White Jacket Required (22 page)

“Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that. We should chat further this weekend. I feel like we have a lot in common.”

“I'd like that. Shouldn't be so hard, since these folks have paired us together for basically everything!” I said, laughing, before turning to a customer who had just set his empty wineglass on the counter before me.

The next two hours flew by as Adam and I worked together, chatting with customers and telling many of them about our interview process. By the time five o'clock rolled around, I was tired of being on my feet and was thankful for the hour to rest before cocktails and dinner. I secretly hoped I would run into Adam again in the lobby before heading to dinner, but he was nowhere to be found. I couldn't even remember the last time I felt so connected with someone, and I ached for more conversation.

Dinner was created by Team One and consisted of juicy mini-hamburgers stuffed with creamy goat cheese, grilled vegetables, chicken schnitzel, and an Asian-style cucumber salad, prepared by Rocky, who, it turned out, had a major flair for Japanese cuisine. Our glasses were filled to the brim with Murphy-Goode's signature Zinfandel, Liar's Dice, and we sat outside the house that the future employee would live in.

I thought of Rob back home. He continued to be incredibly sweet and encouraging, and I felt a tiny stab of guilt for feeling attracted to Adam. I didn't even
know
Adam, but I wondered if perhaps he felt the strange bit of electricity when talking to me, too. The night was capped off with a round of liar's dice, the game the wine was named after. Around midnight I said good night to all my new friends and headed back to my hotel room, where I slept for the first time in California.

Sunday was the final day of the weekend activities and also the day of our big interviews. Somehow I was picked to go first, and I was glad to get it out of the way. I had bought a new dress for the occasion and was downstairs eating my new favorite granola with yogurt and a hard-boiled egg when Adam walked by.

“I've been up since 5:30 this morning filming this clip with Greg and Casey,” he said. “I just wanted to say good luck! I'll be interested to hear how it goes. I'm going last.”

“Thanks! I'm actually pretty glad that I'm going first and then have the whole day to relax,” I replied. “The hotel pool might be calling my name.”

Adam laughed. “Well, I'll catch you later. Here's my number if you want to grab something to eat when you're done.” He wrote on a napkin, and I punched the number into my Blackberry.

The interview was pretty standard. I got asked a bunch of questions about the blog and how I felt I could best promote the company if I were given the job. Interviews have always been one of my strengths, and I ended this one as I always do, with a firm handshake like the one my dad taught me when I was a little girl.

I thought about calling Adam afterward to tell him how it went, but I held off and called Rob instead. He answered after one ring with an excited tone. “Hey! How did it go? I bet you rocked it. I miss you so much!”

“Hi!” I responded. “It went well, I think. I'm just glad I went first. I got to say everything I wanted to say and feel pretty good about it.”

“That's fantastic. They would be crazy not to want to hire you.”

“Well, don't get your hopes up. Regardless, this has been such a great experience and I feel like I've made some really good friends!” I almost mentioned Adam but bit my tongue. Technically there was nothing between us, and of course I was
allowed
to have friends who were guys, but I decided not to even go there. “Hey, Babe, I gotta run though. I'm starving and then have to meet with my group about cooking tonight.”

“Okay, I love you!” Rob said, and I clicked my phone shut.

I decided to grab a sandwich on my own and headed over to Oakville Grocery, a homey spot with a large outdoor fireplace and a wine bar inside. All the sandwiches looked delicious, and I was suddenly famished. I chose chicken and Gruyère on a French baguette, and while I was sitting outside my phone buzzed with a text message from Adam.
Just finished my interview. Starving . . . lunch?
I replied to tell him where I was and then sat back in my chair in the sunshine.

“Hey!” he called as he walked up to the table. “I'm so hungry . . . let me go inside and grab a sandwich.” He came back about ten minutes later with the same sandwich I had ordered and a bottle of iced tea. Noticing me squinting in the sun, he handed me his red aviator sunglasses. I put them on and smiled.

