Chaos Among The Vines, page 21
Their footfalls bounced softly off the hewn rock walls as Ava followed Jules down the narrow staircase.
“This is the only thing I hate about this villa.” Jules raised her voice above the clunk of their shoes on the wooden steps. “These stone walls make it feel like I’m descending to the bowels of the earth.”
“I’ve only been down here one other time, but I felt the same.” As they moved past the pile of discarded household items, Ava averted her eyes. The first time she’d made the trip to the cellar with Will, the jumble of junk had annoyed her sense of order. Her fingers still itched with the need to organize it. But worse, another glimpse of the baby buggy, so like the one she’d had as a kid, would reopen the crater of loss in her heart. No sense going there.
Instead, she focused on the now. Will had explained how the original owner of the house had blasted the foundation in order to connect to a natural string of caverns. “Did you know they’d used the caverns as a root cellar?” The large cave had been converted to a wine cellar after the first vines had been planted. “Knowing the history of the place doesn’t do anything to lessen the fact the cellar is creepy.” Ava had declined most opportunities to follow Will down here.
“But the treasure it holds! Liquid sunshine.” Jules laughed as she led the way to the rear of the cellar.
The lock clicked loudly when Jules finagled the key in it. As she swung the wrought iron covered glass door open, the metal scraped harshly on the stone floor. Ava tugged the string attached to the light fixture, illuminating the space and its brightly glinting bottles.
“It certainly is a treasure.” The bottles were cool and slightly dusty as Ava trailed her fingers along them. “Which ones are you going to pick?”
Jules cocked her head. “We’re having chicken, so white would be most appropriate.”
“But it’s being prepared with a balsamic glaze, so wouldn’t red work better?”
Jules beamed a smile at her. “Good call. I’d say between the two of us, we can manage eight bottles. You grab the red and I’ll pick some whites. But be careful when handling the reds. Don’t want to stir up any sediment if we can avoid it.”
“Shh, don’t let Will hear you mention sediment in the same breath as you’re talking about his wine. It’s a guarantee he’ll launch into a lesson about decanting and how his wine doesn’t have debris.”
“It doesn’t,” Will said from behind them. He advanced into the room and slung an arm around Ava’s shoulders. “My wine is perfect. And since I’m here now, we can manage twelve bottles between us.”
Ava’s heart had tripped lightly, then sped up at the sound of his voice. The press of his side to hers accelerated the beat and started tingles deep in her body. She curled against him, the action completely natural now.
Jules eyed them speculatively. “It must be me.”
“Huh?” Ava didn’t bother to hide her confusion.
Will skimmed his fingertips over Ava’s bare arm, sparks shimmering under her skin. The air between them crackled with the volatile connection. “It’s not you. It’s Ava.”
Ava sure as hell didn’t understand the conversation.
Apparently, Jules got it. “Yeah, but if I hadn’t bankrolled your venture here at Rolling In The Clover, you’d have never met. All my investments are lucky in business and in love.”
Whoa! Love?
Will’s even teeth gleamed in the overhead light. “You might have bankrolled me, but my slovenly, haphazard way of doing business guaranteed I’d meet Ava.”
Heart skipping wildly, Ava pressed her hand against his chest. “I’m not following either of you.” Not about the business, or whose fault it was they’d met, or why the conversation turned to love.
Jules cradled three bottles of white in one arm, and plucked a fourth red from its spot in the rack. “I’ll just take these upstairs. You guys will be up in what? Thirty minutes? Dinner should be ready by then.”
Heat flashed into Ava’s cheeks, and she noted Will’s color was a little high as well.
Jules’ laugh echoed back to them as she swept out of the cave.
Will gripped her shoulders and turned her. He touched his mouth to hers and let his lips linger seductively. Ava melted against him, her lips clinging to his. Their kiss filled with desire, but there was something more there. Promise.
He released her mouth, but tightened one arm around her, and trailed his other hand up her ribs, stopping at the sensitive underside of her breast. Laying his cheek on her hair, his chest rose and fell as he calmed his breathing.
