THE LOVE DEAL

The Bargain

The letter was crumpled, smeared with coffee stains, but the words were still clear as day: Final Notice: Foreclosure Pending. I’d read those same words over and over again, praying that somehow they would change if I just looked at them long enough. They never did. I let the letter slip from my hands, drifting to the floor like the remnant of my shattered plans. The silence in the small plant house was deafening, broken only by the faint hum of the fridge in the next room. Dad had always said the vineyard will be my future, but now, it was slipping through my fingers like dry sand I couldn’t hold on to no matter how hard I tried. I glanced out the window at the rolling hills, the rows of vines stretching out like an ocean of green, and felt a deep ache in my chest. How could this have happened? This wasn’t just a piece of land. It was my father’s legacy. The one thing he had poured his heart into for half his life, before he passed away last year. And now, I was on the brink of losing it all. Where did I go wrong? How bad did I handle this? Dad always believed in me, believed I was capable. I believed it as well, but now…it doesn’t seem to be true anymore. The banks certainly didn’t care about legacy. All they saw were numbers- debt piling on top of debt. No matter how many ideas I had to save the place, nothing had worked. “God…how did it get this bad?” I sat on the chair beside me, feeling faint suddenly. The cool breeze came in through the open window of the farmhouse. I just stared into nothing- feeling nothing. It wasn’t always like this. With Dad’s absence since last year, I’ve worked my way through the hoops and nooks of everything one needs to know about running a vineyard this big. I’ve always paid attention to Dad’s instructions, but I always knew deep down, I wasn’t ready. His death was unexpected. It tore me apart, destroyed me. My only family is gone. Mom died giving birth to me, and my father was the only one I had in my life. Too focused on the vineyard, he never thought to ever remarry. I couldn’t blame him, the vineyard was a lot of work. He was always up and awake making sure things ran properly. I had always thought he was amazing; my superhero, and that I’d be like him one day. Just not this soon. I sighed. As much as our wine was good, it just wasn’t enough. In a world dominated by big names and shiny labels, small-family owned vineyards were a thing of the past. At least that’s what the glossy wine magazines like to say. And right now, I was living proof of it. Just when I thought I could handle everything, I was met with the biggest shock of my life. Dad, who I always believed had everything under control, was in debt. Turns out the year he died, he came in contact with some people who advised him to invest in something; some kind of enterprise that would guarantee great return. But deep down, it was just a scheme, one that would cost the vineyard unless we settled with a ridiculous amount of money. I never knew much of the intricate details. All I know is, since then, I’ve worked my a*s off trying to settle these debts- doing so much with little or no results. Finally, I was able to pay back the so-called organization that had claimed to have good intentions. I gritted my teeth. Just the thought of them put me in a rage, “scumbags…” I muttered under my breath. But what next? I was just left with an even bigger debt from all the banks I had taken out the massive loans from. Not one. Not two. I should’ve seen this coming. The bills had been stacking up for months, and I had exhausted every option- loans, credit cards, borrowing from friends who didn’t have much to lend. And still, it wasn’t enough to keep things running. The vineyard was failing, and with it my dreams of keeping Dad’s memory alive. I’d spent sleepless nights calculating, trying to come up with a plan that didn’t involve selling the vineyard, but no matter how many times I ran the numbers, the outcome was the same: without help, I’d lose everything. I leaned back and ran my hands through my jet black hair, a sigh escaping my lips for the umpteenth time that day. Suddenly, my phone rang and I turned in the swivel chair trying to locate where the sound of my ringtone was coming from amidst all the mess I had made in the farmhouse. I finally retrieved it from under a pile of more papers. “Hello?” It was Peter, one of my closest friends, well, more like a family friend. He’s known me and my dad for as long as I can remember, working diligently to protect the vineyard and literally anything that has to do with my family. I loved him to bits. He’s been a great help. “Selene…hey, what’s up?” “Hey Peter, I um, I guess I’m trying my best not to find a hole and go crawl under” “Wherever that happens to be, let me know…” “You know I can’t even do that. There’s just so much for me to fix, I can’t afford to go away for even a second or things will get worse” “Hey, don’t sweat it. I just called to check up on you, have you had lunch yet? Mira told me some new mail came in and you’ve been stuck in the farmhouse since this morning…” “I clearly told Mira not to say a word about this to you”, I chuckled, “I should’ve known she’d never listen. And no, I haven’t had lunch yet…” Mira is my assistant who helps run the things I don’t have the time to do. She definitely knows how to get things done, even without me passing orders. I never could’ve asked for a better assistant, and now, friend, though sometimes I wonder who’s the boss between us. “You know how Mira is, she doesn’t take no- or yes for an answer….she does whatever she wants. She’s just looking out for you. How about we go get lunch?” Peter asked in that honey like voice of his, and I could tell he had his cheeky grin on. “I would love that, cause I’m starving.” “Alright. I’ll come pick you up in twenty minutes…, and hey, I’m so sorry about the news regarding the vineyard…” “It’s not like I didn’t see it coming.” “That doesn’t make it any easier.” He sighed, “I’m on my way.” “Sure. See you soon.” My phone gave a beep signaling the end of the call. I stared at the stack of unpaid bills on the table, my heart sinking lower with each passing second. I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t keep pretending that things would get better if I just worked harder, tried a little more. There was only one option left and I hated it. My gaze flickered to the sleek black business card sitting on the counter, it’s stark white lettering spelling out a name I never thought I’d seriously consider. Damien Blackwell, CEO, Blackwell Enterprises.