“No.” I laugh through my nose. “Come on. Come with me.”
The stairs that lead down to the cellar are being renovated, so we take the elevator. When the doors open, there’s a noticeable drop in temperature. Marisa instantly folds her arms. I take off my flannel, draping it over her shoulders before she can protest.
She shivers and blows on her palms. “I thought you said it wasn’t creepy.”
“It isn’t,” I counter.
She rolls her eyes at me, slipping her arms through the sleeves and clutching my flannel tighter around herself. The sleeves hang way past her hands and the fabric completely engulfs her. I don’t think I’ll ever not love the sight of her in my clothes.
“What are we looking for again?” Her eyes wander over the hundreds of barrels stacked to the ceiling. I’ve been down here more times than I can count and forget that it’s something worth looking at. It’s one of the most popular spots for first looks between couples getting married at the winery.
“A thief. It’s a long, shiny, silver thing.”
She snorts and says, “That’s what she said,” under her breath.
Gavin would’ve left it near the cluster of barrels, ready for racking. I glance around, and sure enough, it’s sitting on a cart next to the barrels.
“Found it,” I announce.
Marisa, who’s wandered off, starts walking my way, the sounds of her shoes echoing closer and closer.
“Good, it’s fucking freezing.”
“Okay, let’s go?—”
A loud boom sounds, and the lights cut out. Marisa screams and grabs on to me, her nails digging into my skin.
“What was that?” Her voice is muffled from her mouth pressing into my arm.
The lighting is dim and terrible down here, but without it, it’s pitch black.
“I’m not sure.” I wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her against me, telling myself it’s for safety and has nothing to do with loving the feel of her in my arms. She grabs on to me tighter. “If we go this way, we can sit down and I’ll make some calls.”
I feel her nod as she walks with me to the edge of the wall. Together, we slide down onto our bottoms and sit on the concrete, pulling apart as we do.
Gavin beats me to the punch and calls through on the radio. “Did anybody else hear an explosion?”
“What happened? Marisa and I are trapped in the cellar.”
“I think a transformer blew, but I’m not sure. I’ll have Mom go get Lily. If you give me about twenty minutes, I’ll come release the roll-up door and get you guys out. That is, assuming the power doesn’t come back on before then.”
“Sounds good. We’ll wait.”
Marisa tenses. “A whole twenty minutes in the dark? Thank God you’re here with me. I think I’d be panicking if I were alone. At least with you, I know I’m safe.”
Her words shouldn’t affect me the way they do. She’d likely feel safe with anyone. It’s not the person, it’s the idea. It’s not having to face the darkness alone. But in this instance, it ismewho she feels safe with, and I’m going to let myself sit in that feeling longer than I should.
The darkness, the silence, it’s like we’ve slipped outside of reality. Time is still.
Marisa shivers and, without thinking, I wrap my arm back around her and tuck her in close. She sighs, and it vibrates through my side.
“Thank you.” Her teeth chatter. “I hope I don’t get you sick, I’m probably still contagious.”
“You’re fine,” I say in a low voice and pull her even closer.
We haven’t been this close since we kissed. I missed her. Is that possible? To miss someone despite seeing her all the time? Her vanilla scent drifts between us. It’s a drug. A drug I’ve quickly become addicted to.
She turns her head toward my neck, and her breath tickles my skin. “Ethan?” she whispers.