“I have a lot of things going in my favor right now,” he whispered. “My wines are popular, I have an efficiency expert bound and determined to make me an even bigger success. Looks like my relationship with my dad might be on the mend.” He straightened and cupped her cheek, his eyes searching her face. “But the very best thing in my life is you, Ava.”
Her heart did a pitch and roll in her chest. Like it was caught in an earthquake, or on a roller coaster. There was a deeper meaning in his words. Something so scary wonderful, she couldn’t find the words. “Will, I—”
He pressed his fingers to her lips and stroked the pad of his thumb over them. “Shh. I’m probably premature in expressing how I feel about you. But you know me. I’m spontaneous. I live for the moment.” He grinned. “You’ve shown me I can do that and still be organized. When this is all said and done, and your assignment here is over, I’d like to schedule a meeting to discuss our relationship. And unlike anything else I’ve ever done, this discussion will be serious, and lead us to the next phase of our lives.”
“Will—”
He silenced her words with his lips. This time just a gentle press, a skim of his fingers on her jaw as he cupped her head. The tender, slight touch swelled her heart, crowding out all other emotion.
Is he saying he loves me? No man had ever uttered those words to her before. At least, not in the way she thought he was expressing it.
He ended the kiss with a nibble on her lips. She teetered slightly when he released her and she reached one hand out to the nearest rack to steady herself, the other pressed against her heart. Will had turned away and was selecting wine, as if he hadn’t just rocked her world with his statement.
Spinning around, he handed her four bottles, which she accepted while functioning on autopilot.
He took in her bemused expression, a grin warming his gaze. “By the way, Jules and Alex will be sleeping in your room tonight. That means you’ll have to bunk in with me. We’ll move your things after dinner.”
Her heart stuttered then kicked against her ribs. Excited tingles spread through her body. She licked her lips. “Um . . . that’ll be fine.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The buzz of her watch on Will’s nightstand rattled Ava out of a deep sleep. In that instant she decided she loved waking up in his bed. Pressed against his warm, solid bulk, she tried to silence the alert with her mind. Not happening. Reaching for the iWatch, she sent up a prayer of thanks for Jules’ and Alex’s need to sleep in her room. Her old room.
Will’s warm hand clamped around her wrist. Pulling her arm away from the table, he pressed her palm to his naked chest. “Morning, and leave that alone.” His sleep roughened voice drifted over her like silk.
She squinted at the display. “It might be important.”
Rolling her beneath him, Will cut off her view of everything besides his face. Golden brown whiskers glinted in the early morning sunlight as he smoothed her hair away from her forehead and touched his mouth to hers.
“Uh-uh, this is more important,” he whispered against her lips.
He slung his thigh between hers and anchored her in place with his mouth and chest and hips.
She wasn’t going to complain when he made his point so eloquently with his body. Ava sank into the kiss, returned it with a fervor that had her gripping his shoulders and pulling him closer. What a glorious way to start the morning.
Will eased the kiss to tiny sips from her mouth, a tickle of his breath on her skin. His lips quirked in a smile. “I bet if I woke you this way every day, Avalon would never show her face.”
It might be weird for him to think of her as two different people, yet her thoughts ran along the same lines. “Pretty sure Ava would stay around all day long. But Will . . .” She pressed his shoulders. “We do have a big day ahead of us. You’re going to need Avalon’s super structured habits today.”
He rolled away from her and slung an arm over his face. “Damn, I hate when you’re right.”
Missing the heat of his chest, she moved with him. When her taut nipples brushed his skin, desire sizzled through her. “No, you don’t. You like my bossy side.”
Lifting his arm, he gazed at her through squinted eyes. “Kind of.” He slid his hand under the sheets and connected with her bare flesh, flexing his fingers into her hip. “Tell you what . . . I’ll let you boss me around today, but I get to take charge tonight. And I have some pretty awesome ideas.” His leer lit a fire in her hot enough to melt nails.
