea.”
He took her hand, and the four of them made their way back out to the great room. This time there was no mistaking the fact that people stopped talking when they appeared.
Her dad cleared his throat, and everyone went quiet. “I’m happy to announce that I am officially out of the wine business. Please help me congratulate Chelsea on her new beginning at Zosca.”
Everyone clapped and raised their glasses in a toast. Mary Ellen dashed forward with a tray of champagne glasses for them.
