9
O lani gave herself a final once-over in the mirror.
She was going out with Elion again, and they were going wine tasting.
She had been wine tasting a few times, but not at the vineyard they were going to and not at night.
She hadn’t heard of the vineyard that was just half an hour outside of the city, but upon research, she discovered it did exist.
She was dressed in a two-piece yellow set.
The top had thin shoulder straps and a knotted tie in the middle hung down the front.
Her midriff was exposed, and she wore high-waisted pants.
To be practical, Olani decided on sandals instead of heels.
Her kinky hair was pulled up on top of her head in a thick ponytail with tendrils on the side of her face.
Olani paired the outfit with stud earrings, a necklace with a simple drop pendant at the end, and a matching bracelet. She kept her makeup natural and light.
After checking herself in the mirror, she grabbed the clutch she was taking, ensuring that everything she needed was in it before exiting her bedroom and then out of her house. She’d already sent Xola the address of where she would be and ensured her location was on.
Olani keyed the address into her GPS before pulling out onto the street. She turned on her favorite playlist and enjoyed it as she made her way to the vineyard.
When she pulled into the vineyard parking area, there were only a few cars, so it only took her a few seconds to spot Elion’s. She parked beside him, and as she turned off her vehicle and opened her door, he was there to help her out of the car.
She placed her keys in her purse before taking the hand he offered and allowing him to help her out of the car. She looked up at him to find that he was staring down at her, his eyes roaming over her.
When he leaned down to capture her lips with his, Olani followed his lead. His lips molded against hers before slipping his tongue into her mouth and tasting her. His hands settled on her exposed skin as he pulled her closer, and she found herself releasing a little moan into the kiss.
Her free hand went to Elion’s shoulder, and her body sat flush against his. Their tongues moved slowly, and she forgot they were standing in a parking lot.
The kiss was broken several long minutes later, and she took a deep breath. “Hello to you too,” she said with a soft smile, listening to him chuckle.
“Hello, Sweetheart,” he responded. “I suppose that should have been first.”
“If that’s how you want to greet me each time, I won’t complain,” Olani informed him with a mischievous smirk.
Elion gave her a chaste kiss. “I’ll keep that in mind. Should we head inside?”
She nodded, pressing the button to lock her car door before they stepped out of the opening, and she closed it. She allowed him to lead them towards the entry walkway with her hand in his. As they approached, there was a sign, and she looked it over.
“Wait, this says they close at eight. That’s in half an hour.”
He nodded at her. “They do, but Shaw, the owner, is a friend of mine. So, we’ll have the vineyard to ourselves for the evening.”
She nodded and continued to follow him up the path. When they reached the entrance, Elion gave the young man standing there his name and opened the gate to let them in.
They were under a large pavilion with string lights hanging from the top, each column wrapped in lights. Tables were spread out, with lantern lights in the center. On the other side of the pavilion, Olani could see a building or house of sorts. She assumed that was where they brought the wine from.
Elion led her over to a table and pulled her chair out for her. As she sat, she looked around. Only seven other people were there, and she could tell they were getting ready to leave. The glasses used for tasting on their tables were empty.
She turned her attention to Elion, taking him in before he took a seat.
He was wearing dark gray slacks with a black long-sleeve button-up, the sleeves rolled up a bit.
He had a black watch on one wrist and a black bracelet on the other.
He’d left the top two buttons of the shirt undone, and Olani was enjoying the view of his chest.
They’d only been seated a few minutes when a man approached their table. He was dressed in khaki pants and a white button-up. Like Elion, his sleeves were rolled up a bit, and she could see the peaking of a couple of tattoos.
“Elion, I’m glad you got back out here,” the man greeted them as he stopped at their table before turning to her. “And who is this beautiful woman?”
“Shaw, this is Olani. Olani, this is my friend Shaw.”
Olani held her hand out, and Shaw shook it gently. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You as well. Especially if you have this workaholic friend of mine spending time on other things,” Shaw responded with a smirk before turning his attention to Elion, who just raised an eyebrow at him.
“Where’s that twin of yours?” Elion questioned.
“You know, Silas. I’m sure he’s somewhere causing trouble.”
Olani listened to the two men laugh, biting her bottom lip to keep from smiling. She enjoyed listening to Elion laugh and chuckle. The deep sound was pleasing.
“Well, I’ll have the wines brought out for you to taste, and then the two of you can walk the vineyard. The lights will come on here shortly, and you know where to go,” Shaw stated. Elion nodded, and Olani thanked him before he left.
It wasn’t long before the people left in attendance began to trickle out, and then a cart was pushed out to them with several different wines, along with a tray of fresh-cut cheeses.
They tried a few, and Olani had to admit that she enjoyed them.
She rarely found a red wine that she enjoyed, preferring sweet over dry, but these were a good balance.
“So, how are the sculptures going?” she questioned after the brief silence.
“I actually just finished one. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about it since it wasn’t one I’d planned out. It sort of just happened, but I like it.”
She smiled at him. “Sometimes being spontaneous is what you need.”
“For someone who claims they aren’t artistic, you give great artistic advice,” Elion responded with a smile of his own.