She pressed a kiss to his pec, then shoved up to her knees, taking the comforter with her. “Hmm, we’ll see about that.” She straddled his hips and plucked her watch from the table.
Dropping the comforter, she exited the bed, strapping the watch into place. A pillow smacked her backside. Will’s grin lit his face and the room.
Laughing quietly, she snagged his shirt from the floor where he’d tossed it last night in his rush to get into bed with her. Donning it, she secured a single button between her breasts. She moved around the room, picking up the other clothes strewn on the floor. Will had thoughtfully cleaned out two drawers in the dresser and she’d neatly arranged her belongings in them. Ava withdrew a T-shirt and jeans, along with undergarments.
Behind her, the sheets rustled as Will fluffed the remaining pillow against the headboard and then settled back to watch her. Heat shimmered in his eyes and a wide smile remained on his lips.
“You are gorgeous in the morning, with your bedhead hair and sleepy color in your cheeks. And you wear my shirt so well.”
Ava shot her weight to one hip, the shirt gaping open over her belly. She smoothed the fabric together. “You better get up.”
Will gestured to his lap, where the sheet had tented. “I am up. Why don’t you come take care of this?”
Heat flared up her neck and into her face. “I, uh . . . Will, be serious.” She licked her lips.
His chest heaved. “Baby, I am serious.”
“Let me rephrase. Be serious about getting out of the bed. We have less than an hour to grab breakfast and get to the bottling plant. Plus, you have houseguests.” She tapped the watch and noted the time. “I need five minutes in the shower, then you can go.”
“Damn, Avalon.” He used her full name, revealing he knew she’d come roaring back.
“Sorry. But this really is important. I’ll see you downstairs.”
A sensation a lot like regret filled her as she tugged open the door. She paused in the entryway and cast a glance over her shoulder to find Will staring at her, desire smoldering in his eyes. She chewed her lower lip, battling the urge to shut the door and dive back into bed with the man and see where that smolder took them. A zap of pure pleasure jolted through her, lodging between her thighs.
But sensible Avalon charged forth, brought on by a zap on her wrist as a new alert was delivered. Stifling a groan, she forced her right foot forward and stepped over the threshold, then eased the door shut.
Once Will finished in the bathroom, he jogged down the steps. As he’d passed the office at the front of the house, he’d paused long enough to nuzzle Ava’s neck as she pounded on her laptop keyboard. He gently tugged her hair, tipped her head back and captured her lips while wrapping his forearm over her chest. Loving her wholehearted response, his body tightened and his cock plumped as their kiss lengthened.
Then she laughed as she pushed him away. “Will, I have to finish this email and call into my office.”
Will whistled a merry tune as he proceeded to the kitchen. Today marked a turning point for him and nothing was going to defeat his happy mood. Nothing.
“Drake!”
His best friend was seated at the table with Penny and Guin. Will greeted him with a slap on the back of his head, then scrubbed his knuckles hard on the crown of his head. “Didn’t expect to see you here today.” He dropped a kiss on Penny’s cheek and nodded to Guin.
“I’m joining the bottle brigade.” Drake smoothed his hand over his copper hair to neaten what Will had messed up.
Will had told Drake what the plan was for the day when he’d arranged for a transfer of funds to his dad’s account for the bottles. “Drake, I appreciate it, but buddy, you won’t be able to work for thirty minutes before you start to wheeze.” The last thing Will needed was for his friend to have an asthma attack.
Drake pointed to a brown bag next to a box of donuts. “Came prepared. I have my inhaler and my brownies. All the tricks to keep my breathing easy.”
“Fine, you can stay. But if I think you’re getting bad, I’ll kick you out,” Will retorted, as Guin pressed a coffee cup into his hands. The ceramic warmed his fingers. He helped himself to a chocolate glazed donut and eased out a sigh of pleasure as he sank his teeth into the yeasty treat.
“You won’t have to. I’ll take care of him.” Penny slurped from a steaming mug.
“Deal.”
Drake lifted his chin. “Where’s Avalon?”
