Tasty

9. Nice Try #2

“Ugh. You so small-minded.” She shifted slightly in front of me, adjusting her balance. “If Spades was mine, he’d be a show horse. I’d show him off every chance I get.”

“Well,” I said. “technically, he is yours. Alice bred him for you.”

“Really?”

I stared ahead. “Did Dillon not tell you anything about this place?”

“No,” she said. “How well did you know my mom anyway?”

“We were all friends,” I oversimplified. “Me, her, and Dillon.”

“I see.”

We rode in silence for a moment. Just the sound of hooves and wind cutting through the rows. I can see Aurora taking it all in with a bit of distraction.

“You seem curious about your mother,” I pressed.

“Not really.”

“You sure?”

She shrugged, but it wasn’t convincing. “My dad doesn’t talk about her, so I don’t know much.”

“He’s probably too hurt,” I explained. “They were very much in love.”

“I bet they were.”

She turned her head slightly to look at me. “How did you all meet?”

I exhaled through my nose.

“Me and your dad were in foster care at the same time,” I replied. “My mom had just passed, and my dad’s wife didn’t want me staying with them. Plus my mom and I ain’t have nobody close, so the state took me in. I was sixteen.”

She didn’t interrupt.

But why was I even opening up about this?

Maybe it could help her put her life in perspective. It’s not like I’m ashamed of it or anything.

At least not this part.

“Your dad was seventeen and about to age out. So we came up with a plan: hop the fence, steal a couple vintage bottles, resell them and get cash. But the previous owner caught us.”

“What did he do?”

I let out a short breath. “Fuck you mean, what did he do? He whooped our ass. Then your dad broke one of his bottles, and he whooped our ass again.”

She laughed at that.

“Next day, he called the foster house. Told them we wasn’t coming back ‘cause we’d be working off what we owed.”

I adjusted my grip slightly.

“We spent that whole summer picking grapes until our fingertips stained purple. Don’t even know if it was the juice or lack of blood circulation.”

“No wonder you a very ruthless man.”

I glanced down at her.

“Ruthless?” I said. “I’m being easy on you, Rabbit. Way easier than anybody ever was on me.”

“If this is what you consider easy than I’m sorry you had such a fucked up life.”

I scoffed at that backhand, passive-aggressive ass attempt at empathy.

“Ay, it wasn’t all bad. The old man who owned this place was cool after a while.

He even got me my first pair of glasses.

I remember being so scared of staining ‘em with that grape juice and ruining them, I used to use the heel of my palms to adjust ‘em on my face.”

I chuckled at the memory which made her giggle.

“And he taught me to speak proper. Said if I was gonna do business with him I can’t be talking like a corner boy. But I can’t help it.”

“Old habits die hard.”

“Tell me about it. Back in the day, me and your dad had to do whatever to get by. You don’t just forget that shit.”

“I know,” she was on guard again. “Daddy still walks around with a damn gun. Sleeps with it under his pillow and everything.”

“I don’t blame him,” I looked down at her. “It’s a hard life out there, Aurora. You gotta protect what you can when you can, ‘cause you never know when it can be taken. We learned that with Alice.”

She didn’t respond. Just looked out across the vineyard like she was seeing it differently now.

“Ain’t like you can shoot what she had.”

“Yeah, but I bet he wished he could shoot the motherfucka who gave it to her.”

She still looked out to the vineyard. “It ain’t their fault. She was unvaccinated.”

I tightened my grip on the reins. “You don’t exactly take that into consideration when the love of your life and mother of your only child dies in your arms just ‘cause she took a bus. And she was so young. So full of life… it’s a fucking tragedy.”

“I see,” she looked up at me. “Tell me about my mother then.”

I swallowed.

“Alice was…”

I cleared my throat.

“She was the receptionist here at the time. Didn’t give your dad the time of day at first. Then one day… they just clicked.”

“Hmm.”

“What?”

“Nothing,” she said. “It’s just… When I started, I realized there wasn’t a receptionist. Guess I know why now.”

“Yeah,” I said. “It just didn’t feel right giving that spot away. Everything still the way she left it.”

She went quiet again.

“She must’ve been quite the woman for you to feel that way,” she added.

I didn’t answer.

We kept moving through the rows, the air shifting slightly as clouds started to roll in overhead.

“How did your mom die?” She asked out of the blue. I thought about letting it sit, but I didn’t.

“Drug overdose.”

“I’m sorry.”

I nodded once. “It’s all good.”

She didn’t ask anything else about it or whether it was intentional or not. I appreciated that.

“Do you miss her?” she asked instead.

“…yeah.” I lied.

Her voice softened just a little.

“What about my mom? How do you feel about her?”

I didn’t respond.

“Marlon?”

Still nothing.