“So, how did it go?” I asked as he dug into his sandwich.

“Great! My approach is to just always be myself in situations like that. This is just between us, but I think there might be a few other opportunities open for us other than this Murphy-Goode job,” he said.

“You think? Like what?” I asked him.

“Well, I don't know exactly . . . but they sort of hinted to me that there was something else available. Let's just say tomorrow will be very interesting. By the way, this sandwich is amazing. Do you want a bite?”

“No thanks; I actually just finished the same thing. I love Gruyère!”

We sat outside for another twenty minutes discussing the dinner we were going to make for the group that evening. It turned out we would be cooking for twenty-five people, which was more than I ever had cooked for in the past. I suggested something that could easily be made for a large group, like risotto, and it went from there. Eric was also on our team and said he would make teriyaki steak; I would make my mushroom risotto, and Adam was in charge of dessert. I thought to myself that this was going to be really good. Having a degree in baking and pastry always made me very curious to taste other people's desserts, and as much as I hated to admit it, I usually judged them on it. Adam seemed to be good at whatever he did, so I was very curious to see how he managed on the dessert front.

Later that afternoon, Adam and I cooked alone in the kitchen while the rest of our group mingled outside. We both were quiet, focusing on our tasks at hand, but the silence wasn't awkward in the least. An hour or so later, we served the finished products to our guests, who raved about both the risotto and the Mexican cheesecake Adam had whipped up.
Hmmm,
I thought,
the guy can bake
! I made a mental note to later ask him to email me the recipe so I could re-create it at home.

The next morning was filled with nervous energy as the ten of us crowded under the tiny gazebo in the park, waiting for Dave to announce who had been chosen for the job. I laughed and joked with Rocky and Carrie and then we all took our seats and Dave picked up the mic.

“I can't even express what an awesome time it's been getting to know these ten talented people from around the country. I wish we could hire all of you, but my boss told me only one or else I lose my job.” The crowd broke out in laughter. “So, without anything further, I'd like to welcome Casey as our new Wine Lifestyle Correspondent!”

We all broke out in applause as Casey stood up to give Greg a big hug. Honestly, I was only a little bit disappointed that I wasn't the one hired. Overall, I felt intense gratitude that I had made it this far and been able to take part in such a fun weekend. I gave Casey a hug afterward and knew that the absolutely perfect person had been chosen for the position. Then, suddenly, I felt an arm on my shoulder and looked up to see the face of one of the women on the PR team for Kendall-Jackson, another California winery owned by the same parent company as Murphy-Goode.

“Jenna, can I talk to you for just a moment?” she asked. I couldn't believe what she told me next. They wanted me to fly down to Southern California the next day to visit another Jackson family winery. My travel arrangements would be taken care of, and Adam would be accompanying me.

I waited about an hour before calling Adam to see what in the world was going on. Everyone else was going home that afternoon but we would be staying and traveling together the next day. It didn't even make sense. Adam answered the phone with excitement.

“Ready for tomorrow?” he asked.

“I have no idea what's going on!” I responded.

We chatted for a few minutes, and then I told him I was exhausted and going to bed early.

I said good-bye to all my new friends as they headed out and then ate a quiet dinner by myself at the little Vietnamese restaurant next door to the hotel. The noodle bowl was absolutely perfect and had big chunks of crispy spring roll mixed throughout, as well as peanuts, scallions, and wedges of lime. It might sound odd, but I've actually always enjoyed eating dinner by myself. I relish the entire process and usually bring a book to read while I wait for my food. I figure I either look like I have no friends or like a VIP restaurant critic, since I always take photos of my meals before eating. Either way, it works just fine, and after having such an intense and draining weekend, silence was my best friend.