“In the front office. She had to make a call to Karen—that’s her boss—and deal with some other stuff.” It was taking her longer than he’d thought it should. He cast a worried look down the hallway to find Jules and Alex approaching.
“Morning,” Jules called as they entered the room. “I smell coffee.”
Alex laughed. “I smell donuts.” He eyed the large white box as he pulled out a chair for Jules. Once she was seated, he strode to the coffeemaker and snagged two mugs, adding cream to one and leaving the other black. Placing the cream-laden version in front of Jules, he dropped to the seat next to hers. Grabbing the only cruller in the box, he broke it in two and gave half to Jules.
Still no Ava. Will bounced his knee and picked at the last bite of his donut. “My dad used to get donuts on Sundays. He’d cut all of them in half and then eat six halves by himself. Gave Mom reason to scold him.” Will usually noshed on two jelly filled pastries before racing out the door. Sundays had always been his only day of freedom growing up.
“We never had donuts in the house,” Jules complained around a mouthful. “Gitta worried that the camera would transform a single donut to five extra pounds.” Jules’ mother was a talented but very shallow Hollywood actress. In interviews she almost never mentioned her daughter, which, from what Will knew, was perfectly fine by Jules.
He spied Ava walking toward him, a frown deeply etched on her brow. Behind her, one of his employees followed. He didn’t look at all happy.
The unusual sight of one of his workers in the big house had Will jerking upright in his chair. “Hey, Ollie. What’s going on?”
“Bad news, boss.” Ollie dug the toe of his boot into a grout line between the tiles.
Will’s shoulders pinched painfully. “Of course, nothing’s ever easy.”
Ava stepped behind Will and rested her hands on his neck, rubbing circles on his skin. Apparently, Ollie had already spilled his guts to her.
“I came in early to fire up the machines, so everything would be ready and we could start on time. I told Meg a couple of weeks ago the labeler needed some attention.” Florid red swept up his cheeks. “Don’t think she ever made the call. Anyway, the heat applicator isn’t working. The labels aren’t sticking to the trial bottles. I’m really sorry.”
Damn Meg. Will crossed his arms on the table and dropped his forehead on them. His former employee had turned into a curse from hell. What am I supposed to do now?
Ava stroked her fingers up his spine, tangling them in the curls brushing the collar of his shirt. “Come on, Will. All we have to do is work the problem.”
He sighed under her soothing touch. “How’re we going to do that?”
“I don’t know.” She paused and her hand stilled in his hair. “Jules, any ideas?”
Will raised his head, his gaze locking on Jules as she tapped her chin thoughtfully. “The labeling is one of the last steps,” she mused. “We could hand apply the labels. We could use hair dryers to adhere them in place.”
“That will take hours,” Will groused, knowing his plans for getting on the road by early afternoon just went up in smoke.
“Yeah, but you really only need four people running the line. If we use high heat, each bottle might take thirty seconds, no more than a minute to process.” Jules sent her glance around the people at the table. “We set up a work station. Two people move the bottles from the line, we have enough hands that four people can glue, and then two more to move them back to the line to crate them up. Easy.”
He did a mental count. “We still might be short a few bodies.”
“Will, remember your dad and mom are coming back to help as well.” Ava moved her fingers from his neck, grabbed his mug and took a sip, then resumed her calming strokes on his nape.
“And Brynnden is coming too,” Jules pointed out. Cell phone in hand, her fingers flew over the face of it. “I’ll just text her to confirm and tell her to hustle.”
“Okay. We could do this. But how many hair dryers do we have?”
“I’ll run into town and pick up some up,” Guin volunteered. She crossed to the counter where she’d left her purse. “I’ll get extra just in case. Ava, car keys?”
“They’re in my purse in Will’s room. Help yourself.” As Guin scurried from the kitchen, Ava tugged his hair, pulling his head back until their eyes met. “I know this is going to add one extra step, but this gives us a pretty great opportunity.”
Will snorted. “I’m not going to like this, am I?”
