Beached.

Fine Wine

It was painfully clear everyone knew what happened in California—including Thomas. My heart rate quickened, but I did my best to appear calm. My nerves were helped when I felt Jake's hand on my waist. Our eyes met and he pressed a kiss to my temple.

Linda greeted Sylvie and Joseph, and then excused herself and Thomas to another room. Lindsey, the CFO for Seresin Oil, sprung into action to take over hosting duties.

Sylvie didn't bother to pretend to be engaged in the conversation in front of her. Like an apex predator, she was focused on me and Jake. We were still chatting with Emma, who could sense my distraction. She touched my elbow and excused herself from our interaction.

Emma swaggered over to Sylvie, gave her a polite hug, grabbed her hand and led her to the bar to get a cocktail. She winked at us as she forced Sylvie to tear her gaze away to order a drink.

There was a two-minute window when no one was paying attention to us. "C'mon," Jake whispered and tugged my hand. We exited the house through the kitchen and ended up back at our cabin.

"I have a plan. The dress code is a little more casual, though." Jake disappeared into the bedroom and reappeared wearing Wranglers, a half-tucked t-shirt and a buffalo plaid shacket. Following his lead, I threw on my favorite jeans, a t-shirt and an oversized sweater.

Once dressed, we snuck back to the kitchen in the main house, where a basket was sitting on the counter. Jake snagged and yelled "thank you" to no one in particular before we continued on to the horse stable.

As we approached, someone I assumed to be a ranch hand came toward us. He was old enough to be one of our parents. "Well, look what the cat dragged in!" He greeted Jake with a hug. The man held Jake at arm's length and looked him over. "So good to see you!"

"Likewise," Jake responded. Remembering I was there, Jake turned to me and held out his hand. "Kyle, this is Luis. Luis has worked this ranch my entire life. He's the reason I know how to ride a horse, tie a knot, drive a truck, really anything outside the realm of running an oil company." Luis tried to remain stoic at Jake's comment.

Luis opened his arms, and I accepted his embrace. "I've heard so much about you. It's great to meet you!" His accent was soft and inviting.

"Well, I can't say the same about the former." I looked at Jake. He gave a sheepish smile. "But I am happy to meet someone so influential in Jake's life."

A blush came across Luis' high cheekbones. He and Jake had to have been quite the duo when Jake was growing up. Jake's stories of herding cattle and nights under stars now made more sense. I could not picture Thomas doing any of those things.

"Let's get you what you really came for." Luis dug his hand into his pocket, and then dangled a set of keys in front of us. "Treat her well." Jake held his hand out, and Luis dropped them in his palm.

"Wouldn't dream of anything less," Jake replied. His arm around my shoulders, me in charge of the picnic basket, we rounded the side of the stable to find a red '80s Chevy pickup waiting for us. Jake took the basket from me and put it in the bed. Then, he helped me into the passenger side. While he made his way to the driver side, I took advantage of the bench seat, sliding over right next to him. He was pleased to find me there when he swung open the door.

The truck came to life, and we rolled down the dirt road with a sea of hills in front of us. Wordlessly, Jake looped his arm around me. The low hum of staticky, twangy music lulled in the background.

I couldn't help but stare at Jake as his eyes darted between the road and hills. He was looking for the perfect spot. He veered off the road and rolled the truck into its resting spot.

He hopped out and presented his hand for me to climb out the driver side. Jake kept his arm around my waist as we walked to the tailgate. He flipped it down to reveal the picnic basket and a nest of blankets and pillows.

"I had planned this for later in the evening, but given our dinner plans fell through, I figured we could still make the most of the sunset." He placed a soft kiss on my lips and this hoisted me onto the tailgate.

I opened my knees for him to stand between. "I'm sorry tonight didn't go as planned." I said as his hands rested on my hips.

Jake leaned forward and pressed his lips to my forehead. "This was inevitable. You're merely a witness," he explained. "I'm sorry."

I sighed and ran my fingers along Jake's jawline. "It doesn't matter. Sylvie already assaulted me on my turf. This is her turf, so I didn't expect anything less." Jake grazed his thumb over the purple-ish splotches on my cheek and forehead. "What I didn't expect was the blatant complicity of your father."

Jake closed his eyes and sighed. "He's going to punish me for the rest of his life."

"Forget about him." I tugged the front of Jake's shirt to pull him closer. "At least for tonight." I wrapped my arms around his neck. "Let's drink wine and make out." Jake dug his thumbs into my hips. I leaned forward, giving him more purchase.

"I was thinking this night would be PG-13 but I feel like you have other ideas." He pressed his nose into the sweet spot under my ear.

"My idea was PG-13. You're the one hitting all the right spots." A small moan escaped my lips as his fingers tangled in my hair and lightly pulled to expose more of my neck to him.