“Marlon—” She leaned forward slightly, scanning ahead. “The vineyard is on fire! Something’s smoking over there!”

I looked up and saw it immediately.

A thin line of smoke rising past the far rows.

I straightened in the saddle, tightening my grip on the reins.

Spades shifted under me, already picking up on the change.

I nudged him forward.

Then harder.

We moved fast toward it.

On the path, we found Wyatt with an ATV stuck halfway down the row.

One wheel had sunk deep into the mud, the back weighed down with crates from the day’s haul. Wyatt had tried to turn it over and the engine coughed once, then died again with a trail of smoke rising over the vines.

The smell of burnt oil hung in the air.

I got off Spades first. “Christ, Wyatt. What happened?”

He stood beside it, sleeves rolled, hands black with grease. “Mud in the motor. I tried to clean it out, but it—won’t—”

He stopped mid-sentence and his eyes shifted.

I looked over my shoulder. Aurora sat patiently on Spades behind me, dress still clean for now, as she ran her fingers through his mane.

“…hi.” Wyatt greeted.

“Hi,” she returned.

Wyatt straightened up a little. “What’s your name?”

“Wyatt,” I cut in, sharp. “Can you focus? Rain’s coming.”

He blinked, snapped back. “Right. Right. Um… I think we could take some pressure off the motor by leaving the haul here ‘til the rain stops.”

“And let the crows feast?” I shook my head. “Nah. We need all the haul we can get.”

“Can’t you use that shed to hide it in?”

Aurora pointed past the ATV and Wyatt and I both turned to see the structure that sat beyond the row, old and worn down, standing but barely maintained.

“Not ideal,” I said. “Doors don’t stay closed because they lock from the inside.”

Wyatt wiped his hands on his jeans, thinking it through. “We running out of options, boss. This thing’s down, and it’s too slow anyway. We could roll the haul over there. One of us stays inside with it ‘til the storm passes, and the other rides back for a new motor.”

“Sounds good,” I said. “But who stays and who goes?”

Nobody answered right away and Aurora filled the silence. “I’m Rory, by the way.”

Wyatt gave a small smile. “Wyatt.”

“I know,” she said. “You kinda stared at me through the window yesterday.”

He laughed awkwardly. “Yeah… sorry about that.”

I looked between them.

Of course.

It didn’t take long.

Didn’t take much.

That charm followed her everywhere, and men like Wyatt ain’t built to ignore it.

“Enough,” I said, cutting it clean. “Here’s what we gonna do. You and me push the haul into the shed. I’ll wait the storm out with Aurora, and you take Spades back to the office.”

Aurora shifted on the horse. “Shouldn’t I go with him?”

I didn’t hesitate. “I’m not letting you out of my sight!”

They both flinched.

Damn.

I didn’t even mean to get loud. I’m just so fucking annoyed.

“Besides,” I added in a lower tone, “Spades won’t be as fast with two people weighing him down.”

Wyatt shook his head immediately. “Marlon… that horse hates me.”

“You’ll be fine,” I said. “Just don’t look him in the eyes.”

He stared at me like I wasn’t serious. But I didn’t care. My word was final.

“Help me push.”

We moved to the back of the ATV, both of us putting our weight into it. The mud worked against us, slowing every step but we managed. The crates shifted as we loaded them into the shed, one by one.

Aurora stayed on Spades, watching. And Wyatt kept glancing over at her when he thought I wasn’t looking.

Not happening.

The sky above us darkened fast. Wind picked up through the rows, carrying the smell of rain before it even hit.

“Soon as that storm clears, come back for us,” I said, securing the last crate.

“Got it,” Wyatt said. “Be safe.”

I gave a short nod and helped Rory get off the horse so that Wyatt could mount in her place.

He climbed up, hesitant, already bracing himself as Spades shifted under him. I watched just long enough to make sure he got moving.

Then I turned.

“Aurora,” I said, nodding toward the shed. “Let’s go.”

The first drops hit the ground as we moved.

By the time we reached the door, the rain was coming down harder. I let her step inside first then followed, shutting the door behind us.

“Amazing tour, Marley.”

I groaned. “Not now, Rabbit.”

She laughed anyway, brushing rainwater off her arms as she stepped further into the space.

“I’m serious. Besides the chafing up my ass from that saddle, I’m having a lot of fun.”

“I’m glad someone is.”

“We should do this again sometime.”

My eyebrows furrowed. “Why?”

“I like riding!”

Now, the eyebrows were cocked. “Horses, right?”

And she laughed. “Your mind is dirtier than mine. Yes, horses you old perv.”

“Hm,” I closed my eyes and listened to the raindrops falling. “I guess it’s fine. Spades seems to like you.”

“You can keep Spades. I’ll ride Titan.”

“You sure? He is yours.”