She heard voices not too far off and, curious, quietly moved in that direction.
One of the unseen pair was plainly Cole. The other voice was that of a woman – probably young – that she didn't recognise. That must be the girl that had just started work in Millers. She listened and her interest sharpened. The unseen female was saying things that showed, although she might be new to vineyards, she had already picked up a fair bit of information from somewhere. Some of the questions she was asking were ones that Cole couldn't answer.
When she got close enough, she moved into their field of view. They stopped. The girl must have been about eighteen and very close to Cole in height. She had long blonde hair, tied back in a loose ponytail. Perhaps not conventionally beautiful, but her features were attractive, vivacious.
''Hello, Cole'' she said, waiting for her great-nephew to make the introductions.
He paused for a moment – relations between the two branches of the family were not currently at their warmest, - then admitted ''This is my – friend – Jennifer Craig. My great-aunt, Mrs Angela Channing''.
There was a quickening of interest in the girl's eyes – no doubt she heard most of the local gossip while working in the store.
''I heard you talking – '' she said ''and – ''.
From that point on, Cole found himself following behind the two women, trying to keep his annoyance in check, while Angela monopolised his date's attention, mostly with talk about wine production. When the older woman, finally, left them, he waited until she was, just, out of earshot and then said ''Sorry about that''.
Jenny gave him a questioning look and then said ''I think I like her'''.
''Dad and Mom don't get on very well with her'' he told her, thinking 'neither do I really'.
''That's a pity.''
X
Angela walked slowly back to the main house, her thoughts gradually returning to the matter that had been on her mind when she'd decided to think it through while she strolled. Dinner invitations were nothing out of the usual. The purpose behind this one, she rather thought, was. Mario Agretti had been a neighbour for years, without them seeing very much of each other. The motive behind this sudden surge in friendliness was all too apparent – his daughter Melisa.
She was not averse to the idea of matchmaking. The joining of the two properties under one ownership made sense. She didn't entirely trust – but she didn't need to. No doubt, he felt the same way about her. She smiled, when she remembered other times when men had thought – wrongly – that they would get the better outcome from any business arrangement they made with her.
It should have been a straight-forward decision to say 'yes' to the initial invitation – but for some reason her mind kept drifting back to a pair of aquamarine eyes and the razor-sharp mind behind them.