They finished their tasting, and Olani watched as he stood, coming to her side of the table and holding his hand out. She placed hers in it, grabbing her clutch from the table and allowing him to lead her towards the vineyard as the lights came on.
E lion intertwined his fingers with Olani’s as he led the way through the vineyard. The lights were now on, giving it a soft glow as they journeyed through it. The silence was peaceful for several long moments as he enjoyed her company.
They’d been walking for about five minutes when Elion looked down at her. “Have I told you how beautiful you look?”
She looked up at him and smiled. “No, but thank you.”
“No need to thank me for the truth.”
As they continued to walk, Elion asked her how work was going. She told him about a couple of businesses that she was hoping to contract with. One was an industrial plant that was considering hiring through agencies since it hadn’t had much luck expanding its workforce when production expanded.
“I want to be the only agency they work with. It would bring in a lot of jobs for several of the clients that job search with us.”
“I’m sure they won’t make the mistake of going with someone else,” he responded as they turned left.
“I hope you’re right.”
“So, I know that the next date is your turn to choose, but there’s this cooking class centered on desserts this weekend, and I thought you might like to go with me.”
Again, she looked up at him and smiled. “I’d liked that.”
This time, Elion pulled them to a stop and leaned down to kiss those soft lips. “You can choose the next two.”
They started their walk again, and he thought about their week six date. According to the website’s breakdown, that was when they were to take a weekend trip away. The site would give them three options and packages to choose from.
Elion knew that he’d need to tell Clara that he was dating before that week came around because she would ask far too many questions about him being gone forty-eight hours and he wasn’t working.
They walked the vineyard for about forty minutes before going back to the pavilion. Elion had been sure to walk them in a circle, so it only took them ten minutes to get back.
When they did, he found the two covered dinners Shaw had been nice enough to have his chef cook for them and two glasses of wine. He definitely owed his friend for this.
“What’s this?” Olani questioned as he led her back over to the table.
Elion pulled her chair out for her before taking the silver lids off the two dinners. The chef prepared crispy salmon, asparagus, and sliced potatoes. It looked and smelled delicious.
“This, Sweetheart, is dinner. You didn’t think I was going to ask you out this late in the evening and not feed you,” he stated as he took his seat. “That would be criminal,” he joked with a smile.
When she rewarded him with another one of those beautiful smiles, he had to keep himself in his seat.
While they ate, they discussed more of their interests, and Elion told her a story about him and his sister getting into a fight when he was twelve because she broke one of his statues after he’d used all the hot water. She was upset she didn’t have any for a date she was going on that night.
As they finished eating, one of Shaw’s employees came in with another covered dish, placing it in the middle of the table and taking the other two dishes away. Elion took the lid off it and found a large slice of cheesecake.
Getting up, he went to Olani, pulling her from her seat. He took it before pulling her back down and into his lap.
“I know I said what I chose may not have required you to be in my lap, but look, I was wrong.”
She laughed as she turned sideways on his lap. “Well, I’m not going to complain.”
He watched her pick up the fork on the plate beside the dessert.
She forked some and held it out to him. Elion took it into his mouth and didn’t miss how her eyes dropped down to his lips.
He then watched her stick the fork back into the cheesecake before slipping it into her mouth and wrapping her lips around it. His eyes dropped down to her lips.
They continued to eat the dessert this way until it was gone, and he ran his hands up and down her waist the entire time.
He leaned back in the chair and stared at her momentarily. He found himself doing it often when he was with her. She was beautiful, plain, and simple. A vision all on her own.
He hadn’t noticed that the same employee had returned to take away the last dish and leave mints until he heard the lid being placed back on the tray. Elion grabbed one and popped it into his mouth while Olani grabbed the other.
He looked at his watch and found that it was a few minutes after ten. He placed his hands on her waist, standing. He knew she had to work tomorrow and didn’t want to keep her out too late.
As they began to head toward the entry they’d come through before, he saw Shaw beside the service building. The other man was on the phone, and Elion waved at him, Shaw waving back.
Once they were at their cars, Elion pulled his phone from his back pocket. This was officially the end of their fourth date, which meant that by the site’s standards, they were free to exchange numbers as long as they continued to input their dates into the site.
“I think it’s about time that we exchange numbers.”
“It’s as if you read my mind,” Olani responded, pulling her phone from her clutch. The two exchanged phones to put their numbers in.
When they passed them back, Elion slipped his back into his pocket before leaning down and kissing her lips softly. The last thing he needed was to get carried away the way he had upon first seeing her, the way he had after their last date.
“I’ll see you this weekend,” she stated as she opened her car door.
“I’ll call you,” he responded. It was better for him to be honest with them both because he knew he would call her before they saw one another again.
“Okay,” she replied, and Elion kissed her one last time before watching her get into her vehicle. He stepped back and watched her as she left before going to his car.
Sliding behind the wheel, he started it before pulling out of the parking space and then out of the lot, heading toward his house.
He enjoyed his date with Olani, but then he’d also enjoyed all the ones before.
Tomorrow, he’d pick up Clara’s present. It was time he thanked her for minding his business.