Once Tasted: A Silver Creek Novel (30 page)

“Hey, Thomas … Yeah, it’s good to hear yours, too. Things are good.… Yeah, I’d say she’s pleased with the young wine. To quote the lady, she thinks you hit another one out of the park.… No, they’ll taste the remaining
barrels tomorrow.… Sure we will.… How’s she looking?” Reid paused.

Feeling his gaze upon her, Mia turned her head and met it.

“I’d say she’s looking real well. Tanner. I think she forgot to wear her hat last week. Some new freckles have sprung up across her nose.” When she scowled, he answered her with a teasing grin and continued his conversation. “Yeah, she does. I’m a little worried she’s getting too scrawny. I went into the kitchen just now, and there wasn’t enough to feed a mouse.… Mm-hmm, I’ll do that. And did she tell you about Bruno, her dog? He’s a big, hairy mutt she adopted. Follows her around everywhere. You’ll get a look at his ugly mug when you guys Skype.… Yeah, the family is fine, thanks. Busy. We’re bringing artists over here to sketch the vineyard.… No, it was Mia’s idea. That’s right, Mia’s doing a great job—just as you predicted. And Pascale—things are good between you? … Glad to hear it.… Same goes, old man. Call whenever you can.… I will,” he said, and with a laugh he clicked off the phone.

Mia tossed Bruno’s rope toy and watched him galumph across the lawn for it. Picking it up in his mouth, he shook it as if it were a snake before trotting back and dropping the vanquished rope at her feet. “Thomas sounded happy, didn’t he?” she said, not turning around.

“He did. He misses you, though. You caught that, right?”

She heard Reid rise to his feet. “Reid?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you,” she whispered, blinking her tears away.

“You’re welcome. Here.” He handed her a slice of cheddar and a hunk of the seeded bread. “Eat this.”

“So I can regain all the weight I’ve apparently lost,” she said with a sniff.

“Yup. You’re wasting away.”

“Tell that to my jeans.” She took a bite of the bread and cheese. “I can’t believe you shared that hogwash with Thomas.”

He dropped down next to her on the step. “He wants to know that kind of stuff. Like I said, he’s family.”

“The best kind,” she agreed. “Oh, cripes, I forgot to tell him about Jay.”

“Why should you? Since he’s not the best kind.”

“Not by any stretch of the imagination,” she agreed drily. “But Thomas would probably want to know that he paid a visit. I wonder if Jay has tried to contact Thomas.”

“Unlikely. Jay’s doubtless figured out he’s tapped that source dry.” He turned to look at her. “Mia, don’t even start feeling guilty. I told you what Grant found out about Jay’s business interests.”

“I remember.” She sighed inwardly. According to the Knowleses’ head of security, Jay and his associates owned a string of super-sleazy strip joints. Grant Hayes’s contacts had also discovered that Jay was in hock up to his eyeballs. He’d been losing big time at the tables recently—which explained where Thomas’s money had gone. “No, I’m not feeling guilty,” she said.

“That’s a relief. The guy’s worse than a hustler, Mia. He’d steal the collection money in church.” He thumped her casually on the back as she choked on a mouthful of bread and cheese. “Luckily, I think he’s understood he won’t be able to play you, either.”

She gave a final cough. “No, he won’t.”

“Good. Let’s stop talking about Jay. It puts me off my feed.” He stood, and she saw him grab the wine and glasses as well as a black-and-gray-striped blanket she didn’t recognize.

“Where’d you get that?”

“My truck. I keep a spare saddle blanket in case I need to bring an injured animal home to Quinn. Come on. Let’s take the rest of the food and have a picnic on the lawn. We can watch the sunset.”

T
HEY FINISHED THE
picnic food in short order. Only the wine remained. They drank it slowly, watching the sun settle lightly on the distant mountains while magenta streaks crossed the deepening sky.

“A good day,” Reid observed idly. He was lying on his side, propped up by his elbow. He held his wineglass in his other hand.