Early the next morning, we left the hotel and drove to the small Sonoma County airport. I couldn't believe that I was actually flying down the California coastline in a private plane. It belonged to the owner of the company, Jess Jackson, and was fully stocked with blankets, granola bars, and big bottles of water for us. While Adam chatted with the Jackson family employees up front, I pressed my face against the window in the back and just took it all in. Never before had I seen natural splendor like the stretching miles of mountains and ocean that sprawled before me. Florida seemed like light-years away, and I felt something change from deep inside. I dreaded going back home to the cramped condo I now shared with Rob, dreaded returning to my old life, where it felt like I did the same old thing every day. Not that my life was ever bad, but after experiencing something so new and wonderful, I knew nothing at home would be the same.

We spent the day at the beautiful Cambria wine estate, hiking through the vineyards and getting a whole tour of the winery. Finally, that evening, they put Adam and me into a limo headed for the Los Angeles airport; it was time to go home. We stretched out in the back and I arched my neck to see the city's skyline through the smog.

“I don't even know what to think right now; that was just crazy!” I said to Adam as I jokingly snapped his photo.

“I know. Who knows what the future holds! Ashley was talking to me a little bit about some interesting job opportunities today on the plane, so we'll see. I love Austin, but California is such an adventure!” he said.

“They didn't really talk to me about anything job related, and I'm still not quite sure why I'm involved in all this but, hey, I'm not complaining,” I said. “For my first time on the West Coast, I didn't do half bad!” I laughed, thinking how crazy it was that just one week earlier I had been so far removed from everything out here. I didn't even want to think about the red-eye flight I was about to take home.

The limo pulled up outside Adam's departure terminal, and I got outside to give him a hug good-bye.

“Well, who knows. Maybe I'll see you again one of these days in California!” he said. “Let's definitely keep in touch; I've got some good blogging ideas up my sleeve for you.”

“Yeah, definitely. It was really great to meet you. Hopefully I'll see you again one day!” I said and then he grinned, threw his backpack on, and walked away. A few seconds later, he looked back over his shoulder at me, and I smiled good-bye before hustling inside.

I made my way into the busy airport and changed out of my nice jeans and blazer into more comfortable clothes for my overnight flight. I wondered if Adam had made his flight on time and thought to text message him, then realized I couldn't because he'd accidently left his cell phone out in the vineyards at Cambria.

The flight home was long and exhausting and made me realize just how far away I really had been. When we landed around six in the morning, Rob was there waiting for me with open arms. I fell into his embrace and wondered if perhaps the past four days had only been a dream. Tampa seemed hazy and humid, and I could still smell the hotel shampoo in my hair. When we finally got home and I fell into bed, I felt more tired than I ever had in my entire life. I slept all the way into the afternoon, and when I woke up I stumbled around the condo, feeling like something was missing, but I wasn't sure just what that was.

Mushroom Risotto

Serves 4

Making risotto is almost therapeutic for me, and during the chilly winter months I often enjoy making this for dinner. Served with a nice glass of red wine, it's all you really need. If you are not familiar with Arborio rice, it is a short-grained rice from Italy that has an especially high starch content. Nowadays, it is found in most supermarkets.

4 to 4½ cups homemade chicken stock (page 84)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 shallot, minced

1 cup Arborio rice

¼ cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon butter

16 ounces sliced cremini or baby bella mushrooms

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the chicken stock in a small saucepan and keep warm over low heat. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottom pot over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the shallot and sauté for about 4 minutes, or until tender and translucent. Add the rice and stir well to coat. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the white wine and cook until all is absorbed, stirring constantly.

Continue to cook the rice, adding the chicken stock, ¼ cup at a time (a ladle does this job nicely), stirring continuously over medium heat until the stock has been completely absorbed by the rice. Do not add more stock until the previous amount has been completely absorbed by the rice. Once all the stock has been incorporated, continue to cook until the rice is just cooked through.

In a separate pan, melt the butter and sauté the mushrooms until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the cooked mushrooms and cheese to the risotto, stirring until combined, and serve.