Chapter 6 : Wine and Dine

The anticipation of seeing Tahir again made me almost jittery and I kept my palm planted firmly on my knee to keep my leg from bouncing. It would have been easy to let myself over analyze this feeling, but I just wanted to enjoy it. It had been so long since I’d felt chemistry like this with anyone.

Ziv drove us out of town and off of the paved roads. It was not a long drive, the town was small and most of the residents lived in wooded areas without any neighbors nearby. We took a winding private drive for a few miles before a house came into view.

It was a beautiful white brick building. The grounds immediately around the house were perfectly manicured, but the property was surrounded by thick forest. It was spring, so the trees were full and green, making it impossible to see much of anything beyond the yard.

The house had vaulted windows that gleamed and reflected the surrounding trees so clearly that it seemed like we were staring straight through the house. If someone had told me it was a building façade on a backlot, I would have believed it.

It was hard to believe that such a luxurious house really existed in the middle of the woods like this.

Ziv parked the car and I stepped out onto the pavement. There was a rock lined walkway that led to a set of stairs. It was a short walk, but gave enough time to take in the impressive size of the house. There must be at least 6 bedrooms in a house of this size. It rivaled Kim’s.

When we reached the front door, it swung open to reveal a man with short, light brown hair and kind hazel eyes.

“Welcome,” he said in a friendly tone. He stepped aside and ushered us in.

The entranceway was unadorned with high ceilings and dim, recessed lighting. I shouldn’t have been surprised that the place wasn’t decorated. He just moved in a few days ago.

The brunette man shut the door behind us.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Donnelly,” he said. “I’m Riley Wright, Mr. Gujic’s house manager.”

I smiled. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Wright. I didn’t realize Tahir has such an extensive staff.”

“Oh, it’s just the four of us,” he answered. “Mr. Gujic, Leilani, Ziv, and myself.”

“And the occasional guest,” Ziv added with a smirk.

Riley gave him a disapproving look, then turned to me. “I’ll show you to the dining room. Mr. Gujic is waiting for you.”

“Thank you,” I said. The house was huge, there was no way I would have found the dining room without being shown.

We bypassed the staircase across from the door and went to the left. At the end of the hallway, we entered a doorway and stepped into a large room. In the center was a long table of dark wood and several matching chairs. There was a fireplace set into the far wall that was unlit. The only thing that stood out was a bouquet of wildflowers in the center of the table and a drink cart parked against the wall.

I could smell fresh bread and something savory nearby, but there was no food in the room. I assumed the kitchen was through the large double doors to the right.

Tahir walked towards us when we entered and held his hand out to me. I shook it and smiled up at him. He was 6’4” easily, so I nearly had to crane my neck when he was standing directly in front of me.

The moment his skin made contact with mine, warmth spread through me. I felt it settle into my cheeks and scolded myself for blushing already. He had only shaken my hand, why was I reacting so strongly? I must have been more touch starved than I’d realized.

“I’m glad that you could make it on such short notice,” he stated.

His voice was so unique. It was deep, but the gravel in his words made it seem even deeper. There was no yellowing to his teeth or scent of tobacco, but I wondered if he’d been a smoker in the past.

“Thank you for the invitation,” I responded. “Something smells really good.”

“Thank you,” he said proudly. “It’s been a long time since I’ve cooked for anyone. I hope that you will enjoy it.”

“You cook?” I asked in surprise. I assumed that a man with as much money as Tahir would hire a chef.

He nodded. “I enjoy it.”

He escorted me to the table and pulled a chair out for me. I sat and tried not to look as out of place as I felt. The fact that Tahir had prepared the food himself made this all feel a little more intimate.

Riley had slipped away while I was focused on Tahir, and he re-entered through the double doors with a large tray of food laden with a variety of dishes. There were kebabs, dumplings, a rice dish and bread as well as a saucer of cream and small, lightly browned squares of dough.

It all looked delicious and smelled even better.

He sat the tray on the table in front of me. Tahir thanked him and Riley nodded to him and left the room.

“You cooked all of this?” I asked in surprise.

“I did,” he said, looking amused.

Tahir walked to the drink cart and pulled a bottle of wine from a bucket of ice. He returned with the bottle and two glasses and poured one for each of us. I didn’t recognize the label, which meant it was probably more expensive than anything I had ever consumed before.

Tahir sat beside me and raised his glass towards me. “To your health,” he said.

I lifted my glass and clinked it against his softly. “And yours,” I responded. The wine was sweet and dry. It was going to go straight to my head if I wasn’t careful.

