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The last step was getting everything under contract.
Dom sat behind his massive desk, his large frame stooped, his salt and pepper hair disheveled. Jake tried to raise the energy in the room with his voice. “Good morning, Dom! Ready to sign some papers?”
The older man wasn’t buying into Jake’s hype. “Is this going to work?”
“Of course it is. The network is very excited.”
“I don’t give a shit about the network. Is this going to fix things with Jo?”
Jake grimaced, but kept his question calm and even. “How do you see this fixing things with Jo?”
Josephine Valenti had made her feelings about the original show crystal clear. Although her name was on the contracts, she wasn't active in the business and was rarely seen on site. She wanted Dom to retire, and she saw the show as another hurdle on that path. Jake hoped that this vineyard renovation would set them down a new path together. Hell, he prayed he could get her on-screen to help Dom carry the show.
Dom cradled his head in his hands, elbows propped on his desk, and Jake could feel the older man’s frustration. “I want my wife back. I want her to talk to me, like we used to. I want her to want me again. I wish I fucking knew what to do.”
Jake dug deep for his patience, but this was way beyond his pay grade. “What does this have to do with the vineyard, Dom?”
“Jo kept talking about wanting to go to Italy and eating the food and drinking the wine. Well, what do we need to fly to Italy for? We’ve got all that right here. Giving her a little slice of Italy here at home seemed like a good compromise." Dom ran his fingers through his hair and then pointed at Jake, as if he needed convincing. "And the property was a steal. It’s a solid investment. Jo is going to be great at running a winery. Hell, look how she kept this business going for years.” Dom couldn't keep his hands still, gesturing wildly while he spoke.
From everything Jake had seen and pieced together, Jo had very firmly stepped back from her work life. Was she seriously considering taking on the start-up work for a winery and event space? Something wasn’t sitting right here. “What has Jo said about the project?”
“She doesn’t know.”
Oh shit.All of his work pitching this to the network would swirl down the drain, and his reputation along with it, if Jo wasn’t on board with all this. Who the hell bought fifty acres of land, three outbuildings, and a farmhouse to renovate into a working winery and event space without consulting his business partner? He admired Dom's decisiveness, but this was too much.
“Don’t you think you should tell her about it before you invest all this time and money?” Jake refrained from changingthistomy, but that was what he was thinking. This would be a colossal waste of money if Jo didn’t want it in the end. Prospects for future marketing and filming options withered on the vine of Jake’s imagination.
“It’s a surprise, to celebrate our retirement.”
Jake sighed and looked back at the worthless contracts in his hand. So much for an easy negotiation.
“Hey, what’s going on in here? You okay, Dad?” Frankie popped her head in the doorway. Concern for her father pulled her eyebrows together and narrowed her eyes. At Jake, of course.
“I’m fine, baby girl.” Dom beckoned his youngest in for a hug. “Just talking through some business with Jake here.”
Frankie pulled back slightly from her father’s hug to skewer Jake with a glare. “What kind of business?” She perched on the arm of her father's desk chair and crossed her arms, settling in for a fight.
“We’re signing contracts for the Valenti Vineyards project,” Dom said.
“Dad, we talked about this—”
Dom slapped a flat hand against his desk, cutting her off. “You and Sofia are treating me like a child. I am still head of this company, and I don’t need anyone holding my hand through a simple contract signing!” Dom's outburst seemed to tire him and he slumped back into his chair.
“So you’ve read through the contracts? Sent them off to our lawyer Cousin Giulia for a read-through?”
Dom just stared blankly at his desk.
“Dad, do you know what you’re signing?” Frankie’s sharp tone snapped Dom’s head back into the game.
“I’m sure it’s the same as the contracts for Million-Dollar Starter Home,” Dom argued.
Frankie muttered under her breath, “Yeah, and those contracts weren't a problem at all.” Jake watched this all play out stone-faced, but behind his facade he was scrambling for a new negotiation strategy. Never let it be said he'd completely abandoned acting. By the time Frankie turned to him and said, “I’m staying,” Jake had the beginning of a plan.
There was something about the jut of her chin, the challenge in her tone, that made Jake want to win.
“Okay. Do you want to walk through the agreements?” Jake asked.
“No.”
