“Ready for dinner? I thought maybe we’d walk to town but...” He looked pointedly at my shoes. “I can drive.”
“No way,” I said, grabbing my small black clutch, which I’d already transitioned to for dinner. “You can’t drive to your own celebratory dinner. I got this.”
As we left the room and made our way through the courtyard toward the main building, I couldn’t help but marvel at how pretty it was. “Maybe we need a waterfall in the Barn’s courtyard.”
“I was thinking the same thing. It’s a nice feature, though we’ll have to look at the cost of maintenance.”
“Maybe we can add one near the brewery?”
Neo held the door open for me, giving me a look.
I laughed, loving how easy he was to goad. Adding a brewery to Grado was a touchy subject. “I thought you were into the idea.”
We moved through the building, out the front door and down the street the few blocks into town. Neo explained that, yes, he was on board with Marco’s brewery, but he also didn’t think adding it would be as easy as his brother thought.
“It comes with a whole host of new problems, and expenses. We’re just gaining our footing since the transition, and it’s an enormous investment.”
We continued to talk about the brewery addition all the way into the restaurant, which turned out to be the oldest building in town—a bed-and-breakfast with an attached “American fare” restaurant that led into a tavern-style bar. The host told us that the building was built in 1750 and was a historical Revolutionary War tavern.
We were seated near a front window with a view of the street. A perfect seat. A perfect companion. There wasn’t a single person in the world I’d rather be with at this moment. The thought of ruining our friendship, of risking these such moments for a shot at romance . . .
During dinner, we continued to talk shop while we ate, and I put the gravitas of what was happening out of my mind. It was only after a quick trip to the ladies’ room that I caught a glimpse of flirty Neo. He watched me walk back to the table in a way that empowered me, made me feel like the sexiest woman in the world, even if that wasn’t one hundred percent true. He stood and would have pulled out my seat if I hadn’t waved him away. Neo knew I wasn’t opposed to gentlemanly gestures. But in this case, I was good.
“You know...” Neo said as I sat.
But before he could continue, the waiter came up behind me and presented a bottle. “Egly-Ouriet, as requested.”
“Perfect.” I sat too, explaining as he filled two champagne glasses, “This one’s on me, already taken care of, so no funny business. It’s a celebration.” I ignored Neo’s frown. “Oh, and chocolate cake is coming too.”
“For the celebration?”
“No, for me. Maybe I’ll give you a bite.” My love for sweets was no secret.
I thanked the waiter and held up my glass as Neo did the same. “Congratulations, not just on snagging a visit from Sarah Gibson, which is more of a celebration for Brooke, to be honest—”
“You give one hell of a toast, Thayle. I feel so special.”
Laughing, I continued, “But, more importantly, to a successful harvest and ownership transition. To Grado Valley Vineyards, poised now more than ever to be the premier Finger Lakes destination in large part because of its incredible vintner.”
“That’s a little bit better.” He smiled, raised his glass, and said, “Salute.”
We drank, first one glass, and then two.
“My apologies for the delay,” the waiter said, placing a molten lava cake between us. “Dessert is served.”
“Thank you. You can have some,” I offered. But Neo didn’t move. Instead, he watched me as I lifted the fork to my lips. “Mmm.” I couldn’t help it. This was one delicious cake. “You’re not going to have any?”
“I’d rather watch you eat yours.”
My hand froze halfway to my mouth. Maybe I’d misheard him. But judging by the look on Neo’s face, I hadn’t. So I did the only thing I could think to do. I parted my lips more slowly this time. Pushing the fork just as slowly into my mouth, I brought my lips down around it while Neo watched. And then I pulled it out, closing my eyes and making the exact same sound in my throat as I’d wanted to earlier when Neo had come out of the shower only partially dressed. The sound I’d wanted to make as he lay on that massage table this morning.
When I opened my eyes again, Neo hadn’t moved a muscle. His eyes were narrowed, just slightly. The look he gave me was what had prompted my overtly sexual display of cake eating.
“Is it good?”
“Really good. Try some.”
I thought he would say no again, but instead Neo grabbed his fork. He stabbed the cake without taking his eyes from mine for even a heartbeat. My mouth went dry as he opened his lips as provocatively as I had. But Neo, never to be outdone, took it a step further. Just before the forkful of cake reached his lips, he darted out his tongue ever so slightly. I immediately imagined that tongue on me, as he likely intended. Clenching, my heart racing now, I watched as his lips closed around the cake.