“Mm-hmm.” And much of it was due to him, Mia thought. It had done her so much good to talk to Thomas. His voice had soothed like a balm. And if Reid hadn’t gently bullied her into making the call, she’d have stalled, cutting off her nose to spite her face. Had she ever bothered to see the deep well of kindness, of generosity, in him before? No, and the realization shamed her. No matter what happened between them or how this “thing” they were in ended, she hoped she’d never lose sight of what he’d done for her.

She felt the weight of his gaze on her. How incredible that he’d noticed the newly sprouted freckles across the bridge of her nose and cheeks, there because she’d forgotten to wear her hat one day last week. He was more observant than any man she knew. No wonder she was helplessly in love with him.

“So what do you think of the wine?”

His question brought her up short.

“The wine?” she repeated.

“I chose it because I thought it would be different from your Pinot. But there’s something about it.” He paused, frowning as he considered. “No, I can’t put my finger on it.”

She glanced at him curiously, then raised the glass. She dipped her nose into the bowl and inhaled the wine’s bouquet. Taking a slow sip, she let it speak to her and then let her mouth “chew” it for a better feel. She swallowed. “A solid Napa Cab,” she said. “I like its depth. It’s got some nice notes of cherry, pepper, and licorice, and just a tease of eucalyptus. It’s a powerful wine without being obnoxious.”

He laughed softly. “Ah, the ‘tease of eucalyptus’—that’s what slipped by me. Did you know that when you study a wine you angle your head slightly? Sometimes you bite your lower lip—a light scrape of your teeth. Did you realize that?”

“Um, no.” She fought not to bite her lip.

“When you bring the glass to your lips and let the wine flow into your mouth, and you hold it there, I like to think about all you’re feeling, all you’re sensing.”

She shifted and cleared her throat. “Reid, are you trying to seduce me?”

His smile made her body heat up several degrees. “Oh, most definitely.”

“Oh.” Wow, did he really think he needed to? She was already melting.

“I was hoping you’d take off your shirt.”

Instinctively, she glanced about.

“Everyone’s gone home for the day,” he said, guessing the reason. “It’s just us and Bruno.”

“We’d be giving Bruno quite an eyeful—”

“Bruno’s witnessed some of the worst man does. I
doubt anything we do will faze him. Lose the shirt, Mia.”

Thank God it was a scoop-necked T. She couldn’t have handled buttons with his glittering gaze searing her. She dragged the shirt up, exposing skin that tingled and burned.

“Mm-hmm. A purple lace bra. Did you choose it because you knew you were going to be sampling the grape today?”

“No.” She swallowed. “I chose it because of you. I thought you might like it.”

His blue eyes turned silver as desire flared in them. In a voice now sandpapery-rough, he answered, “I do, but not as much as what’s beneath it.”

This time she took the initiative. Her hands went to the catch between her breasts. She unhooked it, paused, and slowly peeled the fabric away. Her breasts felt heavy; her nipples were already puckered and aching for his touch. For his taste.

“Exquisite.”

Reid hadn’t moved from his lounging pose. His eyes were hooded now, giving him an almost sleepy air. But behind the heavy lids, his gaze devoured.

Around them the air thickened, charged with desire. A muscle twitched beneath his cheek.

“The rest needs to go, too,” he said.

Her eyebrows rose. “Does it?” She took a deep breath and released it, aware of how it made her chest rise and fall and how he tracked the movement.

His laughter was warm with appreciation. “You’ve become a tease. Damn, you’re beautiful.”

She bit her lip to contain her smile. Lowering her gaze, she let it land on the unmistakable bulge pressing against the fly of his jeans. “Speaking of beautiful bodies, will that make an appearance?”

“Rest assured.” And the bulge grew bigger.

Their eyes met and her smile broke free. How delicious that seduction was a two-way street, she thought.

Emboldened, her fingers traced a lazy path down her torso, stopping when she reached the metal button of her jeans. She freed it and then tugged the zipper down, revealing the matching purple fabric of her bikini bottoms.

“My compliments on the lingerie of the day. But, again, it can’t compare to what’s underneath.”

She grasped the waistband of her jeans to drag them over her hips, then paused. “Show me something.”