There was a tense, but not uncomfortable silence as we started to eat. The dumplings were especially delicious. They were filled with onion and shredded beef and the savory flavor paired perfectly with the wine.

“So, how are you liking Bell City?” I asked softly.

Tahir smiled at my awkward attempt at small talk. “It’s a nice little town.”

“Quaint?” I asked in amusement. It was the word that people always used to describe Bell City when they were trying to be polite.

“Sleepy,” he replied. “Which is a welcome reprieve.”

“I guess it would be, if you’re used to hustle and bustle,” I said. I took a piece of bread from the tray. It was circular with an indentation in the center. I tore a piece off with my fingers and tasted it. It was the perfect balance of light and fluffy.

“Am I right to think you find it dull?” he asked.

I smiled a little. “I’ve been here my whole life.”

“What’s your favorite thing about Bell City?” he wanted to know.

I took a sip of wine and thought about it. There were some nice shops in town and the old movie theater was fun to visit once in a while. There was nothing in town that really stood out to me though.

“There’s a cave,” I said suddenly.

Tahir looked surprised, but waited for me to continue. I hadn’t thought about this place in a while, but it was my favorite spot when I was a teenager. I used to go with Dex whenever we were stressed out. Maybe it was the fabled twin telepathy, but if one of us went to the cave in distress, the other would arrive as if compelled by some unseen force.

“A cave?”

“There are a ton of natural caves around here,” I explained. “There’s a particular cave not too far from my childhood home that my brother and I used to hang out in. We probably shouldn’t have. I’m sure it’s far too dangerous to enter now, but it was a perfect place to watch the lightning bugs.”

“That sounds wonderful,” he said. “Is your brother older or younger?”

I scoffed. “He’s older by two minutes and he never lets me forget it.”

“You’re a twin,” he replied in surprise.

“Yeah,” I said. “My brother Dexton is a nurse here in town. Do you have any siblings?”

“No,” he answered automatically.

A distant look came into his eyes and he took a deep drink of his wine. I grimaced internally. I’d hit a nerve somehow. He swirled his glass and looked into the deep liquid thoughtfully.

“So,” I started again, a bit uncomfortable. “Artifact authentication. That’s got to be interesting work.”

“I enjoy it,” he said. “No two jobs are ever the same.”

“What’s your favorite artifact that you’ve ever authenticated?” I asked. I was a little desperate to change the subject, but I was also honestly curious.

“A Lydian stater,” he said immediately. “It’s an ancient coin, minted in about 600 BCE.” The excitement was clear in his voice and his eyes nearly sparkled as he spoke. “They’re made of electrum, which is an alloy of gold and silver. I was pretty sure that it was authentic based on the sunburst design with the lion's head overlay, but metal testing confirmed it. It’s the oldest piece I’ve ever consulted on.”

I smiled. It was endearing to see the way his face lit up as he spoke about something that he was passionate about. I couldn’t believe that he was really as old as he claimed. Not with the boyish excitement in his voice as he talked about his work.

“Sorry,” he said after a moment. “I know that it’s boring.”

“I don’t think so,” I retorted. “I’m a journalist. I can understand the draw of being involved with something that is historically significant, even if it’s only in a small way.”

He smiled at that. “I’ll be honest, I was worried about inviting you here. I didn’t want to subject myself to another round of invasive questions.” I blushed a little and looked into my glass of wine. “But I’m glad I chose to keep my promise to you.”

“I’m glad too,” I said.

I’d managed to keep myself from bombarding him with questions only because of my nerves, but I didn’t need to tell him that. Being this close to him without hundreds of other people on the other side of the door felt strange.

When I met Tahir at the party, there was a sense of the surreal hanging over me. Something about him made him feel almost unreal. When I looked at his face, I got the feeling that there was more to him. As if there were something hidden in plain sight that I just wasn’t looking hard enough to see.

Tahir stood and I looked up at him. He offered me his hand and pulled me to my feet. When he looked me in the eye, I felt exposed in the best possible way.

Without a word, he pulled me to him and kissed me. The same spark that I’d felt the first time we kissed ignited within me. With that simple action, he filled my body with heat. I wrapped my arms around his neck and returned the kiss enthusiastically.

I licked at his lips and he pulled me closer. I gasped as he kissed me deeper. A shudder went down my spine as an odd sensation washed over me. Was his tongue split?

He made a deep, approving sound and pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. The expression on his face was raw desire and it made my legs feel a little weak.

“Would you like to come upstairs?” Tahir asked softly.

I hesitated. It wasn’t like me to sleep with someone I’d just met, but I couldn’t deny the way that he made me feel. I looked into his eyes and I knew my answer.

“Yes.”