Under the Oak Tree - A Sip of Momentary Grace

Act VII - A Candlelight Dinner

Silence filled the room, and Max hung her head in shame. I knew he would think this was foolish. I shouldn't have given this to him.

"I-I'm sorry... I," She tried to snatch the rock away from him, but with his quick reflexes, he held it over her head and looked at the rock in amusement.

The corners of his mouth curved into a smile, "This is perfect. Thank you." His genuine gratitude was enough to make Max's heart skip a beat and fall out of her chest. She recalled how he hid how delighted he was when she gave him the sword ornament, but his response was pleasantly apparent this time. Max promised herself that she would do whatever she could to give more to this man of hers.

She decided to be bold and tiptoed to give him a gentle kiss on the cheek. His earlobes quickly reddened and he inhaled sharply. "Maxi..." He put the rock down and his hand found the small of her back again. Riftan pulled her in for a deep embrace and she thought she was in heaven as he held her flush against him.

The servants knocked at the door. They always seemed to know when to disturb their private moments.

"My Lord, dinner is ready. May we enter?"

"Come in." Riftan sighed and rubbed her cheek lovingly, as the servants set up dinner in their chamber. They rolled in a cart with a wooden platter full of an assortment of cheese, bread, crackers, fruit, jams, and smoked meat. Quality aged wine was abundant in neatly placed decanters. A large grilled filet of Oakley fish with sweet sauce and an accompanying salad was arranged on fine china before them.

"Please enjoy the meal, My Lord and My Lady." The servants bowed and exited the room quietly.

The red hue from the candlelight flickered and accentuated the romantic ambiance. Delicious aromas wafted through the air and Max could hardly wait.

"Oakley, huh? It has been a while since I had fish. What a pleasant surprise." Riftan said, slicing a piece of juicy, soft flesh and letting it melt in his mouth.

"Yurixion and Garow caught one for me once. It tasted wonderful with this dark sauce. They said Oakley during the fall season is best."

"Those two..." He chuckled, then frowned. "...Did you tell them it was my birthday?"

Max felt steam coming out of her ears and straightened her back at his question. She knew she would get in trouble for this and tried to think of an excuse.

"I-I didn't mean to! It just came up! I'm so-"

Riftan started to laugh, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "Relax, I'm just teasing. I don't care." He sipped on his wine and put together a cracker with meat and cheese.

"Eat more." He assembled another cracker to bring to her mouth, but she accidentally bit his finger. She wanted to apologize, but he just smiled and looked at her adoringly. The movement of her small chin was amusing to him and he could watch her nibble with her wine stained lips forever.

A peaceful atmosphere surrounded the two as Riftan withheld the temptation to ravage the mesmerizing beauty that sat before him. Desire scorched through his veins, but he resolved himself in extinguishing this flame later. For now, he wanted to enjoy this sip of momentary grace together as he carefully hung onto every word that escaped from her lips.