He sat up. His shirt flew through the air.

She laughed in delight.

He was gorgeous. A perfect specimen of male beauty, possessing just the right combination of hewn muscle and bone, the whole kissed by the sun and sprinkled with light-brown hair. And here he was, whipping off his clothes like a horny teenager desperate to get naked with her. How could she not love him?

“Your turn, Mia,” he prompted, grinning.

She shook her head. “Oh, I need a little more incentive than that.”

“You drive a hard bargain, lady.” With quick, efficient movements, he unbuckled his belt, unzipped his jeans, and shucked them, shedding his underwear, too.

He wasn’t just gorgeous. He was awesome.

“You’re very good for my self-esteem,” she said faintly. His erection never failed to impress.

“Sweetheart, I’m willing to be very good for whatever you need.”

“Really?” She licked her upper lip.

His penis lengthened.

Incentive enough. Matching his previous pace, she yanked off her jeans but slowed as she worked her panties down, uncovering her triangle of brown curls, then rolling the panties down her legs. Her heartbeat was
pounding in her ears by the time she flicked her wrist, tossing them aside.

His chest was heaving. “God, Mia,” he said hoarsely, and then swallowed visibly. “Okay, listen.”

“I’m all ears.”

“Thankfully a couple of other things besides.”

“You noticed.”

“I’m nothing if not observant. I need you to lie back and lift your arms over your head.”

The movement made her back arch, thrusting her breasts toward the sky. Impossibly, her nipples drew even tighter, into twin points of need.

“Oh, yeah. Stay just like that. You know, don’t you, that you drive me out of my mind?”

“Reid.” She moaned his name in invitation.

“Right here.” He swung a muscled leg over and straddled her hips. At the contact, she bucked, her heat meeting his hard length, her gasp mingling with his groan.

“Witch.” He groaned again. Squeezing her with his horseman’s thighs, he said, “Hold still. I’m about to conduct a very delicate operation, and it requires total concentration. I can’t have you distracting me.”

“And the nature of this procedure?” Blatantly ignoring his command, she arched her hips again.

He hissed a breath. “Dual nature, actually. It’s clear I need to hone my Cab-tasting skills. I thought I might also catalog the flavors to be discovered in the lush peaks and valleys of Mia Bodell.” With a wicked grin, he leaned over and plucked his wineglass off the blanket. It was still full.

“So, are you ready?”

She managed an “mm-hmm.” Then her breath caught, lodging in her throat, as she watched him dip his finger into the glass and bring the moistened tip to her breast. At the touch, her breath escaped on a ragged moan.

To the sound of her soft pants, he painted her flesh. And then licked it clean, naming honey, vanilla, and cinnamon as he went. With every damp drag of his callused finger, with every lap of his tongue, she heaved and writhed.

Her nipples begged for his touch. He obliged, drawing a tiny circle with his finger over the aching tip, and she cried out as heat pooled deep and low, making her throb. He glanced up from his handiwork. At the look on his face, her toes curled into the wool saddle blanket.

Slowly, he lowered his mouth and drew her nipple deep inside. He suckled until she was writhing against his erection, opening her legs to let him feel the dampness between her thighs.

He released her nipple, only to latch on hungrily to its twin, feasting with his tongue and nipping with his teeth. She arched off the blanket, offering him more.

“Honey and salt, mint and rose.”

Relentless, he continued at his task, licking the wet trails covering her, naming flavors as he consumed her. She lost track of them, lost track of everything but the cool glide of wine over her body, the fiery lashes of his tongue, the press of his rock-hard length against her aching center. With every breath, she absorbed the scent of him. Leather, horse, sweat, citrus, and man mingled with the warm earth beneath her. She let it fill her, let it enter her heart and flood her veins, until he was in every cell of her being.

He’d reached her navel. This time he didn’t dip his finger into the glass but, with the seriousness of a scientist, poured a slow trickle of the cool liquid into the shallow indentation. Her body convulsed with shudders as his tongue dipped into the pool and lapped it in lazy circles.