Pappou stood quickly, his face an angry red. Kat took a quick step towards him as he grabbed the back of the chair for support but he righted himself. It wasn’t good for him to get so upset. She glanced at Tony and Yia-yia but he was looking down and she was stacking dishes; neither had noticed Pappou’s wobbly legs.

“We’ve got a new patch of vines to get up to scratch,” Pappou said. “There’s a mortgage on the last block, we’ve lost our chardonnay crop and now you want to spend money on expensive strips of plastic when a dose of spray will do the same job.”

Tony looked up. His face was expressionless but there was a definite droop to his shoulders. Kat felt sorry for him, knowing how difficult it must be for him to get Pappou to change his mind once he dug in his heels. “Dad tries to avoid chemicals these days,” she said. “He uses the sticky wrap to trap the weevils.”

“He can on his little winery,” Pappou snapped. “It’s much too big a job here. Spraying is the best option and the cheapest.”

Kat gave Tony a weak smile and was pleased to see him wink back. It was good to see he hadn’t lost all his spark.

“Come, Katerina, we will leave the men to their business,” Yia-yia said.

Kat picked up a stack of plates and followed her out. Any last thoughts about staying in Margaret River had been squashed. She definitely couldn’t work for Pappou.

* * *

Flynn arrived to collect Keely in the new car. This time she was a little disappointed he hadn’t brought his bike. She’d tied back her hair and put on her jeans just in case. At least there was no sign of Kat and the car was easier for conversation.

“Are you ready to taste the great wine that will be adorned with your artwork?” Flynn asked.

Keely smiled. “Yes.”

“I hope you’ll approve.”

“I’m afraid I’m not a very competent wine judge.” She looked over the rows of vines bathed in sunshine. It all looked so simple but she was beginning to realise there was much more to winemaking. “How do you know when it’s time to bottle the wine?”

“It’s a combination of things.” He was looking ahead, manoeuvring the car out of the driveway and onto the road. “We do lots of blending trials, or at least in the case of this sauv blanc semillon blend, it’s been me rather than ‘we’. I keep careful notes. There are lots of things to take into consideration. I want to make sure I get the percentages of the blend in perfect harmony.”

His eyes were on the road but Keely could hear the enthusiasm in his voice.

“How did you learn what to do?”